Red deer in Scotland are managed through stalking to control population size, with welfare considerations around shooting practices, wounding rates, and the welfare of surviving deer in managed populations.
Red deer welfare in stalking management involves both lethal and non-lethal welfare considerations. Poorly executed shots that wound but do not immediately kill deer cause acute pain, distress, and prolonged suffering in deer that escape wounded. Wounding rates, while difficult to measure precisely, represent a significant welfare issue in managed stalking. Red deer living in overstocked populations face chronic nutritional stress from overgrazing their own habitat, creating welfare pressure that makes some population control necessary for the welfare of the surviving animals. Disturbance by stalking operations throughout the year affects deer behavior, social grouping, and energetic costs.