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To all my deer hunting friends,
WHY WE SHOOT DEER rather than use some other method to capture them, this has been around however I really enjoyed it and hope you do too.
(A letter from someone who wants to remain anonymous, who farms, writes well and actually tried this)
If you have ever entertained similar thoughts we hope that this reaches you before you put actions to them. May you glean from his experience!
I had this idea that I could rope a deer, put it in a stall, feed it up on corn for a couple of weeks, then kill it and eat it. The first step in this adventure was getting a deer. I figured that, since they congregate at my cattle feeder and do not seem to have much fear of me when we are there (a bold one will sometimes come right up and sniff at the bags of feed while I am in the back of the truck not 4 feet away), it should not be difficult to rope one, get up to it and toss a bag over its head (to calm it down) then hog tie it and transport it home.
I filled the cattle feeder then hid down at the end with my rope. The cattle, having seen the roping thing before, stayed well back. They were not having any of it. After about 20 minutes, my deer showed up – 3 of them. I picked out a likely looking one, stepped out from the end of the feeder, and threw my rope.
The deer just stood there and stared at me. I wrapped the rope around my waist and twisted the end so I would have a good hold. The deer still just stood and stared at me, but you could tell it was mildly concerned about the whole rope situation. I took a step towards it, it took a step away. I put a little tension on the rope, and then received an education.
The first thing that I learned is that, while a deer may just stand there looking at you funny while you rope it, they are spurred to action when you start pulling on that rope.
That deer EXPLODED. The second thing I learned is that pound for pound, a deer is a LOT stronger than a cow or a colt. A cow or a colt in that weight range I could fight down with a rope and with some dignity. A deer– no Chance. That thing ran and bucked and twisted and pulled.
There was no controlling it and certainly no getting close to it. As it jerked me off my feet and started dragging me across the ground, it occurred to me that having a deer on a rope was not nearly as good an idea as I had originally imagined. The only upside is that they do not have as much stamina as many other animals.
A brief 10 minutes later, it was tired and not nearly as quick to jerk me off my feet and drag me when I managed to get up. It took me a few minutes to realize this, since I was mostly blinded by the blood flowing out of the big gash in my head. At that point, I had lost my taste for corn-fed venison. I just wanted to get that devil creature off the end of that rope.
I figured if I just let it go with the rope hanging around its neck, it
would likely die slow and painfully somewhere. At the time, there was no love at all between me and that deer. At that moment, I hated the thing, and I would venture a guess that the feeling was mutual.
Despite the gash in my head and the several large knots where I had cleverly arrested the deer’s momentum by bracing my head against various large rocks as it dragged me across the ground, I could still think clearly enough to recognize that there was a small chance that I shared some tiny amount of responsibility for the situation we were in. I didn’t want the deer to have to suffer a slow death, so I managed to get it lined back up in between my truck and the feeder – a little trap I had set before hand… kind of like a squeeze chute. I got it to back in there and I started moving up so I could get my rope back.
Did you know that deer bite?
They do! I never in a million years would have thought that a deer would bite somebody, so I was very surprised when …… I reached up there to grab that rope and the deer grabbed hold of my wrist. Now, when a deer bites you, it is not like being bit by a horse where they just bite you and slide off to then let go. A deer bites you and shakes its head–almost like a pit bull. They bite HARD and it hurts.
The proper thing to do when a deer bites you is probably to freeze and draw back slowly.. I tried screaming and shaking instead. My method was ineffective.
It seems like the deer was biting and shaking for several minutes, but it was likely only several seconds. I, being smarter than a deer (though you may be questioning that claim by now), tricked it. While I kept it busy tearing the tendons out of my right arm, I reached up with my left hand and pulled that rope loose.
That was when I got my final lesson in deer behavior for the day.
Deer will strike at you with their front feet. They rear right up on their back feet and strike right about head and shoulder level, and their hooves are surprisingly sharp … I learned a long time ago that, when an animal – like a horse – strikes at you with their hooves and you can’t get away easily, the best thing to do is try to make a loud noise and make an aggressive move towards the animal. This will usually cause them to back down a bit so you can escape.
This was not a horse. This was a deer, so obviously, such trickery would not work. In the course of a millisecond, I devised a different strategy. I screamed like a woman and tried to turn and run. The reason I had always been told NOT to try to turn and run from a horse that paws at you is that there is a good chance that it will hit you in the back of the head.
Deer may not be so different from horses after all, besides being twice as strong and 3 times as evil, because the second I turned to run, it hit me right in the back of the head and knocked me down..
Now, when a deer paws at you and knocks you down, it does not immediately leave. I suspect it does not recognize that the danger has passed. What they do instead is paw your back and jump up and down on you while you are laying there crying like a little girl and covering your head.
I finally managed to crawl under the truck and the deer went away.
So now I know why when people go deer hunting they bring a rifle with a scope……to sort of even the odds!!
Deer Hunting
Most hunters are well aware of the techniques to employ when hunting deer, but newcomers and novices may need some deer hunting tips to get started in hopes of bagging that first buck. Most beginning hunters have a mentor, an experienced hunter, to take them on their first hunt. Hunters with more experience can give great advice to put you on the right track. If you don’t have one, ask. You’ll be surprised how friendly people are when you are genuinely interested in what they have to say. However, if you don’t have an experienced hunter to take you on your first hunt, you can still have a successful hunt. I have developed the following tips to get you off to a great start.
Know where you will be hunting.
If on private land get permission ahead of time. Regardless of whether you hunt on private or public land you need to become familiar with the area and scout for deer. Early morning and late evenings are the time to scout as deer are more active. If you live close to the area that you plan to hunt, before and after work is a great time to scout. If you are hunting public land, be sure to find a handful of prospective places to hunt. What may look like a remote hunting area can resemble a Wal-Mart parking lot on opening day. So have a handful of go-to properties.
Dress appropriately
If it’s warm, wear layers. You are likely to be cold in the morning and evening and hot during the day. If you are bow hunting, be sure the layers are all camouflaged. If gun hunting, be sure you have enough orange. Vests work great because they can be worn over parkas or t-shirts. For cold weather situations, coveralls and heavy coats are the norm. Keep your head and neck warm with a neck warmer and cap. Boots are the most important piece of clothing for cold weather hunting. There are several things you can buy on the cheap and get away with. Hunting boots are not one of them. Buy quality waterproof boots. For cold weather hunting, they should have at least 800 grams of Thinsulate. Cold feet ruin weddings and hunts. Keep your feet warm and you can keep hunting.
Know your weapon.
Practice makes perfect. Learn your weapon’s limitations and how to use it safely. Shoot as much as possible in the preseason. You will improve your skills and learn the limits of your abilities and the gun’s. Know what distances you are shooting from. This will help you judge distances in the field. If you plan to hunt in wide open areas, start shooting at 50 and 100 yards, then move up to 200 yards. If hunting in heavily forested areas, 50 yards may be the longest shot required.
Time of day.
You’ll notice that the hunting seasons are limited by dates but also by daylight hours. No guns are to be fired before sunrise or after sunset for the safety of all hunters involved. Those who have gathered knowledge and give out deer hunting tips frequently will tell you that the best times to bag a deer are sunrise and sunset. They will be out in greater numbers looking for a drink and a bite to eat. You should be where you will be hunting before sunrise. In order to get there you will be traveling in the dark. One of the best pieces of equipment is a good quality night vision device. This will keep you from flashing a flash light around tripping over tree roots or other obstacles and scaring off all the wildlife in the vicinity. Another advantage of a night vision device is being able to spot game on the way in to where you plan to hunt and being able to see on the way out after dark.
Scent control.
Whether you hunt from a tree or the ground, know where you are going to sit depending on the wind. You want to hunt with the wind in your face. This will blow your scent away from where deer will most likely approach. Of course, deer don’t always do what you think they will. But you need to play the odds. Avoid scents. Do not wear perfume, cologne, after shave, or even strongly scented deodorant. Keep unnatural smells to a minimum. Human smells spook these animals easily, and one of the best deer hunting tips to keep in mind is to let the wilderness cover your smell. This is one of the few times in life you may be better off showering later rather than in the morning.
Silence is golden.
This is the most important tip among deer hunting tips, as even the slightest sound as you are lining up for a shot can lose that prized buck for you. Deer have a keen sense of hearing and anything above a whisper (and even a whisper if it is a particularly quiet day) can be heard by many cautious deer.
The final moment.
So, you’ve done everything right and a deer is approaching. Would it be great to shoot a trophy buck? Yes. But as a first time hunter, your goal is to fill the tag and learn from the experience. Any legal deer is a good deer. The first thing you need to do is determine if the animal is legal. Some states have buck only regulations, antler restrictions, or requirements to shoot an antlerless deer first. Check regulations in your area first. If you’re still not sure, give your local game and fish department a call. Most are more than happy to help and may even give you some tips.
Once you have decided to shoot, focus on the vitals of the animal. Don’t look at antlers. Don’t look at the surroundings. Wait for the vitals to clear any vegetation and pull the trigger or release the arrow. Target the area just behind and above the front shoulder. Whistle or grunt at a walking deer to stop them for a shot. If you hit the deer in a non-lethal area, try a second shot. If the miss is clean, I recommend letting the deer run. If you missed it clean at a dead stop, your chances of hitting it running are slim. Wait for another deer. If you prepared, practiced, and were relaxed when the shot was taken, missing isn’t a concern.
The best deer hunting tips, like most great advice, seem obvious but are constantly overlooked. Even the best hunter can benefit from reminding himself about the fundamentals. While there are more detailed tips available to make sure you get the most out of your trip, these deer hunting tips are the basics and will get you started down the road to success and enjoyment as a deer hunter.