It’s summer time in Texas and hot, dry weather is wreaking havoc on white-tailed deer habitat. That means deer will be hitting supplemental feed sources where they are available harder than ever. In fact, I’ve already heard from numerous hunters and landowners that whitetail are really hammering protein feeders, and this is on properties that provide relatively good deer habitat. Unfortunately, it looks like things are going to get worse before they get better. That has got everyone, deer included, feeling a little uneasy.

It’s the antler growing season for bucks right now, so that means game cameras have already been deployed. Reports indicate that the majority of bucks have anywhere from 3-10 inches of antler growth and that there are still a good number of does that have yet to domino (give birth). Guys in the pastures as well as camera photos are also seeing a good number of fawns already on the ground. Everyone is aware that natural foods are low, but deer are needing a lot of high quality nutrition right now.

If ever there was a time to supplement deer with free-choice protein pellets, that time would be now. Not only will deer manager after deer manager tell you first-hand what the addition of protein pellets has done for whitetail deer found on their properties, but respectable research from many different camps has found that protein pellets (16+%)  really do make a difference for white-tailed deer in a number of ways.

There are many reasons to feed protein pellets, with the most cited one being increased antler growth for bucks. Other positives of this form of supplemental feeding include improved body condition in all deer, which translates into more milk production for lactating does and better muscle and skeletal growth for fawns later into the summer. Deer, both bucks and does, that get a good start the first year of their life will be superior animals down the road.

With natural foods on hold (at best) and deer nutritional requirements on the rise, feeding protein to deer seems like the thing to do right now, but there can also be some issues that arise that come along with the management practice. The first one that comes to mind is, well, cost. Let’s face it, the price tag of the feed alone can get expensive, but then there are also transport and labor costs.

With a white-tailed deer density that is appropriate for the habitat, a general rule of thumb is to estimate average consumption at about 3/4 pound of feed per day per deer day over the course of a year (even though the majority of properties do not provide pellets during October, November, and December). This number varies depending on the rainfall each year and the amount of natural forage deer eat, but averages out to about 275 pounds of protein pellets for each deer on an annual basis. That’s about $55 in feed. How many deer are found on your property?

Another issue that arises with the supplemental feeding of protein pellets to whitetail deer is increased reproduction, as in higher fawn survival. Now, this many not sound like much of a negative, but it really can be depending on the deer management objectives of a landowner or hunter. This phenomenon is something many well-intending managers do not realize until several years into their management program. I will focus more on this topic in the near future, but until then let’s keep an eye out for those whitetail fawns, bucks in velvet and maybe even a rain cloud?

The new year is well underway and spring is just around the corner. That is a good thing because habitat conditions are as tough as I’ve seen them in some time and bitter cold weather really works on a white-tailed deer’s body condition. But a new year means resolutions to do new things—even when it comes to deer management. Though the supplementation of a deer’s diet is far from a new idea, I am confident that many landowners and managers will begin offering supplemental feed during late winter, spring and summer for the first time ever.

Most of that feed will be in the form of protein pellets. Regular readers of this site know that food supplementation is just a small part of an overall deer management program, but it can be an important component for maintaining and increasing the overall condition of the deer herd found on a property. This is especially true during the food stress periods that occur each year, summer and winter. Right now is as good of time as any to start, but I recommend following the simple suggestions below when beginning a supplemental feeding program for white-tailed deer.

Supplemental feeding itself is not rocket science, but there are some things you can do to increase its effectiveness. First and foremost, do not use supplemental feed as a tool to maintain substantially more deer on a property than the habitat can support. Habitat management and population management are more important than pouring feed into the system. If a deer manager can combine good habitat and the proper number of deer with a supplemental feeding program kicker, then the result will be far superior to just placing out feed.

Next, do not put protein pellets in timed feeders. The unfortunate hunters out there that have tried this delivery method will attest to this. For one thing, dispensing “supplemental” foods from timed feeders is not really supplemental. It’s bait, and deer can not consume enough in this manner for it to truly supplement their diet. Protein pellets contain much more moisture than corn or roasted soybeans and will sweat inside a feeder once temperatures begin to rise. It does not take much heat to make the temperature rise rapidly within a confined area. Because pellets move through timed feeders very slowly, this release of moisture will cause the feed to mold and cake-up. Use free-choice feeders.

Do not be disappointed if deer ignore your tasty offerings. Whitetail know a lot about their natural environment, but deer do not have an understanding of manufactured feeds or any new-to-them feed for that matter. Although deer are quick studies, don’t expect them to hammer your protein feeder right off the bat. There is a learning curve involved. I’ve been contacted my numerous individuals over the years that have filled new protein feeders with tons of pellets only to be disappointed. In many cases, the problem is about timing.

Ranches that offer free-choice feeds know that deer consume supplemental foods in varying amounts during different times of the year. This phenomenon is especially evident during the spring and fall, when forbs and mast are abundant and readily available. This happens even on properties where deer have been supplemented for years. When available, whitetail deer prefer high quality natural foods over any supplemental food we can offer. This is why good deer habitat is so important.

To get to the point, do not expect a lot of activity around your feeder when habitat conditions are good, such as after spring green-up or when acorns fall or during those rare years when rains continue throughout the summer. And although habitat conditions come into play, the time of year is not the only factor that can impact deer use of supplemental foods. It also depends on deer density and feeder density.

Lastly, when new foods are introduced onto a property deer must be conditioned to consume these new foods. Managers can either introduce the new food and just wait them out, or the new food can be mixed with foods that are familiar to deer. For example, if deer on a ranch commonly eat corn, then mix corn with the new feed to introduce it to them. Then, decrease the amount of corn and up the percentage of the new food. This is by far the best way to transition white-tailed deer to consume new foods.

Again, getting deer to eat new foods is not terribly difficult, but there are some factors that can effect how fast they hit new food sources. Habitat conditions, food availability, deer density, season and other deer management practices can all impact the consumption of supplemental foods. Simply keep all of these variables in mind if you plan on introducing new foods to whitetail and prepare to be surprised. Because once deer begin using their new food source you may be looking for supplemental income to help pay for it all!

Hunters and landowners actively involved in white-tailed deer management know that age, genetics, and nutrition are the rule when it comes to maintaining a healthy deer herd and consistently producing quality whitetail bucks. Because it takes time for bucks to get older and because one can not change the genetics of a deer once it is conceived, a lot of attention gets placed on deer nutrition by hunters and managers on their lands.

When it comes to providing proper nutrition for deer, more than a fair share of this attention gets wrongly placed on supplemental feeding through food plots or protein pellets. I will be the first to tell you that both food plots and supplemental feeding have their place on almost every property, but all too often hunters consider the management practice of adding food to the equation as taking the place of proper deer habitat management. Wrong.

Yes, supplemental foods are beneficial. Yes, they should complement forage produced by native habitat. Yes, they should be used as part of an overall white-tailed deer management program that includes select harvest and habitat enhancement activities. But no, supplemental foods are not a cure-all. However, unknowing persons would start to believe that feeding protein pellets or planting a food plot or simply slinging corn out of a spin-feeder would grow some big ole trophy bucks. Honestly, that is what you see on the fronts of all the sacks and packages.

But then again, what self-proclaimed, serious whitetail hunter would buy protein pellets or a food plot mix that featured picture of a spike or maybe even a “good” three point buck on the front of the sack? Can you imagine the ridicule that guy would receive from fellow hunters if he actually brought that sack out to the ranch? That act would be like a guy having trophy buck stickers and deer management organization stickers plastered all over the back of his truck and then driving back to camp with a 1 1/2 year old 8 point buck that he shot on opening morning.

Wait. That actually happens.

But back to my point: Deer nutrition is important, but not any more important than age or genetics in the management of individual white-tailed bucks. Understand that supplemental foods, whether provided through food plots or protein pellets or any other product, can and only should be expected to address a portion of a comprehensive deer management program on any property.

As the snow falls today in Central Texas, I can’t help but think about the white-tailed deer throughout the country. I’m not just talking about the animals living right outside my door, but everywhere throughout the whitetail’s range. This is the time of year when habitat conditions are tough and when the nuts and bolts of deer population management are tested. After all, the white-tailed deer hunting seasons are over and the remaining deer are carryover, the core herd of the upcoming hunting season.

At the heart of deer population management is food availability. With late winter upon us, even though spring is just around the corner, white-tailed deer food is scarce over the landscape. Late winter is the most nutritionally stressful time of the year for a deer. At this point in time, the deer herd on every ranch should be at or below its base population size—the maximum number of animals that the habitat can support. Otherwise, the deer herd is at risk of a die-off from being malnurished due to inadequate food resources.

The ideal number of deer for a property can be somewhat subjective at the beginning of a deer management program, but keeping a close eye on habitat and deer body conditions will let landowners know where their base population should be. Less than desirable habitat conditions and lower deer body weights mean the population needs to be trimmed down even further. Big, healthy deer may suggest that the whitetail herd could be increased, but should it?

This is where two schools of thought regarding deer density and food availability collide. In nature, a given amount of habitat can only support so many animals until the food runs out. This law of nature obviously applies to white-tailed deer, but we as humans have the ability to add more food. Too many times, managers perceive the ability to add food to the system as a way to increase the number of animals that their property will support. However, this is just not so. Additional food does not increased the number of animals that the PROPERTY can support, it merely increases the total herd size.

So why is this a problem? The degree to which this becomes a problem depends on how far the actual deer population is from the ideal deer population for a particular property. A deer herd that is perfect in size for a property will have no problem getting through the nutritionally stressful times of late summer and late winter. This herd can even be provided with supplemental feed to ensure that all deer maintain maximum body condition and health, even though they don’t require it.

However, what happens as the deer herd gets further away, well above the ideal population size? Well, without the addition of food, deer begin to die. This is not just bad deal for the deer that have died, but an indicator that the herd is in poor condition. Once deer begin to die, you will be hard-pressed to find any deer that is in average to above-average condition within the herd. This is why deer seasons as we know them are in place—to maintain healthy deer herds.

But wait, why can’t we simply add more food and maintain more deer? Not only is this costly, but even as popular as supplemental feeding is, most properties do not have supplemental feeding programs for deer. Besides, food is only supplemental if the deer on a property can survive without it. If a deer herd requires feed, then it’s just that—feed. Removal of the feed jeopardizes every deer on the property and the herd.

In closing, winter is tough on all animals, including white-tailed deer. Looking out on this cold winter day makes me think about how limited food resources are during late winter in the deer’s natural environment. The most important component of white-tailed deer management is to keep the deer herd at a healthy level for the available habitat. Not only will this benefit the deer herd, but their habitat as well. And they need every last bit of it at this time of the year.

The benefits of supplemental feeding of white-tailed deer have been witnessed by researchers and landowners alike. In white-tailed deer management today, the combination of habitat management and supplemental feeding go hand-in-hand on most properties. Though some landowners choose to supplement through food plots, others use protein pellets. Regardless of the product used to supplement deer, the primary reason for providing supplemental feed is to improve the overall health of each individual animal in the herd.

The health of a white-tailed herd is readily measured through the individual body condition of deer, the antler quality of bucks, and fawn production. Although the presumed outcome of providing additional food is better and healthier deer, landowners often look for different inputs—or different food options. I’ve been asked time and time again over the years about feeding whole soybeans as a supplement for whitetail. It can be done, and it can be done successfully, but it’s always good to look at the pros and cons.

First, let’s not confuse baiting deer with supplementing deer. Baiting deer with corn can be great for attracting deer for the purpose of harvest, but corn is not a supplement. A true supplement adds nutritional value to an individual deer’s diet. Sounds simple enough, but why would a deer manager consider different options for supplementing deer? Well, the big concern are typically costs.

The dollar does not go as far as it once did, so hunters and deer managers are constantly looking for less expensive options. Currently, corn is $7, roasted soybeans are $12, and protein pellets are $11 per 50 pound bag (depending on where you buy them). Corn only offers 6 to 7% protein, soybeans average about 40% protein, and the pellets I quoted above are 20% protein. All of these products get cheaper at bulk prices, but let’s look at the value. In other words, what your deer get for each dollar you invest.

Corn is an attractant so the value is that it will draw deer into your area. However, the money you spend on a bag of corn does nothing to actually help the deer other than making their belly feel a little more full. The addition of protein, however, really can improve the diet and body condition of individual deer. Soybeans and protein pellets are both more expensive than corn by weight, but the value (what the deer gets versus what you pay) is much better!

Soybeans, at 1.7 times the price of corn, deliver over 5 times the amount of protein when compared to corn. Protein pellets, at 1.6 times the price of corn, deliver over 3 times the protein. Soybeans also have 3 times the fat content of corn. The value of soybeans and pellets over corn is obvious, but there is more to consider when it comes to supplementing a deer’s diet. In addition to macronutrients (protein, carbs, fats), what about the essential micronutrients required by by white-tailed deer?

Protein is great, but deer can not survive on protein alone. Important micronutrients for whitetail include calcium, phosphorous, potassium, copper, selenium, zinc, and vitamins A and E. This is where protein pellets pull away, so to speak, from whole or roasted soybeans. Soybeans can have good levels of micronutrients, but not always. The nutritional value of the bean will depend on the conditions under which it was grown and this affects the macro- and micronutrient levels. This will ultimately impact the amount of nutrients that are digestible by deer. In addition, roasted soybeans have more (bypass) protein than raw soybeans.

Where they are readily available, soybeans are a practical way to supplement the nutrition of white-tailed deer. Of course, any food added to a deer’s natural environment should only be considered a supplement. Supplemental food is not habitat in a sack and can not be substituted for good deer habitat management. However, soybeans can be used effectively to supplement animals where good deer habitat exists, but micronutrient levels can vary.