Deer farm in the village of Iza

One of the most famous tourist attractions in Zakarpattia is the only spotted deer farm in Ukraine between the villages of Iza and Lypcha in the Khust district of Zakarpattia, not far from Khust. Numerous Ukrainian tourists and guests from abroad come to the deer farm (Iza) to admire the slender-legged beauties that can predict the weather.

The rare deer appeared on the farm back in Soviet times in 1987. The historical homeland of spotted deer is the Primorsky Krai. They were brought here by helicopter from the Kaliningrad region. Today, the Khust deer farm has more than 300 deer living on 57 hectares of pasture, forest, and 5 artificial ponds. Spotted deer are very cunning animals. When it is cold outside, the deer gather near the gate of the farm, where they can enjoy hay from a large haystack. When spring comes, they run away to the forest. It is in spring that spotted deer shed their old antlers. In July, new antlers grow. By the way, deer do not like to be taken by the antlers. They love such delicacies as apples and bread. The males boldly take the treats from your hands, but the females are wary. Small deer fawns appear in the summer months.

Once upon a time, the main purpose of raising these animals was pantocrine, a medicinal substance extracted from antlers. It is used for fatigue, neurasthenia, neurosis, weak heart muscle, hypotension, and to increase efficiency. At the time, the business was extremely profitable and brought in a lot of money. Today, Mykhailo Bugash, the owner of a deer farm, breeds deer purely for tourism purposes, as pharmaceutical companies in Ukraine accept deer antlers at extremely unfavorable prices.

"Deer antlers take only 2.5 months to grow. And the growth rate depends on the weather and feeding: warm, normal feeding - they grow quickly, cold - they stop growing altogether," said Mykhailo Bugash. "They ossify very quickly: they can do so in two or three days, and that's already a reject.

Deer farm in the village of Iza, one of the unique farms in Zakarpattia

Numerous tourists come to see more than 300 spotted animals. There is no special program for tourists here. That is, tourists can see the deer only through the fence, and the only thing they can offer is to feed the deer directly from their hands. To do this, you can buy crackers, by the way, the animals are happy to eat this "delicacy" You can see the herd twice a day: in the morning around eight and in the evening around seven.

They look peaceful, but they don't like to be caressed, touched by the neck or just stroked - the instinct of self-preservation acquired by nature is triggered. Therefore, a reward for affection can be a good kick with the front legs. The deer keepers say that such a kick can send a deer flying up to 15 meters!

Deer also fight among themselves. But only during the rutting season - in the fall. A stronger male can have five or even ten to twenty females in his harem. The weak one is left alone. It's simple - natural selection.
A female carries a fawn for seven months, and after the birth, the fawn runs away to the forest in three days. It comes to its mother only to eat, and always in the same place. A few months later, it starts eating food, and becomes a full-grown adult at the age of four. In summer, the animals graze, and in winter they are fed with grain and hay.

After listening to an interesting excursion about rare animals and feeding them, everyone can try on deer antlers attached to the fence and take a photo by heart.

Opening hours of the reindeer form: Monday - Saturday from 9:00 to 18:00, Sunday - free. Entrance fee: 30 UAH for adults, 20 UAH for children, 5 UAH for food.

By train, bus, or car to the district center of Khust from there, through the village of Iza towards Mizhhiria, about 8 kilometers, the farm is located before the village of Lypcha, on the right side of the road, there is a sign. By the way, the route passes through the village of Iza, which is famous for its wickerwork, almost every second villager is engaged in this craft. If you go from the Veliatyno Trembita SPA complex, it will be about 20 km (Khust-Iza-Deer Farm). The farm is located at a distance of 50 kilometers from the village of Kolochava.