BULLARD, Texas — A whitetail deer farm out in Bullard is using genetics and breeding to help build a herd resistant to chronic wasting disease, a fatal neurological illness found among the deer family.
P Bar Whitetails said the farm has one goal in mind when it comes to breeding deer.
"To improve the genetics underneath the fence. Through that not only do we improve antler growth, production, disease resistance – all of our animals are CWD tested before they are released into the release sites," P Bar Whitetails owner Jody Phillips said.
Chronic wasting disease is a disease found in cervid species (members of the deer family).
It exists on the landscape, however CWD surveillance is only robust throughout deer farms. Phillips said it not only exists in whitetail, but in elk and other deer as well. At her farm, she breeds for traits that genetically enhance her herd to provide animals that are genetically sound and have CWD-resistant traits.
"For high-fenced herds, we can introduce new genetics into high fence to prevent to keep things from wind breeding or bad genetic trades from happening underneath the fence," Phillips said.
For any ranch owner who wants deer on their land, these genetically-bred deer can have a positive impact on their land.
"It’ll enhance their farm faster. The deer themselves will be healthier, the management system is better," Phillips said.
She’s not doing this alone. All her employees are women, including interns who are there for the summer.
"Anything that is needed, these ladies are involved. They are here to learn about deer and learn about animal husbandry," Phillips said.
Shaelynn Malatek is a farm manager at P Bar Whitetails. She said they’re a group of women who are conservationists trying to protect their natural resource.
"In a man-dominated field, it’s really nice to come in and see that women can have such an impact on the deer breeding industry but the environment as a whole," Malatek said.
Phillips said if they can eliminate CWD through genetic testing inside a fence, it's a step toward eliminating it in the wild.