Pros and Cons of Feeding Deer with Corn | Fix & Feed (2024)

FAQs

Pros and Cons of Feeding Deer with Corn | Fix & Feed? ›

Using only corn or other fermentable carbohydrates as a primary deer food can be dangerous. Eating a large amount of corn can affect the deer' digestive process and cause a flush of lactic acid in their stomach. In most severe cases, this leads to the dehydration and death of the deer.

Caution in feeding deer corn

CORN! In addition to being low in protein and minerals, corn is very high in starch, and the rapid consumption of two to three pounds by a deer not used to it is enough to cause serious problems.

These are critical times for antler growth, as well as gestation, lactation, fawn development, and fat deposition. During the summer, don't only use corn when feeding deer. Instead, combine it with a supplemental source of protein.

Encouraging deer to congregate in unusually high numbers at a feeding area makes them more vulnerable to predators and at risk for the spread of disease. Feeding deer is very often done in proximity to paved roads. This practice can increase deer traffic to the area and increase deer-vehicle collisions.

Clearly deer can experience problems if forced or allowed to eat too much corn. The same problems can occur when deer eat large amounts of other high-‐starch foods, such as pelleted supplements (commonly known as “protein pellets”), nuts (e.g. acorns and pecans), and fruits.

Corn generally has between 7 to 10 percent protein but it's packed with carbohydrates which are essential during wintertime. If the deer on your property are already used to eating corn in the long winter months, then you should have no problem feeding deer corn year-round in the areas they frequent.

I've been feeding, and the deer suddenly stopped coming/eating. What might cause that? This is most likely due a change in the environment, or an improvement in native range conditions. When large mast crops such as acorns, wild berries, fruit or mesquite beans become available deer will also back off on feed.

Feeding wild deer by providing them with the right feeding plan can improve Deer' health and help increase the population; however, careless feeding can kill deer or create management problems.

Set up a spin feeder to throw out 1-2 pounds of corn every 6 hours, or spread it by hand using gloves or a scoop to limit human scent. This amount will attract them to the area you want to feed. Be sure to have at least one feeding in the middle of the night.

What do deer hate the most? ›

Deer are susceptible to smells and will stay away from things they don't like. The top ten smells they hate the most include mint, bloodmeal, garlic, human hair, Irish Spring soap, hot pepper, eucalyptus, lavender, predator urine, and fennel.

The top 20 deer foods are: acorns, alfalfa, apples, beechnuts, brassicas, cereal grains, clover, corn, cowpeas, fall leaves, fir needles, forbs, milo, northern white cedar, persimmons, pears, saplings and shrubs, soybeans, and treetops (felled or fallen).

Certain plants, such as rhubarb, are toxic to deer. Deer usually also avoid root vegetables (which require digging) and prickly vegetables such as cucumbers and squashes with hairy leaves. Cultivars with strong odors such as onions, garlic and fennel are not palatable to deer.

So what does a deer eat? Deer will primarily eat browse (woody portion of leaves and stems), forbs (broad-leaved plants), mast (acorns, apples, etc), and grass. Although these are the main foods deer like to eat, the quantity of these different foods differ throughout the year and the region you are hunting.

Yes, carrots are another food that deer enjoy eating. These vegetables are high in fiber and nutrients that are important to a deer's overall health. You can offer them whole carrots or cut them up into smaller pieces, making it easier for the deer to eat.

Oats are great for deer and excellent for your budget. Instead of trying novel crops and unusual food plot products that may not appeal to deer, you can plant oats, which are cheap and have proven popular with deer.

By far the most popular and widely used bait for attracting whitetails is corn. Not only is deer corn highly consumed and well received by whitetails in almost every habitat across the continent, but it's also one of the cheapest options for hunters.

Corn provides deer with carbohydrates and fat to survive hard winters. Disadvantages: Deer love corn, and where their population is high, they will eat small food plots of emerging corn to the ground.