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For most experienced hunters, deer hunting comes with its fair share of responsibility. And one who cares about their environment and deer habitat will feel the need to feed and improve the deer herd to get the best buck for preparation of the hunting season.
As an outdoors person and a hunter, getting the right environment and habitat for the deer are a way to get them healthy and also scout their movement in their natural habitat. The deer need salt and other minerals for healthy development and growth. Salts and other minerals help to grow their antlers and promote different aspects of life, including pregnancy.
Salt is useful to deer, and mostly they will crave it. In an environment where it’s scarce, mineral blocks and salt will lure deer to the hunting spots that you lay them. Even though deer will need salt all the time, the time varies for each species. For example, the whitetail deer needs salt during spring and summer to help grow its antlers. It is also the time deer will need more nutrients because it coincides with the birth of new fawns.
Mineral blocks and salt licks are also crucial during the cold season of winter for all deer. It will make the deer’s bodies cope and adapt to the cold weather.
Understanding the Reasons Deer Crave Mineral Blocks and Salt Licks
Even though deer crave salts and many minerals for their growth and development, not all salts are suitable for deer herds. The reason hunters need to know more about mineral blocks and salts is to give the deer the best nutrients at the right time.
A rookie mistake people always make is giving cattle or horse salts and minerals to deer. The best way to have a healthy deer population is by getting the right licks intended for deer only as they will have the proper balance of nutrients for the deer herd.
When Do They Need Them?
During the warm times of the year, deer will need more minerals and salt licks. It is because, during the warm weather months, deer forage for foods rich in potassium and water. As a result, there is a salt deficiency. And deer will spend most of its time looking for salts because their body craves for it.
Providing deer with salt is not merely enough as their bodies need other minerals as well. It is not what does will need when they need to give birth to healthy fawns and milk production. For the bucks to have a healthy antler, the minerals need to provide the correct balance of both phosphorus and calcium.
Studies indicate that deer antl