Depends on where you live really. Most placesor on most animalsthe velvet is gone by mid Oct. The rut is a month away but the bucks are starting to feel a little frisky and feeling out their competition or learning what all that stuff on top of their head is for for the first time. No hard core rattling yet but some light tickling and short non violent rattles will definitely work. It works especially well on animals you see pass by out of range. Rattle them for few seconds and get ready because more often than not they'll come looking. Wait until the get out of sight to do it. If you can see them hold off until they've gone into the woods far enough not to beable to see you. If you can see them their first thought is to look. If they see no deer they'll more than likely leave. They'll pin point the location from out of sight and you usually end up with about a point blank shot.