I have heard of people feeding 16% goat protein to deer for half the price. What are your thoughts?

Would have to see the price to believe it since all the protein sources to make a pellet are costing the same no matter what label it is under. Post a label to see what is in the pellet and what is not in it.

This is the label. $7.25 for a 50# bag.

Im sure ranchman can tell you what it lacks or has that is good for deer minerals and protein wise, but we are feeding 20% protein and it doesnt cost us $14.50 a bag, more like $9.00 so your 50% savingings would be more like 20%. Not sure what 16% deer protein is going for but I would imagine its less than 20%.

matt

If I could get 20% deer protein for 9.00 a bag, I wouldn't worry with the goat. I don't know where you're at but the cheapest around here is 12.50 a sack. As far as the math goes, you are right. That is about 30% a bag. As a 5th grade teacher, I'm glad to see it isn't true what they say about us...we do teach math.

Being in East Texas hardwood country, however, our deer usually don't come to feeders due to acorns on the ground. No rain = low crop of acorns. Therefore, a large amount of extra money in feed.

I buy my feed at a littl local feed store last 1000 lbs we bought was right at 9 a bag.

Your post is kinda confusing... you telling me i do or dont know my plusses and minuses?

Just for kicks I compared it to Purina antlermax protein, only real differences is the goat feed has 2.75% fat and deer feed only had 2% and the deer feed had roughly twice the amount of phosphorus as the goat feed. Maybe there are other differences though, not sure.

Where do you buy your protein at, at a feed sotre or acadmey/walmart?

The bad in this feed is 1.3% of the crude protein is from non-protein nitrogen, not good for deer as they can not utilize it and it makes a cheap feed. 16.5% fiber is high for a pasture deer feed and is nothing but roughage and you can grow that for free, needs to be 10-12% max in my feeds. Very low in minerals...calcium is from .60%-1.10% and phosphorus is very low at .45% min. Minerals are expensive and phosophorus is very costly to add. Copper and Vitamin A are low compared to most deer feeds and are important for deer. Being that this pellet is coming from Tennessee tells me it is cheaply made as shipping is very high to get it here. Deer will have to eat twice as much of this pellet as a good one to get the same results.

You do know them. My question, although based in economics, was more concerned with the possible harm caused by using goat feed. I was trying to determine if the risks outweighed the the economic benefit so my "half the price" was figurative not algebraic.



I buy at a couple of feed stores. After looking at corn and protein prices posted in other forums, it seems like we're getting higher prices in Northeast Texas. Like I said before, we usually don't feed much do to the abundance of acorns in the hardwood bottoms I hunt on Caddo lake. Maybe the guys running the feed stores don't buy in bulk. Or maybe they know we don't know what market price usually is.

Either way, it sounds like the goat feed isn't worth the savings. (No matter how it comes out mathematically ).

I just pulled my camera. If I don't get rid of the coons, the deer won't get anything and it won't matter what I put in it. I'm sure nothing will hurt the coons feelings!

You can buy record rack sportsman 20% pellet at tractor supply for 8.79 a 50lb bag if u have a tractor supply close buy can't beat that that's buy I use they know me by name at my local store

It will be interesting to see what corn prices will be doing in the near future, now that the tax credits are no longer available for ethanol. Since corn is the main ingredient and the subsidy no longer in place, the corn prices should go down again! Most areas are also starting to bring in their corn now, so the timing may be good for the late summer early fall for a price drop!

Corn prices have historically dropped at harvest so that will not really tell us anything short term. If they continue to fall then it will help.

Just bought 2 tons of 20% deer pellets at Gorman milling for $8.50 a bag..Last month it was $8.25 a bag. Last year at this time it was $7.15 a bag.

I checked again last night, we bought our last 1000 lbs for 8.95 a sack. We dont get a special rate on the feed, it what everybody else who walks in that door pays for it too.

Think their pellets are peanut based. My deer didn't miss a beat when I switched to the Gorman Red Chain product.In fact, I wish they would slow down. Not going to happen until we grow something.

Where are you at? I just went to Tractor Supply....12.99 for 50#.
13.95 at every feed store within 30 miles.