A Texas Rancher Cloned Deer For Years. Some Lawmakers Want To Legalize It.

The Lone Star State has long muddled the line between hunting and farming. Now cloning may help game ranches breed big bucks.

AUSTIN, Texas — A Republican legislator wants to legalize deer cloning, and is accusing Texas wildlife officials of using the COVID-19 pandemic to undermine a breeder’s attempts to spawn big bucks. In a state that often blurs the distinction between hunting and farming, many game ranches have looked to science ― from supplemental protein to artificial insemination ― to grow bigger game for the deep-pocketed customers willing to pay well over $10,000 to shoot them. The proposed law, from state Rep. Matt Krause of Fort Worth, would legalize cloning to help in that endeavor. But the prospect of commercial deer cloning has raised concern from wildlife officials, who say a rancher cloned and sold deer for years without the state’s knowledge or authorization.