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Fact checked by Steven Lines, lifelong Hunter, and Outdoorsman. Elk love eating a variety of food, and many crops that are grown will often turn into an easy snack for a hungry elk herd. This has led many hunters and wildlife observers to wonder to themselves, do elk like foods like carrots? Elk will eat a wide variety of vegetation and vegetables, so they like eating carrots. They will not typically seek out carrots to eat, however, but will eat them if allowed to do so. There are plenty of other plants and foods that elk prefer over carrots, but they will eat them if they find them. If you are a hunter and want to learn how to use carrots to better attract and hunt elk, then you have come to the right place! Elk Diet and Preferred Food Elk love to eat. Because they are so large, they require a lot of food that will then be turned into energy to keep them going. They will often travel long distances in order to find this food, and this can often lead them to farms and agricultural fields that can provide a quick and easy meal. While out in the wild, elk are browsers. They will feed and nibble on tree leaves, twigs, roots, grasses, and shrubs that will make up the bulk of their diet. When they can find them, they will occasionally eat mushrooms and crops out of fields. While they prefer alfalfa, soybeans, and canola, they will eat plants such as carrots when they can get the chance. No matter what the elk are eating, they need to eat a lot of it. Elk need a few pounds of food for every 100 pounds that they weigh, so an adult elk can easily need over 20 pounds of food if they are spending too much energy. This will keep them on the move, always searching for their next meal. Check Out: Do Elk Like Peppermint? Can You Use Carrots to Attract Elk? So can you use carrots to attract and hunt elk? It really depends on how you do it. In most states, it is legal to hunt near farm fields. This can allow you to find well-used farm fields that are being used as food sources and hunt near them to pattern and kill the elk. In most states, however, it is illegal to use any type of bait in order to attract elk. This is different from field that is growing food for human or livestock consumption. While you can hunt near a carrot field, you usually cannot place a pile of carrots in a public area in the hopes of attracting them. This law can and does change from state to state. A quick and easy way to check on the laws and regulations of the state is a quick internet search for the state’s fish and wildlife agency. There are also websites such as https://www.eregulations.com/ that has a database of every state’s hunting regulations for quick and easy reference. Are Carrots Legal to Use as Bait? No, carrots cannot be used as bait in most places. Currently, there are only two western states that allow you to use bait in order to attract elk. These states are Oregon and Washington. In both of these states, you can use whatever substance you would like in the hopes of attracting elk to your location. These laws and regulations are constantly changing, however, so it is important to check for yourself before you begin hunting. To view the hunting regulations for the state of Oregon, you can visit https://www.dfw.state.or.us/. For the hunting rules and regulations for the state of Washington, you can visit https://wdfw.wa.gov/. Other states around the country, such as Texas, do allow you to use bait such as carrots for all animals, including elk. This is due to elk being non-native animals, and they are not subject to the same laws. Private game farms and ranches can also be exempt from baiting laws depending on the area. How to Hunt Elk With Carrots In order to use carrots to hunt elk, you must first find a good field that the elk are feeding in. From there, you can set up just outside the field and find a good ambush point. Sitting and waiting outside of the field will provide you with more cover and concealment, as well as get the elk before they make it out to the wide open space of a farm field. If you are using carrots as bait in an area that allows it, then you simply need to place a decent amount of carrots on the ground in a flat, open area. It is best to place the carrots in an area near a well-used trail or water source so that the elk can easily find them. Fresh carrots tend to work much better than old or stale carrots. Finding the right location to place the carrots as bait is key. You want an area that has plenty of elk signs but is open enough to get a clear shot as an elk comes in to eat the carrots. Look for elk trails, tracks, scat, and rubs in order to determine the right location. You can then find a flat, clear spot on the ground to place the carrots. Final Thoughts Elk are big animals and need a lot of food. Carrots are a popular food choice if they can find them, and they can also be used to attract elk in places where it is legal to use bait. If you want to attract elk and need a food item to do so, then carrots might just be the right option! Sources https://www.hunterhunts.com/what-do-elk-eat/ https://www.gameandfishmag.com/editorial/make-all-the-right-elk-moves/327996#:~:text=Undisturbed%20elk%20will%20feed%20heavily,from%20feeding%20areas%20to%20bed. https://animalia.bio/elk

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