WV Hunter

I have only 1 time that I can actually say it worked for sure. It was the 1st week of Nov a few years ago. I saw a nice big 9pt with a doe about 150yds away along a field edge at the top of a ridge. She was hot and he was right with her every move. I was m/l hunting and downhill in the woods, too far for a shot. I figured I' d give the rattle bag a shot. I was down behind a big oak, and started working the bag and hitting the ground and rustling the leaves. After a minute or two, I saw the buck walk to the edge of the hill and look down towards me. He was curious, but not leaving the hot doe. All of the sudden, from behind me around the hill I hear this loud crashing and here comes a BIG 6 pt, running right at me. He stopped about 15yds behind me, hair sticking up all the way down his back....he wasn' t happy! I was sitting facing the tree, with my back to him, and the wind in my favor. He was looking for the fight hard. (I thought, perfect....the big 9pt will see him and maybe come down to investigate.) Anyhow, he stomped around for a little bit, looking all over for the fight, and then went back around the hill from where he came. I waited about 5 minutes and rattled again. Almost immediately, the big 6 pt came charging back in and screeched to a halt about 30 feet from me. Man was he pissed...it made me a little nervous as I didn' t have my gun up and in that direction since I wasn' t going to shoot him (QDM). I will say though, that' s about as nervous as I' ve ever been in the deer woods. He was a big deer and not happy. After a few minutes, he went back around the hill as he did before. The big 9pt never did leave the doe, and actually bedded down with her for 2 hours looking down towards me. I didn' t end up getting him, but what an exciting experience it was...I remember it like it was yesterday.

That is the only time I' ve seen it work for me using a full out buck fight simulation. I have had deer come along after rattlling(sparring type sequences), but honestly I' m not sure if the were coming to it or just coincidence. And I have had them come in a couple times to light sparring out of curiousity (after I' ve seen them, and they aren' t coming my way).
I hunt in areas that have many does to each buck, so I think the amount of all out fighting is not as much as in other areas that have better ratios. There is plenty of sparring though, no doubt. I will say however, they definitley fight, we' ve killed more than a few deer that had busted up racks and cuts on their heads, necks and ears from fighting. For me where I hunt, I think it' s a matter of catching the right deer in the right state of mind...then it will work. Some other folks where I hunt have had some success also, but it' s not alot overall. I don' t agree that it' s an unnatural sound though, even in the areas I hunt where fighting may not be as prevavlent as other areas. I think alot of it probably gets done at night, (which makes sense because that' s probably when many of the mature animals are moving anyhow). I' ve seen areas all tore up that had to come from a fight, and it wasn' t there the day before. I will continue to bring my rattle bag, and use it like any of the other tools I have...when I feel I need to. It definitely can and does work.