I just got on a new lease and we’ve decided to try and protein feed the place. I have two stands and I wanted to a do a test to see which one the deer like more. So on one location I set up a cotton seed feeder witch is 20 yards from my corn feeder. On my other stand I set up a protein feeder. The protein feeder I mixed pellets with corn. It is also set up fairly close to the corn feeder. I’ve had the cotton seed out for almost two months now. And the deer haven’t touched it. I’ve put corn in the pin with it and even poured it on top of the cotton seed to try and entice them to eat it. The deer ate all the corn and never touched the cotton seed. The coons after about 6 days climbed in the pin and ate the corn out of the cotton seed. Other than that nothing has touched it. Now the protein feeder is mixed corn and protein I’ve only had one deer touch it in a month of it being out. Other than that it’s been coons helping them self to it. The corn feeders are still throwing and I’m getting pictures of 5-10 deer all the time eating the feeders and they won’t go to protein. Is this typical? I see post where people talk about having to refill every couple weeks. At this rate I won’t have to fill for the next couple years. Lol

Getting deer to eat protein or cottonseed has been about timing and rainfall IME. For cottonseed right after the rut has ended or at the end of deer season is the best time. Late winter is usually one of the worst times of the year for forage availability. Bucks are needing feed more in late winter post rut than later on in the spring. Same with protein for better success starting deer is post rut feeding. With protein any time it gets extremely dry is another good time to get deer on feed. Feeding deer out of a feeder they have never seen or eaten out of can be difficult. With protein I usually just put a bag of corn in the feeder to get them used to eating out of the feeder. Then mix one bag of corn with one bag of protein and put in the feeder. Once that is gone I then put in 2-3 bags of protein only. I never fill a protein feeder up till the deer are used to eating out of it and eating the protein well. Feed will go bad after a while inside a feeder. It will get either brown bugs or weevils in the feed. Especially in the corn. With cottonseed I would mix small amounts of it with corn and put in piles under the spin feeder in 3-4 spots. Also the style protein feeder you are using can effect how long it takes deer to eat out of one. Some feeders have the feed ports way to high of the ground for smaller body size deer in some areas to reach to eat from the feeder.

I agree.

It took our deer awhile to get onto the cottonseed when we started it 6-7 years ago. They hammer it now. As mentioned, its primary value is post rut IMO to put weight back on the deer.

To me the other value of cottonseed is it can be set up to allow fawns to eat it. Most protein pens have no access for fawns so cottonseed can be consumed by fawns.

A few years back we tried putting alphalpha bales in our feed pens - we put corn on top of the bales. Our deer never really took to it - maybe because they also had protein, cottonseed, and corn already there to pick from.

I started feeding protein a few years ago. I did like you and mixed corn in it a first. They didn't touch it for a month or more. Finally I got one pic of a small buck at the protein. That seemed to snowball them eating it. Now I can't keep it full. Give it some time and the will make you by more...trust me.

So, is it too late in the year to start trying to feed deer protein. I've never fed it and don't know whether to start now or in the fall.

Mr. T. - my opinion is pretty much any time you start is good. One proviso - make certain they have access to water, it helps.

Does it need to be in the pen, or can a tank 200 yards away work?

as long as they can get to water in a reasonable distance, you're good. 200 yards is well within their wandering range.

Thank you.

have a friend who made up cotton seed feeder rings out of welded wire, makes about a 3-4' diameter by 48-50" tall, couple of t-posts to keep it in place. buys cotton seed in bulk and then just shovels it into the top of the rings. puts these inside of his feed pens. He said it took them a little time to figure it out, but now they are hitting shortly after he fills them up.

My best advice is to keep at it.

About 5 years ago I tried feeding protein out of a boss buck feeder. Never saw deer eating out of it, only coons and pigs. I got frustrated with it and gave up after several months.

Last year I decided to go all in and purchased a timed all seasons feeders 2klb protein feeder. Filled it up in February and set my camera out. Didn't have deer eating out of it until OCTOBER! If it hadn't been for the timed unit I would have probably given up as well. Now it's not uncommon to get pics with 10+ deer eating from it at a time.

Two things. One, our deer had never eaten protein, so that was completely new to them. Two, the deer had never stuck their mouths in a spout to get food.

Just keep protein in your feeder and they'll eventually eat it!

My boyfriend and I lease a ranch off 59 in Laredo and it took a good couple years for them to start eating it but now they love it. The whole place is about 8000 acres and we get 12 tons of cottonseed delivered every month or so.

I hunted on a 5000 acre place that had 25 feeders in south Texas. We filled some cottonseed feeders once a week and some once a year, within a mile of each other. Some like it and some don't. Deer have to figure it out, which may take a week or 6 months. You just need the one guinea pig to go at it. I will say that after several years of cottonseed and very, very, strict management, there was not another LF place around that could touch the size of those deer. Had 13 bucks come to the feeder one morning and 7 were gross book.

Cottonseed will render your bucks sterile.