08/31/2026
M3 Whitetails — Ranch Manager Job Posting
Franklin, Texas · Full-time, on-site · Reports to the owner
Ranch Manager — Help Us Build the largest and highest quality Red Deer Operation in Texas
M3 Whitetails · Franklin, TX (30 minutes north of Texas A&M)
Here's the short version: we spent 17 years building one of the premier whitetail deer breeding programs in Texas. We just sold the whitetail herd. We're now putting that same land, those same facilities, and that same standard behind a large-scale red deer operation — plus the blackbuck and fallow we already run.
We're looking for one person to help us keep all of it running right.
About M3
M3 Whitetails was founded in 2009 with about 60 hand-picked bred does from some of the best breeders in the whitetail industry. Blood, sweat, tears, and a lot of stubborn breeding decisions later, M3 became known across the country for producing Big Texas Typicals — wide, heavy, tall mainframe bucks that buyers actually wanted. Our pedigrees carry names that people in this industry recognize on sight.
We did that as one of Texas’ largest operations. No layers, no committees. Just a clear standard and people who cared enough to hold it.
Now we're pointing that same approach at red deer. But this time we are starting at the top.
Why this job is different
Most ranch manager jobs hand you somebody else's system and ask you not to break it.
This one is the opposite. We're in the middle of a transition, which means fencing, handling facilities, water systems, feed programs, and daily routines are all being rebuilt for a different animal. You will have real input on how this place gets set up — not because we're going to hand you a title and disappear, but because the owner is here every day and wants a right-hand who thinks, not one who waits.
If you do this well, in five years you'll be able to point at one of the biggest red deer operations in Texas and say you helped build it from the ground up. That's not a thing that comes up often in this business.
What you'll own
Keeping the place mechanically sound. This is the heart of the job. Fences and gates. Water lines, wells, float valves, troughs. Misting and cooling systems. Tractors, side-by-sides, trucks, trailers, mowers, shredders, augers, and every small engine on the property. Barns, pens, and structures. We want someone who fixes it, not someone who calls someone.
Staying ahead of problems. A dripping float in February is a dry trough in August. A sagging gate hinge is a loose deer at 2 a.m. The person we hire is the person who notices these things on the drive to the barn and handles them before anybody has to ask.
Inventory and readiness. Maintenance parts, hardware, fencing supplies, fuel, feed, animal health supplies and medications — knowing what's on the shelf, what's running low, and what we need before we need it. Nothing on this ranch should stop because we ran out of something.
Animal care and handling. Daily feeding, water checks, and eyes on the herd. Assisting with handling, sorting, tagging, health treatments, and working days. Helping keep clean records — health, treatments, movements, and the paperwork that keeps our permits and herd status in good standing.
Seasonal work. AI season, Fawning and calving season, rut, working chutes, pasture and habitat maintenance, brush and mowing, and whatever the season and the weather decide to hand us.
Being the presence on the place. Gates closed, equipment put up, fuel topped off, tools where they belong, and a ranch that looks like somebody's proud of it.
What we're looking for
Real mechanical aptitude. Not "handy." We mean you can diagnose a hydraulic leak, run a fence stretcher, rebuild a water line, weld a bracket, service a tractor, and figure out equipment you've never seen before.
3+ years on a working farm, ranch, or deer/livestock operation. Deer or exotics experience is a big plus; cattle, equine, or heavy ag equipment backgrounds transfer well.
Loyalty and follow-through. Small operation, owner on site. There's nowhere to hide, and that cuts both ways — your work is visible, and so is your effort.
Self-motivation. We'll show you the standard once. After that you should be running your own day.
Respect for the animals. Red deer are not whitetails. Mature stags in rut are big, fast, and dangerous, and we need someone with the calm and the judgment to work around them safely.
A valid driver's license, the physical ability to do hard outdoor work in Texas heat and cold, and the flexibility for early mornings, some weekends, and the occasional after-hours call.
Welding, plumbing, electrical, or pesticide applicator experience — all valued, none required.
The honest part
This is not a 9-to-5. It's 45–60 hours a week, outdoors, in weather that doesn't negotiate. Fawning season doesn't care about your calendar. Water systems fail in August. Deer get out on Sunday.
If that reads as a warning, this isn't your job. If it reads like a normal week, keep going.
What we offer
$60-100k, based on experience and mechanical skill (if you can genuinely run every system on this place from day one, you're at the top of that range)
Direct daily access to the owner, no bureaucracy, and decisions that get made the same day
A real path to grow as the red deer operation scales
How to apply
Email Mark McMillan at [email protected] with:
A resume or a plain-language summary of your work history
Two or three sentences on the hardest mechanical problem you've solved on a ranch or farm and how you fixed it
Two references who have watched you work
Learn more about who we are at www.m3whitetails.com.
Location: 4951 Mitch McMillan Rd., Franklin, TX 77856
