I swear the frickin deer know the exact date gun season comes in around here! This saturday morning I was at our land putting a few last finishing touches on some stands and such before gun season opens sat. the 19th. I had driven my truck down a old logging road that has several well used game trails crossing it. I had parked the truck, got out and was in the proccess of putting out a mineral block. I had dug a little trench, placed the block in it and just started to pour out some "Buck Jam". This stuff can be found in most sporting goods stores, its basically a gel/slime like apple flavored mixture that once poured on the ground will turn into somewhat of a salt lick. Well, I had just opened the apple flavored stuff and been pouring the stuff out for like a min or two (its really thick and takes a while to get out of the jug) when I noticed movement out of the corner of my right eye. I stopped and slowly turn to the right only to see 4 does stairing at me with there noes in the air, less than 15 yards away. In my mind I'm thinking, you've got to be kidding right? Here I am in blue jeans and a brown longsleve shirt, standing 10 yards from my truck not worring about sound or smell and I have 4 does (all shooters in size) pratically right on me. My thoughts then turned to the "Buck Jam" I was pouring on the ground... "this stuff can't be that good, Can it?" I knew I had a lot of work left to do, but didn't want to spook off the deer either... What was I to do? I figured to just go about the rest of my work like they wern't there and just watch and see what they do. After about 3 mins they got disinterested and walked off, calmly. There tails weren't tucked or flagged, they just slowly walked off along that same game trail. I swear its like they knew I couldn't shoot them! I've never had a deer act that tame that close to me before, expecially when they have a dirrect view of me. The place I'm hunting this year hasn't been hunted in like 5 years and one landowner that has property bordering this land feeds the deer year round and treats them like pets, I guess these deer have started to unlearn their fear of man due to that guy. Thats gonna stink for them come saturday :D At 15 yds my 45/70 is gonna nock the snot outta of em. Just gotta choose between a 405gr beartooth or 300gr partition. Heck I might even bring my 44mg SBH to get my first handgun kill.

It's that way here in CO too matt. They even know which side of the fence is safe. I normally let a few deer hunters on the place but this year there seemed to be a shortage of bucks so I only let doe hunters on. The first feller just stood out by the lil' red shed and popped him a doe while the others just stood and watched. They've gotten used to me shooting around here all the time and don't pay much attention to the sound. The herd did get flighty when he walked out to gut the old girl and moseyed off across the county road. But for the most part stayed within 2-300 yards. It took them about an hour to come back over and start in on my alfalfa again after he left. Didn't seem to pay much mind to the gut pile either. My alfalfa must taste better than anybody elses because both the deer and the antalope spend alot more time on my place than anybody elses :rolleyes: Can't wait for the elk herds to move in this winter.

I believe they DO know exactly when the season begins, and there's really no mystery too it. All of a sudden, the usually quiet woods are full of people at all hours, and that isn't normal. I used to own a small piece of property where I was the only hunter. The first deer season after I bought the place, I noticed that the day the season started all deer seemed to vanish. The next year I made an effort starting a couple of months before the season the walk the property in a stealthy manner at all hours of the day, from predawn to dark. This time I saw plenty of deer both before and after the season opener. They had gotten used to the activity.

Pisgah is right...ever since we started squirrel hunting the woods we deer hunt, we have seen alot more deer, and they arnt as suspect of sound and movement either. We used to stay out of the woods we deer hunted most of hte year to make them "feel safe" but this obviously doesnt matter to them. Now we get squirrels and more deer...nothing wrong w/ that!

Pisgah is right...ever since we started squirrel hunting the woods we deer hunt, we have seen alot more deer, and they arnt as suspect of sound and movement either. We used to stay out of the woods we deer hunted most of hte year to make them "feel safe" but this obviously doesnt matter to them. Now we get squirrels and more deer...nothing wrong w/ that!

Back when my family owned a fair-sized farm and I was on a tractor all the time, I was sore tempted to carry a rifle with me! They got so used to the tractor working that they'd come out of the woods and stand around and watch. Even my stopping the tractor, getting off, and walking around it didn't spook them. It's amazing what they can become accustomed to.

i live in city limits, but out in the woods.
i acctually have deer come up to my porch and i mean that literally. they acctually let my pet them and eat out of my hand.

i had the idea to get a bow but i just couldnt kill the lil' guys , so they are now my pets.
there are about 4 yearlings and 3 does, they bucks rarely come around and they keep far far away. but man are they monsters

Ya, and as soon as the season is over they will be eating brouse off a tree you just cut and are still trimming it. I think a chain saw works like a deer call after rifle season is over.
I should produce an electronic deer call with one button that sounds like a spinner on a feeder and another button that sounds like a chain saw. Maybe farm tractor sounds also.

I've been swearing that we finally did it! Killed all the deer w/ genes that allow living only on state forest and eating in the daylight... :mad:

If not that then the PGC finally sold too many doe permits!

Yes, the deer notice that it is open season. Even the little ones that have never experienced a season before. Reason: They notice that people begin to act like predators. Slipping, being quiet, hiding, and constantly watching. Deer are not afraid of a mountain line that isn't on the hunt. Once in the Pacific Northwest I hunted in an area heavily populated with blacktails. For three days I hunted like I imagined an Indian would. Seen nothing. I then pondered the reason knowing that these deer watched loggers and etc. daily. I then begin to simply act like a normal human and took the route of least resistance while keeping a sharp outlook for deer. In ten minutes I viewed a nice blacktail buck watching me from fifty yards. I stopped behind a large fir tree out of his vision and the went from ordinary behaviour to sneaky cheating him. I still feel a bit guilty that I presented myself as a non hunter and then become a traitor on his belief that he knew when things were dangerous. Yep they know. We signal it to them and they can smell, see, hear and read signals.

Yep they know. We signal it to them and they can smell, see, hear and read signals.

Ozarkwhittler, I think you make a valid point. I have long felt that deer could "read our minds". Now, I don't know whether they actually have some telepathic sense, but I know that if I am on-stand and looking for, and thinking about, deer I'm almost guaranteed not to see any. On the other hand, if I'm daydreaming with no thoughts of deer at all, they show up. Probably has as much (or more) to do with body language as brain waves.

May be a combination of body language and brain waves. U R right. They don't come they just appear. It is tough work to keep 100 percent alert 20 percent of the time. But dozing off and then opening your eyes to see that wonderful trophy standing broadside in the shooting lane you paid 100 bucks to the dozer operater to create is worth the money paid with 50 percent interest for two years. Been there done it

There's no doubt that they know when you're interested in them. Up until this past summer we lived in the country, surrounded by national forest. I can't recall how many times I was cutting firewood or working in the yard, and looked up to see a herd of 10-15 mulies munching on grass just a few yards away. As soon as they notice you're looking at them they all start getting nervous. Start the saw back up and quit looking and down the heads go again. These were usually does and yearlings only. The bucks ran together and rarely displayed that kind of behavior, although I've walked up on them numerous times while out hiking and not being particularly quiet. They know...

Same goes for seeing deer during elk season and vice versa. They seem to know you're not interested in them.

Maybe thats why every now and then we hear about the new hunter who didn't know what they were doing hardly and they go out and get a huge trophy.

I know when I was younger and was not hunting deer at all I saw a lot more of them then now when I am out hunting them.

One time when I was about 17 or 18 years old I needed some time alone so I took a good book and walked about 1/2 mile from the house back in to the woods.
I sat down and started reading, about 30 to 45 minutes later I sudenly had the feeling I was being watched, I looked up and there about 20 to 25 feet away from me were 5 does with 2 young ones, one of the does was ahead of the others closest to me, she was leaning way forward with her head and neck stretched way out toward me trying to get a good look/smell at what was sitting on the rock in the middle of the woods.
I slowly sat my book down and started watching them, after about 15 minutes of watching me they slowly wondered away with out ever getting spooked at all.


Michael Grace

Yep, Montana had the bright idea to run the start of Antelope season two weeks before the start of Deer/Elk season, so they get thoroughly spooked. Of course they are pretty easy to shoot when you know where the water and food are...