I hunt a 320 on my own with 240 of heavy cover. For the first time this year, I saw a group of cattle run 2 does off the feeder. What is everyone's take on the mix of cattle and deer on a small place. I am thinking of working with the LO next year and offering to pay more for him to remove the herd during deer season.

Thanks.

4W

i would see if u can get them moved to another pasture, i lease 200 acres and saw a dramatic difference in deer sightings (in person and on camera) after the cow man moved them. some guys will post and say they see deer and cows eating at the same feeder and scratching each others backs but if there is a possibility of getting them moved, i would do it.

Put up feeder pens.

My deer are fairly tame but when the cows come within 200 yards they are GONE! A few might does come back but usually they don't.

we did feeder pens too but i think just the presence of cows will affect deer movement.

actually i know it does, like i said, we went two months with very few pics and sightings when the cows where there and literally within days of them being gone began seeing much more deer.

I have feeder pens on PF and both spinners. Its not about feed, its about range conditions and the comfort level of wildlife.

Deer and cattle have been around each other for a long time. Feed pens will help the situation. Your best option is to lease the grazing rights also from him since he may not have another place to move the cattle to.

4Weight you know my take on it. I was in the similar position last year and had them moved off this year. Seems like I am seeing more deer on camera this season than last. On smaller acreage I think cows will affect deer movement into/out of the property more so than larger acreage places.

What does that you usually run per acre STX or what have you seen?

Thanks.

Man that is going to vary from region to region and really depends on what that ranch will support acres/hd. How many momma cows are on the place year round?

cows on our place this year has killed most all the deer movement on our place...all graze is gone, crap everywhere...you are never alone on any of our stands...400 acres w/ 40 head cattle...rancher now feeding them cotton of all things...it is that bad...

Well right now about 25 momma's. he is gonna take about 10 off but with the drought, his other places are maxed out and have no water. The two tanks on my lease are hanging in there.

Our cows don't seem to have any affect to the deer on our place. Last year I moved a feeder and just never put the pen back up. Several times I would have deer at the feeder and cows would show up and they would all eat. Had one little calf that wanted to play tag with a buck. The calf would chase him around and then the buck would turn around and chase the calf. That went on for 20 minutes. Now, I do think that horses can cause problems with your deer.

How big is your place?

Plenty big. But 45 pair in a 500 acre pasture is still roughly the same density as mentioned above.

small acreage with cows aint good in the daytime. usually the deer will "sneak" in at night and we got pics..but nothing in the daytime. pens keep the cows out, and the deer ump right over...if they come

I hunt a 640 in Oklahoma and when the rancher takes the cows off, I see a ton more deer, especially bucks.
I hate the cows on the same property!

I think you will still see deer but not as many.

Cattle make money, deer/hunting costs money !!!

We bought a 320 acre place 3 years ago. It was overgrazed. And this was with approximately 15 head. We kindly asked the guy that had the cattle to move them. Our deer herd has gotten much better. The first year I did not see a mature deer at all. This year we have at least 6 different 3-4 year old deer that some might call shooters and have a couple 5-6 year olds. They were literally competing for the corn at the feeders with the cattle. We now have tall native grass everywhere. Perfect for....fawns to be born in. This was also recommended to us by our wildlife biologist from our county.
It's a no brainer on a small place, move the cattle and you will have more deer.

I hunt on 3 pastures. 160, 100, and 65 acres. I have cows (that I own) on the two bigger places. I happen to live on the 160 acre place also. I see more deer on the place with the most cows and the most human traffic. Second is the 100 acres with cows and a little less human traffic. I see the least amount of deer on the 65 acre place. The 65 acre place has the most complete and thickest cover, no cows since September and the largest neighbor who has very few cows.
I personally have not seen that much affect on deer by the cows. Donkeys, on the other hand, are a different story. They can be very aggressive toward other animals. A lot of cattle owners keep them because they will keep dogs and coyotes away, but they may chase deer as well. I hate donkeys and I don't keep them because cows can take care of themselves.

I got rid of my cows several years ago. The problem was that, due to drought, the cows had pretty badly over grazed the place and hay had gone out of sight. They ate everything green. We didn't see a lot of deer. I see a lot more now that the browse has returned.

we got 16 cows on our 200 acre less....not an issue, the cows usually stay on one side anyway...we see plenty of deer...

you will see deer, but you would see more if ya plotted it and got rid of the cows. usually real good soil those cow pastures have.

Agree

Cows are no bueno for a deer hunting lease!