I know of places in Maine where feeding by locals [for whatever *innocent* reason] has got out of control.
http://www.maine.gov/ifw/wildlife/species/deer/feeding_deer.htm
I know of places in Maine where feeding by locals [for whatever *innocent* reason] has got out of control.
http://www.maine.gov/ifw/wildlife/species/deer/feeding_deer.htm
Around here we call them rats on stilts.
Supplemental feeding is expensive.
Grains and pelleted foods are sold at a premium price in winter. A deer will consume 2 to 3 lbs of grain each day. Deer seem to be able to communicate the location of "free food" among themselves. Consequently, people who feed a few deer in December often find they are buying food for considerably more deer by February. Some large-scale feeding operators spend $300 or more per week on grain for wild deer.
Once a feeding program is begun, it should not be terminated until spring greenery emerges. Ending a feeding operation prematurely, or providing inadequate amounts of feed, will lead to nutritional problems for deer that have become dependent on supplemental feed. Attracting deer to feeding sites, while failing to provide adequate amounts of supplemental foods can actually cause malnutrition in normally healthy deer populations.
I think it would be a good idea to put Department of Wildlife managers into Department of Welfare positions. They seem to have figured something out.