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All I can say to folks who say "meh" to high fences is please! Educate yourself about white-tailed deer management in the State of Texas instead of taking a stance of ignorance.

Close to 98% of all land in the state is privately owned. It takes a ton of time and money to improve one's property (habitat) and wildlife. And high fences cost ~ $17,000 per linear mile, for a well-built fence.

ProteIn costs about $400/ton as does whole Cottonseed. An adult whitetail needs an average of 4.5-6.5 pounds of highly nutritious feed/day for optimum health. At a carrying capacity of a deer to 10 acres, which is too many w/o supplemental feeding except on the very best country, the cost can be prohibitive unless you have a shallow aquifer beneath your property.

Figure that at a c.c. of 1 deer to 10 acs., your cost of feed is roughly $1,600/month on 500 acres. If you can drill wells for a reasonable $, construct and maintain food plots and high-fence them so you can keep the deer out until established, you can cut down tremendously on your feed bill.

It's a pain on the front end but well worth the investment when you see the end result! A good food plot can produce 10 tons/ac. of feed. In Texas, if you're not in the extreme east/se part of the state, don't waste your time on food plots w/o irrigation.

Finally, I've hunted deer for 43 seasons, now. High fences in the mix for 19 of those. The hardest deer I have encountered to target and kill were all on high-fenced ranches. Four of them. And I never laid eyes on any of them. Not even once. Almost made it five this season.

Gimme a low-fenced ranch in good country any day for targeting and killing a specific buck. Or a transient during the rut. Otherwise, give me a place to hunt (not a "pen") where I know they live and know that I have a chance at seeing and killing a big, mature deer if I play my cards right.

That place could be low or high. I don't discriminate against good ranches and opportunities to hunt them. If you choose to, more power to ya

p.s.-Mr. Rice, neat thing your family has going out there. Love all the purple!

Its just deer in a big pen. I've never hunted on a high fence place and never will. Its like catching trophy bass in a stock tank instead of the lake.

So if I High fence my 25k Acres I have them penned up? Gotcha!

If I invite you down you will not accept? Would it be because it is a pick and shoot hunt?

Still great deer. People can talk back in forth on high fence or not. I have hunted and we have a low fence property in Val Verde/Crockett Counties. I have seen young deer that you knew were going to be a wall hanger walk by me, cross the fence and BAMM!, they were shot. One trophy to me is not to someone else and vise verse. You can try to manage an area on low fence and everyone around you thinking close to same and still there are NO guarantees they will shoot what YOU think is the right deer. You can however manage a High Fence property. And, we put out just as much Protein on our property as we would on a High Fence. We feed nearly 20,000#s this year alone. It was an unusual year of course.

JustWingem, first, I bet you don't own 25K acres to high fence. Second, I don't hunt on high fence places, so no, I would not accept an invite.

Alot of folks think if u feed out year round and plant food plots the deer will stay there. Think about this, how many times have u heard on hunting shows that a buck will stay with a doe in heat in the rut? Well, what if that doe moves off of your land? I understand both sides but if a man is gonna spend 100,000 dollars plus a year for land, planting food plots and feeding out all year and paying his employees he should have the right to build high fences. Besides, thhose that don't agree with it don't have to hunt them. Just my 2 cents on the matter.

Also, I have never hunted a high fence ranch but I know people who have and the deer they see and kill are bucks of a lifetime and it is a business to the ranch owners so whatever they can do to protect their investment is smart, not unethical or cruel. If they didn't take the time to manage they're properties, what do u think the deer population would be and if they didn't have regulations on selective harvest, how many bucks that weren't mature would get killed?

I have hunted a high fence place for free. A buddy has a place in Aspermont. And, I will hunt it again this year, when the invite comes. I am a bowhunter and it will still be a challenge.

WJD get over yourself.nice deer riceman

I am not going to participate in the pro vs against high fence argument. I just have a couple questions for riceman.

Were those deer raised there? or purchased at an auction and delivered only for the reason of selling a hunt?

Actually it's outside of Sonora, and has some pretty nice deer on it.

I suppose it is free enterprise and capitalism at its best. If you want to invest in a high fence game management ranch, and charge folks to hunt it, more power to you. You feed the deer and take care of them and the land, and if you make some jack from it, so be it. I don't think it takes deer away from public lands, the deer were on the private land to start with. If you are a hunter and feel this is not the right way to hunt, then don't patronize them. I don't have a dog in this hunt though. I primarily fish, but buy a combo license every year with the intent of going hunting but rarely do.

I would not hunt a high fence ranch (even if inivited to go for free) just personal preference. I think high fences have ruined the purity (if thats a word) of deer hunting in Texas. Just my opinion. I dont think it is easier to kill a deer on 25,000 acres just because it has high fence vs one without a fence. But for me it is just not the same. My dad has killed some big deer off of high fenced ranches and I busted his chops about it. But if thats your thing more power to you.

Great looking pics!!!