Some well thought out thoughts presented.

My experience has been that the "Second Rut" is a misnomer, better entitled the "Leftover Rut". Of course it's real - though you cannot bank on it. You must however be able to recognize it and take advantage of the situation.

On northeastern hunting lands, Hunting has been going on for 2 months by the time of the second rut, and traditional "pre-rut" tactics like rattling usually get very poor results - at least for me after Dec. 1. Grunts, especially Tending Grunts seem to work OK at best, but better than rattling.

The bottom line is that a "Hot Doe" changes everything - whether its Late September or January - You just need to know how to recognize the signs and take advantage of the situation.