Oregon Public Broadcasting

Washington state wildlife officials say it’s natural during the cold spell that people want to feed deer and elk. Many of the animals’ regular food sources are snowed over.

But correspondent Doug Nadvornick reports wildlife biologists are urging you not to do that.

Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife spokeswoman Madonna Luers says big game figured out long ago how to survive during the winter.

Some bird lovers lay out extra food, hoping to catch a glimpse of deer and elk. But Luers says larger animals won’t do well with the food you put out for the birds.

Madonna Luers: “You got to feed something that that animal can use and that’s not going to be cracked corn or scratch or sunflower seeds or whatever you might be feeding birds. Those things are not digestible by those animals.”

Luers says the best thing people can feed big game is a half-and-half mix of alfalfa and barley or corn, in pellet form. But that’s expensive and dangerous for the animals.

Luers says animals congregate around feeding sites, leaving them vulnerable to hunters, predators and disease.

She says the best thing is to stifle your Good Samaritan instincts and let the animals fend for themselves.

Online: 

Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife Winter Feeding Fact Sheet