Deer Hunting 101...Questions and Answers

[Nastytater]

Thanks guys,these questions and answers are really coming in handy for the new partner I'll be bringing into the woods this next following season. Also,I'd like to point out that alot of the hunters on here are giving very good advice,but one of the key things to remember are the kids...Most of the questions they'll ask are "Whats the rut or Whats a scrape?" "Do I really have to take a Bath every time before I go and why?"
Yes it's true to answer some of the most asked questions that you and me would already be keened on but what about if they've never been around all the slang? Then what,they won't even know what the RUT or Scrape or Rubs are....Please simple questions and answers please.And I'll try to do my part by answering some of these as well.
A rub is where a Whitetail Buck rubs the Velvet skin of his antlers every year onto a tree..Usually he'll scrape the bark right off of the tree and it will appear to be shreaded....

 

[Nastytater]

I'd have to say that I'm a smoker and that when i was younger and didn't smoke,I saw alot more deer in the woods...also keep in mind that you don't have as much movement if you don't smoke either...Your not putting the cig to your face as much and the smell from a cigerette is not a natural smell in the woods.They might have just lucked up with the wind direction...

 

[miles58]

What is important is that nothing seems out of the ordinary to them.

I've watched deer just stand and chew and watch as group after group walk a trail to the next station on a sporting clays course. Shoot shoot shoot bang bang over and over all day. Every group stinking and sweating in the summer and fall heat, talking, making noise, driving carts, walking, and shooting over and over. The deer never moves, just watches and feeds.

Let one single person step off the trail and he's out of there. Even if they just stop on the trail and look and point if some one happens to notice and he is on full alert.

I've seen it over and over. What they are looking for is something they haven't seen before and percieve as a threat.

Exactly!

Where I hunt they get used to seeing ATVs moving by them all the time. I swear to god I could make a cardboard cutout, paint it like an ATV, record the engine noise, and then play the noise while you walked the cutout right up to them and stuck a gun barrel in their ear.

The deer don't worry about us hunting grouse in amongst them. They lay in their beds until you get too close. They will let you walk walk within a few feet if you seem not to notice them. They bed down to chew their cud in the evening within 100 feet of the cabin and don't move unless you zero in on them. If they think you don't notice them not smell, not noise, not movement will bother them.

If you are in a place where they don't usually find a person they may snort at you and stomp at you but if you turn away they are about as likely to follow you as anything. Having had the opportunity to watch them interact, a deer snorting at something will alert all deer within earshot. It won't necessarily make even a close deer move though. I have had a buck snorting at my ATV, and another deer thirty feet from him that couldn't see the ATV just kept focused on the buck. Usually deer more than 100 yards from the snorter will pay attention but not abandon what they are doing.

Their whole existence depends on picking out the abnormal. That means food too. Freshly cut timber/brush or freshly turned earth is just a magnet. Not all change in their world is bad change. Provide sound with the automatic spreading of corn from a feeder and the deer will soon learn that the sound means food. Take the feeder away and play the sound and the deer will come in looking for the food. Makes no matter if you play Dixie every time the feeder turns on or play dog barks.

 

[miles58]

I am a new hunter looking to buy a good deer rifle that I can use forever. I understand 30-06 is the most popular (and for obvious reasons). I've also been told that a .270 is much better because it will ensure that the deer won't run away after being shot because the bullet stays inside the deer more than a 30-06 bullet. However, it is my understanding that a 30-06 goes through a deer and leaves a much bigger exit wound than a .270, so it is much easier to find blood and track the deer if it runs. Does any experienced hunter have some insight for me??? Thanks!

A 30-06, a 35 Whelen, a 270 Winchester, and a 25-06 Remington all use the same case. Think of the case as the engine that drives the bullet. That makes all of them pretty much a horse apiece when it comes to energy because you can't get more out than you can put in.

The bore diameter make for pressure differences between them. A 150 grain bullet is mid range for a 30-06, It's a heavy bullet for a 270 and it's beyond the capability of the 25-06 and below the range of the 35 Whelen.

In days gone by you needed that weight for thump and penetration. Today we have several companies making all copper bullets which don't shed weight when the hit and penetrate all the way through. The also expand well and are capable of massive tissue damage. A 130 grain 270 bullet can well outperform a bullet weighing twice as much.

My loads with 130 grain copper bullets in 2008 accounted for eight deer. all one shot kills, none went more than a few feet. When you compare bullets, calibers and guns you need to take a lot into consideration. Any cartridge based on the 30-06 case will be enough gun to use for the rest of your life. Any one of the four will take any animal that you will find in North America, although if you are going to shoot a griz or polar bear I would stick with the '06 and Whelen. Or better yet look to just a tad bigger.

Deer/elk/moose will fall down dead from any one of them. If you need more range and will be hunting mostly deer then 25-06 and 270 are plenty of gun out to 400 yards especially for down south deer.

If you're going to buy one you want to be good for life buy a first quality gun and put a decent piece of glass on top. Skimp on either and you'll be selling one or the other or both. I personally think you need to spend at least as much on glass as you do on gun.

 

[GONoob]

Question: Hunters will spend hundreds if not thousands of dollars masking themselves to avoid being seen or smelt. At my house I can literally walk up to a deer within 30ft. Just tonight after I nearly ran one over in my driveway, I turn the car off slammed my door, and walked towards it. They didn't even flinch.

What gives?

 

[irocz2u]

i usly hunt the north ga montiens n my favert spots are were they have ridge trails more then one on the side of the montien have some nice 120+ buckes chaseing does there or go to a old stand n use my climber 30 yards away

 

[Sting'em!]

What lengths do you guys go to for scent control while hunting and/or scouting during the season? I realize you want to always keep the wind in your favor, but beoynd that, do you use rubber boots? use a cover scent? special soap/detergent?

Seems like all you can really hope to do is cover your scent from walking because if a deer approaches upwind,it is going so smell you regardless of how much cover scent or whatever you have on right?

 

[Sting'em!]

How high up does your deerstand need to be? Is a 15 ft. ladder stand high enough? How high do you need to go to take wind/scent out of the factor?

 

[buckslayjay]

Been thinking about something for a while. I know there are a lot of young or inexperienced hunters out there that are wanting to learn as much as they can before hitting the woods this fall. What I propose is we have a Q&A thread where any and all can ask questions or even give tips about deer hunting. Heck I've been hunting since I was about 10 yrs. old and there are still a lot of things I don't know. I'll start it off by asking the first question: What is the age ratio in years comparing deer to humans?

its hard to say because a deer in the wild usualy lives about 5 or 6 years if he dont get shot, but in captivity i think the average is 8 or 9. so as far as wild deer go i would say a month is like a year

 

[buckslayjay]

How high up does your deerstand need to be? Is a 15 ft. ladder stand high enough? How high do you need to go to take wind/scent out of the factor?

highth can be a trcky thing, depending on the spot, a ground blind could be best or you may need to be 30 feet in a tree. but on average 15 feet is plenty. its hard to avoid the wind with highth because you never know for sure what the wind is going to do, if there is a swirl it doesnt matter how high you are, my advice is scent free laundry detergent, shampoo, soap and scent killer spray, but if you can afford scentlok clothing, theres nothing better. but, thats just my oppinion, good luck

 

[buckslayjay]

Question: Hunters will spend hundreds if not thousands of dollars masking themselves to avoid being seen or smelt. At my house I can literally walk up to a deer within 30ft. Just tonight after I nearly ran one over in my driveway, I turn the car off slammed my door, and walked towards it. They didn't even flinch.

What gives?

deer are very intelligent, somtimes they know when someone means to harm them or not. i was in a club once where deer would come within 10 yards of a campfire at night, its like they knew we couldent touch them after dark

 

[buckslayjay]

Does anyone know if german shepards make good trailing dogs...I want to get into this for fun and to stop loosing deer and about to get one of these dogs?

i knew a guy who had a german shepperd for a coon dog, he was a great coon god, but the problem was when he would shoot the coon the dog would tear it to shreds

 

[bassmaster71]

the expensive code

What particular brand or type of deer scents does everyone use and when do you find to be the best time to use them.
I have used Tinks 69 for a long time and it has proven to be quite effective during the pre-rut, rut and post-rut stages.
I have also used code blue, but with little success b/c I have only used it for one season.
Has anyone used the expensive code blue that is like $30.00 a bottle? Had any success with it?

yes i used it last year and had a deer come in from about 300 yrds or morethe code blue standing doe estrus is good but i have something better let me know if you want to know what it is

 

[COLDBORE]

when does the rut start in ga

 

[1killshot]

the only answer is WIND!! if the wind is not in your favor-the rest doesnt matter anyway!! once a hunter knows this,the rest is easy. you can have all the knowledge in the world,but if you dont use commen sense-the time is wasted! wind is the reason for 2 stands,wind is the reason a deer ages,wind is the reason you didnt see a thing,wind is the reason you killed that big buck. the rest is a need to know thing,but wont put a big buck on the ground! great idea for the kids!!

 

[mrbrent]

It looks like the DNR has really cut back on available hunting dates on th WMA's all over Georgia for 2009-2010.
It's starting to look like the best thing to do is just hit the Chatahoochee National Forest area for the entire season

 

[Kevo35]

food sources

Other then acorns, persimmons, muscidines, or a nice clover foodplot what other food sources do deer feed on during september and october.

 

[Jedi Pastor Ken]

Without a rifled barrel, what is the best ammo to use in a shotgun for deer hunting?

Background: Turkey is my passion but I'm looking for a gun to do it all. I know rifles are best for deer but $ is an option and a rifle is not on my horizon at all.

 

[ga_game_hunter]

Question: Hunters will spend hundreds if not thousands of dollars masking themselves to avoid being seen or smelt. At my house I can literally walk up to a deer within 30ft. Just tonight after I nearly ran one over in my driveway, I turn the car off slammed my door, and walked towards it. They didn't even flinch.

What gives?

That deer knows he doesnt have to worry about being shot. Start firing off a couple of rounds of ammo around your house and then see if you have deer coming around.

 

[dpoole]

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