They usually make them underneath overhanging branches, and the buck may grab a branch end with its mouth when they make the scrape with their hooves. They leave scent in the scrape. Does find the scrape and meet the bucks for mating purposes. Bobcats and wild dogs may get a few very young, extremely old, or hurt deer. Early European settlers harvested and ate deer, and today many people enjoy hunting deer for food and sport.
People are about the only predators that have much impact on deer populations.
Hunting is important in MS and other states because deer populations have grown so large that deer are running out of food. As deer run out of food they get weak, and diseases and parasites can kill them. Deer can die in large numbers in certain areas if they are overpopulated and unhealthy. Hunting helps control the population of deer so that deer stay healthy and have many fawns. The MS Department of Wildlife, Fisheries and Parks manages the annual deer harvest by allowing hunters to kill limited numbers of does and bucks each year.