Eighteen of 23 red deer (Cervus eluphus) at a deer slaughtering premises were successfully stunned with an apparatus modified from that normally used to stun sheep. The five unsuccessful electrical stuns were associated with poor head restraint and poor head contact by the electrodes. The median stunning current was 0.9 A, and in the majority of cases the duration of stunning was less than 1 second. The signs of the electrically induced epileptiform seizures in the deer were dissimilar to those seen in sheep, cattle and pigs, in that the initial tonic phase was less marked, and of shorter duration. A similar shorter and less obvious tonic phase was noted in four deer shot with a captive bolt pistol. Two animals which were electrically stunned, and bled within 10 seconds, showed no signs of recovery while bleeding.