Let’s talk calls and rattles.

Not so much brands, more of timing. When are you grunting or using your rattlers. What situations for both, and both grunts, wheeze, bleats and rattles. I’m fairly new to the hunting world I am self taught by reading up on it, then transfered to time in the woods. Last year we had a great season with 2 big bucks taken for my house hold. But both I believe were luck lol. I am now interested in sitting for big antlers now that the kid and lady want to meat hunt. I always just blasted my 3 doe and made sure we had meat. Please just explain the 3 or 4 calling techniques and when or what situations your using. Is it to call deer you can’t see, or get something back that just ran past or get some to come in that are to far out. I hunt a 70 acre chunk of woods and swamp / river bottom and none of my lanes I can see past 150 yards tops so seeing deer 500 yards away is never a thing.

I have never had success with calls, but I had a negative experience but it benefitted my son last weekend. We sat down and about 10 minutes later I blew the fawn bleat. 10 minutes later I saw a doe across the ravine from my youngest and I blew the bleat again hoping it would come our way to give him a chance. It did the opposite, pissed her off and she went running right toward my middle boy who shot it. I have tried grunt calls, bleats doe and fawn and this was the only interaction I have ever seen. I have blown a grunt call when I hear a buck grunt and nothing.

CaptainMusky wrote:

I have never had success with calls

Neither have I. I’ve seen too many hunting shows where they seemingly “rattle or grunt in” a giant buck but I think that’s fairy tale lore. I have a grunt but I can honestly say the number of times I’ve heard a deer make that noise I can count on one hand over the course of 27 years of deer hunting. Some hunters insist on trying to call a deer in with a grunt or antlers like they’re duck or turkey hunting lol. My cousin is one of them. Hasn’t worked yet.

gimruis wrote:

I have a grunt but I can honestly say the number of times I’ve heard a deer make that noise I can count on one hand over the course of 27 years of deer hunting.

I agree. I think I have heard a buck grunt a handful of times, but admittedly I dont see too many bucks and rarely a mature one at that. Its mostly does and fawns that we see.
I have been watching a lot of The Hunting Public and they just recently posted a video where they could see a buck off in the distance and they blew a grunt and he came right toward them. So many of these shows I think they edit the video to make it look like something worked, but I dont think these guys do that at all. They actually never really talk about products to pimp them.

I had it work once before on a nice 8 pointer many moons ago. I did a rattle followed by a grunt and not more than a minute later the buck was standing there staring at me in a ground blind. It was one of the first years bow hunting for me so I was green and didn’t even get a chance to grab my bow before it ran off. I was blind calling at that time and I must admit I have not done much calling since. I hear it both ways of it working and not working, blind calling vs sight calling and so forth. So I have limited experience with them but I do think it will work if you catch a deer in the perfect mood at the time.

I did hear my first grunt from a buck opening morning last year, chasing a doe. It was as not that loud and they were pretty much standing in Nader my stand, neat to see anyway

CaptainMusky wrote:

I agree. I think I have heard a buck grunt a handful of times, but admittedly I dont see too many bucks and rarely a mature one at that.

I used to duck/goose hunt and I still turkey hunt, and I’ve never been much of a caller even then. Calling too much just sounds unnatural to me. There are some days when I’m turkey hunting in the spring I don’t call at all.

I agree with Weedis on the deer grunt/rattling. It the ideal situation it might work. But more often than not its just not going to be effective. And in some situations, I think it actually repels deer.

Only things I’ve rattled in are smaller bucks, but I’m sure there’s a time it works better for the big boys. I’m a big believer in grunt calls, if you can get somewhat close to a big buck’s bedding area or active scrape line it can work wonders. Both of my last 2 bucks from metro public land have come in to my grunt call and scrapping the ground with my boots. And right now until rifle opener is the best time of year for them to work imo.

I shot a doe on the edge of a pond once, and 2 min later I hear grunting coming up the same trail she just came from, the buck sniffed her dead body for a sec and walked off not after I unloaded my 12gauge on him not hitting a thing. He was bleeping as he sniffed her trail, do not know if that helps?

gimruis wrote:

<div class=”d4p-bbt-quote-title”>CaptainMusky wrote:</div>
I agree. I think I have heard a buck grunt a handful of times, but admittedly I dont see too many bucks and rarely a mature one at that.

I used to duck/goose hunt and I still turkey hunt, and I’ve never been much of a caller even then. Calling too much just sounds unnatural to me. There are some days when I’m turkey hunting in the spring I don’t call at all.

I agree with Weedis on the deer grunt/rattling. It the ideal situation it might work. But more often than not its just not going to be effective. And in some situations, I think it actually repels deer.

I’ve personally watched both turkey and duck calls work wonders. But calling deer, when where and how is what I’ve never experienced. I tried the rattle over the weekend and a few grunts and bleats but 0 expectations and 0 luck.

Never had any luck rattling but grunt calls definitely work on the right few days of the year. Biggest deer on my wall were grunted in. Seems to me once gun season rolls around its effectiveness is pretty much over. The next 10 days or so is when it usually works for me. Last year on state land i was sitting on the ground ,grunted once, looked left and by the time i looked back there was a nice buck standing on a scrape 20 yards in front of me. He seen me and took off. Grunted again and he stopped. Grunted one more time and he walked right back. He was delicious.

The TV shows that show rattling and grunting as being successful most likely hunting in areas that have a high buck to doe ratio. Competiton gets the bucks more aggressive. Where I hunt here in MN there is a high Doe ratio and calling hasn’t done anything for me either.

First buck I ever killed (120″-ish 8 pointer) came in on a STRING to a grunt call. I’ve been fortunate enough to hear quite a few bucks grunt while hunting and I’m very particular on which grunt call(s) I use. Most IMO sound noticeably deeper than any buck I’ve ever heard grunt.

I’ll usually start working a grunt call…well…right about now, but it is dependent on how that particular year is progressing and when I start to see bucks cruising for does on my cameras. To answer your question, the vast majority of the time I’m “cold calling” (calling to deer I can’t see) or calling distant deer that I can see (75 yards and further).

I’ve never really had much luck rattling, but I keep trying it year after year because I’m stubborn. I usually start trying that early/mid October.

I’ve never had much success with Rattling in deer, But I can not count how many bucks I’ve shot that came into a Grunt call. For those who have never heard a buck grunt while hunting, Either you have not hunted much, Hunt were the Rut has not been going on, Hunt where there are few or no Bucks, Or can’t hear well. I have turned bucks that were walking strait away from me and had them come in as if on a string with a grunt call. I will say that like with most calling, less is better. I usually make a few grunts shortly after getting into my stand ( even if its well before light ) I think this serves several purpose’s. One it may calm deer that may have been slightly spooked by any noise you made getting into you deer stand. It also gives any buck in the area notice that there may be another buck in his area and get him started your direction. After those first few grunts I may grunt a few times about each Hr or so. I usually grunt in several different direction each time. If you are lucky enough to have a buck grunt back at you, don’t over do it and keep calling to much. If I feel like a buck is responding to my call I’ll call every 15-20 minutes or so just to keep the other buck interested and heading in your direction. Hopefully he will keep grunting back at you to keep you informed of his location and to see if he’s getting closer. If you can tell he’s getting closer back off on the calling as he approaches. Sometimes it a game of calling back in forth to get him in, and other times he will come in on a dead run. How fast a buck comes in depends on how dominate of a buck he is. If he feels like he is the biggest and baddest buck in the area, he will rush in. If he is smaller and feels like he may get his ass kicked, he may sneak in real slow.

fishthumper wrote:

For those who have never heard a buck grunt while hunting, Either you have not hunted much, Hunt were the Rut has not been going on, Hunt where there are few or no Bucks, Or can’t hear well.

I’ve hunted the entire 9 day gun season for the last 27 years straight, almost every day, all day. Usually during this time period, the rut is either going or just about to get going. The part about the number of bucks, I don’t know. I don’t know what is considered “a lot” of bucks. I usually see 4 or 5 every season of the “smaller” variety. My left ear is shot though so maybe that’s the problem lol. I just got a hearing aide for it in July. Its permanently damaged from hunting, ironically.

My point is that even with the amount of time I’ve put in, I don’t hear bucks grunting very often. It has happened, but its rare. Its not like they wake up in the early morning and just start announcing their presence like turkeys do when they’re gobbling in the spring.

gimruis wrote:

<div class=”d4p-bbt-quote-title”>fishthumper wrote:</div>
For those who have never heard a buck grunt while hunting, Either you have not hunted much, Hunt were the Rut has not been going on, Hunt where there are few or no Bucks, Or can’t hear well.

I’ve hunted the entire 9 day gun season for the last 27 years straight, almost every day, all day. Usually during this time period, the rut is either going or just about to get going. The part about the number of bucks, I don’t know. I don’t know what is considered “a lot” of bucks. I usually see 4 or 5 every season of the “smaller” variety. My left ear is shot though so maybe that’s the problem lol. I just got a hearing aide for it in July. Its permanently damaged from hunting, ironically.

My point is that even with the amount of time I’ve put in, I don’t hear bucks grunting very often. It has happened, but its rare. Its not like they wake up in the early morning and just start announcing their presence like turkeys do when they’re gobbling in the spring.

You are correct. Its not like calling to Turkeys or Ducks. Every year is different. Some years the bucks are in peak rut they seem to be grunting all over. Other years if the deer season misses the peak rut the grunting is a lot less. I don’t think I’ve ever had a year where I did not here at least a few bucks grunting. Often I don’t hear any grunts from them till I grunt and they respond back to me. Buck will grunt for several reasons. One is in response to another buck grunting in his area or when a buck feels like another buck is in his area. The other is while chasing a hot doe. I’ve had a doe come running by with as many as 3 bucks chasing behind her. I once shot 3 bucks less than 10 minutes apart all chasing / Following the same Doe. All 3 bucks were grunting all the way till their Death.

fishthumper wrote:

I once shot 3 bucks less than 10 minutes apart

How is that even possible? The bag limit on bucks is one.

gimruis wrote:

<div class=”d4p-bbt-quote-title”>fishthumper wrote:</div>
I once shot 3 bucks less than 10 minutes apart

How is that even possible? The bag limit on bucks is one.

Party hunting
DT

deertracker wrote:

Party hunting

Ya, that explains it.

deertracker wrote:

How is that even possible? The bag limit on bucks is one.

Party hunting
DT

^^^^ This. This was about 12 or so years ago. Big party back in those days. Seemed like every year a few party members had the hot location. This was from one of our deepest stand locations. Was a lot of work getting those 3 bucks out of there.

fishthumper wrote:

This was about 12 or so years ago. Big party back in those days. Seemed like every year a few party members had the hot location. This was from one of our deepest stand locations. Was a lot of work getting those 3 bucks out of there.

I’ve only ever filled my own tag in 27 years so ya that is not a familiar thing for me to fill someone else’s tag, much less two other tags.

Most the bucks I have harvested have come off grunt or can call. They work great in the right situation and location. Called in multiple bucks at one time before and had a battle right in front of me.

Can call is always good never had that scare a deer or anything ,does will even come check out all year long. Ive finally heard the buck roar and watched a 10 pointer do it a few times. Like stated earlier some years the deer are very vocal and some you might not hear a grunt.Few years ago watch a buck do the snort wheeze But I’ve never really had a negative result calling. Sure deer might not appear or just come in but nothing like running from the call.

gimruis wrote:

<div class=”d4p-bbt-quote-title”>fishthumper wrote:</div>
This was about 12 or so years ago. Big party back in those days. Seemed like every year a few party members had the hot location. This was from one of our deepest stand locations. Was a lot of work getting those 3 bucks out of there.

I’ve only ever filled my own tag in 27 years so ya that is not a familiar thing for me to fill someone else’s tag, much less two other tags.

I used to hunt a old guys land and his rule was I had to fill his tag first. He would come out for the morning if the weather was fare. Other then that he would come out on the wheeler tag his deer and drag it to the pole shed. I think more people then not help others fill tags

Hoyt4 wrote:

Most the bucks I have harvested have come off grunt or can call. They work great in the right situation and location. Called in multiple bucks at one time before and had a battle right in front of me.

Can call is always good never had that scare a deer or anything ,does will even come check out all year long. Ive finally heard the buck roar and watched a 10 pointer do it a few times. Like stated earlier some years the deer are very vocal and some you might not hear a grunt.Few years ago watch a buck do the snort wheeze But I’ve never really had a negative result calling. Sure deer might not appear or just come in but nothing like running from the call.

Can call as in a doe bleat, like the green cans from primos ?

Bearcat89 wrote:

I think more people then not help others fill tags

Could be. I hunted with a group of 8-12 people for 26 years prior to this one (sadly, that tradition is now over as of this year), and we never filled someone else’s tag. At least that I was aware of anyways. Even if someone asked me to fill their tag, I don’t think I’d do it. At least not their buck-only tag.

This brings up another topic now that we’re talking about it. I hear a lot of hunters complain about the lack of quality bucks around while they’re hunting. Maybe if the party hunting thing was removed for bucks, that would make a guy think twice about shooting the first spike or fork that came along, especially if they intended to still continue hunting for more of the season. Wouldn’t take more than a few years and all those little bucks would be 3 times as big. Don’t think it would make much of a difference when it came to harvesting antlerless deer. But specifically for bucks, it might make a difference in a short period of time.

gimruis wrote:

<div class=”d4p-bbt-quote-title”>Bearcat89 wrote:</div>
I think more people then not help others fill tags

Could be. I hunted with a group of 8-12 people for 26 years prior to this one (sadly, that tradition is now over as of this year), and we never filled someone else’s tag. At least that I was aware of anyways. Even if someone asked me to fill their tag, I don’t think I’d do it. At least not their buck-only tag.

This brings up another topic now that we’re talking about it. I hear a lot of hunters complain about the lack of quality bucks around while they’re hunting. Maybe if the party hunting thing was removed for bucks, that would make a guy think twice about shooting the first spike or fork that came along, especially if they intended to still continue hunting for more of the season. Wouldn’t take more than a few years and all those little bucks would be 3 times as big. Don’t think it would make much of a difference when it came to harvesting antlerless deer. But specifically for bucks, it might make a difference in a short period of time.

I don’t know any party hunters that take spikes lol. I think the person who shoots a spike is some one out looking for meat and will continue to do so. I don’t think that has anything to do with party hunters. I’ve hunted solo for as long as I have hunted or had one other person on the land with me. If one of us needed a deer we would go kill a doe for each other. But I wouldn’t call it party hunting.
No drives or nothing like that. I personally find that unsportsmanlike

We party hunt with what was a party of 8 now this year going forward will be a party of 6 and we party hunt in the fashion of after opening morning we talk about who all wants a deer to take home and if anyone wants to hold out and shoot there own. Usually 3 or 4 of us want meat to take home so if someone has a hot stand they will shoot as many as needed and we go from there. None of us are really there to wait for a 12 pointer and we all like meat in the freezer so it works out.

John Rasmussen wrote:

We party hunt with what was a party of 8 now this year going forward will be a party of 6 and we party hunt in the fashion of after opening morning we talk about who all wants a deer to take home and if anyone wants to hold out and shoot there own. Usually 3 or 4 of us want meat to take home so if someone has a hot stand they will shoot as many as needed and we go from there. None of us are really there to wait for a 12 pointer and we all like meat in the freezer so it works out.

And I think that is what I picture as party hunting. A few guys there just to hang out, a couple actual hunters and most want to hunt the first morning or 2. Shoot deer for each other and get back to that beer party.

Pretty avid deer hunter and hear lot of grunting most years either bow hunting or gun. I have shot to mature bucks that have came into grunt call. I only call if I see a buck and he is not coming in my direction. Shot my biggest buck using grunt call this time of year just prerut.
He was 125 yards just finished drinking from pond and grunted once with no response and he was going away and grunted one more time and it was on. He spun around and ran half way to me and started pawing and destroying a little tree before coming by at 25 yards. Amazing yo see.
Used my grunt call last night to scare 5 does out of field after dark. Does are on edge tight now with the little bucks harassing them.

I would call my party more a meat hunting party than a Horn hunting party. There has been years our area was bucks only, Years where it was a draw for a doe tag, and years it was hunters choice. My though on harvest was always shooting a Buck just removes 1 deer from the area the following year. Shooting a Doe was equal to removing 2 or 3 deer the following year ( Doe + 1 or 2 fawns ) To many people these days all hung up BIG buck hunting and getting upset with others shooting smaller bucks. To each their own. As long as its legal, I fault no one from shooting any deer they want.