If Deer Had Guns
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 4 ต.ค. 2024
- Of course deer will never have guns, but how would you hunt deer differently if they did? Would you hunt more quietly? Would you hide yourself better accessing your deer blind? Would your treestands be quieter, would your clothing smell better and would you drive an ATV to your stand? The point is, would you make some changes when it comes to alerting deer - or not - when you hunt. The key to being a successful hunter is to actually give the deer the illusion that they are not being hunted. In order to create a false sense of security to the local deer herd and in particular to a mature buck, you can't let them know you are on the land. I hear all of the time, "I only spook a couple of deer when I hunt my food plot". Well folks when you only spook a few deer, you are just scratching the tip of the iceberg for how many deer you actually spooked. Hunting deer isn't about fads, gadgets and magic potions in fact, some of the least successful deer hunters that I know use the most trinkets and scent contraptions. Being a consistently successful hunter means getting back to our roots of attempting to be the ultimate predator. If you hunt without your scent blowing at the deer, without your sound projecting through the woods and by not allowing deer to see you, you will be a great deer hunter. You will also have a much greater chance of not getting shot, if deer ever have guns...
good analogy.... how would you hunt something that could shoot back. agree wholeheartedly
Thank you...very carefully, right?
Yes we would brother
Oh for sure...
Great advice... my cousins used to tell me atvs don’t spook deer, until I set up trail cams to show them what I was seeing every time they rode in on the trails.. as a hunter we are never too old to learn
Thank you very much! This trail cams allow us to be very critical of our hunting setups...if we let them ☺️
Yes sir... they are very valuable tools, but ppl make it soooo much more complicated by continually wanting to check them thus alerting the deer of your presence and leaving behind scent.. this time of the year I’m mostly glassing our fields from the roads and I’ll check my cams 1x a month or so
@@gregorywillis4964 this is a time I check them more frequently just because the mature bucks really shouldn't be around yet anyways, on a good small parcel. But so true...people spook deer...trail cams only do by themselves, when not hidden. Nearly all of my trail cams are set by deer stands or blinds. When I hunt that spot, I change the card. Or walking by. That way it is no extra intrusion just to change a card. Some cards soak for a week...and some for a month or more. Just depends on when that stand is hunted.
Real good vid Jeff!
Thank you Dan!
Good stuff, as usual. Thankfully, whitetails are vegetarians! Our land was partially logged as a storm cleanup this spring. This year is going to be a learning event to understand where they hang out now. We're lucky that there is one bedding area that wasn't disturbed by the logging, but it's nearby so we don't know yet how much it will be used. We're staying away from it for the time being.
Thank you Wisco, I think that will all be a good thing! They may leave the old bedding areas and go to new. The best thing to do is always maintain control of defined bedding areas. YOU determine where bed, not the other way around...thru location of food and nearby bedding. Hope you can determine ahead if time...good luck!
That's a great way to think about it
Like you continually emphasize - get in and out without being seen, smelled or heard. Great segment. Thanks Cris
Oh for sure Chris and thank you! So critical...
Still struggle busin' on how to get this done. Need to find some legit waders and walk through a creek waist high
@@nickarnold8417 could leave them on the bank 🙂 In the past...80s/90s I think it was Myles Keller who would get naked and cross a creek to get on the backside of a woodlot buck bedding area. I always figured if I had to for a big buck...I would
I love this concept. Another great video. Thanks for the content
Thank you...That's great to hear it works for you Mike...you are very welcome!
Not really related to this video... I have several Acres of soybean plots in Southern Iowa and would like to layer Rye into them. They are currently canopied over, but I was curious when I should start my first layer of rye into them? Thanks again for all the great information you're putting out there!
on horse/cow pasture sneak, I try to step into a cow poo as soon as possible so bottom of my boots smell like cow/horse seems deer aren't bothered much by em
I love doing that Travis! Used to do that for about 12 seasons on one parcel...many more on a couple of others. Brings back good memories actually!
learned it from my dogs years ago. They would go with me on my suburban trail cam spot and and roll in the deer/Turkey poo, piss me off cuz wife would complain of stinky dogs. Looked up why they would do it.... to smell like prey!
@@travisethridge4062 wow that is a really cool tidbit of info...somehow hardwired into their brain. Instinctual...awesome!
I’ve put fence up driving t post an pulling wire with tractor an have killed hood bucks when doing it 😂🤷🏻♂️
Your exactly right brother GOD BLESS.
Thanks Randle!
I can’t access all of my 1400 acres with an ATV. I always park a great distance from my stands. I have killed several nice deer with this method.
That's the problem tho...most have a lot fewer acres, so they can't afford acres to waste due to ATV access, and then walk another 1/4 to 1/2 mile to get to a stand. They would be on someone else's land...even 500-800 acres or less. I would agree on 1400 acres you could do this...but you can always hunt at a higher level without the ATVs, even on large parcels. I think in some of the fantasy land states like Iowa or KS, you could just about do anything you want on 1400 acres and kill Booners every year. Not that's what you have...I don't know...but 1400 acres is a different kind of world
If turkeys had guns we would all be dead. Their hearing is so sharp and acute that they can hear when you change your mind
Ha, so true...good thing they aren't very smart and can't smell!
@@whitetailhabitatsolutions9751 If they had a sense of smell they would be unhuntable
@@whitetailhabitatsolutions9751 By the way that was a very innovative analogy - I have been hunting many many years and never heard that one
@@haroldcallahan4887 they would be more of challenge thats for sure...right now they are closer to doe hunting than mature buck hunting...but a lot of fun! What I live most is hearing gobbles...and all of the sights and sounds of Spring mornings!!
@@haroldcallahan4887 thank you very much Harold, always trying to come up with new analogies when I'm with my clients and this one seems to have a great impact with them 🙂
Do game cameras with flashes scare deer?
In another video he covers this. But, in essence, yes. The black flash is the best. I have used both red and black. The deer can see the red.
The old white flash doesn't seem to scare them too much...but the red IR bulbs are very bad. I only use low glo/black out trail cams. The red IR cams spook a lot of deer...
This video is 2 weeks old so you may not see this comment, but I'm trying to get to a spot on my property that the access is always covered in fresh hardwood leaves that are so loud when walked on, I don't know how to move to that location without making a ton of noise. That stretch is about 1/2 mile like that, up and down hills. How do you move to locations where the access isn't pounded down to make your access quiet?
Boy that's tough Matt! One great thing is that I am almost always hunting a spot like that in the morning, during the rut and deer don't show up for about an hour to 3 hours after first light. Timing is so important! I get sticks out the way ahead of time too, but I also get quieter and quieter the closer I get to my stand. Painstaking but worth it! Again tho access when deer shouldn't be there helps a lot...doesn't sound like a good evening spot?
I Thought I was the only person to ever have this thought. I always still hunt and pretend I’m the point man lol.
Awesome way to look at it from Ontario! I like that...
Love this! Awesome way of thinking really puts things into perspective for me
That's great to hear, I was hoping it would helps some hunters out!
This needs a "love" icon!!
Ha, too funny...glad you like it 👍
I think this one principle will be a game changer for me this year; I used to drive within 200 yards from my stand and wonder why i didn’t see anything but does.
Man I think so too Ben...excited for you to try it out! It really is a game changer...
LOL My Dad still does it! And his best friend!! I am usually in my stand attempting to let things settle by the time they get to the property. I can hear them start their quads all the way until they shut them off.
@@nickarnold8417 you know I have found a lot of the does, fawns and young bucks don't care too much...to a point, but man you will not attract the oldest bucks in the neighborhood doing it. Even a tractor. Of that tractor only enters the woods a few times a year for hunting purposes...the hunt is spooked no different than an ATV. Even a pick-up truck is quieter...
Hey Jeff,
I thought you mentioned the name brand of the stands in the beginning of your video, however I didn’t catch it real clear you spoke a fast through that. Could you leave that info in your reply? Thanks..
Sure Perry...you can call Jack Turner at (517)543-3926, he is the owner. You can also check out Family Tradition Treestands at www.familytraditiontreestands.com/
Hay Jeff Google two whitetail bucks fighting in front of combine. I don't know they weren't to worried about farm machinery. neat video anyways.
Ha, try accessing your land with a combine or a tractor, in the woods where deer aren't used to seeing the machinery. GONE... I loved it when my neighbors did that, lol in the fields is another story. I assume the combine wasn't in bedding area? Or hidden food plot? 😉
Whitetail Habitat Solutions mybe a food plot if you have to tell people to keep there tractors an 4 wheelers out of bedding areas an food plots they probably shouldn't be hunting anyway
@@yogibear6271 A high % of hunters do...they need to hear it, it's just such a hard pill ton swallow. They have no idea the damage that they do...
Whitetail Habitat Solutions Jeff I'm sure you are right people just don't understand mature bucks are a whole different animal the key word here is Mature.
On one of our properties that is 33 acres and next to a development we are able to ride a wheeler 30 yds from a beded deer and they won’t get up. They seem to like it when we run motors like wheelers or chain saws in the woods and often come within a half hour. These encounters are mostly with does and fawns. Do you think mature bucks will act different?
I'm applying your line of thought to recounting the taking of my biggest buck. I walked in early. I slept on the ground and caught up with my sleep. (hunts should be enjoyable) I awoke, the woods were quite and began still hunting. The buck was with a doe and thought I was another deer. Wrong!
Jeff...good analogy.
I think the greatest challenge for us is getting to and away from the stand without being detected, especially getting out when deer are all around you.
Thanks for the insight, Bob
Thanks Bob and that is suck a great point! That's why hunting food plots can be such a trap for hunters! Can't wait for your season 🙂 I'm flying to Tulsa for a client today...not sure I will be able to respond much but I appreciate it!
I will try to remember this when I'm creeping into my stand this year. I've only hunted last year so I'm still pretty green
I hope it helps...remember to duck 🙂
@@whitetailhabitatsolutions9751 I sure will. Lol.
Have you ever worked on any parcels around 5 acres? I know that's very small but my wife just inherited 5 acres that has not been hunted in the last decade and the surrounding neighbors do not hunt either. Just wondering what I could do on such a small parcel
@@Chalz108 o sure have...h.thatvis the smallest. Then 8 acres, 10s and on up from there. It depends on if you are surrounded by ag and open cover or heavy woods...
Makes perfect sense brother great video your exactly right.
Thanks brother!
Hey brother if deer had guns hmmmmmmm I’d go to sniper mode.
Most definitely!
Whitetail Habitat Solutions lollllllllllll be fun wouldn’t it brother??
that's one bad buck there Jeff I'd say he's the dominant buck for sure.
That's the one Diane missed and then the neighbor killed a few days later...I'm just happy she didn't get shot, lol
Lol, great spin on a timeless joke. Been hunting like this most of my adult life and get constant eye rolls and head shaking from SO many fellow hunters. Somehow, the fact I bag out and they don't is lost on em 🤔. Lol, I'll always insist hunting needs to be looked at like a special ops strike team.....just cause they can't shoot ya doesn't mean you're not dead in the water. 👍🏻.
Exactly...special ops strike team...I like that! So many hunters "are the best hunters they know"...this is a hard pill to swallow for most
@@whitetailhabitatsolutions9751 Agreed,! And I think if we're all honest we'll realize that person is us sometimes too! All good as long as we strive to keep improving 👍🏻
@@mcgyversshed8397 Oh for sure...really, most of this can be taken care of months before the season even begins...
Lol love the illustration for this video, I know too many hunters that would be shot if the deer had a gun, especially on public land s. Michigan 😂
Ha...so many! And thanks Dylan put that together for me ☺️ Laughed when he sent it...
I’ve heard this once or twice somewhere can’t quite remember oh yes it was you telling me lol although some people may view this analogy as goofy it is right on the $$$ think about a second if you where being stalked you would do everything to get away undetected that’s the message I love it and this year will approach the deer woods totally different thanks to you bud great message
Thanks buddy! Man...umm, yes it mite have been me talking to you about this, lol Really hope it helps you guys this Fall Paul 🙂
If deer had guns they would also have wanted signs with Jeffs face on them all over the deer woods. Crimes of educating the hunting public how to kill fellow deer in cold blood 🤠🔫 Jeff thats a compliment lol
Ha that's pretty funny Allen...I do appreciate the compliment 🙂 If I see one of those signs in the woods I'm probably going to leave, lol
Absolutely love that you used what animal right activists would say to make us better deer hunters haha. That's a great analogy!
When I seen the title I couldn't help but laugh about it but it's so true
That's great to hear...hope it's not too goofy for some...but I think it is a really useful analogy! Yes...let's use it against them, lol
@@justinstrong2811 hopefully you liked the thumbnail, ha 👍
@@whitetailhabitatsolutions9751 definitely enjoyed it. I dont hope to see any whitetail with rpgs strapped to there backs tho!
@@justinstrong2811 hahaha, heck no!!
if deer had guns... it would be like a war zone out there. In some places on opening day it feels like a war zone, lol
It would be pretty interesting to say the least! Bet more would be in their stands before light 🙂
Hey Jeff thanks for videos! I have 20 acres of popple regeneration and mature pines with elevation change in northern MN. so I think the property has potential to be a great hunting spot. Which book of yours would you recommend for setting up a whitetail habitat. I have a food plot already but watching your videos it makes sense that its in the wrong spot! Thanks again!
Eric thanks a lot and you are very welcome! Sounds like a great parcel ..bet you are excited 🙂 Definitely the red book, "Whitetail Success By Design". That's the first one...
@@whitetailhabitatsolutions9751 Thanks for reply. Very excited. There is a big boy I get on my cams near the end of October. Would like to see him when I'm in my bow stand! I'll grab that book and read up
@@BeyondHP1 sounds good thanks and you are welcome...I hope you get him in front of your bowstand...that would be awesome!!
Thanks for posting your great content I really appreciate that. I tried emailing about a month ago like you mentioned I should about the e-books and my inability to purchase them because of my location in Canada and the sites inability to recognize my postal code. I would like to read the 3 e-books if theres anyway around that?
What measures do you take walking to your stand to make your feet a bit quieter? Obviously we can very cautiously walk without making a sound, but that could turn a 15 minute walk an hour walk. is there a happy-medium? In Virginia we don't have a lot of quiet terrain, we have a lot of oak leaves and such we have to walk through.
Jeff this is way off the topic....or maybe in a way it's not. What's your thoughts on using decoys?
Hi Chris I think they definitely have their place...wide open river bottom hunting, big pastures, etc. I would never use them in the right constraints of the pinchpoints and bedding areas that I like to hunt. I typically get a close up look at just a handful of mature bucks per season so I can't afford to spook even one. Or spook a doe that might go by. But at the same time I couldn't bring one back into the areas I hunt...1/2 hour hikes up hill, thick, short shots...
They definitely have their place but probably less than people realize. I don't own one...
@@whitetailhabitatsolutions9751 well if you don't own one that's the answer I wanted to see. Lol. I used the boss buck two times 3 years ago and worked the first time bringing in a beat up half racked 9 that I was going to take until I noticed he was missing half rack. The next day a beautiful 10 came in and was startled by it and sent him running. Never used it since. Was thinking about getting the grazing doe for in my open field food plot....but probably not now.
@@chrisheinenoutdoors8880 Where I hunt or even on public land I just can't afford to spook a mature buck in close quarters. I do like the thought of those random cruising bucks say in a KS river bottom...in a place where you see multiple mature bucks per day from a distance, and you can try bringing them in closer. I just have never been able to hunt those places.
@@whitetailhabitatsolutions9751 great way of putting it. I too have only a handful of encounters with a mature buck in a season. Every season. So doesn't make much sense to screw up a good thing. Thanks man.
While I agree with the concept u need to b quiet but don't lolygag around. Seems like if u get in n out acting like u belong doesn't seem to be a major detriment.
Certainly Scott...you have to move quietly with purpose. A lot of access, scent and sound concerns should be taken care of months in advance...