Still pretty deep here too unfortunately. I may wait a couple more weeks of warm weather before I head out. Snow covered marsh really got me today.
-
If you enjoy the forum please consider supporting it by signing up for a NES Membership The benefits pay for the membership many times over.
Thoughts on deer population after this winter
- Thread starter exojam
- Start date
Still pretty deep here too unfortunately. I may wait a couple more weeks of warm weather before I head out. Snow covered marsh really got me today.
Another damn article on feeding deer in the Boston Globe today. No, I do not get it, my mother in law does and left the article for me to read. The title is "Feeding deer takes commitment" and is written, I believe by the husband of the biologist that wrote about feeding deer in winter even though she knew it was wrong to do that appeared in a paper last month.
I am going to fire off an e-mail either today of tomorrow and tell the guy he should just flat out say do not feed the deer in the winter time. In his article he states his wife puts out 5,000 pounds of corn per say for them. In my belief all this will leed to is people starting the process and than quitting which is than going to hammer the deer. I will also link that article from NH about the deer dead from being given food.
I will keep it polite but definatley let him know I feel it is irresponsible to even suggest feeding them in the winter.
And the worst part (to me) is the he states "Flavored feeds are not recommended. These must be for hunters to attract deer to places where they'll be found when hunting season started".
I am going to fire off an e-mail either today of tomorrow and tell the guy he should just flat out say do not feed the deer in the winter time. In his article he states his wife puts out 5,000 pounds of corn per say for them. In my belief all this will leed to is people starting the process and than quitting which is than going to hammer the deer. I will also link that article from NH about the deer dead from being given food.
I will keep it polite but definatley let him know I feel it is irresponsible to even suggest feeding them in the winter.
And the worst part (to me) is the he states "Flavored feeds are not recommended. These must be for hunters to attract deer to places where they'll be found when hunting season started".
Around here there are a few dairy farms and the deer eat corn silage all winter plus their normal forage. It doesn't kill them. Ruminants have to adjust slowly to different feeds. Cows, horses, goats are like the deer. If they are used to different feeds they can eat them without issue.
When I shoot a deer I always open the gut. 90% of the time I find a gut full of silage with acorns and greens. There are not many feeds more highly concentrated than silage. There are two people in my area that feed the deer year round and neither of them have ever seen any of them die or not come back except after hunting. They have them named and everything so they are pretty good watchers of the herd. One feeds bread and the other feeds hard cracked corn. I hunt between these two people's property and across the river behind my stand is the farm with silage. Maybe this is why one 15-17month old doe I shot a few years back dressed 177lbs. All I can say is in my area they are used to foraging and feeding on other high energy foods.
If some one wanted to put up a feeder to attract the deer into their area you would do it in the summer when normal forage is abundant. The deer will eat the feed along with their normal diet allowing the animal's digestive system to get accustomed to the concentrated feed. When winter comes and forage is getting harder to find the deer will eat more of the feed being put out. This gradual process of change will not kill the deer. It is the quick and immediate change from eating nothing to a high energy feed that will cause among other things, bloat and kill them.
When I shoot a deer I always open the gut. 90% of the time I find a gut full of silage with acorns and greens. There are not many feeds more highly concentrated than silage. There are two people in my area that feed the deer year round and neither of them have ever seen any of them die or not come back except after hunting. They have them named and everything so they are pretty good watchers of the herd. One feeds bread and the other feeds hard cracked corn. I hunt between these two people's property and across the river behind my stand is the farm with silage. Maybe this is why one 15-17month old doe I shot a few years back dressed 177lbs. All I can say is in my area they are used to foraging and feeding on other high energy foods.
If some one wanted to put up a feeder to attract the deer into their area you would do it in the summer when normal forage is abundant. The deer will eat the feed along with their normal diet allowing the animal's digestive system to get accustomed to the concentrated feed. When winter comes and forage is getting harder to find the deer will eat more of the feed being put out. This gradual process of change will not kill the deer. It is the quick and immediate change from eating nothing to a high energy feed that will cause among other things, bloat and kill them.
HorizontalHunter
NES Member
As I was traveling through Charlemont, earlier this week, at about 7pm, I found any "worked" field was littered with deer where the snow had melted away. I've never seen so many deer in one day in MA, as I did in that last hour of light while I was traveling home.
Came home yesterday and had 7 in the back acreage eating everything in sight. They didn't even spook when I walked back there. Not to close, just enough for them to see me. The bucks perked up but the rest of them ignored me.
rep308
NES Member
The deer are back, three of them munching the green shoots in my garden yesterday. The winter wasn't tough enough and didn't kill enough of them. Time to start feeding the coyotes again, maybe they will take care of that damn cat on my bird feeder last week as well.
45collector
NES Member
I saw one in my back yard a few days ago. Just caught a glimpse of the white tail bounding off after I opened my slider door. First deer I've seen in the neighborhood (just bought my house in December) but unfortunately the large area of woods right next to me is posted. :/
BlackwaterFence
NES Member
- Joined
- Oct 27, 2011
- Messages
- 1,267
- Likes
- 1,388
I was driving thru Rte 2 Charlemont Easter Sunday around 6pm
Saw a couple near the road, and they looked healthy.
Around the next corner at the next field, I saw no less than 30
It's a field surrounded by the snow covered hills, and my thinking is they came for some green
Here in Happy Valley the turkeys survived. Have seen groups of 7 to 32 in MY yard. Had 4 does and a 4 pointer around almost daily (Even after deer season ). Not so much as a track or poop pile since the Holidays. I believe our yote population ate more venison than I did.. Thank goodness I scored in NY state..
rep308
NES Member
Looking out my finally snow free back yard and what do I see, three deer eating the green shoots in my garden. Damn winter didn't kill enough of them. Time to get the coyote feeder out and bring them in again
Seeing plenty of deer along Rt 16 between Milford and South Natick. All early morning. None in the afternoon. One deceased in a yard in S. Natick. Probably a car strike.
sent from the depths of HELL using TapaTalk.
sent from the depths of HELL using TapaTalk.
![[grin]](/xen/styles/default/xenforo/smilies.vb/041.gif "Grin [grin]")
not new guy
NES Member
- Joined
- Dec 7, 2009
- Messages
- 36,095
- Likes
- 54,350
Just had a big old fisher cutting across the yard in broad daylight. Went down the hill out back, through somebody else's yard and across the street. It's a very active, suburban area so I was surprised to see him out and about.
not new guy
NES Member
- Joined
- Dec 7, 2009
- Messages
- 36,095
- Likes
- 54,350
I thought of that. The lady two houses down ties her little king Charles spaniel up in the driveway during parts of the day. If it was sunny out today my IG would have been asleep out in the yard in the sun. I've already caught redtails sizing him up.
![[laugh]](/xen/styles/default/xenforo/smilies.vb/012.gif "Laugh [laugh]")
not new guy
NES Member
- Joined
- Dec 7, 2009
- Messages
- 36,095
- Likes
- 54,350
It was large. Much bigger than I expected it to be (I had seen its tracks in the snow previously). I don't know if it was the winter coat or what, but the tail in particular was huge and bushy. It walked right outside our back window here and I thought it was a huge long furred cat at first. I was down wind of it, but the thing didn't really even flinch when I opened the back door and started walking toward it. I got to watch it run around in the brush a little, sniffing in dead logs and stumps and generally checking stuff out.
Finally!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Have 4 does in the backyard right now hammering the grass I planted for them last year![[smile]](/xen/styles/default/xenforo/smilies.vb/001.gif "Smile [smile]")
3 of them look fine but 1 has a really bad coat. It almost looks like possibly an open wound on her right back hip area from this distance. She is walking fine so maybe it is just the way the coat is changing.
Have 4 does in the backyard right now hammering the grass I planted for them last year
3 of them look fine but 1 has a really bad coat. It almost looks like possibly an open wound on her right back hip area from this distance. She is walking fine so maybe it is just the way the coat is changing.
HorizontalHunter
NES Member
Finally!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Have 4 does in the backyard right now hammering the grass I planted for them last year
3 of them look fine but 1 has a really bad coat. It almost looks like possibly an open wound on her right back hip area from this distance. She is walking fine so maybe it is just the way the coat is changing.
My guess is that the deer is losing its winter winter coat and coming into its reddish summer coat.
Bob
The strange thing is was in a circle design up near the bone area and from my distance just did not look right. Some of her coat was normal fror the change of season but this, I do not know. I will break out the binos and see if I can see it better if she comes back.
- - - Updated - - -
Nice.
That Guy
Banned
I've seen several in places in Maine where I've never seen them before - up close to the house, in fields I've never seen them in 40 years, etc. Interestingly, I also had a yote on my back lawn a few months ago and I've never seen that before, either. I'm wondering how much of this change in patterns will remain permanent.
