No-one really knows how many deer there are in Ireland, Teddy Cashman told the Joint Oireachtas Committee for Agriculture last week.

Cashman said that when he became chair of the deer management strategy committee in 2022, he was told that “there were 600,000 deer in Ireland, plus or minus 200,000”.

“All we know is that the numbers increased dramatically over the COVID-19 period because there was very little hunting done,” he continued. “We were dealing with a large rise in numbers up to 2022 when there was a fall-off in hunting and much less consumption of venison. A lot of time was lost. Based on the number of deer shot annually and the number of section 42 permits issued, further increases are predicted.”

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The number of licensed hunters is steadily increasing and now stands at 7,000, Cashman said. The number of deer being shot under licence increased to 79,000 in 2024-2025, a 10,000 head increase, with animals shot under serious damage permits almost doubling from 5,600 to 10,000 since 2019.

Eat the problem

Neil Keane of the FRS, which is implementing the deer management programme, highlighted the potential of venison.

“They have a phrase in Australia – eat the problem. If we get to that point and the problem is resolved through the sale of venison, everyone would be happy,” he said.

“I was in Australia,” replied senator Paul Daly. “They eat roadkill.”

Teddy Cashman stated that “suitable game handling and storage facilities in locations where deer populations need to be managed is vital for the development of a sustainable wild venison industry”.

Stags and hens

“Kilkenny is a very popular destination for stag parties, but it is a different type of stag that is causing problems down our way,” said Peter ‘Chap’ Cleere.

“Kilkenny has too many stags. Half are sleeping in bushes and the other half are eating bushes. It is a huge problem.”

Cleere added that deer are a danger on roads. “Transport Infrastructure Ireland has reasonably good figures for national roads – motorways and otherwise – but there is very little information available for deer sightings or accidents involving deer on tertiary or secondary roads.” Cleere said he knew of three incidents on roads close to his home since March.

“County Wicklow is probably the biggest county in the country for deer,” said Michael Keegan, who manages the deer management programme. “Areas that might not necessarily have a deer problem could become the County Wicklow of the future if they are not managed in a sustainable way. Just because there is not a massive deer problem in an area does not necessarily mean that there does not need to be structured management in place.”

In answer to a question from deputy Paul Lawless relating to deer where forestry is harvested, Ken Sweeney of Coillte said: “When forests are felled, deer are being managed at a landscape level. If it adjoins someone’s land, they will be working with their colleagues, whether they are private foresters or Coillte foresters.”