Deer are farmed in New Zealand and elsewhere for velvet antler harvested while still growing, a process that raises welfare concerns about pain and stress.
Velvet antler harvesting involves removing living vascularized tissue that causes pain during and after the procedure. Even when properly anesthetized the harvest process involves restraint that causes acute stress in animals that retain strong wild prey instincts. Farmed deer that cannot express natural flight behaviors in response to perceived threats experience chronic stress from human proximity and confinement during farming operations.