Where have my bucks gone????
#1
Fork Horn
Thread Starter
Join Date: Nov 2006
Location: Northeast Texas
Posts: 442

ok. Last year, I had 5 or 6 different bucks on camera coming to my feeder at my deer lease and 9 different bucks coming to my feeder on my land behind the house.
This year has been a different story.......
I have yet to get a single picture of a buck at my deer lease or on my own land. Lots of pictures of does coming in to munch on some corn and lots of hogs showing up.
I had a good number of hogs at both hunting locations last year, and it didn't seem to effect the deer coming to the feeder.
I'm just really confused as to why i'm not seeing ANY bucks this year......It's not like I'm seeing FEWER.....I'm not seeing ANY.
Any ideas folks????
This year has been a different story.......
I have yet to get a single picture of a buck at my deer lease or on my own land. Lots of pictures of does coming in to munch on some corn and lots of hogs showing up.
I had a good number of hogs at both hunting locations last year, and it didn't seem to effect the deer coming to the feeder.
I'm just really confused as to why i'm not seeing ANY bucks this year......It's not like I'm seeing FEWER.....I'm not seeing ANY.
Any ideas folks????
#3

Hopefully you have one heck of a big boy in the area chasing everything away!! Good luck. I wasn't seeing any bucks in velvet and my father said that could be a good thing because when they shed the velvet they tend to move out of that area until they are ready to shed their antlers they go back. Well he was right again, I have seen some nice bucks already on stand, making scrapes and developing territory.
#5
Banned
Join Date: Sep 2010
Posts: 220

Deer are creatures of habit. where you see the doe's, eventually you will see the bucks too.
My guess is that you hunted over those feeders and now the bucks are educated and found someplace else that was non threatening to get their mouth full of corn.
It's not legal to hunt near feeders in Pennsylvania, so I am not as educated as most people about their use and qualities.
But what I do know is that you can actually train the deer to come to the feeder if the timer for it to discharge the feed - makes the same noise at the same time every day.
Bulk feeders - like cattle feeders - where the food is available all the time, does not entice the deer to come running when they hear a discharge noise - because the only time they see or hear anything is when they see you with the pick up truck or four wheeler refilling the feeder.
My guess is that you hunted over those feeders and now the bucks are educated and found someplace else that was non threatening to get their mouth full of corn.
It's not legal to hunt near feeders in Pennsylvania, so I am not as educated as most people about their use and qualities.
But what I do know is that you can actually train the deer to come to the feeder if the timer for it to discharge the feed - makes the same noise at the same time every day.
Bulk feeders - like cattle feeders - where the food is available all the time, does not entice the deer to come running when they hear a discharge noise - because the only time they see or hear anything is when they see you with the pick up truck or four wheeler refilling the feeder.
#6
Fork Horn
Thread Starter
Join Date: Nov 2006
Location: Northeast Texas
Posts: 442

Not visiting the area any more than we have for the past 11 years that we've hunted the area.
I've had trail camera out all spring and summer and I've got lots of pictures of does and fawns, bobcats, coyotes, ect......just no bucks.
I usually always start getting velvet pics of bucks about mid summer when they've started growing their racks.
I've had trail camera out all spring and summer and I've got lots of pictures of does and fawns, bobcats, coyotes, ect......just no bucks.
I usually always start getting velvet pics of bucks about mid summer when they've started growing their racks.
#8

I have the exact same thing here in Michigan. Last year lots of bucks on camera everyday. This year just does. I have three camera's out in different spots. Nothing but does. I think the bucks moved to Wisconsin. I'm very ticked off.