Wheres the deer?
 

Hey guys/gals, where are all the deer? Here in the general Cincinnati, Ohio area the deer seem to be moving slow. The rut as well was almost non-existant. Is it me or what? The past 10-15 years I guess I have been self spoiled due to the fact that by this time of year I usually have 4-5 in the freezer(Not bragging, just don't understand this year) and this year I only have one doe... You guys/gals notice any changes that I may be overlooking??? Let me know. I like to get a variety of opinions and views from others that are as dedicated to bow hunting deer as I am. Maybe together we can help each other out as well as others that may have the same or similar issues. Thanks in advance!

I am right there with you.....it is very frustrating....I hunt in Glen Este, and Dearborn County Indiana.....very little movement....I know the temps have been on the higher side, but I can't remember anything like this!! I have a new property to hunt in Glen Este....60 acres surrounded by a nature preserve.....I thought I had hit the jackpot!! I have seen only 2 does this season....that's it!!! I am hoping the deer start moving soon....I saw a doe still with her yearling in Indiana on Saturday...this leads me to believe she has not been bred yet...maybe...just maybe....the rut is going to be late this year....WHO KNOWS!!!

Having a good year here in Illinois should of had a couple nice bucks 12-15 pointers but my freezer is full of prime red meat and the season goes until January I have a buck tag for archery and a doe tag for the next gun season,what works best for me is not hunting out of deer stands I am always changing my location to different parts of the timber.

I am constantly changing tree stand locations based on lack of deer movement, and I'm always using the wind to my favor so just don't know what the problem is... Figure it might be the warmer temps and that they really sem to be 2-3 weeks behind their normal schedule. Oh well, I'll be back at it Thursday and all day Friday this week and see what happens.

Not much moving here in Connecticut. Most of my friends and hunting peeps noticed the same. Rut is way-late, too warm.

Slow.

Same story here in Central, MD for me. My logic is there are too many does, but I actually am not seeing many of them either. It's been down right slow and we didn't have a typical chasing phase. I saw some younger bucks chasing but no big boys. They called for a classic rut, but it didn't/isn't happening where I'm hunting.

I am wondering if the rut will be later this year?? I know that deer will rut regardless, but I have not seen any rutting activity.....I do not have a logical answer for what is going on....

Same here. Rut is non-existent in southern NY. The two point, three point and four point I have seen so far were on there own. no chasing at all. The woods seem very dead. I think the early 12" of snow we had in October throw things off a bit. I just hope they don't think it's spring time now. Laugh:s2:

Same here in central Ky. This has been the strangest rut I have ever seen in my 31 years of bowhunting. I've seen bucks on three different trailcams eating corn and have does walk by them and they don't pay any attention to them at all.

Upstate New York has been the same guys. I didn't see a buck with a doe until sunday 11/13. I have seen 20 deer total since october 18th. Usually I have seen double that by now. I had a good buck bedded under my stand going back in saturday afternoon, I could see horns at 100 yards without optics, in brush, running away. I'm staying all day thursday! Good luck everyone

the rut is on here in ks we have shot quite a few bucks this year in our bow camps. i was out bird hunting this morning and watched a nice little buck chase a doe in the middle of a wheat field

Saw 8 does and fawns and not a single buck from noon to dark this afternoon.

I know this is not the case everywhere. But on our Florida lease the dern coyotes have really putting on the pressure. and the deer are extremely skittish.

Our club has declared war on the yotes.

There is a ranch in Florida that did a study with the University of Florida they found that Coyotes were killing 85% of their fawns. So they got aggressive setting up traps and shooting them on site. 85% WOW

I hunt state land, and I saw 3 guys dragging out a family of does. 2 fawns and a mama. Next year there will be no deer to drag out at all.

Sometimes the does hafta go but... not a whole family. If that's the case, DNR/DEP will need to modify the cull for the following years.

Still not much moving here in CT...

If the ratio of bucks to does are out of proportion (more does than bucks) then taking more does is a great thing. If not then it's excessive to take only does. From my perspective, Maryland had mandated hunters could take only bucks in a lot of areas for years. What we have now as a result is less than profound rutting activity among other things. To compensate, the bag limits for does is virtually limitless in a lot of areas currently. Places like Texas go to great lengths (on private ranches anyway) to ensure the doe to buck ratio is proportional. In addition they take out inferior bucks.

Think about it. A mature doe has 2 maybe 3 fawns with each litter. If the bucks are limited in the area then the does mate with whoever is there. This means spikes and other non dominant bucks mate with them and continue that line since the competition is virtually nonexistent. Hence the significance of proper game management.

I tend to think that may be contributing to the lack of movement currently, but perhaps there are other factors as well. I saw of ray of hope today in my locale. I had two bucks feeding in my backyard that I haven't seen regularly and while driving to work I noticed a decent eight pointer (not a shooter) chasing a herd of about 7 does across the road. Maybe all hell breaks loose this weekend? If it wasn't for this dang warm weather...

they are locked down breeding right now in So. IL. Tough hunting during this time of the rut