Obviously Moultrie is selling something here and there is plenty to poke at with the conditions of the study.

What does the class think of generational benefits of feeding protein?

https://www.moultriefeeders.com/blog/can-protein-feed-help-grow-bigger-antlers/?utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Apr_2020&dm_i=5H3D,A84G,3TB15J,12EQH,1

Feeding protein has benefits including subsidizing natural carring capacity, but it’s not a solution to any particular problem. Your carrying capacity is still determined my native flora health and utilization. The mind set of carry capacity in a bag is a fail. Law of diminishing returns when you view it that way.

I personally think if you want optimal ROI you need to feed, but the optimization may only be a marginal increase in health. I also don’t like lighting hundred dollar bills on fire, that essentially what you are doing if you don’t have the ability to manage ratios and numbers to CC.

Very true and there is an old saying "You can't make a silk purse out of a sows ear" You have to have the right genetics to start. You are not going to win the Kentucky Derby with a plow horse. Feed is just one small part of it all.

The best bang for the buck has always been food plots.

I have a hard time believing the antler gains. I suppose it could happen given they were in a high fence enclosure. But were they allowed to roam and eat natural stuff to boot or was that their sole source of food?

edit: Not calling them liars, but those are huge gains indicating to me that the genetics are there, but the native browse sucks.

If you are a low fence guy, like me, I could never duplicate Moultrie's high fence test. No idea what the deer are eating besides protein.

I threw this question out to the class because I have read other posts on this forum where there seem to be some generational improvement claims made by those who have fed protein over x amount of years, presumably starting with a herd that wasn't getting protein supplements before.

When I was feeding, and guiding, low fence ranches the results of feeding I saw were incremental, and took years. It worked, but I never saw 120-130 class deer move into the 140 + class in just year or two. The feeding program also depends on what nature is providing in the arena of natural food and even more than that how much rain you are getting. A wet winter that produces forbs out the wahzoo is the absolute best for the herd, from what I saw.

When Mother Nature is being kind, it’s hard to agrue the tonage produced. Unfortunately she isn’t always so kind

There is generational improvement, the day you start feeding protein you are instantly helping the fawns the most, Infact large percentage of your deer aren’t going to even utilize it for some time, why should they they didn’t grow up on it. The biggest jump is seen from those fawn that where raised on it, those are the deer that have been utilizing it year in year out until death, be it 5.5 or 6.5, etc.

Long story short, when starting, it’s a minimal return on high age class deer but it grows in significant the younger you get.

Some interesting research done (i believe in Georgia but could be wrong on that) looked at WT deer from three distinct portions of the state nutritionally. They farted and transported many deer from each environment where there were phenotypic all differences in weight and antler size. They penned the deer and gave them all free choice protein as much as they wanted, in addition to normal for a and browse. They kept each areas deer separate from the other areas. They would then weigh and measure bucks every year to “maturity” (they considered age three a middle aged deer for a native LF hunter, plus they needed an end point to the study that could be sustained. What they found was interesting. Paraphrasing here, but I believe I have the gist of it:
At the age of three, looking across the different deer beards from the different areas,
Deer in generation 0 (those that were actually transplanted to the pens) saw minimal weight gain and antler gain, some but it wasn’t impressive, but the smaller deer from the more coastal areas did not make much gain on the ag country deer.
Deer in generation 1 (offspring of the transplanted deer) showed some good gains but not enough to make up the difference in size and antlers between the areas.
Deer in generation 2 (offspring of the offspring) by age 3 the difference between the areas was really gone.


What does that tell us? Deer, as other animals, have genetic encoding that can be turned on and off in either locations which are not ideal or in times of prolonged stress. This effect was seen for several generations of deer. This means times of prolonged drought could impact a deer herd in ways we just can’t imagine, where generations of deer could be adversely affected.
It also means that protein feeding is not going to see much in the way of short term gains on average. Any place that advertises single year gains from protein feeding may just be seeing a natural response to better browse or something rather than the protein feed.

My thoughts: You are going to see more gains from prolonged good weather seasons than prolonged protein feeding. Think of the protein as a way to slightly increase carrying capacity or as a crutch when the weather is bad (drought)

I'm just learning this protein stuff and I'm doing it, not in the hopes of raising any monsters, but as one of my Wildlife Valuation choices for taxes. (Low fence...some places, very low fence, one place - no fence.) Lots of trial and error right now. I'm sure I'll see more measurable results once it turns hot and dry.

'Don't know if I'll attempt a food plot, but I did find this "barely used" chisel plow buried in the weeds outside the one, small, abandoned field. I'm ready to rock and roll - heavy emphasis on "rock".

She's been an insensitive female dog to us for 3 years running.