Undernourished deer are smaller- weaker and prone to die from starvation. This is not good for the environment nor is it good stewardship of the animals. Deer require 10-12 pounds of food each day for most of the year. In late winter their diet is supplemented by their stored fat. When deer run out of stored fat and available browse they start to metabolize their bone marrow and starvation is eminent.
Deer are ruminants and have multi chambered stomachs similar to cows.
Deer establish a home range and will not leave it. Deer are known to starve or drown rather than leave their home range. Farmers, orchardist, foresters and nurserymen suffer crop damage from deer. Car collisions result in property loss, personal injury and occasional human fatalities, adding to our increased insurance and medical cost. Deer are host to the tick that carries Lyme Disease.