One Step Away From Baiting Deer In The Lower Peninsula

Deer hunters in Michigan's Lower Peninsula are one step away from being able to use bait again. The lifting of the baiting ban has passed the State House with Senate to vote next.

Why Deer Baiting Was Banned in the Lower Peninsula

The Michigan Department of Natural Resources (DNR) implemented a ban on deer baiting and feeding across the entire Lower Peninsula on January 31, 2019. The ban was put into place to slow the spread of chronic wasting disease (CWD), and bovine tuberculosis (TB).

The theory behind banning deer baiting is that piles of bait cause deer to congregate in large numbers, increasing the risk of spreading diseases such as CWD or tuberculosis. The problem with this theory is that the same behavior occurs naturally. For example, when apples fall from a tree that deer in the area are aware of, nearly every deer will visit that concentrated food source. Deer also naturally gather in herds during the winter and continue to congregate during the spring and summer months as well.

Read More: Michigan Cougar Sightings Soar in 2025

A bill that would reverse the baiting ban has passed the Michigan House and now goes to the Senate, and if passed, hunters will be able to once again bait while hunting deer in the Lower Peninsula.

Deer Baiting Nears Approval in Michigan's Lower Peninsula

It is no secret that deer populations in the Lower Peninsula are increasing at a faster rate than hunter license sales. Even urban areas are experiencing rising deer numbers, prompting calls for special hunts and culling efforts in an attempt to reduce herd sizes.

Many hunters have walked away from deer hunting in the Lower Peninsula over the last 6 years because they don't see any deer without baiting. Not every hunter has access to private land with food crops, or land to legally put food plots on.

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According to FOX 17, the reverse of the baiting ban for deer hunting in the Lower Peninsula will go to a vote in Michigan's Senate, but an official date for the vote has not been set.

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