quote:

Originally posted by Rightwire:
If you are in an area, or are close to an area (50 miles) that has CWD, I would highly recommend against feeding deer. Common feed points spread the disease.

Was not familiar with CWD so figure I would look into it.
So far no cases found in KY a couple found in Western TN within 20 miles of KY.
They have a surveillance area in the adjoining counties but still quite a ways away from us.

quote:

Originally posted by Black92LX:
I was unaware of this. Feeding deer corn is super common around here.

It's not uncommon in my semi-rural/semi-suburban neighborhood, either. It's also in violation of our municipal ordinances, but, people do it anyway.

Baiting is, or was, common in Michigan. It was banned for a while due to CWD. I believe the total ban was subsequently lifted. Not certain of the status for the 2024 whitetail season.

quote:

Originally posted by tatortodd:
Besides CWD, the other problem with "deer" feeders is they tend to feed feral hogs. Deer damage pales in comparison to what a sounder (aka herd) of feral pigs can do in one evening.

Responsible land owners install fences (e.g. solar power electric fences) around deer feeders to keep out the hogs. Fence is short enough the deer fawns can jump over but tall enough to keep out feral hogs.

Fortunately feral hogs have not made it here.
Unfortunately still have no reason/excuse to actually buy night vision or thermal.

quote:

Originally posted by ensigmatic:

quote:

Originally posted by Black92LX:
I was unaware of this. Feeding deer corn is super common around here.

It's not uncommon in my semi-rural/semi-suburban neighborhood, either. It's also in violation of our municipal ordinances, but, people do it anyway.

Baiting is, or was, common in Michigan. It was banned for a while due to CWD. I believe the total ban was subsequently lifted. Not certain of the status for the 2024 whitetail season.

Purely rural where I was thinking of putting the feeder.
Nothing close to suburban or even semi suburban.

When we lived in Maui I found out about the Axis deer population; imported for hunting, but population went wild with no natural predators. They eat out the locals’ gardens, can’t be shot close to houses. On Maui there is no bag limit, no closed season, does shot as well as bucks.
Deer overpopulation is a serious problem, particularly where—as in the US—they are major vectors of serious diseases such as Lime disease.

My Dad plants clover in sections of the (private property) areas we hunt at in Potter County, PA

I think that is allowed but baiting like putting out feeders with corn is not.

quote:

Originally posted by Black92LX:
I was unaware of this. Feeding deer corn is super common around here.

Guess I will just add a couple more mineral blocks around the property.

IIRC you are in KY, Correct?

Heres the state rules/laws on feeding wildife

Link


RESTRICTIONS ON​ FEEDING WILDLIFE

Kentucky law (301 KAR 2:015)​ prohibits feeding of wildlife in certain instances to help protect and conserve populations of native species, which provide important ecological, social and economic benefits to the Commonwealth. These include restrictions that are 1) statewide or 2) area-specific, as described below. Restrictions on feeding/baiting help to reduce impacts from diseases and unnaturally high concentration of predators, particularly when wildlife are young and more susceptible to these threats.

Statewide Prohibition on Feeding of Wildlife: March 1 - July 31
Wildlife shall not be fed statewide in Kentucky from March 1 through July 31 except as follows per 301 KAR 2:015, where “feeding”:

(a) Means willingly, wantonly, or knowingly depositing, distributing, or scattering of shelled, shucked, or unshucked corn, millet, milo, safflower seed, sunflower seed, thistle, wheat, or other grain or any manufactured feed or food product to be consumed by wildlife; and

​(b) Does not mean the establishment and maintenance of plantings for wildlife, foods found scattered solely as the result of normal agricultural planting practices or harvesting practices, foods available to wildlife through normal agricultural practices of livestock feeding if the areas are occupied by livestock actively consuming the feed on a daily basis, or standing farm crops under normal agricultural practices.​
Plantings (such as food plots planted to forages, grains or legumes) for wildlife and normal agricultural practices are permissible statewide.

Salt and mineral licks for wildlife are permissible statewide except in the CWD Surveillance Zone counties (see below).

Bird feeders within the curtilage of the home (immediate yard) are permissible statewide.

Fish may be fed year-round (in private ponds).

​CWD Surveillance Zone Prohibition on Feeding of Wildlife: Year-round
In a department-designated Chronic Wasting Disease (CWD) Surveillance Zone or Management Zone county, persons shall not bait or feed using grain, salt, mineral, or other ingested attractants, except:

Normal agricultural practices;
Wildlife food plots or plantings;
Bird feeders within the curtilage of the home; and
Furbearer trapping, except that trappers shall not use grain, salt, or mineral.​
Currently, this feeding (and baiting) prohibition and other special restrictions apply to the CWD Surveillance Zone in western Kentucky that includes these 5 counties: Calloway, Marshall, Graves, Hickman and Fulton (see map below).

​ Go to the link to see the map, it's too big to embed.

Interesting. That is brand new just went into effect at the end of June of this year.
That was not a part of my yearly legal update training.

Missed the part about it being a KAR which is Kentucky Administrative Regulation.
So technically it’s not against the law and it does not appear there is even a civil fine attached to it at the moment.
I guess they could take one’s hunting/fishing license.
Fish and Wildlife rules are interesting and confusing all at the same time in regard to the penalties and consequences.

Looks like you'll have to settle for what one of my neighbors does. She's called the "deer whisperer" and puts out torn up stale bread for the deer which gather in her backyard to eat in droves.

quote:

Originally posted by Black92LX:

quote:

Originally posted by tatortodd:
Besides CWD, the other problem with "deer" feeders is they tend to feed feral hogs. Deer damage pales in comparison to what a sounder (aka herd) of feral pigs can do in one evening.

Responsible land owners install fences (e.g. solar power electric fences) around deer feeders to keep out the hogs. Fence is short enough the deer fawns can jump over but tall enough to keep out feral hogs.

Fortunately feral hogs have not made it here.
Unfortunately still have no reason/excuse to actually buy night vision or thermal.

They're in 35 out of 50 states including Kentucky. If they're not in your county, they're knocking at your door:

Deer will eat dry dog food too!

I'll put out three hundred pounds of corn plus another hundred of cheap dog food.

it sticks to their ribs!

quote:

Originally posted by bald1:
Looks like you'll have to settle for what one of my neighbors does. She's called the "deer whisperer" and puts out torn up stale bread for the deer which gather in her backyard to eat in droves.

I've got one of those down the road as well. She feeds them out of her hand and thinks it's great that there are so many deer in her yard. She got upset with me when I admonished her and told her that they weren't now just in her yard, they were in EVERYONE'S yard and eating everything in sight, shitting everywhere, and tearing up peoples' lawns. Not to mention all of the vehicle damage they have caused along our road. It aggravates the hell out of me. I cannot plant anything unless I surround it in 6' of fencing.

quote:

Originally posted by Gustofer:

quote:

Originally posted by bald1:
Looks like you'll have to settle for what one of my neighbors does. She's called the "deer whisperer" and puts out torn up stale bread for the deer which gather in her backyard to eat in droves.

I've got one of those down the road as well. She feeds them out of her hand and thinks it's great that there are so many deer in her yard. She got upset with me when I admonished her and told her that they weren't now just in her yard, they were in EVERYONE'S yard and eating everything in sight, shitting everywhere, and tearing up peoples' lawns. Not to mention all of the vehicle damage they have caused along our road. It aggravates the hell out of me. I cannot plant anything unless I surround it in 6' of fencing.

Yep, most wildlife agencies warn people to not feed wild animals especially by hand, they end up losing a natural fear of humans, which can make them more aggressive, they are not pets.
Link NPS - Don't Feed the wildlife

Didn't want to go down that road yesterday, but you're really not doing them any favors feeding them.

(yes people feed them all the time because they want to kill them)

If you're just looking to get pictures, mineral blocks or "deposits" will work, you'll get plenty of more natural pictures, save a LOT of money, and not be altering their natural lives nearly as much.

Or you can spend NO money, make a "vertical scrape" like this. Just a large stick tied to a branch. Nothing done to it other than kicking the leaves away and peeing under it a few times a year. lol

quote:

Originally posted by Ronin1069:
Please don’t feed the deer.

Why people want to watch giant rats eat next to each other is beyond me, but the damage done to the deer population due to CWD has been proven over and over again.

Deer are vermin. Like rats they host parasites, particularly deer ticks which spread Lyme disease among other things. You want to catch Lyme disease, keep feeding the vermin.

Deer also host brucellosis bacteria which is fatal to deer and is spread to dogs, cattle, sheep and humans.

Please don't feed the deer!

My niece has a crazy neighbor that feeds Deer , cats , and Racoons . She said at night her driveway looks like a freaking zoo .
Her husband put up a tree stand and a target in the back yard to practice with his bow . The neighbor had a melt down because she thought he was hunting the Deer .