Supplemental Feeding

     Supplemental feeding has become a major factor in the management of white-tailed deer 

   in Texas within the past decade.  More and more, we are seeing the dramatic effects of

   supplemental feeding of deer: growing larger antlers and heavier body weights.  But with

   feeding comes an abundance of unknowns.  We have been researching the variables

   associated with supplemental feeding through  the years and hope you will gain from our

   experiences, our mistakes, as well as our successes.

     FOOD PLOTS are one way to establish locally adapted forage to provide supplemental

   food during critical periods of the year.  Food plots can also be grown to attract species 

   for viewing or harvesting. The shape, size, location and percentage of total land area 

   devoted to food plots should be based on the requirements of the targeted species.

     Depending on your goals, food plots can be a wonderful management tool for you and 

   your deer population.  But like many things in life, the effort put into food plots often 

   dictates your output.  Careful evaluation of how much time, energy and money you feel 

   you can put into a food plot program should be evaluated prior to the first tilling of the 

   soil.

     PROTEIN FEED has taken on a life of its own in Texas deer management.  We have 

   seen some great successes with this type of management as well as what we would 

   describe as tragedies to the land and the wildlife that live there.  We feel that protein 

   feed can be a remarkable tool if used responsibly.  This means keeping your deer 

   population within the capacities of the habitat, surveying the population annually, and

   implementing aggressive harvesting to balance the affects that this feed often has.

     Our research has come up with a variety of options for supplemental feeding which 

   include feeder types, designs, pens, density, non-target impacts, and types of feed.  

  Contact us and let us know your experiences with supplemental feeding. We look forward to discussing any issue you may have  so we can better serve our customers.