Deer readily consume cracked corn, but this immediate palatability should not be mistaken for nutritional benefit. This high-carbohydrate grain poses serious, often fatal, health risks due to the deer’s specialized digestive system. The desire to help deer, especially during harsh weather, must be balanced against the ecological consequences of artificial feeding.
Deer Palatability and Consumption of Cracked Corn
Deer are naturally drawn to cracked corn due to its high caloric density and easy accessibility as a quick energy source. The broken kernels are easier to consume than whole corn, requiring less chewing, which is appealing when natural forage is scarce. This immediate reward causes deer to prioritize corn over their natural, fibrous diet. Cracked corn is often used as an attractant because of its taste and quick energy, but its long-term nutritional value is low in protein compared to a natural diet.
The Significant Health Risks Associated with Corn
The primary danger of feeding deer high-starch grains like corn is Rumen Acidosis, or grain overload. Deer are ruminants whose rumen relies on a delicate balance of microbes to ferment high-fiber forage like twigs and leaves. A sudden influx of carbohydrates from corn disrupts this community, causing bacteria to rapidly produce large amounts of lactic acid.
This surge dramatically lowers the rumen’s pH, creating an acidic environment that destroys beneficial microorganisms. The acidic conditions interfere with nutrient absorption and can cause severe dehydration, diarrhea, and damage to the rumen wall. In severe cases, lactic acid enters the bloodstream, resulting in metabolic acidosis, incoordination, and death within days.
Another serious health risk is Aflatoxins, naturally occurring toxins produced by the fungus Aspergillus flavus. This fungus develops on corn during storage, particularly in warm, humid conditions. Although deer may be less susceptible to mycotoxins than other animals, these toxins can still cause liver damage, immune system failure, and death.
Legal Restrictions and Disease Transmission Concerns
Supplemental feeding concentrates deer populations, leading to significant ecological and regulatory concerns beyond physiological harm. When deer gather closely at a feeding site, it creates ideal conditions for the rapid spread of contagious diseases. Chronic Wasting Disease (CWD), a fatal neurological disease caused by infectious prions, is a major concern.
Infected animals shed prions in saliva, urine, and feces, transmitting CWD through direct contact or by contaminating the feed and soil. This concentration also increases the spread of other pathogens and parasites, such as Bovine Tuberculosis. Consequently, many states and local jurisdictions have enacted strict regulations or outright bans on feeding deer, especially in CWD management zones.
The legality of feeding deer is highly variable by county or state, with some areas prohibiting the placement of any grain or mineral products. These restrictions apply to private citizens as well as hunters. Feeding stations also draw deer closer to human-inhabited areas, which can lead to increased traffic accidents and other human-wildlife conflicts.
Promoting Natural Forage and Responsible Alternatives
The most effective way to support deer health is by promoting their natural diet, which consists primarily of browse—the twigs, leaves, and buds of woody plants. Deer are adapted to thrive on this high-fiber forage, which is sufficient for their survival even during winter. Landowners can improve natural habitat by cultivating native mast-producing trees and shrubs, such as oaks, which provide acorns and other nuts that are a natural and familiar source of energy.
For individuals who still wish to provide supplemental nutrition, alternatives are significantly safer than corn. Specialized high-protein deer pellets (16% to 21% protein) are commercially formulated to be more digestible and nutritionally balanced. High-fiber forages like alfalfa or clover food plots offer protein and are far less likely to cause the severe digestive distress associated with cracked corn.
Supplemental feed should be introduced gradually to limit the amount an individual animal consumes, allowing the deer’s rumen microbes time to adapt. The goal should be to sustain a healthy deer population by enhancing the natural ecosystem rather than relying on concentrated, carbohydrate-heavy feed.