Hunting a deer is always a unique experience, whether you take a large or a small one. Obviously your goal is to kill a big and fast one, but sometimes being outdoors in contact with nature is all you need to recharge the batteries. If you want to increase your chances of success, and have fun, here are some tips for your deer hunting trip.
Steps
Part 1 of 4: Before the Hunt
Step 1. Obtain the necessary hunting license from the State Police and Forest Police and any permits for deer hunting
Inquire at their offices and websites. The permit could cost up to € 100 per hunting day. Here is some information that the permit must report:
- How long does the deer hunting season last. Usually the "season" is divided into periods dedicated to each weapon, for example one for the shotgun, one for bow and arrow etc …
- How many deer can you kill.
- What kind of deer can you shoot down.
- Other safety regulations, such as essential clothing and hunting hours.
Step 2. Remember what your country's firearms laws are
Although a firearm is not required to go hunting deer, it is still the most popular way to do it. Go to the State Police office closest to you and ask for information. Do exactly what is required to obtain a license. Don't try to cheat, follow the law! If you cannot handle firearms for reasons related to your health or your conduct, consider bow hunting which is just as exciting. Once it is clear to you which permissions you need, move accordingly.
Step 3. Keep your clothing tidy
You may think that what you wear is not that important, but it is quite the opposite. When dealing with other hunters, when trying to blend in and having to sit for long periods, what you wear plays a vital role.
- Orange. Deer don't see very well. If you go hunting with a firearm, check your country's regulations regarding how much orange clothing you must wear. Almost all states require it.
- Mimetic. Complete your hunting outfit with a combination of camouflage clothing, both to disguise yourself with the environment and to look like the "right" type. Depending on the season you hunt, you can vary the shade of camouflage clothing.
- Hunting boots. Buy a pair of Gore-Tex with 800 gram Thinsulate-Ultra Insulation and Cordura Nylon. The Gore-Tex makes the boots waterproof, the 800 gram Thinsulate will keep your feet warm and the Cordura Nylon is easier to maintain than leather.
Step 4. Get the proper equipment
In addition to your favorite weapon, the right clothing and your inexhaustible courage, there are other essential things you need to take with you on a hunting trip. Here are the basic elements you will need. You may want other things, based on your personal needs, but if you have everything in the list below, you are well on your way.
- Heating pillow. It will keep your butt warm when you need to sit in the woods. Get a thick foam one. Sew a strip of fabric about 20 cm into a loop and attach it to the heating pillow. After that, fasten the ring to the waistband of your pants behind you. Use it only if it's really cold, raining or snowing. Some hunters just like to sit on something warm and soft but you can still sit on your pillow if it's really cold.
- Binoculars. Let's be honest: most of the time you spend "hunting", you spend it waiting. If you have good binoculars you can spot the deer before it is in range and you will have time to prepare to kill it.
- Survival kit. Consider bringing a kit with: insect repellent, a flashlight, a knife and sharpening stone, first aid supplies, a compass and a butane lighter.
Step 5. Identify the area where the large males hang around
If you want to hunt one - why shouldn't you? - you need to know where I am. Large male deer are intelligent. They became adults for a reason: they avoid contact with humans and dangerous situations. Here are some tips where to find them:
- Choose a dense and inhospitable area of the forest for humans. Where the human being cannot go, the deer grazes free. A dense cedar grove, an old swampy area, look for a path and set up your post.
- Large deer tend to sleep and rest at higher altitudes and in shady places. Here they remain more hidden and away from the threat of man.
- Deep streams are another great hiding place for big deer. These places allow them to rest and have water available in a relatively isolated area.
Step 6. Also consider setting up several hunting posts in the trees if necessary
Sometimes you will find them ready, but for the most part you will have to assemble them yourself. Scour various areas before and during the hunting season as deer change their habits. Climate change and interaction with humans have a great impact on their environment.
- There are several types of elevated workstations on the market to choose from. There are small and inexpensive units, such as chairs to be fixed to the tree, those with ladders, or other larger and more expensive ones such as turrets or three-footed structures and houses.
- You can build your station yourself by hoisting a simple platform on a tall enough tree. The appearance of your workstation is not very important as its safety and height.
Step 7. Place exits in your area if you have a private area in which to hunt
Putting bait is a good way to make the deer believe that this is a good area. In many states you cannot hunt within 270 meters of the bait, so stop putting them in a week or 10 days before the hunt. How do deer seem to like:
- Corn.
- Apples.
- Carrots.
- Blocks of mineral salts to lick.
- Sugar beets.
Part 2 of 4: During the Hunt
Step 1. Invite a friend or family member
Hunting is more fun in a group of responsible and reliable friends or with family. If you hunt alone, there are a few things you will need to do for your safety:
- Always carry a fully charged mobile phone.
- Tell someone you're going hunting, what time you plan to return, and stick to the schedule. Have someone check that you are back safe and sound.
- If you don't have direct knowledge of your hunting area, bring a GPS or do some research and get a topographical map to study it; try to remember some landmark or a stream - they could make a difference if you get lost.
Step 2. Look for signs in the trees before hunting
Footprints, scratches, trails are all indicators of the presence of deer in that particular area. Make sure you hunt close to those marks.
- Scratches are marks in the ground that deer leave during the mating season. The sooner you find these signs during the hunting season, the more likely the presence of deer is.
- You can also find abrasions on tree bark caused by antlers in love. The size of these abrasions is a good indicator of the size of the deer.
Step 3. Use a product to hide your human smell when you hunt
Deer have excellent senses, especially hearing and smell. Hiding your scent increases the odds of taking home a nice trophy.
If you don't want to spend money on such a product, use baking soda. Combine a tablespoon of baking soda with unscented soap and use it to shower before the hunt. Put some in your boots, between one dress and the next put some "layers" of baking soda; you should also use it to brush your teeth. Baking soda is an inexpensive product to cover the odor of all hunters
Step 4. Lure or draw the deer towards you
Hunters have a myriad of techniques to call deer back to where they are waiting. You have many options:
- Use a deer call. You can do this with your voice or with a mechanical instrument that plays the line of "a doe in love". Just rotate this tool (which looks like a can) to simulate the female bleating.
- Use the smell of a female in love. Buy a spray or bring a rag soaked in female urine ready for mating. In some cases the big male will follow the smell and come towards you.
- Deer urine early in the season. Big males are very territorial early in the season, especially if they are competing. Covering your scent with male deer urine can have its benefits.
- Horn noise early in the season. The sound of antlers colliding with each other sends a signal to the other fighting deer and attracts them. Use this call.
Part 3 of 4: Shoot
Step 1. Be patient
If you've hid your scent, used the right calls, and shed pheromones, there's a good chance a full-grown male deer will pass you by. Be patient - shooting to kill is much easier when a deer is 20-30 meters away. Do not shoot from too far away, the chances of hitting the deer in non-vital places are very high, you could only injure it (causing a long and painful agony) and scare the rest of the deer.
Step 2. Get up as soon as possible
When the deer is approaching but is still far enough away, get up. This is the biggest movement you have to do and it is also the one that more than any other will make you risk scaring your prey if you do it too late.
Step 3. Stand as still as possible as you prepare to shoot
It is very important to be silent before shooting to avoid frightening the deer. This also depends on the type of weapon you are using.
- If you use a rifle or a crossbow, keep the weapon loaded but with the safety on. Then all you have to do is release the safety and pull the trigger. Do not be caught unprepared with the weapon still to be loaded.
- If you use a bow and arrow, be as precise as possible when nocking. Try to stand up. It will improve your performance and won't limit the types of shots you can take.
Step 4. Aim for shoulders, neck or head
Aim the rifle at the front leg, 15 cm above the animal's chest. If you do it correctly, the blow will cross the animal's vital points, killing it instantly and without unnecessary suffering. Other vital points are the neck and the head.
Step 5. If you hit the deer, look at the blood
Your goal as a responsible hunter is to kill him with one shot; in this way the deer is killed quickly without excessive pain and suffering. To understand what kind of blow you have dealt, look at the blood and the ground around the animal, the blood should be:
- Brown hair and pink blood with air bubbles: you have probably taken a lung. This is excellent news. Your deer is around and not in pain.
- Brown hair and dark red blood: You probably hit the deer in the liver. Your prey may survive longer than you want, however it will die quickly enough.
- Thin white hair and thin blood with bile or other stomach contents: you have missed vital points. You will have to look for and follow the deer and finish it off with another hit.
Part 4 of 4: After the Hunt
Step 1. Try to locate the exact spot where the deer was when you hit it
Start from this point and look for traces of blood to point you in the direction it went. With your compass, GPS and a friend, follow the tracks and note the direction.
Wait 30 minutes before starting chasing the deer. You will thus give the animal the opportunity to lie down and bleed. If you chase it immediately, the adrenaline will start pumping and will make the animal go further than you would like
Step 2. Follow the trail of blood until it takes you to the animal
Look at the bushes and foliage for clues as to the direction of the deer. Here are some tricks I can help you when you follow the tracks:
- Use hydrogen peroxide in a spray bottle. Spray the hydrogen peroxide and any traces of blood will begin to foam just like when you apply it to a wound or a cut.
- Use a fluorescent light. You can buy one for 20 euros and it does its job in identifying bloodstains, especially at sunrise and sunset.
Step 3. When you spot the deer, make sure it's dead
You can also call a friend to help you drag the prey out of the woods.
Step 4. Learn how to slaughter deer on the spot
Handling meat is a profession that cannot be learned overnight thanks to a manual. Most hunters have learned this from their "mentor" and this is the best way for various reasons. Look for an experienced hunting companion. Not only is it relatively unsafe to hunt alone, but a hunting companion can turn out to be a good friend who can help you with tasks like this.
Step 5. Enjoy your loot
Respect the animal that gave its life, also use its meat and don't just take the trophies you need.
Advice
- Hunting in the territories of the state. Each country has a park where deer can be hunted in season. Hunting in these places is more difficult but less expensive.
- Legal them or you will lose them! If your gloves, hat, headgear, warming pillow (or any other accessory that you can lose) does not have a hook, contact a tailor, the laundry or, better still, a family member to have them sewn. The best choice are orange or bright yellow rings about 3 cm wide. Buy 1 euro clamps and clip your expensive gear to your pants.
- Talk to the locals, who frequent the sporting goods store, about hunting methods and areas.
- Two-way radios are extremely important when hunting. Thanks to them you always stay in contact with other hunters all the time. When you shoot / transport a deer, you can call your companions to help you. You will also be able to walk more. If you see a car in the woods or on the trail, if you spot another hunter who needs help, you can call your friends. Hunters love the “live report” of an encounter with a deer or, better still, with a bear! Call your friends and describe the situation in detail. You will gas them a lot! Also talking with friends will distract you on long stalking in the cold. The best radios are those that can cover a distance of 20 km and have a power of 5 watts.
- If the deer charges at you, run away. He is bigger and much stronger than you. Such a meeting could be the last for you.
Warnings
- Make sure you obtain a hunting license and take a training course for hunters.
- Handle your firearms as if they were always loaded. Never point them at people and always be aware of the position of the gun barrel. Always leave the safety on until you are ready to shoot your prey.
- Never hunt in a NATURAL PARK. You can hunt in a game reserve but make sure you know the difference between the two.
- Handle your weapons safely. Take your finger off the trigger until you are ready to fire. Make it a habit.
- Never enter private property unless it is on a game reserve; possibly ask for written permission from the owner before hunting.
- Be careful when going up and down the trees.
- Read (all) of your state's hunting regulations.
- If you hit a deer without taking it down and the deer runs away, DO NOT chase it and do not leave your position. An injured deer can trot for a while and then look for a sheltered place to rest while a hunted deer can run for miles.
