# Protein feeder to land ratio



## RandyR2 (Sep 1, 2016)

We are moving to a new lease this year and are going to start feeding protein. The land is timber land in east Texas. My question is how many feeders do you need on a 750 acre lease to make a difference? 





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## Sgrem (Oct 5, 2005)

How many stands do you have? 
Do you have any water?
Any cattle?
What is approx deer density now?

We build these and have one at each stand along with a broadcast feeder and water. South Texas is a little different but you can adjust to your ecosystem.


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## Haute Pursuit (Jun 26, 2006)

I don't know if this will help you or not, but we had 3 2500# protein feeders on 1800 acres that was 5 miles long and 1 mile wide. The same deer would show up at all of them quite often. It was in West Texas though...


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## RandyR2 (Sep 1, 2016)

We donâ€™t know the deer density yet. We will have feeder pens and water stations at each protein station. 


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## Friendswoodmatt (Feb 22, 2005)

I just put 4 2k's on 800 acres-- I figure if its too much it will just last longer


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## mrsh978 (Apr 24, 2006)

Rule of thumb is 1/250 acres - now what you put in them pure BS these days- all the " magic " in a bag ....


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## Shooter (Jun 10, 2004)

^^^^^ This. 1 per 200 - 250 acres near water.


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## SSST (Jun 9, 2011)

I agree, 1 per 250 acres is a good general starting point.


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## fy0834 (Jan 18, 2011)

MLD III land in east Texas ... we get one buck and one doe tag per 200 acres.

We also place one feeder per 200 acres 

We also hunt one hunter per 200 acres

Looks like all things hinge per 200 acres ... for us.


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## Main Frame 8 (Mar 16, 2007)

When you say "near water", what does that mean? 100 yards, 1/2 mile?? We set ours up in areas near where we hunt and regularly see deer but not necessarily in really close proximity to water.


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## Shooter (Jun 10, 2004)

I set mine no farther than a 1/2 mile due to the high mineral content in the feed. Just the old cattle man in me I guess. We never placed mineral blocks or licks very far away from water for the cows. Kind of like putting a teaspoon of salt in your mouth. You're going to be looking for something to wash it down pretty quick. No science here. Just my opinion. I know everyone doesn't have the access to water that I have. Take it for what its worth. 2 Cents.


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## Shooter (Jun 10, 2004)

*Cattle Pen's / Feeding Area*

Cattle Pen's / Feeding Area


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## Trouthunter (Dec 18, 1998)

Long ago a wise man told me that he never built a food plot or set a protein feeder much more than 1/4 mile away from water.

Now that was what he did in South Texas so your case may be different. But it's how we set up on my place north of Edna.

TH


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## CHARLIE (Jun 2, 2004)

Its not about acres its a bout how many deer. You can put a 1,000 pounder every 100 acres and if nothing eats it then what ?


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## Shooter (Jun 10, 2004)

CHARLIE said:


> Its not about acres its a bout how many deer. You can put a 1,000 pounder every 100 acres and if nothing eats it then what ?


I agree. Supply / Demand. If I have a 1000lb feeder not being used I'm not going to put up another feeder 300 yards from it.


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## RandyR2 (Sep 1, 2016)

Shooter said:


> I agree. Supply / Demand. If I have a 1000lb feeder not being used I'm not going to put up another feeder 300 yards from it.


That makes sense I think Iâ€™m going to start with 3 feeder to see if the deer actually eat it. If they are empty when I go back in a couple of weeks Iâ€™ll add another 1 or 2. We plan on having water troughs in each of our feed pens as well.

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## bigfishtx (Jul 17, 2007)

Deer are just like cows. The first thing they do after eating any kind of refined feed is go drink water. As others have said, keep it close to the water. I would try a couple of feeders to start and see how much activity they get. The deer density in a lot of East Tex is pretty sparse. 
In our area, I figure one feeder for every 25-3o deer.


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## CHARLIE (Jun 2, 2004)

RandyR2 said:


> That makes sense I think Iâ€™m going to start with 3 feeder to see if the deer actually eat it. If they are empty when I go back in a couple of weeks Iâ€™ll add another 1 or 2. We plan on having water troughs in each of our feed pens as well.
> 
> Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


That will work but might want to try maybe just 2 feeders and see what happens.


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## Maverick1095 (Nov 22, 2012)

*Protein feeders per acre*

The biologist we use recommends 1 per every 250-350 per acre. Depends on population. We are down south with only 1 deer per every 20 acres. Also I would avoid larger feeders unless you have a ton of deer. If not the feed goes bad and or the weevils get it


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## RandyR2 (Sep 1, 2016)

I ended up putting a 350lbs feeder up inside my feed pen and and 300 lbs broadcast feeder outside of my pen. The broadcast feeder is mixed 50/50 corn and protein. Also put a 35 gallon water trough.









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## JFolm (Apr 22, 2012)

What do yall do with the water troughs? Let it fill with rain water? Dump it every so often so it doesn't build up algae?


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## Fishing Logic (Aug 25, 2005)

RandyR2 said:


> I ended up putting a 350lbs feeder up inside my feed pen and and 300 lbs broadcast feeder outside of my pen. The broadcast feeder is mixed 50/50 corn and protein. Also put a 35 gallon water trough.
> 
> 
> 
> ...


"The broadcast feeder is mixed 50/50 corn and protein."
That doesn't usually work out well. Protein will lock it up as it will swell with moisture. IMO.. Been there done that.


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## bigfishtx (Jul 17, 2007)

JFolm said:


> What do yall do with the water troughs? Let it fill with rain water? Dump it every so often so it doesn't build up algae?


Water algea wont hurt anything, no need to dump it unless something gets in it and dies, like a **** or a rat. If you rely on rain to fill it you will be wasting your time.


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## RandyR2 (Sep 1, 2016)

When I make my next trip I will be adding a 55 gallon drum and an automatic water valve to help keep it filled. I put a board in the trough so if anything gets in they can climb out.


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## cva34 (Dec 22, 2008)

*Protein feeder*

I would guess Size of your Pocketbook would be a Big Factor...I know mine controls ME..
other than that 250a sounds like a decent number to me..


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## 82dodge (Jun 21, 2016)

I built this water guzzler in W TX back in October. Really works great. Has a 10' X 10' tin roof that funnels water into the tank below then pipes it to the small waterer with a float valve. The bowl is pretty small so I don't lose much to evaporation.


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## gary.curlin (Apr 11, 2015)

82dodge said:


> I built this water guzzler in W TX back in October. Really works great. Has a 10' X 10' tin roof that funnels water into the tank below then pipes it to the small waterer with a float valve. The bowl is pretty small so I don't lose much to evaporation.


Looks good. Do you have it anchored down?

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## gary.curlin (Apr 11, 2015)

Fishing Logic said:


> "The broadcast feeder is mixed 50/50 corn and protein."
> That doesn't usually work out well. Protein will lock it up as it will swell with moisture. IMO.. Been there done that.


I heat that a lot. Just wondering how the all season timed protein feeder doesn't gum up. It looks like a regular spin setup. Maybe more protected from the weather though.

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## RandyR2 (Sep 1, 2016)

Fishing Logic said:


> "The broadcast feeder is mixed 50/50 corn and protein."
> 
> That doesn't usually work out well. Protein will lock it up as it will swell with moisture. IMO.. Been there done that.


Iâ€™m not planing on using the broadcast feeder for protein after the first run. I only used it so the deer could get a taste for it since protein has never been fed there before.

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## Reel Cajun (Aug 1, 2006)

*Protein and Corn*

We have been mixing them for the last 10 years with no problems of gumming up unless you have a leaky feeder or protein gets damp before put in feeder. I think the corn helps. All out of spin feeders. 55 gallon, 80 gallon and 1100lb feeders


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## Trouthunter (Dec 18, 1998)

Went to a seminar on this on Tuesday night.

The recommendation for 1 protein feeder per 250 acres is spot on and they recommend that that the feed pen be 60' in diameter. Also TP&W recommends that you use the feeders with the long spouts for the bucks so they'll utilize it more.

They also stressed that if you haven't fed protein before to mix 50/50 corn and protein to get the deer used to eating it. They also suggested that until the deer get used to it to put a corn feeder in the pen with it to attract the deer to the protein feeder.

Don't broadcast protein.

TH


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## 82dodge (Jun 21, 2016)

I've been using a spin cast feeder a few years now and throwing protein. I mix the short protein pellets 50/50 with corn. I had trouble with the long pellets bridging the funnel opening. I cut the bottom out of a bucket and fasten it around the spinner so it doesn't broadcast it but drops in down onto a suspended drum lid so it doesn't hit the ground.

Gary, on my guzzler the 10 X 10 tin roof is staked to the ground and the water bowl is lag bolted to the 4X4 which has rebar through it beat into the ground so the hogs can't have their way with it.


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## hjm (May 8, 2016)

This is an interesting thread with some good info. 

My thought on the subject is this:

On the ranches I manage we take 1 trophy per 1,000 acres. We have 1 protein feeder per 500 acres. Some ranches we have one per 350 acres. I try to double the protein stations compared to the acreage that I am taking trophy deer off of. I would suggest feeding as much as you can. Protein feeding is not magic, it takes time and can be costly. We run as many feeders as possible and ours do not run out. Year round feeding combined with water will yield results. The type of deer feed you are using also plays a big part in the equation. TDN, protein and fat content. I sort of went over board but I enjoy discussing this. Good luck with your project!


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## bigfishtx (Jul 17, 2007)

hjm said:


> This is an interesting thread with some good info.
> 
> My thought on the subject is this:
> 
> On the ranches I manage we take 1 trophy per 1,000 acres. We have 1 protein feeder per 500 acres. Some ranches we have one per 350 acres. I try to double the protein stations compared to the acreage that I am taking trophy deer off of. I would suggest feeding as much as you can. Protein feeding is not magic, it takes time and can be costly. We run as many feeders as possible and ours do not run out. Year round feeding combined with water will yield results. The type of deer feed you are using also plays a big part in the equation. TDN, protein and fat content. I sort of went over board but I enjoy discussing this. Good luck with your project!


Good stuff. TDN is the sum of digestible proteins, fats, fibers, and carbs. Most people look at protein to make their decision, but, that is only part of the equation and most studies show deer cannot digest over around 16-18% protein, the rest Passes through.


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## hjm (May 8, 2016)

bigfishtx said:


> Good stuff. TDN is the sum of digestible proteins, fats, fibers, and carbs. Most people look at protein to make their decision, but, that is only part of the equation and most studies show deer cannot digest over around 16-18% protein, the rest Passes through.


Yes sir that is very true. When I started my career as a wildlife consultant I was one of those guys who fell on the bandwagon of just reading the labels. If it said 20% it must work, right? Thats not true at all. Many feeds on the market are made of least cost rations, or whatever they can put into the feed to make it cheap (fillers). You want the "steak and potatoes" type of deer feed instead of the "salad". Theres a ton of feed companies out there and we could do a whole other thread on that. Everyone has their own opinion on what is good and what works. I would suggest researching and trying a few out. Then make sure you are consistent with your feed program.


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## kinja (May 21, 2004)

Haute Pursuit said:


> I don't know if this will help you or not, but we had 3 2500# protein feeders on 1800 acres that was 5 miles long and 1 mile wide. The same deer would show up at all of them quite often. It was in West Texas though...


Yore acreage doesnâ€™t add up. 3200 acres?


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## Main Frame 8 (Mar 16, 2007)

Pattillo said:


> Yore acreage doesnâ€™t add up. 3200 acres?


Semantics?


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## Friendswoodmatt (Feb 22, 2005)

its closer to .7 miles wide I think-- ITs next door to my place. I have only been on it a couple times-- tons of game though


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## snapper tapper (Dec 21, 2006)

With good deer density, usually 2,000lbs every 500 acres is a good rule of thumb.


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