2 Brothers Whitetails: The Growth of a Unique Farming Operation in Louisiana

A First South Farm Credit member, Brandon Bollinger, teamed up with his brother to build one of the most unique businesses in south Louisiana. The pair of brothers got lost on back roads during a deer hunting trip to Windthorst, Texas and stumbled upon a unique farming operation called VTex Whitetails owned by James and Yvonne Veiteinheimer. “We accidently drove onto a piece of land that had a deer farm. We were really intrigued by how big the deer were, and we started dreaming,” explained Brandon.

Bollinger’s brother was the first to suggest that they could begin a similar business in Louisiana. That was the beginning of 2 Brothers Whitetails, a deer breeding operation specializing in growing some of the largest whitetail bucks in south Louisiana.

At the time of their start up, the borders were open to ship deer in to Louisiana from any state. The brothers decided to start out with whitetail deer; five does and the breeder. The next year, they bought twenty-six does and built a 700 acre fence. Since then, they have grown from those original five to 150 does.

Yet, the brothers did not stop there. After realizing there was immense opportunity associated with farming other species, 2 Brothers Whitetails continued to diversify their animal portfolio with exotics, “There was not a local, easily accessible way to get exotics if you just wanted to buy a small number of maybe five or six. So, we saw a unique opportunity in Louisiana,” said Brandon.

Currently, Bollinger has 600 commercial Brangus and several exotic species including: elk, sika, black buck, axis, and fallow deer. Over time, the brothers began to realize there were business opportunities outside of genetics and grew their business once more, “The more research we did, the more we realized there is a wide range of other ventures related to what we do. There are velvet antler opportunities, the stocking of other preserves all over Louisiana, and providing a source for lean meats and jerkies.” There was more growth ahead for the brothers than either had realized at the start of their operation.

Supporting and fostering growth for businesses like 2 Brothers Whitetails is at the very core of First South Farm Credit. The Bollinger brothers value how their First South Farm Credit loan officer desired to learn about their business and how easy he has made their financial journey.

“First South Farm Credit has been phenomenal. When we were ready to buy the pieces of land we needed, our loan officer, Pat Huber, had it done in three to four days. It was not a long, drawn out wait. I provided him with our financial information and Pat had it taken care of from that point forward,” said Brandon. “They have been a huge part of our growth. In fact, First South has been a part of every big growth we have done. I have never worked with anyone like Pat in the banking business. An agent that was so understanding of our business, who really wanted to understand our business, then grow with us,” he added.

First South Farm Credit is proud to assist in fulfilling the dreams of owning a unique farming operation like 2 Brothers Whitetails and has loan officers who care about the growth of your agricultural business.