For domestic raising supplementary deer feed is very important for them. Deer is a plant eating animal. They generally eat small plants, leaves of trees and various types of grasses.
Feed habit of deer varies from their living condition. In wild nature they eat various types of plants and grasses from forest. And in domestic nature they eat the feed served by the farmer.
For domestic rearing of deer every farmer needs to know about the feed what deer eat and their feeding habits. Feeding habits and deer feed varies from region to region.
On an average wild deer eats all types of plants which are available near their living location. But for domestic rearing they need proper nutrition and balanced diet feed.
On an average a deer of 100 pounds body weight eat about 5 to 8 pounds feed daily. They consume more feed in winter season than summer season.
What to Feed Deer
Deer generally eat feed early in the morning and take rest whole day and start eating feed again in afternoon. Some favorite deer feed and their feed value are described below.
Nuts
Different kinds of nuts are available like red acorns, white acorns, hickory and beech nuts. Acorns contain high portion of carbohydrates and energy but low in protein. Acorn tastes sweet and deer like them very much. You can feed your deer acorn according to their demands.
Plants
Different types of various non-woody plants are good feed source of deer. Feed them plants from roadside, edges of field etc. Plants are very important for deer health in summer season.
Leaves of Tree
Deer eat leaf of different trees. Leaf of trees is not their favorite feed. They eat leaf if nothing else is available near them. Deer generally eat leaf of the tree like blueberry, hemlock, dogwoods, honeysuckle, chokecherry, maples, aspen, poplar, poison ivy, sumac, mango, jack fruit etc.
Mushrooms
Deer should feed mushrooms. Because it contain high nutrition. There are some species of mushrooms which are deadly to human but deer can consume that easily.
Crops
Deer eat various types of crops. Among them they like wheat, oats, sweet potatoes, peas, soybeans, alfalfa, clover, corn, gram etc. Crops are very important for deer health. So, feed them crop as much as you can.
Supplementary Deer Feed
Feed the deer some supplementary grainy feed. This will ensure the availability of all nutrition. Before feeding them supplementary feed be ensure that all nutrition ingredients are are available in the feed.
Water
Water is very important for all animal. Provide the deer clean and fresh water regularly according to their demands.
