Stephen F. Austin State University

In pursuit of building the perfect beast, Central Texas ranchers are producing trophy-size whitetail deer by manipulating genetics, charting bloodlines and keeping meticulous pedigrees.

Modern whitetail breeders say it’s all about the antlers. A complicated measuring system, called Boone and Crockett, is the yardstick on which antler length, width and circumference are added to reach a point total. By carefully monitoring their deer, local breeders can score high Boone and Crockett points, which directly affects value.

Rockdale attorney and deer breeder Carroll Glaser said he recently sold a breeder buck to a Lampasas man for $42,000. Glaser said he dubbed the animal Chandelier because a ranch guest saw the buck and blurted out, “My goodness, that deer looks like it has a chandelier on its head.”

Glaser explained there are two different types of antlers that appeal to hunters’ personal preference. One is called a perfect typical, which is symmetrical. The other one has horns that not only grow up, but also downward - called drop tines.

“Some folks like the ones better that look like a mesquite stump,” Glaser said, pointing to a picture of a buck named High Roller that sired some of his herd.

Glaser grew up on a farm near Buckholts, and has farmed cotton, corn and raised cattle. About 10 years ago, he bought some land near Rockdale, and rather than “fool with cattle” he decided to get involved in wildlife management.

“The oldest deer on my place is 4 years old so I don’t even have a mature deer. I’m behind the eight ball, but I’ve still got big deer,” Glaser said. “I’ve tried to buy the best genetics in Texas.”

Over in Bell County, just west of Salado, Bill Grace began breeding whitetails on his 2,500-acre Mustang Ranch in the early 1990s. He said he faced a steep learning curve at first, but relied on help and advice from Dr. James Kroll - aka Dr. Deer - director of the Institute for Whitetail Deer Management and Research at Stephen F. Austin University in Nacogdoches.

Grace has sold a dozen breeder bucks ranging in price from $25,000 and up. He sells an average of 50 does per year, at $7,000 each. Both Grace and Glaser say a quality doe is an essential part of breeding trophy deer.

Grace, 47, moved his wife and four children here from Northern California. He said deer breeding is a way to preserve his ranch, and protect it from the bulldozer.

“It’s really tough to take a piece of land and make it pay for itself without destroying it,” Grace said. “I’ve got all these limestone pits around me. I could start mining limestone. Or I could become a big crusher outfit.”

Instead, Grace has built a deer breeding operation that has clients come from as far away as Mexico and Florida.

“There’s not much you can do to keep the land wild, where all wildlife benefits like what we’re doing. If it wasn’t for our scientific breeding operation it would be tough,” Grace said.

Grace’s property sits on a picturesque, yet fragile, piece of land. Spring-fed Mustang Creek meanders through the center of it, carving out high limestone bluffs.

Grace says they have abundant turkey and quail and have preserved a cedar thicket for the endangered golden cheek warbler. He has cultivated about 150 acres in oats and chicory for deer forage, preferring that the deer he has released into the wild subsist with little supplemental feed.

Otherwise, he relies on range management to keep the land healthy. He employs a full-time staff of three, including an on-site biologist. Mustang Creek Ranch also has an indoor “deer hospital” that has both heat and air conditioning.

Grace said the largest part of his business is selling to other breeders, who want to improve their deer. But he also hosts private hunts to cull the herd.

The Texas Parks and Wildlife Department closely manages Texas deer breeding. Potential breeders must first fill out a comprehensive deer management plan and submit a non-refundable $1,000 fee.

The TPWD regulates the size of breeding pens, duration animals are confined, and number of animals allowed in each pen. Breeders are subject to unannounced records and facility inspections. And if a deer dies, the owner has to deliver the head to a designated lab for tests.

According to the Agricultural and Food Policy Center at Texas A&M University, deer breeding is big business. The center released a 2007 study that counted more than 1,000 registered breeders who generate $652 million of economic activity and support 7,300 jobs.

Out at Mustang Creek Ranch, Grace enjoys spending time in the outdoors, not just hunting, but swimming with his four-year-old twins in a small pond behind his house. Looking back, 15 years since the move from California, he said he is happy with his decision to come to Texas.

“I love hunting. That’s why we started this whole thing. I’ve had a lot of fun doing it.”