Stinger-Hunter Posted August 27, 2009 Report Share Posted August 27, 2009 Guys, I've noticed that this little trick of mine has worked every single time and wanted to share it with you today. I encourage everyone to share what proven technique has worked for you. This little difference has allowed me to shoot several of the does that have spotted me - done the ol' head nod, hid behind a tree, peaked around the tree truck - the whole act. Although simple, I truly believe it makes a difference - it is obviously to not move a muscle, but also to simply move my eyes as if to look down at my knees. I don't move my head, but I do divert my eyes down as if i were intentionally not looking at the deer. When i have simply not moved, the deer have scrammed in quick order, however when i just move my eyes downward, like they teach people to do if a gorilla or a bear is looking at you, the deer stick around and do not spook - they are suspicious. I do not fall for their trick of moving or looking back up when they pretend to eat something on the ground either - I wait until they are behind a tree or calm down enough to face the other way - then I pull back my bow and wait for them to offer a good shot. During rifle season, it is a little easier since I have a little more forgiveness with trees, branches and bushes - but I've taken deer after they have recognized me with a bow using this technique as well. Glad to hear any tricks that you may have used and proven in the field. Thanks, Lou Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ohiobuckhunter Posted August 27, 2009 Report Share Posted August 27, 2009 how do you tell when the deer's behind the tree if your looking at the ground? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
m gardner Posted August 27, 2009 Report Share Posted August 27, 2009 I'll wiggle my fingers and crawl my hand into my shirt or pocket like a chipmunk going into a hole in a stump. I had an arrow with white fletch out and rolled and tapped it against my leg then hid it behind my leg like a bird working it's way around a stump. These actually worked I think because it took the focus off my face and made them curious about something besides a predator staring at them. Mark Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sluggunner Posted August 27, 2009 Report Share Posted August 27, 2009 Similar tactic. I have had great success using a similar tactic. Instead of moving my eyes down, I move my eyes far to the side so I am not looking at the deer but rather at a tree or other object far in front of or behind the deer. I don't know why it works, but I guess it all has to do with them not being comfortable when you are staring at them. I think it really takes away that sixth sense they seem to have which is really triggered for some reason when your eyes are locked on them. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DocMort Posted August 27, 2009 Report Share Posted August 27, 2009 I use pretty much the same tactic, divert my eyes. or If I see them coming I will put my bow up to break up my face more. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stinger-Hunter Posted August 27, 2009 Author Report Share Posted August 27, 2009 how do you tell when the deer's behind the tree if your looking at the ground? Ohiobuckhunter - Even when you are not focusing your eyes on a particular object, you can still see that object. If fact with a little bit of practice you can actually be focusing on an object that your eyes are not pointing at. Like said previously, it helps eliminate the 6th sense that animals (and humans) sometimes have that something is watching them. Then when they are moving or you notice they are not looking at you - a quick glance with the eyes always helps, then divert them again. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hoosierhunter Posted August 27, 2009 Report Share Posted August 27, 2009 Short answer...kill it.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Kid Posted August 27, 2009 Report Share Posted August 27, 2009 i love when they do the head bob to see if they can get you to move,, umm i look right at them, i like to see whats going on and if stayed still we usually have a starring contest that last 3 to 5 minutes then they go on there way Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Whitetail22 Posted August 27, 2009 Report Share Posted August 27, 2009 Be still and don't stare the deer in his eyes he may blow and go or may just give you the shot !!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sskybnd Posted August 28, 2009 Report Share Posted August 28, 2009 most the time when im spotted by a deer the gigs up and there flying out of there, than i'l move the stand a few yards away in a different tree i have had some look right at me but act like they havent seen me, than ive had a few that stomp there feet and blow and depending on that 6th sence they have either stay or run. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stcif Posted August 28, 2009 Report Share Posted August 28, 2009 Neat tricks. Last year I got busted by a doe running with several other does. She stopped broadside at about 50 yards and stared at me. As we looked at each other my hat blew off in a big gust of wind. Any suggestions on what to do if that happens again? I laughed at myself there. Just another memory to think about. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zero Posted August 28, 2009 Report Share Posted August 28, 2009 I always look away or if it's a shooter, usually very slowly but steadily bringing your gun up and taking the shot will work without them hauling it the other way. Depends on how much I want to hunt that tree/stand in the next week or two though and if it's a doe do I want to take her or hope for a buck, sometimes it's best to sit still, look away, and let them head on. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Doc Posted August 29, 2009 Report Share Posted August 29, 2009 I have to say that I am a bit skeptical about the eye contact theories. My understanding is that deer vision is not really much better than our own except that they seem to catch movement real well (so do we for that matter). Depending on how close the deer is, I doubt that they could tell whether your eyeballs are looking at them or at your knees or off to the side. If they are close enough to see the difference in where your eyeballs are pointing, chances are pretty good that you are well within their safety zone and they usually won't stick around at all when that is the case. I won't rule out the possibility that there is some sort of 6th sense connection between eye contact and a deer recognizing exactly what you are. It is possible I suppose. A little hard to swallow.......but possible. What I have found is that 100% of the cases where a deer has picked me up, it has not turned out well. Busted is busted. When the head-bob or the foot-stomp starts, it's all over. I'm sure there are some who have miraculously converted that situation into some kind of shooting situation, but I would think that is so rare that it can be considered nearly impossible. The only way that you can beat that situation is if you already have your gun up and aimed. With a bow, unless you are already drawn, the chances go back down to near zero. Doc Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mikewink Posted August 29, 2009 Report Share Posted August 29, 2009 I usually start swearing? LOL Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stevebeilgard Posted August 30, 2009 Report Share Posted August 30, 2009 not looking at him is a good thing. perphial vision will tell you where he is. the nations leading neurosurgeon once told me to think happy thoughts as animals can sence when you want to kill them. while i don't know if i agree with that or not, i always think of my wif while on a stalk. and what i'm doing, of course... lol Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
swohiodave Posted August 30, 2009 Report Share Posted August 30, 2009 i have had them look at me and i close my eyes all the and wait a few seconds and open them only to the point of squinting and close them tight again.... 2 different times I still got my deer after waiting fort them to go back to browsing on some food but they may have just felt something was not right with the situation and then calmed down. who knows! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
swohiodave Posted August 30, 2009 Report Share Posted August 30, 2009 i have had them look at me and i close my eyes all the and wait a few seconds and open them only to the point of squinting and close them tight again.... 2 different times I still got my deer after waiting fort them to go back to browsing on some food but they may have just felt something was not right with the situation and then calmed down. who knows! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stinger-Hunter Posted August 30, 2009 Author Report Share Posted August 30, 2009 not looking at him is a good thing. perphial vision will tell you where he is. the nations leading neurosurgeon once told me to think happy thoughts as animals can sence when you want to kill them. while i don't know if i agree with that or not, i always think of my wif while on a stalk. and what i'm doing, of course... lol What if your happy thoughts are that you are about to kill the deer in front of you? LOL Doc, seriously - I've done it a lot and when I haven't looked away, the deer took off - that is when I began diverting my eyes and they haven't bolted since. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tominator Posted August 30, 2009 Report Share Posted August 30, 2009 There was a thread in here a few years ago that had more than a few pages worth of comments about this subject. The person who started the thread wanted us to experiment with staring deer down vs. looking away and report results. I don't know that the results were ever tallied, but yes, I've noticed that if you make eye contact with a deer they spook easier than if you avert their gaze. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hatetomiss Posted September 3, 2009 Report Share Posted September 3, 2009 my happy thought is shooting the deer Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jorden Posted September 3, 2009 Report Share Posted September 3, 2009 I definately think that it helps to either look away or close your eyes. I heard about this technique a few years ago and have been using it ever since. What I do is when I see a deer I put my head down so I can just see the deer below the brim of my hat. If the deer spots me I just lower my head down so the brim of my hat blocks the view of the deer and I look straight down. I dont look back up again until I can either hear the deer walking or I take a quick peek. I havent had to use it much but the times that I did it worked well. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Doc Posted September 3, 2009 Report Share Posted September 3, 2009 I really have to say that I am still skeptical about this "eye aversion" theory. The testimonials all sound like the sort of thing where you don't know whether it was the eye-aversion trick that worked or whether the deer did whatever it was going to do anyway. Yeah I know, what kind of proof do you want anyway. But I still have a problem with a deer being able to see whether your eyeballs are pointed at him or at your feet unless it's within handshaking distance. We're not talking hawks or turkeys here. Their eyesight just isn't that good. If you're talking about some sort of sixth sense reaction, maybe I could swallow that.....maybe. My experience is once you have been spotted, the game's over whether I look at the deer, cross my eyes, close my eyes or stare at the ground. Any deer that sticks around long enough to get a shot says more about its stupidity than about anything the hunter does with his eyes. Sorry, I guess I'm just a non-believer. Doc Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tom2008 Posted September 3, 2009 Report Share Posted September 3, 2009 I'll give it a try this year. Great tip and it makes a lot of sense. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bloodtrails Posted September 5, 2009 Report Share Posted September 5, 2009 :chair: I'll wiggle my fingers and crawl my hand into my shirt or pocket like a chipmunk going into a hole in a stump. I had an arrow with white fletch out and rolled and tapped it against my leg then hid it behind my leg like a bird working it's way around a stump. These actually worked I think because it took the focus off my face and made them curious about something besides a predator staring at them. Mark Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hoosierbuck Posted September 9, 2009 Report Share Posted September 9, 2009 but I would think that is so rare that it can be considered nearly impossible. The only way that you can beat that situation is if you already have your gun up and aimed. With a bow, unless you are already drawn, the chances go back down to near zero. Doc I have done the impossible a bunch of times, suddenly I am so impressed with myself! (Not really.) Bow and gun, I have killed deer that had me dead to rights. Not every one of them, of course, but several times. There just comes a time when you feel its right to make your move, and it either works or not. i always think of my wife while on a stalk Which explains why the does come right in and want to snuggle you, love muffin! :kiss: In all seriousness, I do avert my eyes, or just let them go fuzzy so that I am not focused on the deer's eyes. I also go so far as to push thoughts of killing the deer out of my head. I can think about mechanics of making a shot, but not hitting the deer or killing or eating it. Empirical proof that this works? Nope, I haven't got it. I just know that I live where I can kill several deer a year, and I have done it enough to know what I feel works for me. I have observed repeatedly a deer that I thought I would not take a shot at go from relaxed to alert the instant my mind says, "Well, maybe I will kill it." Even without any overt move to do anything on my part. HB Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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