Do Deer Eat Raisins?

Do deer eat raisins? If you are considering feeding deer with raisins, then you should ensure you know what that means. In this article, we will talk about which raisins are good for deer.

Raisins (Vitis species) are dried grapefruits usually yellow, purple, or brown shriveled morsels made from drying grapes in the sun or food dehydrator. We commonly use these tasty snacks, salad toppings, yogurt, cereal, or baked into delicious goodies. However, do deer eat raisins? Sure, raisins are excellent additions to our meals as humans. However, when talking about feeding deer, we are not referring to that type of raisin made from dried grapes. We only refer to wild raisins.

Wild raisins for Deer

Wild raisins or withe rod (Viburnum cassinoides) are woodland shrubs with umbrella-shaped clusters of white flower. These clusters can have multiple colors ranging from dark to pink, white, and green. Birds commonly eat them, but whatever is left shrivels and resembles the raisins we use for our meals. For deer, they are not the first meal of choice but are generally eaten during the winter. Besides using wild raisins for supplemental deer feeding, some people use them as ornamental shrub due to their gorgeous outlook. However, if you leave in deer country, you must also know that your ornamental shrubs made from wild raisins might soon become deer food.

Deer Eating Habits

Bear in mind that wild raisins and raisins cannot be substituted for each other even when they look alike. While wild raisins should provide enough nutrition for a deer during the winter, raisins offer high levels of sugars (over 72 percent) with small amounts of fiber, and protein, which can cause an untold number of problems for them. For instance, deer has a digestive system that changes with each season to align with what is available at the time. Therefore, such high levels of sugar will be, in fact, toxic to the deer during the winter.

However, on other occasions, it is possible to give grapes and raisins to deer, as long as you are careful that pets cannot get to them. Grapes and raisins are toxic for dogs and can cause acute kidney failure or even death. Therefore, you need to be diligent and watchful that your pets do not eat them. For some people, regular raisins have been used successfully to attract deer. However, ensure you also know what your local laws state about feeding deer. There are many parts of the U.S. where it is heavily frowned upon to give raisins to deer.

Final words

Do deer eat raisins? Of course, they do, as long as you are talking about wild raisins and not the raisins we use in our human food. Wild raisins are excellent sources of food for deer during the winter months. They can also be cultivated as deer attractants and supplemental deer feeding in winter

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