I've been bow hunting since 2010. In the years I've had about 40x the chance to see a buck in the distance not coming in my direction in late October to Mid November. So if they aren't going to come your direction I'm sure most has thought. I'll give a little grunt or call. I all the times I've grunted even just a short 1/4 second contact grunt. All the bucks in my area have took off running. Every time I've ever seen a buck and grunted or a lite tap rattle to get there attention and hope they come to bow range. I won't matter if the buck is 60 yards or 200 yards. If I grunt or rattle at all. They run away. No looks nothing just run. The deer I am hunting is in this little 120 acre wood lot between sub divisions. So it's not like they are pressured. I only know of 1 other hunter that hunts that area. Does anyone else encounter this? Are all your bucks sissy's like mine? I'm to the point where I am just going to throw my extinguisher grunt tube and rattles away because they don't bring deer in they just scare them away.
Calling doesn't work more than it does, but I can't say it scares deer away. Are they down wind of you when you're calling to them? Seems odd that it would spook them. I've called to plenty of deer and can't say I can recall a time when they ran the other way. Have you tried a doe bleat? I've had much better luck this time of year with a bleat than a grunt or rattle.
Never down wind. Always 60+ yards away not coming toward me. I've tried grunts, doe bleeps, fawn bleeps, rattling.. Everything and every time within 3 seconds to 10 seconds they run. No matter how loud or soft I call. (Just so you know Justin. You're the reason I bow hunt. I stumbled across your site the day Ep5 of S1 came out. I had bow hunted 1 or 2 times before but not serious. You were on a Halloween hunt I believe and killed a big buck and your excitement gave me that urge to try bow hunting for real) Thanks for that.
It's possible there is more hunting pressure there than you're aware of. I agree with Justin; they may not come but seems strange they run from it rather than just ignore it.
OP, what state do you hunt in? I experienced the same results in Rhode Island, and in Connecticut. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
I've called in doe, fawns and yearling bucks with bleats. Rattled in four different bucks in the past, killing one of those. I no longer use any calls these day's, it's just not conducive for how I like to hunt.
Rattling and calling in old bucks is a thing of the past in my woods. They are a tool, but not one I rely too much on anymore. 10-15 years ago? Absolutely. Bang them horns together, hit the grunt tube, and hold on. Now there is a Will Primos in most wood lots and the older a buck gets they grow weary of it IMO. Young deer? Yeah you may be able to lure a few of those guys in. I haven’t used a grunt tube in the last 2 years. I still carry one, but I’ll only call at deer that are out of range in hopes of getting lucky and pulling it into bow range. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
I’ve found timing is everything. One day a rattle or grunt can make a buck tuck his ears and slink away, other days they will come straight to it. They have moods just like we do. Sometimes they’re just not in the mood and dont want to be bothered. They may have a mission or destination on their mind and don’t have time to acknowledge that grunt or bleat. I’ve rattled in a few mature bucks in pre rut and the heat of the rut. Seems like 2.5 and 3.5 yr old bucks respond more to it out of curiosity, Which leads to education a lot of those times because they bust the hunter or know something’s not right. That’s why I think the older bucks may be more cautious. They’re edumacated! Also, don’t take this the wrong way but are you sounding realistic? It is odd that “every time” they run from it. I know deer that have had their butts kicked will definitely tuck tail and I’ve seen a couple run away but what you are describing sounds weird. Also a lot of guys start off grunting too loud. Volume is another important aspect of calling that is forgotten about. If I’m grunting at a deer, unless they are a mile away and I’m giving them a Hail Mary, I always start soft and increase volume till you get the deers attention. Point the tube of the grunt in the opposite direction from where you are so it directs their attention away from you some. They are amazing at pin pointing a sound from a half mile away and going straight to where it came from. Lastly don’t underestimate the snort wheeze on mature deer. I think that’s the best call when they are seeking. That’s 2 cents from an amateur so take for what it’s worth
Ya, I start low and get louder. No matter how soft or loud the sound is they run. I also use the Extinguisher deer call tube and it's said to be the most realistic grunt tube on the market. I also only call when the deer is 60 or more yards away and not coming in my direction trying to get lucky and pull them into bow range. But ya like I said. Every buck in my area. from button buck to spike to big 10 pt all run.
That’s a head scratcher for sure. May be learned behavior from previous educated deer passing down from deer to deer
I have the same exact problem! I hunt in an area with a serious imbalance of Does to Bucks. The buck/doe ratio is skewed heavily toward does. Been hunting this area for several years and tried some calling rattling during rut period many times with zero positive response. My hunch is the bucks shy from confrontation because there is plenty of does to go around, why fight when you dont have to. I finally quit calling all together
Grunts only work late October in north country, once seeking and chasing begin, turn to bleats and bleat cans--I use golden estrus scents upwind and downwind of my location, about 20 yards---wait half hour then begin series of bleats every 20 minutes or so, has worked so many times I cant remember all, 18 inch wide 8 point a week ago !!!!!
It's important to understand that we do not truly understand "deer talk". That's why I always suggest being very subtle. If I don't want you to understand what I'm saying am I better to mumble softly or speak loud and clear? That's how I look at calling animals. I also suggest a very stretched out series of sequences. I like 3 series: 1, 1-2 and 1,2-3 and 1,2-3,1. So I'll mix and match those in series of 2 or 3 sequences: 1, 1-2 could be one. Or 1,1-2, 1. I'll wait anywhere from 30 seconds to five minutes between seties and very rarely would I ever call more than once an hour, roughly. This is the same whether I'm bleating or grunting. For rattling I'll always start a sequence and insert the rattling in between to finish with a few grunts. A full sequence might look like this: 1, 1-2 (2 minutes later) 1, 1-2-3 (30 seconds later) 1-2 45 minutes later another sequence. After that I may wait 75 minutes. So if I'm sitting for up to 4 hrs I'm really not calling much. Ideally what I'm looking to do is engage a doe or small buck so that that deer calls in a bigger one. The problem with calling is that despite thinking we may know what each call means we don't understand it can't appreciate tone and circumstances. Your bleat may result in a buck wondering why the heck a doe would bleat like that at that given moment. So be subtle and hope for a misunderstanding. Deer are curious but if your obvious they're not stupid. Hope that helps.
I’ve had tremendous luck calling though I almost always do more than short grunts... the buck has to be in the mood to respond is the first hurdle then if he (you won’t know until you see his reaction) is, my goal is to make it sound simply unresistable... for example last year, I called my buck in from a half mile away last year, across 2 small cut corn fields and a gravel road. I saw him come out of standing corn with a couple of does - he walked by them sniffed but I could tell by his reaction they weren’t hot - he just stood there looking in all directions. I grunted as loud as I could until I got his attention then I made it sound like a deer breeding fest going on... when he committed - he ran all he way to my creek - once he was at about 100 yds, I gave a couple of tending grunts and he walked the creek edge for a nice 20/25 yd shot. Just yesterday I called in a young stud 5x - I couldn’t tell how big he was and he was going to hit my grove about 100 yds up... I had to grunt loud to get him to hear but he slammed on the breaks when he heard and walked in on a string 10 yds from my stand... My advice is don’t give up, get a couple of different tubes to experiment with and when u see it happening in the wild while hunting - pay attention to the deer, their sounds, etc...
