Most of what they're eating in a field is water, not concentrated pellets. Compare a salad to a protein bar, volume-wise, when you have enough salad to equal the same amount of protein. One pound of alfalfa sprouts (which are much higher in protein than oats and other common deer forage) contains about 17gr of protein; a pound of pellets contains 70-80 grams of protein. So they have to eat four to five pounds of forage to get the same protein.

It is a fact, unless you get at least 25" of rain a year in Texas, you will not grow a summer food plot without irrigation. Protein is your next best choice. You might be surprised how fast they will go thru a 50 lb bag in a free choice feeder during stress periods!

It is a fact, unless you get at least 25" of rain a year in Texas, you will not grow a summer food plot without irrigation. Protein is your next best choice. You might be surprised how fast they will go thru a 50 lb bag in a free choice feeder during stress periods!

No way they will be the same, they have different mothers. And the doe carries about 70% of the mitocandria DNA. And research has shown that after three or more generations on quality feed, deer will be larger. It unlocks genes that are otherwise closed...

LONGHUNTER, Please show the research you speak of. Thanks Daniel

A few years back I had the chance to work with a degreed Wildlife Biologist . If I remember correct and I may not, but he told me that deer (bucks) could not and did not benefit from intake of protein greater than 14%, any protein taken in greater than 14% was thrown off by the body. So if true and natural browse provides the 14% needed how does sacked protein help? Thanks Daniel

Deer love Guajillo and is way more than 14% protein. Same goes for cottonseed.

Huisache has about highest protein value in the pasture and deer ignore it. There must be some sort of natural balancing act.

A few years back I had the chance to work with a degreed Wildlife Biologist . If I remember correct and I may not, but he told me that deer (bucks) could not and did not benefit from intake of protein greater than 14%, any protein taken in greater than 14% was thrown off by the body. So if true and natural browse provides the 14% needed how does sacked protein help? Thanks Daniel

Deer love Guajillo and is way more than 14% protein. Same goes for cottonseed.

Huisache has about highest protein value in the pasture and deer ignore it. There must be some sort of natural balancing act.

Hudbone - Guajillo at it's highest level is about 28%. That's in the spring and it drops off dramatically as does most all of our south Texas brush. Last spring and this spring were real buggers due to that freeze in Feb. 2021. Huisache at it's highest is around 27% in the summer. I don't blame deer for not eating it. Personally I can't stand the way it smells!!


Frio

In typical years, the weaning weights of creep-fed lambs were about 12% more than the weights of non-fed lambs, 72lbs versus 65lbs. Also, if started around the 4-6 week age-mark, we were able to wean them 3-4 weeks earlier as they grew faster.

This summer I kept 20 lambs beyond weaning, as I did last year. This year each animal got 1lb of protein per day in addition to range forage. Both last year and this year, forage was not great. After ~100 days on feed, the 20 this year outweighed last year's non-fed group by 11%, 120lbs vs 108. The additional weight was mainly in their frame, judging from appearances.

We also have done a ram test in the past, where rams at 130-150 lbs were put on straight feed in a small lot. Their typical gain was ~1lb per day. As you can see, the above lambs on pasture/protein mix only added ~.5lbs per day. The quality of feed and how much energy they expend to get it has a definite impact on growth rates.





The beef cow was an extreme example, to illustrate the difference between almost zero-energy expenditure vs almost total energy expenditure in the acquisition of food. I am surprised that you are not seeing a change in body weights due to additional available protein. Do you feel you are far below maximum carrying capacity? I ask, as a friend went to an MLD plan in the early 2000s. They did not add protein, but did remove 83 deer from 3500 low-fenced acres the first year. I believe they killed an additional ~200 over the next four years. The baseline study, while a small sample size, showed their dressed weights for mature bucks increased from 119 lbs to 136lbs in those five years. This was on forage only, which they increased by removing mouths. Are the mature deer you are harvesting the same age as those you're comparing against? I can see them not being all that much different at 6.5/7.5, but would expect them to be well ahead of their age-groups prior to maturity. Example, if you caught OP's two bucks at three years of age, the protein buck would outweigh the control by 10-15%, as the additional calories are allowing him to grow faster, even if the same weight is reached at full maturity.