Gasp!

Oh my word!

http://davesgarden.com/forums/t/584175/

Click on the image to enlarge it to get the full effect. About all I can say is oh my word!

I'm sorry, I just can't stop chuckling!

And "Oh my word!" does say it all.

If you look closely at the picture you'll notice the owners of the property have put food down on the ground for the deer. I could easily have that many deer or more out in my yard if I put food out. Two nights ago I counted ten deer in the yard and I don't even have food for them out there. This time of year they are really hungry and that is when your new trees and perennials are at most risk of getting eaten. I spent about an hour yesterday walking the property and spraying everything with Liquid Fence. It is the only thing that I've found that really works to keep the deer and rabbits off my stuff.

If I do buy feed, I put it out in the middle of my woods out back with the hopes they stay back there but I could be wrong. I may be attracting more deer by doing that. :) They are beautiful animals and I enjoy watching them. I hate it when they run out in front of your vehicle. I've almost hit a few. I wonder if deer poop is good for the compost bin? I have no shortage of that in the fields. :)

I caught that the owners were feeding the deer which is why I said "Oh my". Feeding deer around here is good for a $1,000 fine per occurrence if convicted. I have no idea if deer poop is good for the compost bin but I suspect it would be perfectly fine. We have so many deer around here their feces are contaminating ground waters.

Lucky and Kevin need to see the photo at that link. I will run for cover before the fireworks begin.

Makes me just want to jump in an old jeep with a welded on rolled steel grill and drive through them while laughing maniocally! I might even jump out of the moving vehicle and strangle one of them with my bare hands. I hates deer.

Scott

Equil, I know you are sitting back waiting for me to explode. This picture depicts a crime scene. I consider this actually worse than those poor souls who accumulate countless cats and dogs in their homes out of a misguided condition of "love". First these deer are certainly not starving, they are in superb condition: corn fed. Each of the does, even the coming yearlings, probably carry twins. How would any of us like to live within a square mile of this kind of population explosion. Notice the complete lack of landscaping here, and if we could see deeper into the surronding area we would see what some misguided folks think of a "park like setting" which, in reality, is a complete graze off of the natural understory. Anyone living near this crime scene obviously has to imprison his house and property either by physical or copious chemical means if they want to enjoy any type of gardening on their private land, not even to mention a distinct health threat. Deer/car collisions are inevitable because these animals have lost their natural fear of man and associate our homes with a free meal. To call these animals magnificent is an aberation. A magnificent deer would be wary and caught by the beholder's eye in a brief moment of natural glory and cherished in the mind forever. Ken

Well...I agree with Equil. They are magnificent..just absolutely beautiful. I realize the need to harvest the herd and I believe it should be done humanely. We may be getting into politics now...better shut up.

No Ken, I wasn't sitting back waiting for you to explode. I was sort of figuring Lucky or Kevin might though however they have their own unique styles in which they do so which are rather enlightening. Have you read the article "Oh Deer" by Eric Ness?

The image of the deer feeding so peacefully is indeed an aberration. I will not disagree with you.

We must separate the animal from the destructive behavior as well as the public health issues that now exist. The deer are not responsible for their explosive herd numbers that are hovering in excess of 7x that which they were in the early 1900's. Man is responsible. I truly do believe deer are magnificent animals worthy of our utmost respect however this does not negate my sincere belief that culling is inherently necessary to ensure their survival.

Yes, Yes culling is necessary; however my main point here is that there should be some major penalties for those who put the natural situation out of balance. Remember what Guy said about those who transfer infected ash firewood back to their homes any thereby spread the EAB? Listen folks: Please don't feed the deer, in doing so you are as much of the problem as they are. Ken

I just look at all those black silken muzzles swapping saliva because they are being encouraged to congregate unnaturally and I feel really bad for them and for us.

I don't feed the deer but I do feed the foxes. Just spray with DEER OUT and they won't touch a thing. ...P.S. What is infected ash wood and eab?

This message was edited Mar 18, 2006 12:08 PM

In this pictured situation effective spraying would be like mosquito abatement. EAB= emerald ash borer. People/campers are unwittingly spreading this and other pests by moving infected trees, cut up as firewood, into areas that are not as yet infected.

I can only imagine that person is baiting them and has a machine gun poised to let loose, or a small explosive rigged. I can't see any other reason to put out hooved rat feed. There are well over 60 deer there. Populations should be in the range of 7-15 deer per forested square MILE, not square yard as we see here. Sorry, that is not a magnificent animal. I can only hope whoever is doing the feeding is in Illinois or Wisconsin and gets fined. As for spraying DEER OUT and they won't touch a thing--HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!!! You must have some wimpy deer. That picture makes me ill.

This link might be useful . . .

http://www.pastrywiz.com/archive/category/venison.htm

Well have you tried Deer Out? We have a herd of about 250 throughout Lake Roland area....believe me they don't eat (as much) when I spray regularly. So Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha yourself. Nancy

The machine gun scenario crossed my mind too. I was brought up on venison (not the corn fed kind), and it is most tasty.

On closer inspection, I'm wondering if there isn't a little cutting and pasting at work in that picture.

Scott

Resin, re. the link. I wonder what they did with the rest of the moose?

This message was edited Mar 18, 2006 4:06 PM

No offense levilyla, but I tried every concoction known to man(and coyote, fox, etc.) to try and deter deer. I even tried to get ahold of the daffodil extract mixture that a professor was working on. Nothing worked for very long, and nothing was effective in protecting the 100's of trees and shrubs at my place. It only took a good rain, and a herd of 20 overnight to make mincemeat out of all my plants. A gun, bow and arrow, and electric fence were most effective at the old house. Now, I am fenced completely, and the results are incredible. Acorns actually develop into trees. Seedlings prosper. Woodland wildflowers grow, go to seed, and effectively reproduce. There shouldn't even be a market for deer repellants, but sadly there is.

I was driving home, taking a back road, surrounded by corn fields (crops had just been harvested), when all of a sudden what do I see? Deer. Coming towards my car. I screeched to a halt and tried counting. I got to 49, but there were way too many for me to keep track of and count. I don't think I counted half of them. I've "bumped" 3 and hit 2. It isn't fun. My dad snapped a picture of about 15 walking across their yard out in the country. I don't know why, but they don't bother their plants. In the 10 yrs they've lived there, the deer have nibbled on a few conifers, but otherwise they leave the plants alone.

My backyard butts up against a 180-acre cornfield. I see lots of deer out in the cornfield, but so far none have come in the yard that I'm aware of. If the farmer doesn't plant corn one year, I may be in trouble.

Nice recipes Resin! Did you really count the deer in that photo? Back to your recipes which I thought were really great, a return to venison as a commodity would be a step in the right direction.

Outside right now I have hoof prints every where. Would somebody please relocate some wolves to my area but a few bobcats might be nice too? Vehicles just aren't cutting it any longer what with all the multiple births.

McGlory, terryr; I'll bet there is something green planted nearby: Alfalfa, winter wheat. Just because they are not in your yard munching on your plants does not mean that they are not doing damage. These animals can pick the growing bud off of any emerging deciduous tree or bush and leave the branch. Sometime walk on a path and look at what is growing nearby, it is as if you systematically pruned each of the new years growth before it has a chance. I am not insensitive, they are beautiful animals; however, they are out of control: nationwide! We make a big deal about invasive species. Well, here is one in spades! Ken

Those are a lot venison recipes, Resin!
Yeah, I don't think its a cut and paste job either, its too complex. If they was really into doctoring it up they could just use photos of multiple deer. But it looks pretty obvious that the picture taker has been feeding the wildlife (hooved rats), because they think its neat.
If its an altered photo, its a good one!

Oh yes, I've seen full-sized deer go behind my house and when I went back there, there was a shrub pulled out of the ground roots and all (I had just planted it not long before that, it hadn't established). I guess they didn't like the taste of the Japanese Yew. Anyway, I immediately re-planted it and it was fine. Now I try to line the edges of my pots with thorny seedlings of some variety, let them get a mouth-full of that!

Will

Oh, I didn't mean they weren't doing damage! Just not doing damage to my yard (knock on wood). We live four miles off the highway, and on the four-mile drive to the highway you will always see at least one. In the spring and fall it's usually one...herd.

Ahh the kind gardener so in touch with nature becomes a rabid dog when they see their buds, limbs, and any planted perenials tasted and swallowed by the delicate Bambis. My fence is the best garden move I have ever made.

Me too! I didn't mean they weren't doing damage somewhere, just not in my parents yard! They've got 16 acres. 10 of it is a cash rent corn (or bean) field with nothing in it now, 3 - 3 1/2 is timber, and the rest they cleared for their house. The deer don't bother any of their plants. I don't know why. I would be really happy if they went into the timber and ate the jap honeysuckle and the multi flora rose. We've gotten about 1/4 acre of that stuff cleared out....that's only about 2 3/4 - 3 1/4 left to do.....

I can see the beauty of the creature......but then I flash to the one that slammed into my drivers side front quarter panel, with it's face smashed into the upper part of my windshield, then sliding down.......

Sofa, You are imprisoned in a gated community and deer and elk arn't wanted and are encouraged by your fenced property to move on down the road. You and Kevin have gained a solution; however, and please don't think me critical of that solution, the problem remains. My wife used to say that we were the problem; they were here first. It is amazing how many people who love growing things here still feed the deer. The DNR in WI want to lower the hunting age to 8 (supervised). I don't think an eight year old should have a long gun in his hand; however, they are losing hunters in this state. Seems like more people want to feed them than hunt them. Big Problem. I have held off fencing any part of my property, but I use an incredible amount of Liquid Fence and, as Kevin says, persistent and heavy rain or forgetfullness on my part can wipe away years of patient work. I would love to experience what Kevin has, sadly in order to do that, I will have to accept the same "solution". Ken

The secret to managing deer is to fill their gut with someone elses food. IE Cash rent corn. This is a fairly good fence. But wait 24 hours after the corn is gone and look out! You would be surprised how much corn is left by the picker. And look at the buds on the decicious trees. There are none below 5'.

Ken I of course disagree. We were here after - not true. The population of deer did not exist here before farming started and they followed human food sources from Virgina (white tailed deer) and even then after using clear cuts and human resource clearing progressed to all areas of america. Read Lewis and Clarks history of my valley. They only had occasional Elk ( Red Deer) to eat. Yes there were a few Mule Deer but not enough in our area to keep them from shooting their horses. They almost starved because no venison existed. And they came through during todays hunting season. Deer as beautiful as they are are a nuisance to the areas they overpopulate. They are a blessing to areas they are in control.
My fence does nothing but preserve the natural valley species that existed before mans arrival. Well 2/3 of it.

Sofa, Sofa, Sofa.. When L&C came on thru the flathead things were a lot more "in balance". Predators? You bet! And they ate their horses because they were in the wrong place at the wrong time. Eat more elk and white tail. Stay away from the commute to Alaska. Rub two sticks together, tan hides, but above all eat meat, We'll get things back in balance in no time at all. :>) Ken

Amen Ken. I eat a lot of meat. Fresh salmon, halibut, rock fish, cod, and what ever is up here in Alaska. Plus lots of Venison, elk, and even an occasional antelope in Montana.

The other bummer is when you protect your young trees, and they grow and prosper, and reach 3" caliper or so. You think they are safe, and WHAM!!! Mr. Buck rubs them to splinters. Somewhere I have a picture of the Magnolia acuminata stump that was left after the buck obliterated the 2" caliper tree completely. I have also watched a herd strip the bark off my neighbors sugar maple, 4" caliper, stripped clean from the ground to 5' high. I didn't like that neighbor, so I just watched. He fed the deer. That tree cost him well over $600 to buy and have planted. It's dead now. He always said that he fed them so they wouldn't eat his plants. My response was, "They eat 7-10 pounds/deer/day, so unless you are putting out 160 pounds of feed per day, they will still eat your plants(and mine). "
Those who feed them don't think about things like car accidents caused by a herd of 30 or 60 or 96 deer crossing a road to get to their free meal. I don't know anyone who HASN'T hit one(or more) here. A friend plowed into a herd of 20, he took out 3, and they took out his car(totalled), but he was unhurt. There were 540 accidents between car and deer in my county alone last year, and those are the reported accidents. It's easily 10X that for unreported accidents. I can fence my property off to protect my garden, but that doesn't protect my wife and children on the road. So, I do my best to hook up local landowners and hunters, I turn people in for feeding deer anytime I can. Someday people will get it.

Has anyone ever seen the message board on my member page, or whatever it's called? It includes this quote:

I realize what Kevin is doing is beyond appropriate but I truly can't bring myself to do it. I just don't have the heart to turn people in and most of the folk doing it around here were people I liked. The fines are too big. The percentage of people who know it is against the law is very small and the percentage of people who know why it is against the law is even smaller. What I have done that has worked for me is that I have printed off a list of communicable diseases that deer carry and added a few copies of newspaper articles as well as a copy of the law and associated fine if convicted. Rather than just singling out the neighbor who had the most visible corn crib and the salt lick, I placed my little flyers in everyone's mailboxes. Very quick results I can tell you. The corn crib that used to be loaded with goodies was never refilled and the salt lick disappeared the very next morning. The corn crib is still there but it has never been used again. I sneaked out and doused it with bleach and then hit it again with mintane. I have no idea if that helped anything but it made me feel better. Other than that, if somebody wants to sit up in my kid's treehouse and hunt them, be my guest. Have at it. I know my own limitations and I can't pull the trigger myself and never will be able to pull the trigger but I will allow others to do so.

Anyone up for discussing the Mute Swan or the Canada Goose?

Yes I would but first what is depauperate Guy? I'm going to remember that word! We depauperate men have tried to survive our masculinity but now we are gone.

This message was edited Mar 18, 2006 11:09 PM

Severely disminished as in hunted to the brink of extinction.

I was just joking about discussing the Mute Swan and the Canada Goose. The ones that really are a great cause of concern for me are the English House Sparrows and the European Starlings and... drum roll please... feral/stray cats. I won't be touching those topics with a 10' pole though right about now.

I did see that quote on your message page, Guy. I chuckled because it is so true.