Deer Food

[WSU]

What sort of food do people put in front of their cams in the fall?  I've been using old apples, but my supply is going to run out shortly.  The deer were coming in daily for a nice meal.  What do people use (preferably something that is relatively cheap)?

[Wolfdog2314]

Wet cob

[DaveBTS]

Too much corn will kill a deer. They're not smart enough to stop eating it.

[nwwanderer]

Pea pellets from Spokane Seed would work.  Whole grain is fine, start slow if it is new to your deer.  A good vitamin mineral mix is great, a small amount works and is beneficial.  Think of what they would get on there own and build from there.  Simply mowing, watering and fertilizing well grow things like crazy that the deer love.  No water?  Mow it and fertilize after the first rain.  $10 worth of fertilizer will help for fall, winter and spring. 

[sebek556]

did a area with dry cob last year for my kids to hunt. This year it has turned into a natural food plot. The deer pounded the area to bare soil, then ate the cob, fertilized the soil with said cob. Then the wet spring came and poof, grain growing like mad.  a 55lb bag at Big R right now is 12.something a bag

[Hunterman]

Too much corn will kill a deer. They're not smart enough to stop eating it.

Don't seem to hurt the deer in the mid-west.. So that statement is nul and void..

Any good mix of grain, and oats with sweets in it will work well.. Hopefully you've been feeding them all year..

Hunterman(Tony)

[WSU]

I haven't been feeding them all year, but have for a couple months.  It really helps with the trail cam pics, which is my main goal.  They have plenty of food where they are.

[Button Nubbs]

If you've been feeding them for a couple months you should be good to go. I haven't had much luck with cobb where I hunt but they do love apples.

[KopperBuck]

Too much corn will kill a deer. They're not smart enough to stop eating it.

Don't seem to hurt the deer in the mid-west.. So that statement is nul and void..

Any good mix of grain, and oats with sweets in it will work well.. Hopefully you've been feeding them all year..

Hunterman(Tony)

No. Actually there's quite a bit of validity to his statement. Scientifically speaking anyways.

[BULLBLASTER]

You won't get a deer to eat enough corn and anything else to kill them. They will always eat natural browse as well. I have read that corn to deer is like people eating candy. No real nutritional value but won't kill you in moderation. If you kept a deer in a pen and all it could ever eat is corn that would he bad. Even at baits the deer eat plenty of natural browse and don't sat the bait exclusively. Or they would be there all the time.

[buckhorn2]

Tried to get some deer apples but they were out but a guy was buying 5 boxes of pears and said deer loved them so I bought a box and the deer ate them all in about 3 days. So if no apples try pears it worked for me.

[fair-chase]

Too much corn will kill a deer. They're not smart enough to stop eating it.

Don't seem to hurt the deer in the mid-west.. So that statement is nul and void..

Any good mix of grain, and oats with sweets in it will work well.. Hopefully you've been feeding them all year..

Hunterman(Tony)

No. Actually there's quite a bit of validity to his statement. Scientifically speaking anyways.

This is interesting. Curious to know how an excess of corn would kill a deer. Whats the reasoning here? Lack of nutrition, or gaseous bloating like cows with too much alfalfa??? Would like to hear some evidence or conclusions one way or the other.

[blacktailcody]

Wet cob.

[Blacktail Sniper]

Here are a copule links about deer & corn, interesting reading anyway:

http://www.farmanddairy.com/columns/feeding-corn-to-deer-could-be-death-sentence/14324.html

http://www.neighborhoodlink.com/Timberwood_Park/topics/179314

[KopperBuck]

Too much corn will kill a deer. They're not smart enough to stop eating it.

Don't seem to hurt the deer in the mid-west.. So that statement is nul and void..

Any good mix of grain, and oats with sweets in it will work well.. Hopefully you've been feeding them all year..

Hunterman(Tony)

No. Actually there's quite a bit of validity to his statement. Scientifically speaking anyways.

This is interesting. Curious to know how an excess of corn would kill a deer. Whats the reasoning here? Lack of nutrition, or gaseous bloating like cows with too much alfalfa??? Would like to hear some evidence or conclusions one way or the other.

If you get a good set of corn starting in Aug and religiously keep it baited with no rest into Oct, that deer will eventually die of lead poisoning

[Blacktail Sniper]

Too much corn will kill a deer. They're not smart enough to stop eating it.

Don't seem to hurt the deer in the mid-west.. So that statement is nul and void..

Any good mix of grain, and oats with sweets in it will work well.. Hopefully you've been feeding them all year..

Hunterman(Tony)

No. Actually there's quite a bit of validity to his statement. Scientifically speaking anyways.

This is interesting. Curious to know how an excess of corn would kill a deer. Whats the reasoning here? Lack of nutrition, or gaseous bloating like cows with too much alfalfa??? Would like to hear some evidence or conclusions one way or the other.

If you get a good set of corn starting in Aug and religiously keep it baited with no rest into Oct, that deer will eventually die of lead poisoning

 

[KopperBuck]

Here are a copule links about deer & corn, interesting reading anyway:

http://www.farmanddairy.com/columns/feeding-corn-to-deer-could-be-death-sentence/14324.html

http://www.neighborhoodlink.com/Timberwood_Park/topics/179314

Whoa.... someone had to bring facts and data into this? I was just being a smartass.

I think a straight diet of any food source would cause a problem. Just like I can't eat bacon alone everyday, as much as I would like to. Deer eat corn all over, and do well off of it. But it's not their only food source.

[Blacktail Sniper]

Here are a copule links about deer & corn, interesting reading anyway:

http://www.farmanddairy.com/columns/feeding-corn-to-deer-could-be-death-sentence/14324.html

http://www.neighborhoodlink.com/Timberwood_Park/topics/179314

Whoa.... someone had to bring facts and data into this? I was just being a smartass.

I think a straight diet of any food source would cause a problem. Just like I can't eat bacon alone everyday, as much as I would like to. Deer eat corn all over, and do well off of it. But it's not their only food source.

  ...MY BAD!   

[jackmaster]

i built a elk / deer feeder in my back yard and i put down mollasses cobb, a bale of alfalfa a salt block an apple block and a corn block and i have soaked a few dirt patches with deer cane and also grew a small area with biologic lets just say they like the mollasses and cobb alfalfa and the apple block more than any of the other stuff

[fair-chase]

Too much corn will kill a deer. They're not smart enough to stop eating it.

Don't seem to hurt the deer in the mid-west.. So that statement is nul and void..

Any good mix of grain, and oats with sweets in it will work well.. Hopefully you've been feeding them all year..

Hunterman(Tony)

No. Actually there's quite a bit of validity to his statement. Scientifically speaking anyways.

This is interesting. Curious to know how an excess of corn would kill a deer. Whats the reasoning here? Lack of nutrition, or gaseous bloating like cows with too much alfalfa??? Would like to hear some evidence or conclusions one way or the other.

If you get a good set of corn starting in Aug and religiously keep it baited with no rest into Oct, that deer will eventually die of lead poisoning

 

[KopperBuck]

I couldn't help myself..

[Hoythunter]

Holy crap Kopper, I found that extremely hilarious...I got some weird looks by co-workers passing by as a busted out laughing.  Must be Fri afternoon

[mkcj]

I have been feeding the deer at my cabin in Winthrop now for 5 years I'm up to about 800lb's a month and then in Nov. for the winter I start feeding with Bales of alfalfa on top of the food. That being said I have learned a lot in 5 years! They like Purina deer chow all year very high in protein but at $15 a bag it might be pricey for some. In the spring they like ground corn (I don't feed whole corn) towards the middle of summer fall they really get into eating wheat they will eat all the deer chow and wheat and then will eat the corn. Deer blocks are good all year Wet COB is great also they really like that but I only feed that while I'm there as the bears like it also and I don't want them to get to accustomed to eating it and end up sleeping under my deck.  I also Have a 50x50 food plot planted with Whitetail Extreme very high in protein and mule deer like it also. If your feeding apples they will eat everything you put. Now what does all this feed? I have 15-20 deer in the yard  all the time. They also feed all day long I have noticed even when it's a 100 degree's out they will eat then go lay in the shade and a couple hour's later come back eat a little go nibble on brush then find different shady spot as the sun moves by. Sorry if I got a little off track! I'm going to try and buy wheat and feed corn from a co-op if anyone is interested let me know I should be able to get a good price that way. I have mule deer and whitetail at the cabin.

[Kioti]

Alfalfa works for me...I just grab a bail from the barn and put it out.  Elk love it!

[turkeyfeather]

I have been using "sweet cob" from Big R for years and the deer absolutely plow through it and then lick the dirt where it was. One caution though if you have bears in the area. I had to stop using it in one of my areas cause the bears discovered it and tore my feeders apart, ate all the cob and the deer don't seem to come through as much now.

[nwwanderer]

For you big users, you can substitute grains, corn, barley, wheat, triticale, oats, millet, milo are all similar nutritionally speaking.  Canola, soy, peas, cottonseed, camelina, DDG, lentils are more protein type feeds. Both are high in phosporous and low in calcium.  Calcium needs to be higher than phosporous in all diets.  Go for what is local and normally used by your critters.  Put in a little storage and buy from local growers right off the combine and make your own blends according to your situation.  Try to limit yourself to good viewing with small amounts, this can really get out of hand if you try to feed everything every day.  Six turkeys can turn into 600.  Deer become dependant.  Bears do not hibernate if a constant food source is available.  I visited a Mississippi deer camp that had recently put out 600 bushels of wheat, all gone in a few weeks.  Have you looked at wheat price lately?  The protein feeds are even more pricey.  We have great habitats capable of supporting 'wild' populations.

[lokidog]

Del's Allstock seems to work well, it is high in protein and not just carbs like corn is.  Also, there are craploads of apples laying in people's yards right now and yes, they love pears as well.

[oldleclercrd]

I use sweet cob and mineral blocks. In the winter I set out a few bales of alfalfa. Just curious though, do you think its bad for the deer in the middle of winter with not alot of other food around to be eating 100% alfalfa bales? Do you think alfala/grass would be better or does it matter? I feed them 100% alfalfa and they seem fine.

[jackmaster]

heres a question, ok i grow biologic and the blacktail dont seem to really care about it and neither do the elk, so what can i grow that will come back every year that both blacktail and elk will chow on?

[runamuk]

heres a question, ok i grow biologic and the blacktail dont seem to really care about it and neither do the elk, so what can i grow that will come back every year that both blacktail and elk will chow on?

roses seem popular with the towny deer and elk  sorry had to ......

clover although most are annuals it often reseeds itself once established, shoot for forbs and grains because deer aren't really grazers like elk so they dont tend to eat grasses.    I found trefoil growing in the forest one year which sort of surprised me its usually relegated to cow pastures.

[DBHAWTHORNE]

I use sweet cob and mineral blocks. In the winter I set out a few bales of alfalfa. Just curious though, do you think its bad for the deer in the middle of winter with not alot of other food around to be eating 100% alfalfa bales? Do you think alfala/grass would be better or does it matter? I feed them 100% alfalfa and they seem fine.

White-tailed deer are primarily browsers (not grazers) and eat very little grass. When you see deer eating in grassy fields they are usually not eating the grass but rather broadleaf weeds (forbs). Grasses are generally low in crude protein and digestibility compared to what deer usually have in their diet.

While cow and deer are both ruminants deer aren't grazers because their digestive system works much faster than cows and would not allow them to benefit much from grasses. However, there are some grasses like ryegrass that are faster to digest and will be used by deer along with other small grains.

For hunting purposes it is highly unlikely that any deer will rely on your alfalfa heavily enough to cause any harm. In addition you are probably providing the alfalfa well before the dead of winter when it could have harmful effects. What is bad for the deer is when well intentioned  people try to suddenly feed them alfalfa or corn during the dead of winter after a big storm. By this time the deers digestive system has adjusted to eating low quality browse and most will usually survive these situations just fine without supplemental feeding. In fact, suddenly introduced supplemental feeding can literally result in the deer starving to death despite the fact that its eating high quality food.

Another bad thing would be if someone fed them heavily most of the year and then suddenly cut them off in the middle of winter.

If you feed the deer to no later than 15 December it will not cause issues.

[DBHAWTHORNE]

Here are a copule links about deer & corn, interesting reading anyway:

http://www.farmanddairy.com/columns/feeding-corn-to-deer-could-be-death-sentence/14324.html

http://www.neighborhoodlink.com/Timberwood_Park/topics/179314

There is some science in this but their conclusions are very flawed. It's "emergency" feeding of deer in a bad winter that results in the largest majority of deaths from feeding. In regards to the "spread" of disease...  it shows the researchers ignorance in the understanding of deer behavior. Deer are very social animals and are continually touching noses, sniffing butts etc. with other deer in their home range. If disease exists it's going to spread regardless of feeding.

The fact that I can continually watch bucks grow up over the years has proven to me that deaths resulting from feeding during hunting season has little impact.

[jackmaster]

thats some good info fellas, does anyone know anything about a plant called "seedums" i guess it grows kinda like ivy and is a ground cover, i have heard that people that have this stuff cant keep the deer out of it, but it is just hear say i dont even know if i spelled it right and i tried to look it up but cant find it, but i am not very computer savvy either

[Hunter Dug]

I think just plant a field of Danilions  I have about 4 or 5 deer a day in my yard all the eat is the heads of the dandilions for hours pick pick pick.

[jackmaster]

i have tons of dandelions and they dont touch them, i wish they would, hell with this dry weather it all i can get to grow in my yard 

[JimmyHoffa]

The deer in my yard seem to really like peanuts above all other treats I test on them.  They like apples, but lose interest in apples when I toss out a couple of handfuls of peanuts.  Probably not to cost effective if you are trying to use on a large scale.

[huntnnw]

You won't get a deer to eat enough corn and anything else to kill them. They will always eat natural browse as well. I have read that corn to deer is like people eating candy. No real nutritional value but won't kill you in moderation. If you kept a deer in a pen and all it could ever eat is corn that would he bad. Even at baits the deer eat plenty of natural browse and don't sat the bait exclusively. Or they would be there all the time.

  I have never seen or heard of a deer around here dying from eating to much corn..they dont just sit and eat it till its gone..most deer come in for 10 min max..sometimes its only for a bite and gone..sweet mix works the best right now, but as it gets colder alfalfa works good

[oldleclercrd]

I would have to say I agree with that.

[heavy hauler]

deer corn from cabelas 

[buck man]

Here is one for ya. I got 4000 pounds of pinto bean screenings. Took the deer about a week to start on it but the colder the weather the more they ate it. Fed it in conjunction with corn and alfalfa. Deer always ate the beans before the corn. The beans were free so it was even better.

Protein content is similar to soy beans.