Deer are graceful, beautiful animals, and if you live on a property that backs up to the woods, you may even see them visit your yard from time to time. If you’re a wildlife enthusiast, this coule be a dream come true, as it puts you in the perfect spot for deer watching without you even having to leave the comfort of your home. However, we’re willing to bet that those same deer will head for the hills—or at least the cover of the woods—should you step outside.

As wild animals, and prey animals at that, deer are naturally very cautious of humans. Because of that, befriending a deer isn’t an easy task because to them, you are a stranger and they can’t read your intentions, which means when they see a person they naturally think they could be a threat (after all, plenty of humans hunt deer). When that happens, they can get spooked and run off. But what if you want to become a friend to your backyard deer, or at least earn their trust of deer enough that they’ll not run away from you? Can you actually befriend a deer—or more importantly, should you?

To see how you can befriend deer and earn their trust, keep reading! With these tips, you can learn ways to slowly show them you are kind and they are safe in your presence so that they will not dash off as soon as you come into sight.

Should You Approach a Deer?

Before you go off to start the process of befriending deer in your neighborhood, we want to temper your expectations a bit first. As you’re working to “endeer” yourself to these animals, remember that they’re still wild animals. You don’t want them to become solely dependent on you for food, or they will lose their natural instincts to find it of their own. This dependency on humans for food can also draw deer closer to active roadways, which is an obvious danger to deer and humans alike.

Seeing how making a wild deer dependent on you for food is a major no-no, trying to approach one to touch, like you may see in the movies, is doubly so. While it can be tempting to try to get a deer to approach you or for you to get close enough to pet one, you have to remember that there is a strong possibility they will react with sudden aggression, or might even bite you. If that happens, there’s a chance they can spread a dangerous disease to you, like rabies. If a deer acts a little too friendly right off the bat in your presence, it may be a serious warning sign that they have a rabies infection. As with other wild animals, when it comes to deer, it’s better to look and admire them, and not ouch!

How To Befriend Deer (Or Be a Friend to Deer)

When it comes to befriending deer, it’s possible. However, being a good friend to your local deer population requires you to act ethically with their best interests in mind. You might want to see more deer on your property, but you do not want them to see you as their primary source of food. That can be a tricky line to toe. While we have a few suggestions on how to attract deer to your property without building a dangerous direct association between humans and food, you should always do your research to see what’s legal or illegal (or even just discouraged) in your area.

Plant Deer-Friendly Vegetation (An Easy Feat)

Deer are voracious herbivores, and they’re not too discriminatory when it comes to food. They will eat a wide variety of flowers, shrubs, fruits, vegetables, and other literal “garden-variety” plants. If you want to see deer more frequently though, you may consider planting a fruit tree at the edge of your property—apples, pears, and stone fruits are always popular. The fallen fruit can make a fantastic treat for passing deer!

Though, note that a deer’s endless appetite for vegetation is a double-edged sword. While you might want to see more deer at the edges of your property, they will also wreak havoc on your veggie gardens and flower beds if allowed to do so. So, if you want to keep your landscaping intact, protect it with fencing, mesh coverings, or deer-resistant plants!

Install a Deer Feeder

Another way to befriend deer in a safe way is to install a deer feeder. While the laws around them vary from state to state, you may be allowed to install a deer feeder on your property, so long as you live on private property. While hunters often use these to attract deer, some folks on large rural properties use them to attract deer and other wildlife. Just do your research before you install one, though, as your state may have regulations regarding how far away a feeder must be installed from your house. Also, be mindful of seasonal changes, because even in states where deer feeding is legal, some may stipulate that you stop putting food out during hunting season.

Put Out a Salt Lick

One other option when it comes to attracting deer and befriending them is to put out a salt lick. Essential minerals like salt, calcium potassium are often hard to come by in a deer’s vegetarian diet, which is why deer go absolutely crazy for salt licks. Salt licks are often used by hunters as bait, but they can be genuinely beneficial for the local deer population as they give deer access to rare but critical minerals and nutrients to supplement their diets. If you do put out a salt lick, the best time of year to put them out is in the early spring through the summer. This is the time of year when newly-born deer are still nursing and bucks are growing their antlers, so the minerals will help them grow strong and healthy.

Just as with deer feeders, though, check your local regulations to see whether or not you can legally put out a salt lick. Most states that ban deer feeders also disallow salt licks, while other may require you to stop putting them out during hunting season.

Should You Get a Deer To Come To You?

It would be magical to have a Disney princess-esque animal magnetism, and have happy woodland critters trot over to you every time you step outside. However, the sad truth is that you shouldn’t want your deer to get too comfortable with you. Having a healthy fear of humans keeps deer safe, and even if you mean them no harm, that’s not true of every human. Just as you should not try to approach a wild deer, you also shouldn’t actively try to get a deer to come to you.

But perhaps there’s a happy medium here. While you don’t want to attract deer to you, you can also watch them safely from a distance without scaring them off. Look for deer on your property in the early morning and late evening, as that’s the time of day that deer or most active. If you see one, move very slowly and don’t make a sound. As long as you keep your distance and don’t startle it, you should be able to safely observe the deer without frightening it off!

Can You Pet a Deer?

We can’t exactly blame you if there’s still some small part of you that wishes you just walk up and pet a deer in the wild. We get it—deer are really cute animals. While petting a wild deer isn’t a good idea, some exotic petting zoos do have deer that you can visit and interact with.

In fact, depending on where you live and the local laws, you may also live within visiting distance of a legal deer farm or ranch, some of which may allow visitors to pet and feed them. You might have even more success searching specifically for reindeer farms, as they are one of the most common types of domesticated deer. In fact, in keeping with the season, why not check out one of these reindeer ranches for the holidays?

Can You Tame a Deer?

Tempting as it may be to have a Santa Claus-esque cadre of tame reindeer (or deer of any kind) at your beck and call, we don’t advise you to try and tame a deer. In fact, having a pet deer without a permit is illegal in most of the United States, and the majority of states impose an outright ban on pet deer ownership, permit or no. Chances are, you can’t legally make a deer your pet, and making one dependent on you can have lots of other negative consequences that just aren’t worth it.

All of this isn’t to say that you can’t enjoy having deer visitors, or even try to watch them from a distance and show them you are friendly. That’s the best overall to befriend a deer when you keep in mind that the end goal of your “friendship” is about appreciating them.

This story was originally published by PetHelpful on Dec 15, 2025, where it first appeared in the Wildlife section. Add PetHelpful as a Preferred Source by clicking here.