Answer: When it comes to whitetail deer management, food plots are a good tool. They are not the only way to provide supplemental forage for whitetail, but they can work great over much of the whitetail’s range, including Texas. The eastern half of Texas has better soil for food plots, but good soils can be found over much of the state, even further west if they are located along creeks, rivers and other riparian areas.

Turnips can be planted in the spring, but they are better fall plots. Food plots for whitetail hunting are typically planted in early to mid-September. Though turnip food plots can grow great, deer do not always jump on them right away. It depends on the local habitat and forage situation, but whitetail deer usually will not eat the leaves until the turnip plant has gone through a freeze. A freeze will convert the starches found in the leaves into sugars, then the deer are more likely to consume them.

Some properties have a hard time getting whitetail to eat turnips, even after a hard freeze. A friend of mine once planted about 20 acres of turnips one year and the whitetail never touched them. Of course, if I recall correctly, his part of South-Central Texas experienced a mild winter, slow hunting season, and the deer had plenty to eat.

On another property in Central Texas the deer ate the turnip leaves the very first year following a freeze, but not the bulb. The following years the deer consumed all of the leaves, even before a hard freeze! Then they ate the bulbs following a good freeze. From what I have seen of turnip food plots, it usually takes several years of planting them to get the deer accustomed to using them. Turnips for food plots for deer are a good plant to go with. Whether in Texas or elsewhere in the whitetail’s range, turnips typically do well because deer will allow them to grow, not eating them until winter sets in.

Response: Deer hunting can vary quite a bit in different parts of a county, but Lampasas County has good numbers of deer over most of it. The west-central part of the county can have some open areas, but even the wooded areas hold deer. Good bucks have come out of every county in Texas. The biggest factor for deer management is food availability and bucks that are allowed to get old. Take care of these two things and your deer lease will be great.

I hunted on a ranch between Lometa and Lampasas for several years. It was the a good ranch with nice deer habitat. We shot some really good bucks and saw a few more on camera and in person that never got to take a dirt nap. The best part, they weren’t managed either and all on low fenced places. Lampasas County has produced some great whitetail bucks over the years. In fact, I know of at least two bucks that have scored over 175 B&C in recent years that were off un-managed, low fence properties.

Your deer lease is located in a good area with lots of deer. The important thing to remember with free ranging deer is that is difficult to have both quality and quantity. I have no doubt that Lampasas County offers some good deer hunting, but you may have to thin out the herd if the area you are hunting is deer rich. That’s not a bad problem to have, but realize there could be some trade offs depending on what you are looking for in a deer hunting property. Best of luck!

Response: Cottonseed can be used as a supplemental protein source for whitetail, but my experience with it is it is labor intensive unless your are setup to handle it. Feeding cottonseed is very demanding during high heat and humidity. You will need a covered shed to store it under, tractor with front end loader to move it around or load onto trailer/truck to move around ranch to put in feeders.

To get cottonseed, you will have to book it from cotton gins in advance and take everything that you order. It can be very hard to get deer to learn to eat it on some places, but this varies from ranch to ranch. It also has a chemical compound called gossypol that can impact deer breeding. Gossypol has caused sterility in bulls on feed, and literature says it can do the same to deer if fed at the wrong time. That would hurt the whitetail hunting, not improve it!

The bad thing about cottonseed is that during a drought it is hard to find. The use of cottonseed by those involved in deer management programs has increase the price in recent years, but it is high in protein (20 percent plus), high in fat and also in fiber and is as close to a complete feed as one can get but lacks key minerals. A lot of ranches use it and deer will come to love it. Many properties feed it from February through September and have zero problems during the rut.

All livestock love cottonseed. I have seen feral hogs try to eat it, but research has found that if they eat too much is will kill hogs. Cottonseed is weather resistant due to the natural oils in it, but if it does rain it will sprout. Deer will also eat the cotton plant. You can make a cottonseed feeder using 2 inch by 4 inch welded wire that is about 4 to 5 feet tall and creating a round circular column (about 24 to 30 inches in diameter). All you have to do is dump the cottonseed in and the deer will eat it right through the wire.

Do not provide free-choice cottonseed during the whitetail hunting season or it will decrease daylight deer sightings. It could also impact the sterility of your bucks. Remove all cottonseed from the field at least 60 days prior to the rut.

We are now talking September 4, pretty nice size antlers, and the buck is still with the doe and current year’s fawn. They are feeding happily in the morning and afternoon on our property and seem to enjoy the habitat. They all seem to get along fine. Can someone tell us what is going on here? As far as I know the bucks are supposed to be at boot camp gearing up for the big mating game, but not this one.”

Response: When it comes to nature, nothing is a given. Although whitetail deer movement can vary from year to year, and so can family groups, it is not uncommon to see the previous year’s fawns still hanging out with their mom prior to and even after fawning the following year. Although it is more common for does to hang out, especially into September, this is not always the case.

Sometimes, buck fawns will still be running around with his mom the following year. This is not as common, but is far from unusual. Typically, young bucks are forced to disperse away from the areas where they were raised. This does not necessarily occur because of the doe, but because of an older buck or multiple bucks that occupy the area. In these instances, the young buck may move from one to five miles before it finally finds a place to call home.

I suspect the buck in your case did not get pushed out, probably because there are a low number of whitetail bucks in your area. This may not be the case, but I am willing to put money on it. Whitetail deer movement, especially in bucks, can vary a lot. Herd composition can impact these movements, but so can family group dynamics. Although yearling bucks (1.5 year old deer) do not always hang out with mom, it is not uncommon either.

The lease is mostly heavily brushed with mesquite and huisache. There are cleared shooting lanes. I do have a water well and access to tanks to provide the deer with water. In addition, I plan on feeding corn year-round and supplying “all they can eat” protein until the end of September. What else can I do?”

Answer: There are a number of things you can do to improve the quality of deer and the whitetail deer hunting on your South Texas lease. First and foremost, allow the bucks found on your property to mature. This is the single easiest way to produce good quality deer. It’s also the easiest. I would cull some inferior deer, but don’t get carried away unless your place is covered up with animals.

If you do have an overabundance of deer, then the next most important thing you can do is implement deer population control. Individual deer must be healthy for the deer herd to be healthy. Bucks will grow bigger antlers and does will produce better fawn crops if they are well fed. Deer can not be well fed if the deer density is too high, unless you are ready to foot an really expensive protein bill.

Speaking of protein, do provide supplemental foods. Since you are in South Texas, food plots will not be reliable. Protein pellets are great for your situation. For the hot, dry environment found there I would suggest a pellet with 16% protein. You can feed more, but you could also have issues during the summer. If you want to provide additional protein, look at feeding a 20% protein pellet in January and February, then switch to 16% through September.

To help the hunting on your place, keep the property quiet and the shooting to a minimum. This will make deer want to stay on the place more. In addition, set aside sanctuary areas, such as parts of the ranch with thick cover you do not go into. Place protein feeders near these areas, preferably around the core of your deer lease. This will help hold animals on the place, especially if you keep in quiet and supplied with food and water.

A 430 acre place is a good amount of land, but you will not be able to keep bucks only on your land. You must understand that they will roam off of your place, or will at least be able to. That said, bucks will also come from neighboring leases. But bucks are smart, especially older ones. If possible contact these neighboring places and set up some common deer management goals. This will get the best results, although implementing the above recommendations will definitely help your whitetail hunting and the quality of animals on your leased property.

The photo of the buck looks like a very young deer and I am wondering if he will put on some more points with age and good nutrition? If he is just a large 5 point buck, will he fill out into an 8 point deer? Or is a good candidate to be culled? Again, this buck looks very young.”

Response: First, let me say that it is possible for deer herd improvement with selective buck harvest, but it will not work on every property. A very small property will have little impact on the whitetail deer herd at large, while a larger property can have more effect on a free range deer herd. One thing is for sure, even on a larger property herd improvement will not happen over night. It will take years of proper harvest, and even then there may be no noticeable changes if neighboring properties are not also involved in a similar deer management program.

But not all agree that culling bucks will improve the antler characteristics of a deer herd. That is, because yearling bucks disperse during early fall. Studies have shown that as many as 70 percent of yearling whitetail bucks will move five or more miles, and over 10 miles in more open country. This means that bucks are coming onto your property from the neighbors’ and vice versa. If you’ve been culling small bucks and letting those with more potential walk, yet the neighbors are shooting anything with antlers, they are the ones getting the most benefit from your whitetail management program.

Lastly, the buck that you refer to as a young is not in fact that young. Based on the photo, I would estimate this buck to be at least three years old. A three year old buck with five or six total antler points is a cull in just about everyone’s book. In fact, I’d recommend harvesting any two year old buck with seven or fewer antler points if you want deer herd improvement. A buck’s antlers must be judge based on his age. Estimating the age of deer is necessary for managing whitetail deer, but the skill of properly aging deer on the hoof is not learned over night.

A good percentage of whitetail deer hunters simply hate coyotes. They dislike even the thought of a coy dog killing a fawn, yet these same hunters will not blink a eye and will shoot any deer that presents itself—even that same fawn! I know the majority of “hunters” are not like this, but there are some killers out there that live my the mantra “if it’s brown, it’s down.” If it sets foot on their food plot it is BLAM! At least coyotes are selective hunters, right?

I don’t like to think about coyotes killing deer, but these photo above shows that coyotes kill bucks, does and fawns too. Instead of hating wiley coyote, I think a better understanding of the circle of life and predator/prey relationships is needed here. It is not the predators against prey, but it is simply the way nature works.

Deer predators keep deer populations in check, and probably like this buck, weed out the weak. It’s probably safe to assume that this buck was not in great shape, was probably ill or diseased. Coyotes just keep the herd strong. Hunters, however, usually look for the strongest, fittest, with the largest antlers. Whitetail hunting has progressed over the years. Many hunters involved in deer management programs also cull the weak, the physically inferior, but many hunters just want the best that Mother Nature has to offer.

If you look at the whole series of “coyotes kill buck” photos, it is hard to believe only two coyotes did that. There was never more than two on camera at a time. It did take them while to kill this nice buck, and it was spectacular that it all happened right in front of a game camera. The coyotes started (at least on camera) at around 10:00 pm and the buck was not down until around 3:00 am. This is how nature works. It’s the real world. Deer hunting is about killing deer, celebrating the harvest and using it wisely. Hunters are no different that coyotes.

EHD is a common but sporadic disease in white-tailed deer populations of the United States, and is contracted by the bite of insects called biting midges. In more northern states, EHD occurs less often and affected deer are less likely to mount an effective immune response. The deer virus usually kills the deer quickly, within five to 10 days. The disease is not spread from deer to deer by contact. While EHD is not infectious to humans, deer displaying severe symptoms of EHD are usually not suitable for consumption because of the rapid deterioration of the meat and secondary bacterial infection.

Even though some EHD symptoms are similar to those of chronic wasting disease (CWD), such as excessive drooling, weakness and a loss of fear of humans, there is no relationship between EHD and CWD. However, because these diseases coexist, deer submitted for EHD testing also are being tested for CWD. The deer disease known as Blue Tongue also has very similar symptoms to EHD and CWD. Tissue samples must be extracted within 24 hours of death to be suitable for conducting tests. There is no evidence that humans are at risk from EHD, but other diseases could be transmitted by careless hygiene when processing deer.

EHD is one of the whitetail deer diseases in which the animal mortality rate can be amplified by anything that serves to bring deer together, such as supplemental feeding, and placement of salt or mineral blocks. While the disease is not spread through deer-to-deer contact, congregating animals through feeding does make transmission easier by allowing midges that carry the virus greater access to a larger number of animals in a more confined area. Therefore, such feeding activities should be discontinued immediately. There will still be deer this whitetail hunting season in Pennsylvania, but not as many as there were prior to EHD taking its toll.

Response: White-tailed deer are tough and can bounce back and heal from many types of broken bones. For what it’s worth, we have a 4 1/2 year old buck on a ranch that’s been missing part of a hind leg from just below the hock for over two years. The deer is in good body condition and is quite mobile, but the antler located on the opposite side from the bad leg is deformed. It is common that bucks with injuries to their hind legs have deformed antlers on the opposite sides.

In your case, I tend to think the broken rear leg will likely physically remove him from the rut this year. The buck will not be able to chase does, successfully fight with other bucks and will have a hard time mounting does with only one good leg. That being said, the desire to breed is strong and could ultimately do him in a fight or declining body condition. From a deer management perspective, this deer is a non-factor for breeding purposes this year.

If you have a low buck to doe ratio, then I would suggest keeping this guy out on the landscape, although as mentioned earlier there is a good chance he will not do much, if any, breeding this year. On the other hand, if you’ve got a good number of bucks then I would recommend harvesting the deer with the broken leg this coming whitetail hunting season to save your habitat, feed and winter food plots for maintaining the animals that are currently in good health. I’d recommend shooting him.

Fellow hunters, take from it what you will. I arrived at my deer lease at before sunrise with hog hunting on my mind. There was a small tank that had been covered in hog sign, so I knew where I wanted to set up. There are no game cameras in this area so I did not know when these pigs were frequenting the water source. I got settled in, unloaded a few supplies and I was ready for the hunt. I wanted to test this product prior to the deer hunting season and we all know that pigs have darn good sniffers too.

It important to note that at this point the inner conflict began. There seems to be something inherently wrong with intentionally sending a scent into the air for every animal to wind, but then I reminded myself that I was here for a fair and accurate review of Deer Smoke Screen. I lit it up. I was sweating heavily and the gnats were driving me crazy. After about 5 minutes there were no more gnats. Was this a benefit of the thin smoke stream? Not sure.

The wind has a tendency to swirl around this tank due to the fact that it sets in a bowl. With this is mind, I decided to light at least 1 more Deer Smoke Screen stick and set it to the West just in case any porkers came down the trail on that side. I hunted for six hours in 100 degree weather and never saw a hog.

However, I did a bobcat, two raccoons, and a coyote that came to the tank. The bobcat got within 14 yards of me and he was downwind for a brief period, but never looked in my direction. The coyote got within 25 yards and was also downwind. I would have put the drop on him, but my sling caught on a cedar branch and blew my cover.

The archery whitetail hunting season will soon be upon us and I will give Deer Smoke Screen another shot. I did not have any game animals come downwind of me, or feral hogs for that matter, but it did fool some predators. I can’t say I’m a complete believer until it fools some deer, but the product did earn a little respect from me.