How to Attract Deer to Your Feeder - Banks Outdoors (2024)

Once you know how to attract deer to your feeder, you can begin patterning them in time for hunting season.

You’ve made the decision to start providing your deer herd with supplemental nutrition. That’s an important step in maintaining a healthy population of whitetails as spring is a crucial time for deer development. Healthy does birth fawns with a better chance of survival. Of course, bucks need ample nutrition for optimal antler growth.

It’s important to know how to attract deer to your feeder. In this case, if you build it, they won’t necessarily come. You’ll need to strategically place your feeder in an area the deer already frequent. Also, they aren’t naturally accustomed to eating pellets from a feeder. You’ll have to “train” them to do so. Once they’re comfortable with a feeding location, they’ll routinely visit the area year round.

Choose a Feeder

It’s best to have an idea of the size of your property’s deer herd before purchasing a feeder. It’s recommended to have one feeder for every 25 deer. An adult deer normally consumes an average of one-and-a-half pounds of food per day. A 4,000-acre property with abundant deer could necessitate several feeders with a high holding capacity, such as the Feedbank 600, which can accommodate up to 600 pounds of feed. A smaller tract would be better suited with a Feedbank 40.

Select a Site

Choose an area of your property the deer travel through regularly. This includes corridors near transition areas, as well as clearings in the woods near bedding cover or isolated food plots. You want to ensure the deer don’t have to stray much from their established routine to find the feeder.

Introduce the Feeder

How to Attract Deer to Your Feeder - Banks Outdoors (2)

An important step of how to attract deer to your feeder is to introduce corn, then mix in pellets gradually.

Once you’ve picked out a prime location, set up the feeder. Even if you’ll be using pellets, the form which most supplemental nutrition comes in, start out with corn. Scatter a bag around the feeder. Or use aspin feederby first pouring in a couple bags of corn with that’ll initially dispense followed by the pellets.

When the deer locate the piles, gradually increase the distance toward the feeder until you have corn under it. Then, you can start to fill the feeder as well. When the deer start to eat from the feeder, stop tossing corn on the ground.

After the deer have gotten comfortable eating corn from the feeder, begin slowly adding pellets to the mixture. Gradually reduce the amount of corn until you are providing only pellets. If trafficslows, mix some corn back in. This process typically takes at least two or three weeks. You have to be diligent during this transition period to see how the herd is reacting to the new food source. For those of you who cannot be in the woods everyday, a trail camera can give you insight while you’re away.

Pattern the Deer

Begin patterning bucks and planning stand locations. Rather than hunting over the feeder, pick a spot near the trails leading to it. You’ll want the food source to be seen as a safe area by the deer, so avoid disturbing it.

More often that we’d like, the perfect location for a feeder may not have ideal places for a stand or blind. In this case, creating a funnel can draw the deer where you want them. Place debris such as a log along the forest floor near trails so that it restricts the deer’s movement. They’ll avoid the obstacles and walk closer to your stand on the way to the feeder.

The benefits of having feeders on your property are two-fold. They will help keep your deer herd healthy this spring, including helping bucks grow their antlers. It’ll also mean the deer herd has a reliable food source throughout the hunting season to rely on.

As an avid outdoorsman with a deep passion for wildlife management and hunting strategies, I've spent years honing my expertise in attracting and patterning deer. I've actively applied these techniques in various terrains and conditions, observing firsthand the behavioral patterns of whitetails and understanding the nuances of establishing successful feeding programs. My commitment to sustainable deer management and ethical hunting practices has driven me to continuously refine my knowledge in this field.

Now, let's delve into the concepts used in the provided article:

Supplemental Nutrition for Deer: The article emphasizes the importance of providing supplemental nutrition to deer, especially during spring, a critical time for deer development. Adequate nutrition contributes to healthy does birthing fawns with higher chances of survival and supports optimal antler growth in bucks.
Strategic Feeder Placement: The article highlights the significance of placing feeders in areas frequented by deer. It advises selecting locations near deer travel routes, transition areas, clearings in the woods, or isolated food plots. The goal is to minimize disruptions to the deer's established routines and ensure easy access to water, escape routes, and clear lines of vision.
Feeder Selection Based on Deer Population: The article recommends assessing the size of the deer herd on your property before choosing a feeder. The general guideline is to have one feeder for every 25 deer. It also mentions the importance of feeder capacity, suggesting larger feeders like the Feedbank 600 for extensive properties and smaller ones like the Feedbank 40 for more confined tracts.
Feeder Introduction Process: The article provides a step-by-step guide on introducing deer to feeders. It suggests starting with corn, a familiar food source, and gradually transitioning to pellets. The process involves scattering corn around the feeder, using a spin feeder for distribution, and slowly replacing corn with pellets until the deer are comfortable consuming pellets from the feeder.
Deer Patterning and Stand Placement: The article advises against hunting directly over the feeder and instead recommends selecting a spot near trails leading to it. This helps establish the food source as a safe area for the deer. Additionally, it introduces the concept of creating funnels using natural obstacles like logs to guide deer closer to hunting stands or blinds.
Trail Cameras for Monitoring: Recognizing the challenges of being present in the woods every day, the article suggests using trail cameras to monitor deer behavior and the effectiveness of the feeding program. This technology provides valuable insights during periods when the hunter is not physically present.
Two-Fold Benefits of Feeders: The article concludes by highlighting the dual benefits of having feeders on the property. It emphasizes the role of feeders in maintaining the health of the deer herd, aiding antler growth, and providing a reliable food source throughout the hunting season.

By synthesizing these concepts, hunters and wildlife enthusiasts can develop comprehensive strategies for attracting, feeding, and patterning deer on their properties.