Have you ever tried growing them on a trellis? I'm not sure if the deer kick them open the way that they do watermelons, but I was thinking it might help if they weren't on the ground. I grew some canteloupes on a cattle panel last year and they did fine -- also experimented to see if a Sugar Baby watermelon would grow off the ground too. They both did fine, but I see no way to grow larger melons that way due to weight.
I was seriously thinking of the trellis for the canteloupe, but that will only work if I can get my husband to move it to the other side of the garden patch. I’m afraid that where it is would defeat the original purpose for it, to deter the deer. I’ll see how much sweet talking it will take :)