East Texas supplemental feeding

[BTLowry]

I have tried free choice protein with no interest.

Mixed some rice bran in and they would eat it but the rice bran clogs up everything

Anybody had good results with East Texas deer and free choice feed?

[Antlers86]

Antlermax20 or Wildlife20 works very well. What are you using to feed the protein? It took mine a while (almost a year) to get used to the gravity feeder. Once they hit it they wouldn’t stay off it.

[deerwatcher51]

Mix it with corn to start.

[Greenheadless]

I had the same results as BTL. I have free choice tube feeders set up for three years, mixed with corn, and kept the protein fresh in them (cleaning out the spouts regularly) and only had one HUGE hog eat of them. In the beginning, my corn ratio was way more than protein. I ended up taking them down and selling them.

I am actually looking at trough feeders now as it seems more people in E Texas use them instead. If anyone has some basic plans for these, it would be much appreciated.

[retrieverman]

I’ve tried Purina Golden Dairy creep, and deer on my places in Nacogdoches county and NW Oklahoma ate it REALLY WELL...like 1000# in less than two weeks. The price kept going up on it, so I tried Lone Star 14% All Stock (basically horse feed), and the deer have eaten it just as well. It costs over $2/bag less than the Purina, but it’s gone up over dollar a bag since I started feeding it. I’m currently looking for an alternative to it to try to keep my costs manageable.

[ren087]

I use the Academy Top Score Brand Extreme Protein Pellets 18% with the Moultrie gravity feeder and my ETX deer are queued up to stick their noses in and pig out.

[antonlsu]

50/50 mix with Corn & decrease the amount of corn each time you fill it up.

[EastTexun]

Originally Posted by BTLowry

I have tried free choice protein with no interest.

Mixed some rice bran in and they would eat it but the rice bran clogs up everything

Anybody had good results with East Texas deer and free choice feed?

Short answer, YES. On 250 acres of low fence I am feeding more than 6 tons of protein a year, and all of my feeders are penned off to keep the pigs out. I also trap a ton of coons year around, so most is going to the deer.

I did start mixing corn into it, and some years they eat it a lot more than others, but I still have some left over from 2020 in 2 different feeders and with this cold the deer are really hammering them right now.

As for brands, for the longest I fed Antlers Plus but recently switched to LE since the local feed store has it and its somehow the same price. I actively fill and monitor my protein feeders from April-October, but would start them much earlier if I didn't have the food plots that carry into June.

10+ yrs after starting, I don't mix corn. Maybe did that for the first year.

[dclifton]

We just started trying to be more on point about it this year and we have hit or miss luck.

Trey has been throwing a combination behind his house with pretty good luck. He hunted a high fence a few weeks ago that fed some kind of blend of like 10 different kinds of peas, soybeans,cottonseed hulls etc etc. They said the deer would just tear it up.

Its a custom blend by some small time guy up around DFW.

We are thinking about buying a pallet to split starting in the spring.

[BTLowry]

Thanks for all the info

I tried Antlermax and deer would not touch it, coons and hogs ate majority

Dillon let me know how that mix works

[antonlsu]

Originally Posted by BTLowry

Thanks for all the info

I tried Antlermax and deer would not touch it, coons and hogs ate majority

Dillon let me know how that mix works

Try Cottenseed?

[BTLowry]

Originally Posted by antonlsu

Try Cottenseed?

Have to see if the feedstore has it

No place close to buy bulk that I know of

[aclark0495]

We feed Atwoods All Stock protien in 3 different free choice feeders and they chow down on it. Constantly having to refill them which is 1100# each time. They can wipe out a 500# feeder in no time. Not sure if we are seeing a huge difference with horn growth but we have some very healthy deer roaming around on our 565 acres.

[EastTexun]

Originally Posted by BTLowry

Thanks for all the info

I tried Antlermax and deer would not touch it, coons and hogs ate majority

Dillon let me know how that mix works

Friend of mine in Crockett started out using corn/soybean mix plus protein with good success.

Don't forget too, there are times of the year that the deer just won't each much (initial green up, lots of forage, etc) so it can be sporatic. Some years I don't feed more than 2/3 of the prior year, and other years I end up feeding an additional 2 tons or more.

[Low Fence]

It took me a lot of trial and error to get the to take to it. Corn at first then 50/50, then straight whatever I want to feed.

Biggest issue I had was height of tube. Everything said 42”. I made em 42” doe couldn’t reach them and bucks looked like lama’s

Cut off legs and not bottom is at 38”. And instantly every deer in the herd took to it.

[Snowflake Killa]

Originally Posted by BTLowry

I have tried free choice protein with no interest.



Mixed some rice bran in and they would eat it but the rice bran clogs up everything



Anybody had good results with East Texas deer and free choice feed?

No problem here

Sent from my SM-N986U using Tapatalk

[bollomb]

I have had pretty good luck with M&G apple flavored 16% feed and L&E as well. Normally I start with 25% Corn and Soybean mixed in with the protein, then next fill just run straight protein. I have the protein feeder in a pen with a corn feeder so the deer are there daily. Seems they hammer it the best from now until April or so, best of luck.

[Hayek'sPupil]

cottonseed

[antonlsu]

Originally Posted by BTLowry

Have to see if the feedstore has it

No place close to buy bulk that I know of

May just need to put up hog panels around your feeders.

[lovemylegacy]

Tractor Supply in Orange has quit carrying Record Rack, so I went with sweet feed. The deer have ate it before. We will see. I felt compelled to feed them, they are keeping the food plots down very low. I haven't feed protein in years, but it seems the deer need it this season.

[BTLowry]

Checked tube height and it was right where I was told to put it so I bought a bag of all stock and a bag of corn, already had it loaded when I spotted the corn and roasted soybean mix so I may try that next instead of straight corn

I put a camera on it so should know what if anything is eating it

[Spiderpig1776]

its trial and error but yes they will eventually eat it

[BTLowry]

Nothing eating it yet

[Tatom]

I’d try putting the protein feeder away from your corn feeder with no pressure on it. I’ve got 5 on LF in Nacogdoches county and the one that is by itself and in thick cover gets hit about 30% more than the others.

[Preacher Man]

I put out alfalfa for the first time this year. I used it as an attractant and my deer hammered it.

[East6101]

Alfalfa? Always wondering if the deer in that area would eat it. Put out the cotton seed from tractor supply a couple weeks ago and have pics of them eating it. Then the hogs tore into my feed pin and cleaned it out.. This is Northern Newton county 10 miles east of Jasper.

[Duckhead78]

Originally Posted by East6101

Alfalfa? Always wondering if the deer in that area would eat it. Put out the cotton seed from tractor supply a couple weeks ago and have pics of them eating it. Then the hogs tore into my feed pin and cleaned it out.. This is Northern Newton county 10 miles east of Jasper.

I'm on a lease in Newton off of CR.1012. I've been thinking about using cotton seed as a supplement but with the amounts of rain we get I went against it. No matter what I go with, coons and hogs will be a problem. Even with a feeder pen.