elkoholic

Re: Ratteling, when does it work? My only comment on this that has any importance is, do not expect rattling to work every time. It is a tool that works at times but at other times they are just not interested. I have had many a doe come to rattling, out of curiosity I suppose, as well as a number of bucks, both large and small. I am sure the more bucks to does there are the greater chance they will come. Just do not give up rattling if you do not have immediate success, for maybe the next time the buck of a lifetime just might come in. Give it a try if you haven't already, just be careful if you hunt in an area with a lot of other hunters, safety is a serious concern. Oh yes, I forgot to add that it usually works best in the pre-rut phase and again in the post rut. Usually during the peak of the rut, when the bucks are already with a hot doe, it is less affective as it is nearly impossible to pull a buck away from a doe, but they just might be in search of another hot one and I would not hesitate to try rattling then either.

Re: treestand While it is definitely easier to hunt out of a treestand than a ground blind, hunting deer can be incredably difficult either way. I do use a tree stand 99% of the time when hunting whitetail with a bow and I have both an API and a Summit climber. Hunting out of a tree stand does allow for more movement and scent control may be less of a bother, but you still have to do your part. No matter how you do it, you gotta love it.

Re: Stuck a Doe, not down yet Sounds like a muscle hit to me. Possibly deflected of a branch (the sound you heard) or could have been high hit that clipped the spine. I suspect a much lower hit because of the light colored hair. Due to the lack of smell on the arrow, I doubt a liver or stomach/intestine hit. Best you can do is give it the old college try and do a thorough search in the morning. Sometimes the evidence on the arrow does not tell the whole tale. Good luck!

Re: holier than thou forum members I must confess that I was the first one to mention the poor shot selection in Canine's original post. I could not believe that none of the previous replies to that post never mentioned it. In forty years of hunting I have passed up at least a half a dozen shots at bucks in the 180 class and bigger. I think it comes from a deep respect for the animal I am hunting. I now know he feels bad about the shot and hopefully he will not take a shot like that again. As far as ethics go, by definition, it is what the majority of people think is "ethical", and by that definition any archery shot other than broadside or quartering away (if the angle is too steep a quartering away shot is taboo) is considered unethical. Personal ethics, or I answer to a higher power, does not change what is really ethical. The argument that he was the only one there does not change the fact that it was a poor shot choice. If in these forums we can not point out a mistake then what good does the dialect do. You can give all the warm fuzzies you like, but, unfortunately that teaches little. It is our duty as hunters to point out not only what is wrong, but what is right. I do not think that Canine needed the lesson, for he lived it, but those who are new to the sport needed to be guided in the right direction. It makes me proud to hear the way the shot was followed-up, for that is an important lesson also and Canine did an excellent job. Holier than thou....not really, just pointing out a mistake. I do not think anyone "cussed" him out and I am sure he is tired of it all. Some people have a thin skin and where I come from that makes for a miserable life. Shake it off, Cowboy up, and get on with it, but learn as you go.

Re: Do you really hold out for the big ones? I try to shoot "mature" bucks only, but sometimes judging in the field is a bit tricky. Usually a mature buck can be identified by the shape/characteristics of the body and face. If it is a mature buck the antler size is usually in line with the size/age of the buck. Like I said, sometimes in the field when a good shot presents itself the opportunity for that shot is often fleeting and the judging of the animals age/size is bound to be a little off. I will not shoot a buck without a rack, meaning spikes, forkies and smallest 3x3 and 4x4 bucks are safe from me.

Re: MISUNDERSTANDING ON \"ABSOLUTE HOG I STUCK\" Size should have no affect on shot selection. Also, while most do agree quartering away shots are good, there is a point where the angle is too steep for an exceptable bow shot. My opinion, at no time is a shot down at the back of a deer, or any critter for that matter, exceptable and certainly not at thirty yards. As a matter of fact, at that distance the angle of entry (even from 25 feet up) is such that the arrow would hardly angle down into the vitals and the chance of merely deflecting off is quite high. I will say that it sounds like one heck of a buck and hopefully you get a better shot at him.

Re: I STUCK AN ABSOLUTE HOG TONIGHT!! WIFE SHOT ONE TO It does not matter the size of the buck, the shot choice should be the same. While we have all made bad shots (if you haven't, just keep hunting and it will happen), not all of us have made a poor choice on shot selection. If a poor shot choice is made and it results in a recoverable kill, that does not mean that the end justifies the means. Hopefully the buck will survive the shot and perhaps offer a better opportunity in the future.

Re: Questionable shots......... I have to believe that most of the hunters here in the forums look to take an ethical shot. It is also apparent that there is some influence on shot choices/decisions based on what has been seen on TV/videos. Also, there appears to be more of a willingness to take less than optimal shots when the animal is of "trophy" quality. What you see on TV/videos and the size of the animal should have no influence on your shot choices. Yes, things happen, the deer takes a step, an unseen twig, the bow limb hits something, etc., but the shot choice should be one that has the highest possibility of a quick, clean kill. That, for an archery hunter, means a broadside, quartering away, or a slight quartering toward angle. If one can not reasonably expect to hit both lungs, then the shot should not be taken. One lung shots, while often fatal, are not really an acceptable choice. Straight down, facing, straight away and sharply angled shots should be avoided. That is my opinion and I am sure many will disagree, stating that they made such and such a shot. What an individual thinks is ethical and what is truly ethical are often not one and the same. My ethics are a lot tighter than most, but than again, I am the one I have to live with.

Re: Deer Processing We do not believe in letting the deer hang as it tends to have a stronger taste if you do. We cut it as soon as possible, I have a band saw to make it go faster. Making sure to trim all fat and connective tissue and keeping the meat clean and dry. I make jerky, burger and sausage using various recipes and do not hesitate to experiment a little bit. One thing I have started to do is vacuum pack the meat. It lasts longer and tastes better with no freezer burn. Good eating!

Re: shot at one hit or miss???? Sounds like a good hit to me. If she kicked up it may well have been a heart shot and, if so, she should be within 50 to 100 yards. You just have to go find her.

Re: indiana bow kill (pic???) Excellent!

Re: **The last 5 seconds**Please read** Excellent post. I might add that the size of the rack should not affect the last 5 seconds. I have never regretted making the right decisions in my life, just the wrong decisions.

Re: Would you have shot? Absolutely not!

Re: I STUCK AN ABSOLUTE HOG TONIGHT!! WIFE SHOT ONE TO I can not even begin to express my feelings about such an extremely poor shot choice. As I have said before, too many poor shot choices or just plain poor shots are shown on videos and proclaimed to be "a great" shot. Sometimes those poor shots result in a quick and recoverable kill, sometimes not. A little more respect for the animals being hunted would be a good thing. I can only hope that the buck died "relatively" quick with little suffering and will not die from infection, starvation or from other predators taking advantage of his weakened condition. Hopefully, he does not die in the yard of an anti-hunter or worse, someone who is straddling the fence on the issue. Sorry for the rant, but I can not believe that any responsible hunter would be taking such low percentage shots. It is not like hunters today need the meat to survive. I can not say that I hope you recover the deer for any reason other than if the buck is dead, it would be a shame for the meat to go to waste.

Re: what do u hunt with compound bow rifle pistol (revolver, semi-auto and breakaction) muzzle loader shotgun

Re: The Flu Shot?!?! It's a feeding frenzy. There is no justification for everyone getting a flu shot. Statistically less than 1% of at risk people die from the flu, most from complications (namely pneumonia). The CDC and the news media really hype up the need for flu shots, but in reality, why would anyone have a foreign substance injected into their body. After the flu shot shortage and recalls of the last couple of years and the likelyhood of the vacine not even covering the flu strain that is prevalent in any given year, I have to think that for most people it is a waste of time and money. If one is that worried about getting sick, maybe they should live in a bubble. Your chance of dying from the flu is considerably less than the chance of getting struck by lightning or dying from a fall in the bath tub. A little common sense would go a long way.

Re: Average Price of an acre of land An acre of land here can seldom be had for less than $5,000.00 per acre and many parcels of land under 100 acres sell for $10,000.00 or more per acre. There are one to ten acre lots that sell for more the $100,000.00 per acre. These high costs are driven mostly by the influx of Californians and other out of state people (a lot of movie, music and sports stars) who have more money than brains. The real estate market is hurting the local people who can not even afford to buy a home. Fortunately, as far as hunting and fishing, we have an abundance of national forest, state forest and lumber company land (open to the public) on which to recreate.

Re: Is it wrong to use dogs to deer hunt with? I do not (not legal here) and would not hunt deer with dogs. If you were raised in an area where this is a legal and often used practice I am sure you would think it is perfectly fine. My problems with it are that the dogs are the ones doing the hunting not the "hunter", the dogs do not stop at property lines, the shooting is mostly done at fasting moving targets (at road crossings most probably), deer have fairly low stamina levels and I am sure that often they get pulled down by the dogs, the dogs chase all deer not just the doe or buck that is legal, and lastly, anyone out there trying to really hunt for their deer has their hunt ruined. Hunting deer with dogs should, in my opinion, not be legal anywhere.

Re: need woman advice Hormone surge. The female gender can be as fickle as the wind in the mountains. Of course it would be presumptuous of you to think that she would like you to walk her to class every day. My advice would be to be friendly each day, show some interest in her life happenings and if a relationship should happen, so be it. If nothing comes of it, well, just remember Garth Brooks song; Thank God For Unanswered Prayers.

Re: Why do you hunt? First, let me address the "sport" thing. By definition: an active pasttime; diversion, ususually involving physical exercise and a set form of rules. That sounds like hunting to me. As for why I hunt, well, it is a chance to be me, who I am. If I did not enjoy the excitement and anticipation of the hunt, I would not hunt. Each hunt is a journey, an experience, sometimes good, sometimes bad. I love it all.

Re: Yes or No? Yes. Explanation, I personally do not believe in baiting and although I have mixed feelings about food plots as I do not believe in the planting of food plots just to hunt over. We are messing with nature when we plant food plots (or put out bait piles) in that we cause unnatural concentrations of animals where they would not normally be and the animals become dependent upon the food supplied. The animals would naturally be more dispersed and at a lower population level which would be more in balance with the carrying capacity of the land. If nobody baited or hunted over a food plot it would be a level playing field for the hunters and more of a fair chase situation for the hunted.

Re: Pop-Up Camping.... We used to have one and I thought it was great. It had a furnace, fridge and an outside shower. The wife, who is paranoid when it comes to bears, wanted a hardside camper to keep the grizzlies out, so we sold the pop-up and bought a 24' travel trailer. It is pretty nice, but if a bear wanted in I am sure it would still drop by for lunch. At least the wife is happy and is more willing to go camping, if you can even call it that.

Re: The Weather... For those of you getting all that rain, please send some our way! The smoke from the forest fires here in western Montana is getting a little tiring. Current visibility is less the 400 yards through the smoke and the people evacuated from their homes would like to go back (if there is anything to go back to). There will be little winter forage for the critters as it will be either burnt or all dried up, and if we get a hard winter, many of the elk and deer will die. Alas, I wish I could complain about the rain and humidity.

Re: Archery season Archery season starts the first Saturday in September and lasts for five weeks. This year it will be September 6th and the elk should be bugling and heading into the rut. I can hardly wait. There is also a late achery season that runs the last week of December until the end of January for antlerless deer in some hunting districts. Most of these late hunts are on private property with little chance for access for most hunters.

Re: Practice...Sitting down.... I try to shoot from every conceivable position possible. When waiting on stand, stalking or calling in game they usually do not offer that perfect shot we all hope for. Stretching exercises are great for improving flexibility which helps when a shot is taken from a difficult position. Remember to practice these shots while wearing your normal hunting attire, and as an added challenge, try running a few wind sprints and then taking a shot as fast as possible from an awkward position. Now your're ready to hunt!