Ranch and Wildlife Management

At the Catarosa Ranch managing the land for whitetail hunting is our number one priority. The Catarosa ranch's sole purpose is to provide quality whitetail hunting trips. You will not find cattle, exotics or animal that are non-native to this area of Texas on the ranch. This is a key differentiator and what sets us apart from other hunting outfitters.

We are true stewards of wildlife and have grown up hunting and working the land. Our living is based on hunting and the hunting industry and we leverage over 30 years of outfitting experience to guide our management and business practices. This sets the Catarosa apart from most hunting operations in the U.S. We are not part time in this business; we make our living full time from outfitting and are proud of that fact.

Basing our business and management strategy on a focused whitetail herd, it eliminates the competition that most ranches experience between livestock and exotics for food and protein. In the harsh environment, it takes more that the genetics to develop a balanced deer herd. With the fawn mortality rate for the area having the potential of being well over 70% we feel that this intensified and focused wildlife management strategy gives us the strongest herd possible for our land. This translates into both quantity and quality that hunters want and expect from a reputable outfitter.

There is nearly 100 acres of tillable land on the ranch, most of which is planted with both summer and winter plots assuring quality wildlife nutrition throughout the year. Being semi arid desert we could be faced with drought during some of the growing seasons. We have eliminated this problem by having irrigation on much of our summer plantings ensuring proper food plot growth during seasons that typically have little or no rainfall.

Our ranch is enrolled in the Texas Managed Land Program giving us full management control of our property. Inclusion into this program requires us to meet several criteria per year one of which is an areal deer survey. With close supervision and guidance from the state, we can maximize a sustainable herd size to provide both a good quantity as well as quality animals.

Predator / Hog Control

In keeping a good balanced and managed deer herd, we keep a close tab on the hogs and predators that inhabit the ranch. With hogs competing for food and predators seeking to harm the deer, control of these species is critical in our overall management plan for the ranch.