Several chases may weaken a deer to the point that it becomes susceptible to other problems like accidents or starvation because it has used up too much of its stored fat. Finally, deer naturally eat little in winter. This is a feature that has evolved to help deer save the energy it would take to look for and digest food during periods when food is scarce. Captive deer, given as much food as they want, decrease their food intake during winter to a low point at the end of February, then gradually increase food intake until mid-spring. This does not mean would not eat shrubs or nursery stock during the winter.
Ornamentals are sometimes favorite deer foods, high in nutrition.
It only creates future problems as deer learn to look to backyards and roadsides for food. Queried about feeding of turkeys, Jim Cardoza, turkey project leader for the DFW explained that while the deep snows cover up some of the turkeys' food sources, the birds have other resources available to them. In particular, they will feed on shrubs and bushes bearing seeds, fruits, and berries such as barberry, black alder, and sumac. They will also move to south-facing slopes where snow depths are less, or feed in open water seepages. Turkeys will also find left-over corn and other grains around farmyards and pick undigested grains from manure spreads.