raw soybeans for supplemental feeding

Great info. I am going to be looking into this!

 

Yeah, I would have never known either. Great advice indeed. Soybeans are definitely the best option but I was so amazed at how much more protein even alfalfa pellets provide and it's readily available. It really makes corn look lackluster. Don't get me wrong, deer love corn and corn is both easy to grow and easiest in terms of access but I'm trying to optimize the deer in my area, not just get them by. I will look into both options for sure, and I'm even more jacked up to get my spring plot going...woohoo "offseason"!

 

Soybeans are great but aren't the end all be all to supplemental deer feeding, I don't think. There are some drawbacks to beans, first, deer don't typically love to eat beans as much as they do corn. Second, there are some that say after a deer's rumen hits roughly ~16% protein that most of the rest of it passes through urine. Thirdly, beans are expensive though it could be argued that comparing protein content pound for pound against other products that beans are cheaper. Fourth, as the articles I posted links to point out that beans are not well rounded as a source that can provide many micro-nutrients.

As far as deer eating them, deer in areas that produce a lot of beans will already readily take them, other areas they may need to acclimate and develop a taste for them. Mixed with corn should do the trick. I feed roughly 50/50 and the deer love it here but they are used to beans from all the ag area. I think a mix of 60/40 or 70/30 corn to beans would still lift that protein content up to very good levels.

As far as the micro-nutrient deal, again...mixing a ration of beans and corn or corn, beans, milo or alfalfa along with minerals and or good mineral products should deal with that and most parts of the country already have a problem with mineral and micro-nutrients in native forage anyway so mineral supplement is a good idea I think in most cases.

 

raw soybeans can be fed but just don't feed a supplement along with them that includes urea or moammonium phosphate because of the ureas activity and palatability issues. Roasted soybeans are 50% bipass protein where as ray soybeans about 20%. The rate of passage is 2.5 or so times faster for the raw beans so you will "capture" a little less protein on the raw beans. Is it worth the cost for deer? No, but if we are talking dairy cows, then very few people will feed raw beans anymore.