ORIGINAL: ben673
I've read that article before and found that its true, no salt=not much use of the mineral sight. An article in the last White Tail Institute field journal said homemade mixes could contain toxic levels of minerals that could be dangerous to deer. Their mineral mix is about a dollar a pound, and I,ve got 6 mineral sights on about 2,000 acres, so putting 20lbs a sight, per year gets really high$$$.
I found this at WI but it refers to pure salt blocks and not mixes:
What about using salt blocks?
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Salt blocks have been used for years to attract deer due to the fact that it is cheap and sodium is often lacking in the deer’s natural diet, and therefore, deer are attracted to the sodium found in salt. The problem with salt is that it contributes very little to antler growth or lactation. Furthermore, over consumption of salt is just as unhealthy in deer as it is in humans and can increase the water consumption of deer, which takes up valuable stomach space and decreases overall food consumption. What deer really need are the proper amounts and integration of macro minerals, trace minerals and vitamins that play a much more active role in antler growth, lactation and herd health than does salt.
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