answerguy

Salt is salt as far as that ingredient goes. But the trace mineral salts that you can get add things that may be missing from their diet.

answerguy

Does anyone put out these:
33-1/3 Lb. Rabon Fly Control
http://www.mytscstore.com/detail.asp...productID=1287

I just wonder if we would be doing the deer any favors by putting these out in the spring and summer?

answerguy

Something esle you can add is dried molasses. That will add to it's palatability.

Just don't add non-salt sidewalk de-icers.

soarkrebel

farm hunter from what i have seen dicalcium phosphate is used alot with dairy cows to increase milk production. so i would guess it would be good for does .
And aren't antlers mostly made of calcium ?

I have read some stuff on it but couldnt tell you where.

another thing in some parts of the country the soil doesn't have the minerals needed to produce good antler growth. the supplements help overcome this.

I think the salt is just to get the deer to use it cause they like it. i have also seen where some have used jello to help deer to use the licks.

I am fixin to get mine spiced up again soon.

alwyshntn

sorry about not getting right back with you crzy_hunter89 but I'm out of town with work thru the week. Anyway I would just like to say this was a recipe for those of you interested and if you don't like it don't use it. Anyway tear up a spot about 3ft wide and 4 to 6 inches deep and pour onto spot then work into soil. You can use a plastic 5 gallon bucket to mix in and use a coffee can to divide out the equal parts you need.

As far as the benefits there have been many studies done but mostly on pen raised deer and frankly I think the jurys still out.

What I do know about the different ingredients is this: Di calcium Phosphate is used in dairy cattle feed. It promotes feed digestion, weight gain, and milk production, which is beneficial to lactating does. It contains about 18 to 21 percent phosphorous and 19 to 23 percent calcium. If you look at what actually makes up a deers antler you will see that hardened antler contains 40 to 50 percent organic matter from mostly proteins while the most abundant minerals consist of calcium and phosphorous. The demands for these minerals on a daily basis can be significant in antler growth. Also, the lactating doe's milk contains high percentages of both calcium and phosphorus that they pass on to their young which in turn causes a significant mineral drain on the doe.

The trace minerals have an attractant value in them which is salt/sodium which gets the deer to utilize the mineral. But best of all it contains minerals such as magnesium and potassium which promotes a healthy herd and is not found to be in abundance in all areas and regions that are lacking in such minerals.

What makes this better than most you buy is that while it uses a salt as an attractant it is not the primary ingredent like found in most mixes.

farm hunter

I hear ya soarkrebel.

I'm just saying that most of the minerals deer and other animals take in - is through their food. We can increase Phosphorous, by fertilizing and increase calcium by adding lime. Minerals in growing plant tissue are very quickly digested and used by feeding deer. Even with supplements, most minerals are obtained this way by the deer. so its in our best ineterest to fertilize and lime.

Cows are often given mineral supplements this is true. But remember - cows eat a much more coarse diet of grasses than deer and they weigh ALOT More. Generally speaking - except that deer and cows are both ruminants - they don't have that much in common, especially in quantities of milk production. A deer's physiology is such that it can be 80 lbs and starving - but its milk production for its fawns will be near normal - its the doe that suffers - not its milk production normally - more reason to feed - not supplement.

Lastly - Again - I don't think it hurts to supplement. And it could offer some benefits - especially, possibly, to lactating does that are under nourished. But I've yet to find one study that really substantiates mineral supplements for deer - and there has been alot of them!

soarkrebel

farm hunter you know i can read one article or study that says one thing and another that says another.

I have always kind of related deer like goats. we had them when i was a kid and remember we would worm them and boy they would gain weight and fill out. we also gave them minerals just like the cows and it seemed to help as i remember.

And your right it would be much better to fertilize food sources. but if i weigh the cost between liming and putting the sights out it's far cheaper to put the sites out.

And if i had a nickle for every time i have caught deer in our cattle lot getting them some of the cows mixture man i could lime!!

Anyway it gives me a good excuse to be out there enjoying just being there.

farm hunter

Good points soarkrebel -

You are right on about being out and enjoying it all. Thats what its really all about. Its nice to know that other hunters, like yourself and many others on this site - get so much more out of hunting than just taking a deer.

FH

crzy_hunter89

Ok last question about this. How many pounds of each ingredient should i mix. Just tell me what does this equal one part = lbs. Should i use the whole bag and mix it like that or what? thanks for helping me out!!!

alwyshntn

In mixing don't worry about lbs. Just stick to the equal parts for example get a coffee can and scoop out one can of Di calcium Phoshate then 2 cans of trace minerals and finally 1 can of stock salt. Mix that together and there you have it. If thats not enough mix do it again. Just keep it at 1-2-1. The original recipe was for 200lbs. If you were to make less you would not necessarily have to buy 2 fifty pound bags of the trace mineral just keep the mix like i said 1-2-1. Good Luck with your site its alot of fun and I place mine in one of my food plots so if they do slack off on using the site itself they still have a reason to visit. This makes a awesome place to place a stand. I have several different sites on different farms and some have been there for going on 5 years and have had deer taken off of them reguarly.