How do you remove deer in backyard?

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There are two things that actually work together very effectively to keep deer out of your property — fencing and netting. These two things as a physical barrier to prevent the deer from getting onto your property in the first place, thus removing the chances they’ll ruin parts of the plant life you have growing there. They’ll need to be quite tall in their build, however, and also very sturdy. Male deer, especially, like to do something called fraying, and this involves rustling the branches of trees with their antlers. This isn’t actually with the intention of damaging the tree, but instead to help get rid of the outer layer of skin from newly grown ones. If you have wooden beams or fence panels that aren’t sturdy, it won’t take much for the deer to bash them over with the fraying action, removing your barrier protection.



A fence would need to be at least five foot high, preferably six foot or higher, and can be made out of wood if you’re not worried about aesthetics or light-blocking, or out of heavy duty mesh wiring for those who don’t want to detract too much from the natural surroundings. You can also fence-off smaller areas with mesh wire frameworks, almost like cages for your plants, for the hardest hit places.

Electric fences are another option you could look at, but you need to remember that deer will often run in a haphazard and not-looking-where-they’re-going way when they have been startled. If this is the case and a deer runs right into your electric fence, the bigger specimens can do some pretty costly damage. You will also need to look at the cost involved with an intricate fencing idea. If you have a large area to protect, electric fencing can be very expensive. You will need to both run and maintain the fencing system once it has been purchased and installed too, something that many homeowners don’t actually take into consideration before they take this course of deer-removing action.

Of course, tall and thick enough hedges can keep some deer out, and they can even act as food for the deer if you choose the evergreen variety. If the hedge is thick enough — if your land is protected enough — the deer won’t be able to get in your yard to do any damage, but they do still have the exterior of your hedge to enjoy should food supplies become too difficult to find. For your information, this usually happens during the winter.

Wrapping mesh wire around smaller, younger trees will add further protection to the more vulnerable plant life, and there are a range of deterrents/repellents on the market too. You’ll need to remember NOT to rely on these alone to work. Most repellents need to be reapplied or constantly running in order to keep the animal(s) at bay. The second you STOP using the repellents, the animal will come right back. And, if it’s not the same animal that comes back, it’ll just be another one, attracted by the interesting smells left behind by the first.

Finally, you could look at so-called "deer resistant" plants. These are plants that deer tend to leave alone, showing a very definite preference for others. As much as this might actually help a bit during the winter, when food can be found in abundance, it won’t have any effect during the winter. Food is much harder to find and the animals, particularly deer, get a little less fussy. They’ll eat all manner of tree and plant bits that they would have turned their noses up at during the summer. Gooseberry plants are said to be one type you could plant to encourage deer to steer clear, and you could also look at honeysuckle, with its beautiful fragrance and bright flowers, or even hellebores.

For more information, you may want to click on one of these guides that I wrote:
How do you remove deer in backyard?
How To Guide: Who should I hire? - What questions to ask, to look for, who NOT to hire.
How To Guide: do it yourself! - Advice on saving money by doing wildlife removal yourself.
Guide: How much does wildlife removal cost? - Analysis of wildlife control prices.