I hear people say they can but I have a hard believing it. People have a lot of money invested inside those fences.

I saw a small four point clear a 7' or 8' with my own eyes.

They can but 99% of them won't, even if they reeeaaaallllyyyy want what's on the other side. If they could and did, people wouldn't trust them with the amount of money they have invested behind them.

I have told the story before, but had a family member that lives in the panhandle. She had a 10 acre HF Apple orchard and almost every morning, she had to go out and open the gates to let the deer out. Typically 4-6 doe. They would jump in but not out

Doesn't that disprove your point about them not jumping over a HF if they really want what is on the other side?

Yes...

Yep

Yes, ask just about anyone with a high fenced orchard.

If it's so common why am I having such a hard time finding video evidence?

I saw it just a couple of months ago. Buck was dang near flat footed and cleared. He had a running start trying to get back in and hung his rack in the top strand of the fence.

Yes.

Yes

Sure. Last year in Encinal there was a hot doe on one side of the fence and a buck on the other. Which deer do you think wanted on the other side worse: a deer after an apple or a buck after a doe? Which proves my point better?

If they just jumped them over and over, the game ranches would make them higher. Just because there are exceptions, doesn't mean that they all will do it.

I have seen more hung half way up the fence than I have seen make it over. Used to have a picture of a 4 pointer that was hanging 1' from the top by his head. Does that make my point any better?

Deer do not like to jump any fence for the most part. You can watch deer when they are crossing barbwire or net wire fence and see this. They look for a low spot to crawl under or opening in the fence before they jump it.

I watched a giant buck try to jump one a few years back. He crashed straight into it about 2/3 up and actually ripped the fence a little.

I also had a big buck get trapped in my backyard in San Antonio. We had 7ft iron fence and he finally just jumped it, but he didn't clear it cleanly and crashed down on the other side.

I'm sure they can, but I'd still like to see it.

Or they make a new one. One of my stands is on a cross fence. Poor rancher patches the holes 3-4 times a year and I have watched the deer go back to that location and lunge until it bust back open.

Hunting the fence huh? Maybe if you moved your stand and feeder off of the fence he would not have to fix the fence 3-4 times a year or you could just cook a steak and a round of golf on the trip out and keep hunting that spot

I just blame it on the cows

Actually have two on the fence lines. This one is a short fence though and they still want to go under it

Golf and steak is a given

Ha! And this: "I have seen more hung half way up the fence than I have seen make it over." Is literally one of the silliest things I've ever read. Think about that statement for just a minute.

Mature white tails can flatfoot 8' fences. It doesn't happen much for several reasons.

IMO with deer and jumping fences it is where they are raised. If you have deer in an area with only barbwire fences like cattle country, they able go under them most of the time. It is tough to train them to jump into a feed pen or over a 48" net wire fence when they are used to going under. Same can be said if you are in a area that does not have many fences at all. When deer do encounter a fence they do not know how to get to the other side it seems. In the 70's I watched a 1.5 yr old buck trying to cross a barbwire fence. This fence was a 7 wire fence with wires starting really close to the ground. Most of the deer used low spots to crawl under. This buck must have came in from a different direction but was following out a herd of does in the rut. He spent a good 10 minutes trying to get up the nerve to jump the fence. He ran up and down the fence stopping to rare up to jump, but never jumped the fence. He finally found a low spot down the fence and went under it. I had a very noted wildlife biologist tell me one time he was a set of deer pens in the late 80's to early 90's IIRC when they delivered a new breeder buck to the pens. Said the buck trotted off the trailer ran up to the east fence in the release pen and jumped the 8' fence into the pen next to. He then ran to the north fence in that pen and jumped into the next pen. Then decided he did not like that pen and ran to the west and jumped the fence into it. Finally decided he like the first pen he was in and jumped the south fence back into it. If is were someone else I would not have believed them. I know of another buck that jumped an 8' chainlink fence into another pen 3 different times in one season only to be darted and put back. He did this for a couple of years in row at least once per year also. I also had a guy from PA tell about a 400 lb live weight buck jump and 8' fence standing flat-footed without a running start. He said he was shocked that big buck could jump that fence. The buck was killed on the place he jumped into so he got to see the weight on him. He then went in and installed an extra 2' over the top of high fence on the entire ranch after that.
The few times I have seen a deer jump and 8' fence they did not run straight at the fence and jump it. If they did clear it that way they hit the top part of fence and flipped over it. The ones that did clear it easily were running more parallel with the fence and cleared it with ease.
Can they jump an 8' fence? Yes I think almost any adult deer can jump an 8' if or when they want to. They just choose not to most of the time unless pressured. I think they prefer to stay where they were born or within their normal territory range. What we don't know is how many jump a fence to leave a place then return later jumping the fence back in.

Man, until STX last post there was sure a lot of horse schlong in this thread but I did laugh at a few but then again I have also had a few. Good balance.

I have a picture of a spike that got his antlers hung up at about 7 1/2 feet up on an 8 foot fence. We found him a little too late.
I know they can do it, I just haven't seen it. I think when they jump a 4 foot fence it is impressive, an 8 footer would be amazing.

Almost made it.

Lol.....