i bait and am not ashamed about it
 

Baiting isjust a part of stillhunting here. I don't know anyone who hunts in clubs and other private land that doesn't use corn/bait. I don't see why anyone wouldn't bait where it is legal, and i don't understand why some on here have the attitude that baiting is sloppy or almost like it is canned hunting because it isn't. We may stand better odds to concentrate deer to a area, butnot bigger bucks.

RE: i bait and am not ashamed about it
 

I tend to agree with you. Hunting with bait is no different than hunting on a food plot.

RE: i bait and am not ashamed about it
 

I think it bating is different. There is no logical way that you can say that hunting afood plot is the same as sitting on top of a pile of corn. Food plots take time and work to maintain and grow. Its not just dumping a bag of corn in front of your stand.

But, if baiting was legal here, then I would do it too so don't worry.

RE: i bait and am not ashamed about it
 

Is hunting close to a 1000 acre corn field the same as baiting? I've been told many a time that it is.... :eek:

RE: i bait and am not ashamed about it
 

Bating is perfectly natural and nothing to be ashamed of. I first started bating at about age 12 or 13 and have continued to bate to greater or lesser degrees since then. Have never bated over a corn field or pile of corn but whatever works for you. Bating now for 20 years and have no regrets;).

RE: i bait and am not ashamed about it
 

Hunting an agricultural crop is quite different than walking into the woods to hunt a feeder.

RE: i bait and am not ashamed about it
 

I would have to say...NO!!

Here in Alabama--where baiting is illegal--you can hunt foodplots which could include standing corn. If the corn is mowed down--by man or machine--it is considered bating. We found this out just before season opener a few years back. We had planted five rows of corn on each side of one of our more productive greenfields. About a week before bow season, one of the guys went out and mowed it down. Luckily out of concern the club president contacted the local GW and met him out on our lease. He informed us that we could not hunt in or around the plot until ten days after the last kernel of corn was gone. The only gray area I have is if the corn was harvested.

RE: i bait and am not ashamed about it
 

Heres another forum on baiting and the effects of baiting. I'm not for or against it. To each their own.

http://www.huntingnet.com/forum/tm.aspx?m=3214888

RE: i bait and am not ashamed about it
 

It's not legal here. I wouldn't do it if it was. But I couldn't care less if someone else practices it, as long as it's legal where they are.

RE: i bait and am not ashamed about it
 

Bingo!

RE: i bait and am not ashamed about it
 

I still see some people do it here in VA. I've walked up on some, in a treestand, over a pile of corn. Sometimes its out of ignorance, because they just don't know the law, and don't take time to read regulations.

RE: i bait and am not ashamed about it
 

Baiting in Texas is legal. I hunt several different places where we have feeders going with corn and some of the places feed year round. We also plant several fields of wheat for the cattle. Honestly, we see a lot more deer in the wheat fields than at the feeders, but they typically do stop at the feeders that are close to their travel routes to and from the fields and bedding areas. The feeder I hunt the most is one that is on a travel route between a wheat field and a bedding area. Sometimes you have to intercept the deer to get a chance at one of the big bucks that don't come into the fields until after dark. Hunt Hard, Hunt Smart.

RE: i bait and am not ashamed about it
 

Once again, the great debate. I have one feeder going right now. I don't hunt feeders very often, but I like to keep at least one going until a few weeks before turkey season to give the deer and turkeys a little something extra to eat during Winter. I will admit, I killed a doe with my bow on a feeder this year, but I don't gun hunt on a feeder. I've killed three nice bucks this season. None were even close to my feeder. I am not ashamed to hunt a feeder. I just use bow only when hunting one.As for food plots, they serve the same purpose as a feeder. In reality, you are baiting either way. A food plot is just another way of attracting wildlife. I don't care if it's a 1 or 100 acre plot, it's designed to attract deer so you can shoot them. IMO there is nothing wrong with either, as long as it's legal.

RE: i bait and am not ashamed about it
 

boy if its legal i see no reason why i wouldnt have a feeder or 2 going on my property...It concentrates the deer and keeps them around....No one says you have to hunt on top of a feeder to be successful.

We plant food plots, use mineral licks, and have agriculture all over our hunting grounds...

If its legal id get all over it. Where we hunt its illegal to use a rifle as well...so should i go out and say since you use a rifle you are cheating yourself and not hunting right to my standards?....Why wear camo? Its kinda cheating cause they cant see you? Scent wash and scent spray, cheating cause they cant smell you...Doe in heat, come on the guy is just needing to get his....Rifle, ha what garbage, I prefer hand to hand combat with mr whitetail and not killing him from 200yrds away with pinpoint accuracy....Point being we all take advantage of what is LEGAL for us to do during hunting.

You take every advantage you can get when trying to have a successful hunt...If we didnt we would still be out there with sharp sticks throwing them at the deer....

RE: i bait and am not ashamed about it
 

here in North Carolina it is not illegal to bait deer. and we definitely take advantage of the opportunity to use feeders and corn. in reality it doesn't benefit you any towards shooting a big buck because a nice, mature buck isn't even going to be out during the day (here anyways .. unless during the rut) and it's especially not going to be eating under a feeder. feeders and food plots only keep the does around. i love having feeders on some of my stands because you know when you go hunt you're going to at least see some deer. and yeah, it gives you the advantage on shooting does if you're looking to put some meat on the table. we'll even put feeders in our fields to help sweeten it up even more. i don't really know how you can harvest a deer without using a feeder or food plots either. idk how it is out west but here in NC you're not going to see deer unless you have some type of food source. how do yall harvest a nice buck from year to year if you can't have any type of food source? do yall just walk through fields and try to just get lucky and shoot one at long range?

RE: i bait and am not ashamed about it
 

Eager...hunt white oaks, persimmons, honeysuckle, grapes, soybeans, peanut fields, cut corn, winter wheat and clover...Funnels are also good as are the cutovers where deer are leaving to go to the other food sources...

RE: i bait and am not ashamed about it
 

man this is the most intelligent post I have seen in a while. Thank you

Now we can bait in Ohio. I do but I do not sit over a pile of corn. I put out a mineral block in the spring each year to help the deer out with their mineral needs. they use it up but they are hard to pattern at a block so I hunt them in other sections of the woods where I can pattern them.

RE: i bait and am not ashamed about it
 

according to some of the previous posts it looks like cut corn, wheat, or soybeans would be considered a food plot? i'm just curious. we plant corn, wheat, and soybeans but we don't really have any regulations on deer hunting here so i'm just trying to learn a little bit.

RE: i bait and am not ashamed about it
 

I have to agree and disagree with you. You are correct in saying you are pretty much wasting your time hunting for a big buck at a feeder. If they do come to a feeder, it's usually going to be at night. Just because you hunt a feeder doesn't mean you will always see deer, including does. You say you don't know how you can harvest a deer without using a feeder or food plot. You hunt natural food sources, close to bedding areas, or trails. I have a couple of feeders, but no food plots, and I rarely even hunt a feeder, and I see and kill plenty of deer, some pretty good bucks also. No doubt planting a food plot or hunting a feeder can increase your odds, but you don't have to have either to be successful. The natural food sources are probably there where you hunt. You just need to know when and where to hunt them. I seriously doubt most of us here on this site just walk around and hope to get lucky.

RE: i bait and am not ashamed about it
 

I have several family members who have hunted Texas ranches where feeders were used. They all said the same thing, that they had their choice of any number of big bucks clustered around the feeder during daylight hours. No need to be ashamed if it is legal. But, it is what it is.....

RE: i bait and am not ashamed about it
 

I think Texas is one of the exceptions of seeing good bucks at feeders during daylight hours.

RE: i bait and am not ashamed about it
 

That is pretty much the only statethat I have heard lots of people with firsthand experience discussing. Dunno whybucks elsewhere would be nocturnal at feeders or feeding sites, especiallyconsidering the various daylight photos of big bucks that I have some folks with "managed" operations posting here in the past.

RE: i bait and am not ashamed about it
 

And why would that matter? Why would it be different just because someone actually put some time and effort into it? Using something to purposely lure a deer to a certain spot would be baiting. No matter what the means.

RE: i bait and am not ashamed about it
 

Lanse, I don't fully understand it either. My property is not pressured at all. I see lots of daylight movement, primarily does, fawns, and young bucks. For some reason though, when I put a camera on a feeder, the larger bucks are ALWAYS feeding when it is dark. I have been putting cams out for many years and I have never had a mature buck at a feeder in daylight hours, even when my property is not heavily hunted. I rarely have mature bucks even come to feeders, period.Remember, I am the only one hunting it. I see plenty of bucks throughout the season, just never at my feeders. There are just so many different food sources down here. I have tons of oak trees, including their favorite, the white oak. In many parts of Texas, there are just not many food sources. In some places the only source is something in a feeder or a plot. You can expect to see much more daylight activity in Texas because they are so limited in their food source. In other words, if you go to Texas, you had better be hunting at a feeder or on a plot. Guess what, they both serve the same purpose,therefore, hunting over corn is no different than hunting over a food plot. Again, if it's legal, hunt anyway you like.

RE: i bait and am not ashamed about it
 

I think that any time that you have created a "managed" situation, you are gonna see big bucks acting less and less cagey. I think that if you used feeders, salt blocks, etc. in a manner where the bucks knew the best time to access them is during the day, you would see much less nocturnal activity on their part. If you work hard at it, you can use timed feeders, time of placing feed, etc. to manipulate deer into a desired pattern of behavior. Hard to do the same thing with a harvested 40 acre cornfield.

RE: i bait and am not ashamed about it
 

This is my second reply to this topic, but after reading some of the other posts after mine, I thought I would put another 2 cents in. I live and hunt in Texas. I shot a 135" buck back in October of this year during bowseason. (picture is on a thread named 135" of success, from back in october) And yes, he came into one of the feeders right at sundown. He came in with four other bucks and all but one of those would have been shooters for me. during the bowseason here, (Oct), i hunted two different places near a feeder. one feeder produced nothing but does, fawns and i got a couple of spikes and forkhorns on the camera at night., the other place where i shot my buck, only had 2.5 + year old bucks eating from it, maybe a few does, but only seen on camera, not while hunting. I beleive that just because you have a feeder, it dosen't mean you will see, much less shoot a deer or big buck. if the feeder is not located in a good place, you are wasting you time, just like if you plant a foodplot in a bad place. I also think that if you do use a feeder, you really don't want to have it throw a lot of corn at a time. that will force the bucks to come out before it gets eaten if they want some. and after a nice dry Texas summer, they will come out to get some corn. Anyway, using a feeder or not, If you want to be successful, it take lots of time, work, little sweat and hopefully when the time comes there won't be to many tears.
by the way, the pic is on the bowhunting thread

RE: i bait and am not ashamed about it
 

I THINK IF YOU WANT TO BAIT TO BRING'EM IN THAN DO SO......

RE: i bait and am not ashamed about it
 

I heard that in Texas, if you take three or more trophy bucks over timed feeders, then you are awarded the title Master Baiter.

RE: i bait and am not ashamed about it
 

I would have to say I would be just as excited to shot a decent buck over spread out corn as I would a food plot. It's personal preference and there is alot of different scenerios to take into consideration.
Food plots, feeders, etc., it's all the same. Just because it's a "food plot" your hunting it just the same as spread out corn and that's to draw deer into a food source that is not naturally found there.

RE: i bait and am not ashamed about it
 

It's much easier to create a managed situation when there is little or no natural food,case in point, Texas.In most places in the south and mid-west, there are ample food sources, so you are not going to manipulate deer into any pattern you desire. I have timed feeders, and yes I have had deer come in minutes after they have gone off, but NEVER a mature buck.

RE: i bait and am not ashamed about it
 

Of course, one could make the argument that most areas of the U.S. have been devoted to agriculture for generations. So, to the animals, a cornfield is just as much a part of their natural environment as a logged over brushy area that provides their bedding area.

RE: i bait and am not ashamed about it
 

Personally, I don't believe that baiting falls within the definition of "fair chase." But, be that as it may, baiting is illegal in Virginia. That does not, however, stop members of the local hunt clubs from driving boldly into their leases duringdeer season with piles of ear corn on their pickups.

RE: i bait and am not ashamed about it
 

guarrantee it was a high fence operation. I hunt several low fence ranches here in Texas, deer dont just flock to the feeders, yes you see a few does, but the Bucks just dont really care for the corn. It might happen at times but I personaly have never killed a buck on a low fence ranch at a feeder. Killed several on these same ranches by rattling though.
Who would rather dove hunt over a feeder or over a 1000 acre milo field, not me I would take the milo field. Food plots are 10 times more productive than a feeder. get over it already.

RE: i bait and am not ashamed about it
 

Ridge I like you, you my boy and all but hunting over corn is lazy but shooting deer at 800 yds aint ? come on bro. tread lightly there .

RE: i bait and am not ashamed about it
 

Two debates really get deer hunters going...Hunting deer with dogs and baiting...

What's so interesting is that hunters that haven't done either have strong opinions about them...
You would think that we were talking about spotlighting deer at night and killing them when in fact we are just talking about another
manner that is legal in certain areas...Let me repeat LEGAL in certain areas...

I've often thought that it would sure be easy (cheating actually) to be able to hunt deer with snow on the ground...It sure would make it easier
to see where the trails were...In fact, it should be illegal to hunt deer when the ground has snow on it...:DAll you would have to do is set by the
trail and wait for a deer to come by...Since we seldom have snow on the ground here in NC during deer season, I haven't been able to test my
theory, but it sure sounds easy...That's how baiting is...Sounds easy, but it isn't necessary that way...

I have 3 family farms that we raise corn, soybeans, peanuts, wheat and cotton on...Total acres about 850...We kill 40-50 deer a year on these farms to help control the population so the crops aren't decimated...One week this year, we killed 18...We DON'T bait here, no need to...When I put a hunter in a stand I tell him "Do not leave this stand until I come pick you up"...So, deer are shot, then after dark, or when deer are out of the field, we go pick them up and clean them...It's pretty simple, if you don't let guys walk around the field and spook the deer, you will see deer when they move...

Now, I live about 4 hours away from these farms, so I lease land locally to hunt...Different situation...In this part of the state there is little farming...The area I lease is about 350 acres, we have a field, but I'm not allowed to plant a food plot, so I hunt white oaks, persimmons, grapes, honeysuckle, etc...This year we are covered up with acorns, corn is rotting on the ground, I haven't put out a kernal, it would be a waste...But, I've seen deer by hunting the trails close to 2 cutovers...

Last year was different, no acorns to speak of...I started putting out corn (15 pounds spread with a lawn seeder twice a week) in August...
Now, here is the problem...You have corn out, it's quitting time and you have 3 does under you eating...Leaving will spook them...Do this a couple
of times and they quit coming in until after dark...It's not like that corn in the woods is all they have to eat and they don't have to come in during daylight hours...

What I've learned while playing around with baiting for the past 15 years or so...Nothing beats natural food sources or crop fields...Deer typically feed through an oak flat while that bait can keep them hanging around too long, so it won't take them long to have the hunter patterned...In addition, more is not always better...20-30 pounds a week is enough to keep them interested, don't pile it, spread it...

I will say this, it is much easier to see and kill deer in an area with crops than in a area without...

So, sometimes I do, sometimes I don't...Kinda like fishing, sometimes I'm using a flyrod with a bass popper and sometimes I'm using a cork and a minnow...:D

RE: i bait and am not ashamed about it
 

Well said. I wasn't going to chime in on this one, but where is the hunt over a bait pile? Guys like Jackie Bushman have glorified sitting in porta potties over feeders and try to call it hunting. Not even close. I agree that a lot of skills have been lost.

RE: i bait and am not ashamed about it
 

Nothing wrong with baiting as long as legal!

RE: i bait and am not ashamed about it
 

I don't have a problem with baiting just so it is legal. If it's not legal, DON'T DO IT! Plain and simple...

RE: i bait and am not ashamed about it
 

I don't have a problem with baiting,
But "It is what it is" - shooting deer over a pile of corn.

I reserve the term "hunting" for other activities.

I have done both, and they are 2 differant things all together, can not compare the 2.

Slack

RE: i bait and am not ashamed about it
 

[:o][:o][:o]

I'm not sure if anyone caught what you are saying but let me be the first to say you are one sick puppy spruilldog.