The 2024–25 deer season was one for the ages for me in northern Missouri. Along with mentoring new hunters through NDA’s Field to Fork program, I was fortunate to harvest my largest archery buck to date, donate a pile of venison, and fill my own freezer. Yet, despite all those highlights, perhaps the most memorable moment came just two days before Missouri’s archery season came to a close.
An Unexpected Discovery
The evening was one of those classic late-season hunts, with brutally cold, single-digit temperatures and a few inches of snow on the ground. After layering up and hiking through the crunchy snow on my way to the stand, I settled in with hopes of filling one last doe tag before the season ended.
Thankfully, I didn’t have to wait too long. A doe family group worked their way through the timber and into bow range. I drew, settled my pin, released my arrow, and watched as my final harvest of the Missouri season tipped over just 40 yards away.
After notching my permit and slipping my warm gloves back on, I climbed down to take a few quick photos and start the drag out. As I paused to reflect on the season and thank the good Lord for another successful harvest, I noticed something unusual about the doe: Her hooves were partially white!
Possible Causes of White Deer Hooves
Given that on average a deer’s total daily movement can range anywhere from 1 to 15 miles based on their relative age or sex, a deer’s foot is a very important appendage. Each foot is made up of two large, crescent-shaped, keratin-covered halves that form the main hooves, along with two smaller rear appendages known as dewclaws. These specialized structures provide traction and allow deer to navigate a wide variety of different terrain features.
While a deer’s hooves are typically dark or black in color, that’s not always the case. Occasionally, a deer will exhibit one or more white or pale-colored hooves, and I have heard from a handful of hunters who have harvested a deer with this unique trait over the years. This variation in coloration can arise from several possible causes, ranging from genetics to recovery from injury, stress, or disease that affects pigment production.
Piebaldism
One of the most common causes of a deer with white hooves is a genetic condition known as piebaldism, or sometimes referred to as partial leucism. This rare mutation affects the cells responsible for producing pigments, resulting in areas where color is either absent or greatly reduced. Unlike the typical, even coloration patterns seen in most wild deer, piebald individuals display irregular white patches on their body, legs, and in some cases, even on their hooves or other extremities.
In deer, piebaldism can result in a remarkable variety of unique appearances, ranging from just a few small white patches to nearly the entire body being white as snow. Some piebald deer may also exhibit lighter-colored extremities, such as their hooves, eyes, and/or noses. Much like a human fingerprint, the pattern and extent of white coloration are completely unique to each individual, and no two piebald deer look exactly the same.
It’s important to note that piebaldism is not the same as albinism. Albino deer possess pigment-producing cells, but a genetic defect prevents those cells from creating melanin, resulting in an entirely white coat. Because they completely lack pigment, albino deer always have pinkish eyes, noses, and hooves. On the other hand, piebald deer still produce normal pigment in parts of their body, so, though it is not always that case, their eyes and noses can remain black in color.
Physical Injury
Physical injury is another possible cause of hoof discoloration in deer. When examining my late-season doe, I noticed her back left leg was swollen just above the ankle, evidence of an old break that had since healed. In cases like this, trauma to the hoof or lower leg can temporarily disrupt blood flow and stop hoof growth. As the injury heals, the regenerating keratin may develop with altered pigmentation, creating a lighter or white patch on the hoof.
Much like a scar on human skin, this discoloration marks the site of past injury. Because these incidents typically affect only one limb, injury-related color changes are usually limited to one or two hooves rather than all four. All four of my doe’s hooves were unusually colored.
Hemorrhagic Disease
Hemorrhagic disease can also play a role in altering the structure and appearance of a deer’s hooves. HD (including EHD and bluetongue viruses) is an infectious, viral disease of deer, elk, pronghorn and bighorn sheep. It is a blood-borne disease transmitted to deer by biting midges or flies. Hemorrhagic disease is the most important infectious disease of white-tailed deer and outbreaks occur nearly every year in the Southeast.
When infected deer are fighting HD, hoof growth stops. Not all deer die of HD. As the survivors heal and growth resumes, hooves can slough off or grow back irregularly, resulting in cracks, ridges, or even complete separation of pieces of the hoof. These changes can make the hooves appear rough, misshapen, or unevenly colored. However, while HD-related recovery can alter hoof texture and growth, it typically does not cause uniform white pigmentation on all hooves. Instead, as can be seen in the video above, the effects are often centered around the areas where the hoof growth was stopped. Regardless, deer that survive often have cracked or discolored hooves serve as a lasting reminder of their struggle with HD.
Two Other Unique Deer Hooves
Reports of other hunters harvesting deer with unique color variations surface every fall, and no two patterns are ever the same. While volunteering at a Chronic Wasting Disease (CWD) sampling station during the opening weekend of Missouri’s firearms deer season, NDA’s Southern Missouri Deer Outreach Specialist Cheyne Matzenbacher came across two more cases of deer with unique hooves.
The first deer (above) had partially white hooves, black dewclaws, and distinct patches of white hair on both front legs. Its hind legs had black hooves but also showed smaller areas of white hair up the leg. According to the lucky hunter, this wasn’t the first deer in the area to be harvested with white hooves.
The second deer (below) was brought to the same sampling station during the opening weekend of Missouri’s firearms season. This time, both hind hooves and dewclaws were completely white, and the lower six inches of hair on those legs were white as well. The front legs and hooves, however, appeared completely normal.
Deer like the ones Cheyne encountered, and the countless others reported by hunters each fall, serve as excellent examples of the wide variety of colorations that a whitetail deer can display. Though we will likely never know the true cause without in-depth genetic testing, it does not matter. Deer with unique colorations and physical traits have and will continue to captivate hunters and wildlife enthusiasts alike, and simply witnessing a deer with these unusual characteristics is a once-in-a-lifetime encounter for most. For others, including myself, harvesting one fulfills a dream.
Conclusion
As for my late-season doe, all four of her hooves were partially white. Over the years, I’ve seen several other deer in the same area with similar traits, suggesting that this characteristic might not be unique to her. While genetics could certainly play a role in these particular color variations, the other factors mentioned, such as a healed injury or a previous case of hemorrhagic disease, cannot be entirely ruled out.
I may never know exactly why her hooves turned white, but that mystery only adds to the memory of the hunt. This doe wasn’t just another harvest and a delicious venison meal; she was a reminder to slow down and appreciate the beauty of Creation. For me, it was the perfect ending to an unforgettable 2024-25 Missouri deer season, and a fitting reminder of why I love to deer hunt in the first place.