I am on my first real deer lease. Have some very basic questions about feeders. Looks like most people use gravity protein feeders. Will the deer feed on this style of feed hard and empty it quickly as they can eat as much as they want? What about using a timed protein feeder, would this be better as you could control the amount and the time of day they can eat it? Also, can you mix corn and protein together in a standard corn feeder and just drop it on the ground? Thanks.

A lot depends on deer numbers, habit and how long it takes deer to eat the protein. Gravity is the best way to allow deer to get feed when they need it, not when you want them to have it. If it is a supplement then they will eat it post rut or during drier times. When it rains they should back off feed. Time protein has its place for guys who have a budget or live to far from their lease/land. Depending on the timed feeder time you do control how much and when they can eat. It works better if you have good habitat to rely on. Time you feed can also dictate if you have mainly bucks vs. does eating. As far it not working as well as free choice, think of it like this: those deer eating feed are eating less from the habitat. Those other deer not eating have more habitat to eat, if you have your deer numbers under control. I have mixed corn and protein and fed it for years out of spin feeders, but you have to make sure you have some type of agitator on the spinner place to keep the feed flowing daily. If the feed bridges over then it will become a nasty mess inside the feeding from the moisture build up inside the feeder(pellets and corn have moisture, heat build up causes it to "sweat" due to feed sitting idle inside the feeder). Throwing deer pellets on the ground it wet climates is not going to work very well at all. With any feeder for protein you need a feed pen to keep hogs away.

stx, what ratio of protein and corn in your spinners? Also, what type of agitator? We use Eliminator plates on all our feeders.

mm...oops Sorry, OP. No hijack intended.

There are far more people on here more educated on my about this subject but the idea of supplemental feeding deer protein is to give them as much as they will eat whenever they will eat it in order to make them healthier and ultimately larger in terms of antler size so that being said, I would always free choice feed protein. One thing I would advise is to understand that protein feeding isn't a one off evolution. You need to be committed to it long term and with that said you need to be sure your not only on the right place genetically but also a place you will have the commitment from the LO assuring you'll be there long enough to reap the potential rewards.