couple questions about deer vocalizations: Do doe wheeze or only bucks? should I always wheeze back if your goal is to shoot a buck (can be any legal size)? I've been out twice this season so far, I have a treestand on my property 200 yds from my house (small property). I always see lots of sign, and there's well-worn paths and a rub line. My property is not particularly well suited for bedding or feeding, but there is a small pond where I've watched deer drink on their way thru. Anyway, opening day evening hunt saw a small buck, nothing else. 20 minutes after sundown, very dark i'm packing my gear to head home. I was being kind of loud when i heard a medium loud wheeze very close to my stand, probably aimed at me. too dark to see anything. sounded like the "wheeze" on the link below, only 2-3 seconds long instead of 1 second: http://www.myoan.net/huntingart/deer_calls.html Went out 4 days ago after work for another evening hunt. Snuck in very quietly despite the dry, newly-fallen leaves. almost there and I bump a deer, who runs 20 yards and wheezes! this wheeze was less loud and shorter. I contact call back and bleat to confuse him. never saw the deer, don't think it saw me (pretty thick vegetation). Went to stand, sat for 1.5 hrs, saw 3 doe wander by just out of range, and then a loud, long wheeze from the thick brush behind me where the doe had disappeared. Turn slowly but never saw him. Grunted a few times, but i'm new so didn't realize I probably should have wheezed back. The wheeze was so loud it scared the 2 squirrels and the chippy I'd been watching...they all ran home! Got my heart pounding too Any experience with deer vocalizing at you like this? Glad to hear and see deer, but I want to kill my first buck! Don't think I've been visually busted yet, and the deer were always upwind of me. Thanks!
I think what you heard was a deer "blowing" at you, not a wheeze. I'm sure this has happened to everyone on this forum. Example: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z2z6LGVAQTY When they blow, it's an alarm and you're pretty much busted, they either saw you or smelled you. Not much you can do about it. Bucks and does will do this. A snort/wheeze is an aggressive sound made by bucks, usually telling another buck to back off.
I was filming for a buddy lastnight and his stand was just a little east of me. 3 does came in behind me ( wind was out of the East) stood twelve yards from my stand and blew at my scent for probably 20 minutes and would not leave. I was waiting to crawl out of the stand until after they left but they wouldn't so I finally turned around in my seat to maybe film them but it was to dark for footage by then. They are lucky I didn't have a tag when they first came in.
When walking in the woods if I get blown at, I blow back. 8 of 10 times they'll stop in their tracks and look back. Could be enough to still close the deal if they're close.
THe old mature does love doing this and sometimes they will carry on for quite a while if you let them, often times they know there is danger but they do not know axactly what the danger is. When this has happened to me, I will go out of my way to let them see or hear me because it verifies what their concern was and it usually shuts them up and sends them on their way. I'd rather do that then have the deer blow for 20 minutes alerting everything in the woods.
