I am approaching my 3rd year of deer hunting and from the beginning i have always had a grunt and rattle call with me but... i never knew how often to use it so...HOW OFTEN DO I USE IT!!??!?!?

Where do you hunt?

Depending on where you live and what time of the rut you are hunting means alot " ESPECIALLY" with calling methods like rattling.

Rattling is most effective when buck to doe ratios are very close. Its even better when buck ratios are higher than does (ratios like this are notcommon in every state).The reason whyhigher buck than doe ratios areimportant when rattling isdue to the fact that bucks have to contendwith each otherto breed the does far morewhen such ratios are present. Therefore rattling techniques seem to work better in these conditions because these types of sounds in these areas " COMMAND ATTENTION" . They command the attention of local bucks within earshot of the noise letting them know that there are rival bucks fighting over a hot female. And everyone knows that in the heat of the rut, bucks will go head over heels for a hot doe, even if he has to fight for her. If she is one of the few does in that area, odds are you are going to see alot of bucks that come to investigate. Some will come to fight, others will watch. But if you are there with your shotgun or rifle or bow, it doesn't matter what they will do...... "IT MATTERS WHAT YOU WILL DO" Sometimes you will only have a short moment to seal your deal.

However, with all that said, If you are hunting at the wrong time of the rutOR you are in an area that has " the common ratio of does being higher than bucks", you are probally better off leaving your antlers at home and sticking to more freindly and community calls.

i hunt in illinois and im not sure what the rut would be at the time

i've had good success with just doing a series of buck and doe grunts together every 15-30 minutes. but i'm in florida. not sure how it translates.