Do Deer Eat Peanuts | Nature's Mace (2024)

FAQs

Do Deer Eat Peanuts | Nature's Mace? ›

With shells or without, deer eat peanuts; they're actually one of their favorite foods. Nuts include pecans, acorns, beechnuts, hickory nuts, and many more.

Deer prefer chestnuts to acorns because chestnuts are lower in tannins, which inhibit digestion. Grasses rarely are a preferred food item of whitetails, except during the early growth stages when the grass shoots are more digestible. Cereal grains, such as oats, wheat and rye are highly preferred.

Response: Whitetail deer love peanuts. And like you stated, peanuts are high in protein and fat, making them an excellent food for deer. This combination would be especially great post-rut, when bucks are wore down and need to really pack on some weight.

Throughout the range of white-tailed deer, greater than 85 % of their overall diet consists of browse, forbs, and mast. Browse and forbs are the most important forages supplying the nutritional needs of deer because they provide over 80% of the diet in all seasons except during autumn.

Clover, beans, peas, alfalfa, and lablab are a few examples of legumes that are incredible for your deer. Legumes are very versatile and you can find a type and variety that will work for most soils in every part of the country.

By far the most popular and widely used bait for attracting whitetails is corn. Not only is deer corn highly consumed and well received by whitetails in almost every habitat across the continent, but it's also one of the cheapest options for hunters.

One of the cheapest deer feed options is corn.

Specifically, human introduced foods such as bird seed, alfalfa cubes, deer blocks and livestock feed can disrupt the delicate balance of their stomach microbiome.

However, if you still want to provide supplemental feed for deer, it's essential to choose appropriate options that meet their nutritional needs and don't cause harm. Some good choices include apples, carrots, corn, oats, alfalfa, soybeans, and clover.

Certain plants, such as rhubarb, are toxic to deer. Deer usually also avoid root vegetables (which require digging) and prickly vegetables such as cucumbers and squashes with hairy leaves. Cultivars with strong odors such as onions, garlic and fennel are not palatable to deer.

What should I feed deer in my backyard? ›

The varieties of deer food you can use during summer include shrubs, leaves, and grass. You can also add vegetables and fruits, except corn, as it can cause various health problems in deer.

Calcium and phosphorous, two critical components of bone development, are vital minerals you can supply in your deer feed over the summer months. Food plots planted with soybeans or other legumes are ideal this time of year, as well as, native fruits, along with herbaceous plants.

A standard ration for deer will include alfalfa and a high protein (20 percent), high fat (8 percent) pellet such as Purina 595 or other “sweet feed.” (This is not an endorsem*nt of Purina products or any other company's products.) Alfalfa price will vary annually with local supply and demand conditions.

Apple, oak and chestnut trees are favorite food producers for wildlife. Most hunters think acorns are the favorite nut for deer and turkeys. Some studies, though, show deer prefer chestnuts. Chestnuts contain 40% carbohydrates, 10% protein and don't have the bitter tannins of many acorns.

Trees and plants that produce a berry, fruit, nut or seed can be whitetail magnets. Hard mast trees such as beech, chestnuts, hickory, honey locusts and oaks, provide great food for deer. Soft mast trees such as apples, crabapples, pear, persimmon and plums also provide great nutrition.

Using peanut butter to attract deer is a tool, not an absolute guarantee. Some hunters try it, don't succeed and loudly claim that using peanut butter to get deer within shooting range is a myth. Others say it works well. The basics are that peanut butter is a food that deer like, or that some deer like.

Later in the season, if baiting is legal in your area, spread peanut butter in the area again to sweeten it up and give the deer something different to keep them interested. Peanut butter has physical properties that will help deer hang around in front of your trail cameras better than corn.