I’m calling “just because”

Ever since calling became popular I’ve heard folks on hunting shows and in magazine articles, etc…..recommending the tactic of using a grunt to blind call every so often in hopes that a passing buck in the distance may hear it and be drawn your way. I’ve done it a lot over the years and I have had some good encounters with bucks during that time as a result…..not a ton of them but some. Over the last few years though, I’ve completely changed my mind about calling blind like that and decided that its probably not a good idea. Sure, I’ve called up a few doing it….but for every one I called up there were probably 50 I ran off and never even knew it.

Something I’ve come to realize is that during the rut….bucks probably respond to our calling more than we realize. However, a buck with some age on him is rarely gonna just come walking in and expose himself. They’ll respond to the call but they’ll stop out in the distance and wait to check things out first. They want to see and/or smell the source of the calling. They’re very patient too and will stand there as long as they need to. The vast majority of the time they won’t ever commit to coming any closer without that confirmation of seeing/smelling……..Its during this time when they’re out in the distance waiting that the either the wind shifts or the hunter gets impatient and gives himself away and the buck leaves without the hunter ever knowing he was there. If you’re gonna go out and do any calling….you need to have a solid game plan ahead of time or you’re gonna run far more bucks off than you call in.

Another thing I do different now is that when I do feel like I have a good situation where calling may be successful….I no longer blow my grunt call multiple times. What I do now is I make one or two long deep grunt that’s loud enough I know it can be heard for a little ways and then I put it down and leave it alone. If a buck is in the mood to respond to calling during the rut it usually isn’t gonna take multiple calling sequences to coax him….he’s gonna be coming when he hears that first “Errrrrrrrrrp”……

Now, we’ve probably all been in the turkey woods or deer hunting when all of sudden out of the blue you hear a gobble or grunt and you’re like “Damn, where did that come from?!?”…..You know you heard one gobble generally in this or that direction but not exactly sure…..Then it gobbles again and you ‘re able pinpoint where it came from a little better…..and with each gobble you hone it on in…..Well, you’re allowing that buck to do the same thing when you pick that grunt call back up after two or three minutes and blow it again. He's gonna know exactly where to look for movement and how far he needs to move in to see it. What I’m hoping for with my one or two grunts is that he hears it suddenly but doesn’t get a good read on the exact distance and location…..I hoping that he misjudges where it came from and maybe moves in too far or looking for the source of the grunt……I look at it now a lot like calling turkey.....You want to make him search for you without knowing exactly where you're at.

I’m sure we all have our opinions of the subject. It’s just something to think about before pulling that grunt call out next season and tootin away on it.

I have never had any success calling. I did call in a doe one time with one of those cans.

The number of bucks I have called in and killed I can count on one hand, with a couple fingers left over.

I've only done it once. It was cool when it happened though. I heard a grunt about 100 yards away, and the buck and I grunted back and forth at each other for 10 minutes before he came in and I shot him.

There might have been other bucks I killed that were responding to a call I made prior, but if that's what they were doing, I didn't know it. I've grunted, and 20 minutes later seen a buck and shot him. Don't know if he was responding to my calling or not. Most of the time when I've blown a grunt call, the deer just looks around for a minute and goes about his business.

I dont call for reasons u mentioned...its hard enough to kill a mature deer but when u raise his senses even more the stars need to align...its one thing to see the deer and then act but its another to blind call...

Not one time have I ever had a deer come to a grunt call. Or at least one that I saw. Same with rattling. I carry one (one made by Johnny Broadway that sounds awesome) and I'll use it every year just to see if anything will respond. I'm decades into it with zero deer killed as a result of a grunt call.

Dr. B

If you haven’t had any success calling try this…..next year during the rut hang you a climber (or lock-on ahead of time) just off the edge of a bedding area that’s holding some does….put it near where they tend to enter/exit the most….Then on a good cold morning when the thermals are gonna be taking your scent up in the air…..try giving your grunt call one solid deep grunt…..Not the little short “Errp” the way folks often do it…..but a more drawn out “Errrrrrrrp” that last 2-3 seconds....with a little more volume than you likely do normally too....not excessively loud but make sure it gets heard. Then put your call and away…..stay still…..and probably most importantly, listen. You’re likely not gonna hear him come trotting to you answering back…..You’re more likely gonnaj catch something like the sound of twig breaking as he’s slowly sneaking in to you. If you do hear one but can’t see him…..don’t give into temptation and start blowing your call again….just let him keep searching......

Here a buck could care less about a grunt or a can I’ve only had luck stopping them. Now in Winston county I have taken the can and called bucks 400 yds across a clear cut

I’ve learned whether its predators, hogs, deer, or whatever, they have an uncanny ability to pinpoint a call even if you blow it once or twice. For deer and hogs I only blow now to chance pulling them in if they are moving off. I believe it unnecessarily raises senses too.

Called in and killed several.

I carry one but almost never use my grunt call. The few times it has worked, I had a hot doe in the green field already. Usually these does are nervous and constantly looking back into the woods. A couple of quick grunts were enough to make the buck step to the edge of the field. One mistake was all it took. That said , this has only happened and worked a handful of times in my lifetime.

I dont like calling blind, because I always thought that a deer that I didnt know was there would lock in on you. But when nothing is happening, I find myself calling blindly. I guess I need to be more disciplined.

Here’s an out of the box calling technique for anyone who isn’t skeered to try something new. There’s a good chance that some folks will call bullchit on me here….or reference crack pipes, etc…. but I’m being dead serious when I tell you that it works. I’ve called up several out of their beds doing this in the past few years just playing around with it. The whole thing came about from me listening and observing deer behavior at night during the rut from my back porch. I got bored one day and said what the hell, why not?? All I’m doing is simply imitating what I heard from the real thing.

In order for this to work you need to have a spot where you can get in relatively close to where the buck is bedded during the rut….. and it needs to be where he’s able to hear you but not see you. Down the edge of some young pines where they meet a hardwood drainage would probably be a good example…The more familiar you are with the property and exactly where the deer like to bed the better off you’ll be trying this. Part of the reason I’ve had success with it is because I know where the bucks are likely bedded and I’m able to get in relatively close without getting too close.

Alright here it is……..Were gonna do this in the middle of the day during the rut on a fairly calm day when the woods are quiet. You ideally want a little wind to take your scent in one direction but the idea here is for them to be able to hear you. For whatever reason it seems to work best in the middle of the day. First, ease in toward your selected bedding area just like you would normally slip in to your stand….but once you think you’re close enough for the deer to start hearing you then you’re gonna switch gears from a sneaking hunter to a rutting buck……

Have a spot picked out 50-60 yards ahead of you where you’re eventually gonna sit down and watch. Instead of trying to walk quietly and slip into that spot like we often do…..start taking one step every 2-3 seconds with a little stomp at the end of each step….Remember, you’re wanting the deer to hear this….You’re imitating the way a buck walks when he’s posturing…..A lot of you have probably seen them do this. Deliberately try and imitate an old bowed up stiff legged buck slowly moving in……make each step have that authentic sounding little stomp at the end….Pause a few seconds every now and then and listen….About halfway to your spot….stop for 10-15 seconds and use an antler to thrash a little sapling several times…….just like a buck rubbing and working over a sapling......Once you do that then keep going toward your spot to sit down doing the same walk…..Deer aren’t scared and spooked by noise…there’s a chit load of noise going on in the woods during the rut…….they’re spooked by noise that sound unnatural…..Do you know what you sound like when you try and slip into a spot when its real quiet in the woods?......You sound like a hunter trying to slip in on him….

So….once you get to your spot where you’re gonna sit…..take your foot and paw out a spot in the leaves where you’re gonna sit…..picture a buck pawing out a scrape and do the same thing they do……make it sound just like a buck cleaning out a scrape….…once you do that then sit down and blow your grunt call one time with a long deep grunt…..”Errrrrrrrrp”……now put it away and get ready………be super still and quiet and listen for anything to respond…..Give it 30 minutes or so and if nothing is happening….get up and move on down the edge of the bedding area repeating the process.

Now that may sound goofy to some of y’all but its exactly what the bucks are used to hearing. If you’ll make each one those actions sound real as you possible can it’ll make the deer more likely to respond than if you just went out blowing a grunt……he’s hearing numerous sounds he’s familiar with that are persuading him it’s another buck approaching……but you need to fully commit to it if you’re gonna do it…..I mean you’ve got to be willing to go full retard. Try it sometimes when you’re bored and just wanting something do during the middle of the day. You might be surprised.

I know a lot of great hunters and a few professionals. Hunted with a lot of people.

Can't say I ever had anyone say..... "Now here's what you do - get you a grunt call and......"

Throw it in the trash and move on.

HORSECHITT. I've grunted up a couple of dozen bucks over the last 40 years in multiple counties. Doesn't work all the time, and will spook a buck if used too much. Killed several nice bucks using one.

I won't go bowhunting without TWO grunt calls.

I've seen the guys on the hunting public do this. Seems to work for them. But then again, EVERYTHING seems to work for them.

The very first time I tried it I called in a 120ish inch 8 point to within about 30-35 yards.....I heard him when he got up out of his bed and start slipping to me. He got right to the edge of the thick stuff but only stepped out enough to stick his neck out and look. I had a neck shot but there was a few good size saplings in the way so I didn't take the shot. He was a pretty borderline shooter anyways . He stood there for a minute and then just slipped back into the thicket. It was pretty cool to see it work like it did.....He responded immediately.


Location and timing are both gonna play big factor in it in my opinion……There’s two places where I think you’ll have the best chance of getting one to respond. I’ve already referenced to the first one and that’s right on the edge of a good bedding area. Bucks like to run the edges scent checking the trails that go in and out. If you can ever find where multiple trails leave a bedding area and then converge together…..that’s likely to be a hotspot…..Bucks will bed up and hang out in those locations waiting on does to pass by. The second location where I think calling will have better chance of working is around a staging area leading to a food plot/food source…..This is another spot where bucks will be checking or hanging out waiting.

The other factor…..and probably the one that has the most impact of all…..is timing……A lot of being successful calling is just catching a buck at just the right moment…..The deer as a whole may be “in rut” but what each individual buck is doing on any one given day during that time period will vary. You have to have a little luck on your side and catch one during a few brief periods that he’ll go through. Once a buck gets with a doe and starts tending her….you’re likely not gonna call him in…..except right before she’s receptive to breed. That’s when he’ll be ready to defend her and run off other bucks, You’re probably talking about a few hours of one day that will happen with each doe. Once he finishes with her though then he’ll go back to find another one….Again he’ll be vulnerable to calling for a brief time period before he find another one going hot. If it during the peak of the rut then it likely won’t take him long to locate one….Also that’s when there’s the most does available so there’s not a lot to fight over. Like I said, there’s a good bit of luck in just catching one at the right time…..It may only be for a few hours on 2 or 3 days here and there during the rut when an individual buck is vulnerable to calling…..and even then some bucks will and some won’t likely depending on dominance, agez and individual attitude . One of the best times to call in an old buck in my opinion is right toward the tail end of the rut…..That’s when the buck to hot doe ratio is the lowest and the old dogs are having to compete a little more for the few hot does.

I killed my biggest and only Grunted in Public Land Deer back years ago.

Hunting a creek bottom, it sounded like a tree frog. So every sound it made, I tried to mimic the same sound back at that frog.

This was before cell phones, so me and my buddy had those Motorola Radios. He came over the radio and asked if I'd seen anything. Told him I was playing with a tree frog.

No sooner than we got done talking, I grunted again and this nice 8pt came running out of the creek straight at me. I had my .270 up and waiting for him to stop.

When he finally stopped about 75yds out, he had me pegged, and was looking at me right down my scope. And I was 25 feet up a pine tree.

It was a straight on shot, and he flopped over. Haven't grunted one in since. But I believe it does work.

I’ve had it work a couple of times. It’s a situational aid. You can blind call and might get lucky but you probably won’t.

Hunting the Midwest helped me at home

A bunch

Watching deer vocalize dozens of times. Especially bucks chasing and how they grunted and how other bucks responded was eye opening

It works here too

Got a few hanging on the wall from home that no doubt responded to the calling.

I' called in a buck one afternoon by accident with a snort wheeze. It was time to get down and I was just trying to run the does away for a minute so I could get down. I did a snort wheeze and when I did a buck came charging in from behind me. All I could see was a black outline as he stepped into my trail I walk out on and started making a scrape. I got down and turned my light on and he didn't run off. It reeked of rutty buck too. When is started walking his direction he just hopped over in the thick stuff aboutt 30 yards and stopped. It was a pretty tense walk out of there. I'm pretty sure I was between him and his doe when I made the snort wheeze and that's what got him all pissy

I've grunted blindly and had bucks come in on a rope. What's interesting is the black tails come to the same EZ Grunt I used in Alabama. My sons first blacktail in Kodiak came from about 300yds away to a grunt.