Effect of the upkeep method, in natural habitat or farm maintenance

Abstract

The research was performed on 116 fallow deer individuals, including 58 free-living and 58 farmed individuals. The age of the fallow deer ranged from 1.5 to 3 years. The research involved the use of free-living fallow deer carcasses acquired as a result of a cull during huntings in the Zamrzenica Forest Inspectorate, in the kujawskopomorskie province, whereas the farmed fallow deer carcasses were made available for research by the Bomafar Cervidae farm. Of all the individuals for each upkeep method, a group of does and a group of bucks were separated. The aim of the paper was to determine and to compare the values of the metrics of the alimentary tract in two different populations of fallow deer, namely living in a natural hunting ground and kept in the farm system. The morphometric measurements were performed on the carcasses without internal organs. The measurements were taken using the metal tape at the accuracy down to 1 millimetre. The measurements of the intestine length and the capacity of stomachs concerned the unpreserved material. The intestines not emptied from the contents were measured once they were spread on a wet non-adhesive surface. The results of the research demonstrated that the metrics of the digestive tract in fallow deer depend considerably on the method of the animal upkeep and on its sex and there were significant differences in the relative length of intestine and its respective sections.