DEER CONSERVATION
Established 1968
A conservation society established in 1968 to monitor legislation and safeguard the welfare of Ireland's wild deer.
The Irish Deer Society was established in 1968 to monitor legislation and the activities of organisations and agencies that may impact deer, their habitat, and deer-management practices, and today runs regional branches across the country.
The society runs deer-management and proficiency courses, regional branch meetings, and monitors legislation and welfare issues affecting Ireland's wild deer herd, alongside a photography competition celebrating deer in the Irish landscape.
Conservation is the society's founding purpose: it exists specifically to track legislation, herd health and management practices, positioning welfare-led culling as a conservation tool rather than a purely recreational pursuit.
This pursuit is practised under Irish law and the rules of its governing body, which sets welfare, conduct and membership standards for every affiliated member. Reports of malpractice are investigated and can result in suspension or expulsion.
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