Is It Illegal to Feed Deer in Wisconsin? What the Law Actually Says

Whether you want to attract deer to your backyard or you’re a hunter wondering what’s allowed near your stand, the answer to this question is more layered than a simple yes or no. Wisconsin has one of the most closely watched deer populations in the country, and the state’s feeding rules reflect that reality.

Your location within the state, your purpose for feeding, and even the type of material you place on the ground all determine whether you’re operating within the law. Understanding those distinctions before you act can save you from a significant fine — and help protect the deer you care about.

Is It Illegal to Feed Deer in Wisconsin

The short answer is: it depends on your county and your intent. Wisconsin law imposes strict regulations on feeding deer to curb the spread of chronic wasting disease (CWD) and prevent artificial population surges. Under Wisconsin Statute 29.336, the Department of Natural Resources (DNR) has the authority to prohibit or restrict feeding in areas where CWD or bovine tuberculosis has been detected.

The restrictions apply to both recreational feeding and baiting for hunting purposes. As of recent updates, over 50 counties in Wisconsin have prohibitions on feeding and baiting due to CWD concerns. That covers a substantial portion of the state, including much of the south and an expanding share of the north.

The law draws a clear line between two activities. Baiting is the intentional placement of any material, including food, scented materials, salts, minerals, and grains, to attract wild animals for hunting purposes. Feeding is the deliberate placement of material used to feed or attract wild animals for non-hunting purposes, including recreational and supplemental feeding, except as allowed for birds and small mammals. Both are regulated, but the rules differ slightly depending on which category your activity falls into.

Key Insight: Even in counties where feeding is technically permitted, you must still follow strict rules about quantity, placement, and feed content — violations can result in substantial fines.

If you live in or hunt a county with an active ban, feeding deer for any purpose — including casual backyard wildlife watching — is prohibited. The Wisconsin DNR reminds hunters and the public to help keep the state’s deer herd healthy by following all baiting and feeding bans and refraining from baiting and feeding in areas where no bans are in effect.

You can learn about the types of deer found across North America, including the white-tailed deer that dominate Wisconsin’s landscape, to better understand the species these regulations are designed to protect.

Where and When Deer Feeding Is Restricted in Wisconsin

The geographic reach of Wisconsin’s feeding bans is directly tied to CWD detections. The Wisconsin DNR imposes baiting and feeding bans within any county with a confirmed CWD-positive deer, and any county within 10 miles of the location. The ban lasts three years after the last positive detection.

Counties fall under a three-year baiting and feeding ban when a wild or farm-raised deer tests positive for CWD in the county. If the CWD-positive deer is found within 10 miles of a county line, the adjoining county will fall under a two-year ban. If additional CWD cases are found during the lifetime of a baiting and feeding ban, the ban will reset for an additional two to three years.

New bans can be triggered at any time. For example, the Wisconsin DNR was notified by the Wisconsin Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection that a farm-raised deer on a deer farm in Eau Claire County tested positive for CWD. That positive result was within 10 miles of the border of both Clark and Jackson counties, resulting in a new baiting and feeding ban going into effect in Clark County on March 1, 2025.

Important Note: Because bans are added and removed as new CWD results come in, you should always verify your county’s current status directly on the Wisconsin DNR’s Baiting and Feeding Regulations page before feeding or baiting deer.

Local governments add another layer of restriction. Local governments in Wisconsin can impose additional feeding restrictions based on environmental and wildlife management needs. Some counties prohibit feeding entirely as a precaution against CWD, while others enforce seasonal restrictions when deer congregations are larger. Urban and suburban areas often have stricter prohibitions to address nuisance concerns. Cities like Madison and Green Bay have enacted wildlife feeding bans to prevent habituation and property damage.

Even in counties where a statewide ban is not in effect, strict limitations exist. Wisconsin Administrative Code NR 10.07(2) specifies that no more than two gallons of feed may be placed per site, and it must be within 50 yards of a dwelling or business to minimize large congregations.

If you’re a hunter, timing matters too. Bait may be placed starting the day before the archery deer season opener, and baiting must stop at the close of all deer seasons. You can review the full deer hunting season dates in Wisconsin to understand how these windows align with baiting rules.

What You Can and Cannot Feed Deer in Wisconsin

In counties where feeding is permitted, not just any material qualifies as legal feed. Wisconsin law is specific about what you may and may not place at a feeding site.

Under Wisconsin Statute 29.336, if you are in a non-ban county and wish to feed deer for viewing purposes, all of the following conditions must be met:

• The feeding site must be within 50 yards of an owner-occupied residence or of a person’s business that is generally open to the public.
• The feeding site must be not less than 100 yards from a roadway having a posted speed limit of 45 miles per hour or more.
• No more than 2 gallons of material may be at the feeding site at any one time.
• The material used to feed deer must not contain any animal part or animal byproduct.

Automatic and mechanical feeders present a particular compliance challenge. The feed inside a feeder is still considered feed, as it serves to attract deer and is included in determining the amount of feed present at the site. It can be difficult if not impossible to control how much feed is on the ground at any one time, since some feeders may dispense feed every hour, once a day, or by the actions of deer or other animals. For that reason, feeders designed to deposit or replenish feed automatically, mechanically, or by similar means are prohibited.

Common Mistake: Many people assume that placing corn, apples, or salt blocks is harmless. However, bait and feed include but are not limited to materials such as minerals, salt, hay, corn, and apples — all of which are regulated or prohibited depending on your county.

In ban counties, there is one narrow exception for other wildlife. In counties where baiting and feeding bans are in effect, individuals may still feed birds and small mammals provided feeding devices are within 50 yards of a human dwelling and at a sufficient height or design to prevent access by deer. If you enjoy feeding backyard birds, you can explore different types of bird feeders and hummingbird feeders that can be positioned to comply with this requirement.

Wisconsin law also provides limited exemptions through DNR-issued permits. One exemption applies to scientific research and wildlife rehabilitation. Under Wisconsin Administrative Code NR 19.70, researchers may apply for permits to feed deer for studying disease patterns, migration habits, or population dynamics. These permits require detailed proposals and strict regulations to minimize unintended consequences.

Deer Feeding and CWD Regulations in Wisconsin

Chronic wasting disease is the driving force behind nearly every deer feeding restriction in Wisconsin. CWD is an always-fatal disease that affects the nervous system of deer, elk, moose, and caribou caused by a misshapen prion protein. The disease can spread through contact with an infected animal’s saliva, urine, feces, or blood. It can also spread indirectly through exposure to a contaminated environment.

Feed sites are particularly dangerous in this context. Infected deer can leave infectious CWD prions behind in their saliva, blood, feces, and urine, creating a risk to any healthy deer that may visit the site in the future. CWD can spread rapidly when these prions remain in an area where more deer are sure to congregate, such as a feed pile.

CWD prions are extremely resilient, and they can stay in the soil for a long time, making containment of an affected area a challenge. This is why a single positive test in one county can trigger a ban in neighboring counties as well.

The Wisconsin DNR began monitoring the state’s wild white-tailed deer for CWD in 1999, and the first positives were found in 2002. Since then, the disease has spread steadily, and the number of affected counties has grown considerably. Baiting and feeding bans will renew with each new wild or captive positive CWD or TB result, and the map will be updated with any changes as soon as they are regulatory.

Because the ban map changes with new detections, the Wisconsin DNR’s baiting and feeding page will always have the most up-to-date information on current bans, so hunters and the public should check back before they hunt or feed deer. You can also learn more about the natural predators of white-tailed deer and how population pressures from multiple directions — disease, predation, and human activity — shape deer herd management decisions in Wisconsin.

Penalties for Illegally Feeding Deer in Wisconsin

Ignoring Wisconsin’s deer feeding laws carries real financial and legal consequences. Violating Wisconsin’s deer feeding laws can result in fines ranging from $300 to $2,000 per offense. The DNR and local law enforcement have the authority to issue citations, and repeat offenders may face escalating penalties.

In cases where feeding contributes to CWD spread or significant wildlife disturbances, additional charges may be imposed under broader environmental protection laws. Beyond fines, violators may receive cease-and-desist orders requiring immediate removal of feed.

The financial hit doesn’t stop at the base fine. In addition to monetary penalties, you might face court costs that can add significantly to the overall cost, community service requirements depending on the severity of the violation, and in some cases, revocation or suspension of your hunting license.

Pro Tip: If you witness someone feeding deer in a ban county, you can report the activity to the Wisconsin DNR. Conservation wardens and local law enforcement are both authorized to investigate and issue citations.

The severity of the penalty can also vary based on circumstances. Feeding a small number of deer might result in a smaller fine than creating a large, consistent feeding station, and fines are ultimately determined by the court. That said, any violation in a CWD-ban county is treated seriously, and the DNR actively enforces these rules during hunting seasons and year-round.

To protect the state’s natural resources, including the whitetail deer and elk populations, it is important to know and follow the baiting and feeding regulations. Violating these regulations could result in penalties such as fines and revocation of hunting privileges.

Why Feeding Deer Is Discouraged Even Where It’s Legal in Wisconsin

Even if your county has no active ban, the Wisconsin DNR consistently discourages deer feeding. The reasons go well beyond disease risk and touch on the broader health and behavior of the deer population.

The most immediate concern is disease transmission. Baiting and feeding deer encourage them to congregate around a specific location, creating an environment where infected deer can quickly spread illnesses like chronic wasting disease. Infected deer can leave behind saliva, blood, feces, and urine, creating a risk to healthy deer. Even in counties with no confirmed CWD cases, the risk of introducing the disease through undetected infections is real.

Habituation is another serious problem. Feeding regulations also aim to prevent habituation, which can lead to increased human-deer conflicts, property damage, and vehicle collisions. The Wisconsin DNR warns that feeding disrupts natural foraging behaviors and can cause malnutrition if deer rely on inappropriate food sources.

Deer that become accustomed to human-provided food lose important survival instincts. Deer accustomed to human-provided food sources become less reliant on natural foraging, which disrupts the natural balance of the ecosystem and can lead to overgrazing in certain areas. Additionally, artificial feeding sites attract large numbers of deer, increasing the likelihood of deer-vehicle collisions — a significant safety risk to drivers and deer alike.

Key Insight: Feeding deer can also make them bolder and more likely to approach humans and residential areas, increasing the risk of property damage and direct human-wildlife conflict — especially in suburban neighborhoods.

Bait and feed placed on the landscape, even in limited quantities, often attracts unnatural numbers of deer. This congregation effect is problematic regardless of whether CWD is present in the county, because it creates conditions that can accelerate the spread of any disease that enters the local population.

If you’re interested in deer purely from a wildlife observation standpoint, learning more about the different types of deer and their natural behaviors offers a rewarding alternative to artificial feeding. Understanding what deer eat in the wild, how they forage across seasons, and how they interact with other species — including their natural predators — gives you a much richer picture of these animals without putting them at risk.

The DNR’s position is clear: the healthiest deer are those that rely on natural food sources, maintain appropriate distances from humans, and move freely through the landscape without being concentrated around artificial feed sites. Choosing not to feed deer — even when you legally could — is one of the most meaningful contributions you can make to the long-term health of Wisconsin’s deer herd.