A great hunting property has to have plenty of water sources, whether they are natural, man made or a combination of both.

Why Your Hunting Land Must Have Water

In our previous blog, we laid out the elements that make a supplemental deer-feeding program successful. Supplemental feed is only one part of the equation in a land manager’s solution to growing and holding a healthy herd on their property. It should merely serve as an additive to what’s already there.

But what if your land doesn’t have water?

It might be a concern, especially during the summer when hot and dry conditions may persist.

Even if you do have water sources on your property, coupling a natural source with the Wild Water airtight watering system is still a good idea.

Many of our customers have reported that even though creeks and rivers are nearby, the deer drink from the Wild Water because it’s strategically placed near a feeder or food plot. It’s attractive to deer because they can wet their whistles before or after feeding, and it gives you another point of interest to concentrate your scouting efforts.

Using a Wild Water trough for deer also curbs the risk of epizootic hemorrhagic disease (EHD). To help prevent EHD, supply clean to inhibit the widespread reproduction of the midge – a small, flying insect that spreads the disease and thrives in the shallow water. This is typically the murky, warm water on the edges of cattle ponds.

Many factors are out your control when it comes to limiting the outbreak of a deer disease. Nevertheless, taking steps to establish or improve water sources on your hunting land may help.

Lastly, making water more available and accessible can really make all money that you spent on deer feed or food plots worth it.

In the summertime, fawns are rapidly developing, does are recovering from the gestation period as well as lactating, and bucks are growing antlers. It’s not enough to just supply food. Deer need to consume water and food at about a 3-to-1 ratio. If they can’t find enough water, they won’t eat, and if they don’t eat, the nutritional gap stunts growth and increases stress. A dependable water source could be the keystone to a successful supplement program.

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