I used to be in that boat too, didn't bait because it was unfathomable to me to spend money in the hopes of securing food. I'm fortunate enough now to be able to hunt just to enjoy my time in the woods and be selective on what I harvest. So now I have spent a whole lot more money on the HOBBY and invested in cameras which bring much enjoyment not only to me but for my family and friends that I can share the pictures and excitement with of nice bucks and other cool critters doing weird stuff. You don't have to have bait in front of your camera to get a lot of pictures, but it helps.
Baiting Mature Bucks.
- Thread starter Jackalope
- Start date
It's a bit ironic. I've spent plenty of money on cameras, gear, stands, etc. We all draw the line somewhere I guess. lol
cspot
Member
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I should add they're not mine. Sent to me by a budddy.
I've never seen it matter. Ear lasts longer and doesn't mold or rot as fast this time of year. Apples, corn, soybean mixed with corn, goat feed all can be used. They key is dumped instead of a feeder.
One thing I have noticed that if you dump one pile, the deer go right for it and will just stand there popping their head up a lot to check around. Instead I "corn bomb" the area. Just scatter it everywhere, takes a little more time when you're doing 100+lbs a site but it's worth it. You will notice that instead of sticking to one spot and being much more alert they will feed along and their head will be to the ground a lot longer.
If you mix in molasses and other additives it can be a bit more difficult, super easy to scatter from a bag.
If you mix in molasses and other additives it can be a bit more difficult, super easy to scatter from a bag.
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So a lot has been covered here but I don’t see anything about introducing a feeder. So that would be my question, when is the best time to introduce a feeder?
My experiences with deer is telling me late season when it’s cold or around March when there isn’t match food around. My problem with both of these timeframes it that deer don’t generally “yard” on my property. Most of the deer are here to have fawns, bred and then disperse once crops come off.
This is an electric feeder.
My experiences with deer is telling me late season when it’s cold or around March when there isn’t match food around. My problem with both of these timeframes it that deer don’t generally “yard” on my property. Most of the deer are here to have fawns, bred and then disperse once crops come off.
This is an electric feeder.
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In my opinion, there isn't a "good" time to introduce an electronic feeder. It will take at least a year before mature bucks use them on a killable pattern like they do dumped corn. Even then they will still skirt it a lot and it will not be as reliant for conditioning as dumped corn. Gravity feeders are a better option, and even better still are the gravity feeders that spill directly on the ground. Can deer be conditioned to an electronic feeder, sure, but from what I have seen it takes a long long time of constant use.
I don’t feed for mature bucks. I do it to keep the doe’s here on my property and have the chance at seeing them in my yard. Has nothing to do with bucks at all. This is basically going to be like a bird feeder for larger wildlife in my yard.
My bad, should’ve said that in my first reply. I realize this thread is about mature bucks, just looking for a little advice.
Lundy
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I never used electronic feeders, couldn't get any mature bucks to use them.
There is not a book with a absolute set of rules of what will work, what won't, when, on what. Deer don't read books to know what they should do or should not do. The deer will tell you very quickly what they will tolerate or not and you will see differences based upon the big list of variables. I do now this for 100% fact, I could control the amount of food and when there was food available with an electronic feeder. There is no way to do that with dumped bait. Deer learn pretty quickly that if they show up after dark there are no goodies left for them. Deer that visit at night and get what they want have no incentive to go during daylight.
Just my personal experience.
There is not a book with a absolute set of rules of what will work, what won't, when, on what. Deer don't read books to know what they should do or should not do. The deer will tell you very quickly what they will tolerate or not and you will see differences based upon the big list of variables. I do now this for 100% fact, I could control the amount of food and when there was food available with an electronic feeder. There is no way to do that with dumped bait. Deer learn pretty quickly that if they show up after dark there are no goodies left for them. Deer that visit at night and get what they want have no incentive to go during daylight.
Just my personal experience.
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I never used electronic feeders, couldn't get any mature bucks to use them.
There is not a book with a absolute set of rules of what will work, what won't, when, on what. Deer don't read books to know what they should do or should not do. The deer will tell you very quickly what they will tolerate or not and you will see differences based upon the big list of variables. I do now this for 100% fact, I could control the amount of food and when there was food available with an electronic feeder. There is no way to do that with dumped bait. Deer learn pretty quickly that if they show up after dark there are no goodies left for them. Deer that visit at night and get what they want have no incentive to go during daylight.
Just my personal experience.
How long did it take before you began to see killable patterns of mature bucks at a new feeder site?
Lundy
Member
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Varied a bunch by location and the individual deer, some within a couple of weeks, some never and everywhere in between. However if I had a known deer that didn't want to play I would move the feeder to another location to try and entice the same deer. Sometimes that worked sometimes not. Deer blocks strategically(50-75 yds away but within site of feeder for buck. ) located near feeders can be extremely productive It also varied greatly by timing, During active rut periods it was somewhat easy to get a buck to a feeder location mid day but typically the most successful time is late in the season.late in the year all they care about is food and safety, sex is off of the table so you are appealing to one of only two primary drives every day There were many deer that I was able to switch from night time only to early morning by only feeding a small amount about an hr after daylight and then again at 2 in the afternoon. There would be no corn available at night, it was all consumed by the time he would show up.. He would show up on the camera at night but wouldn't stay as there was nothing to eat. I have heard some say that a deer won't continue to show up at the bait site if there is no food available for a number of days. My experience was different, By far my favorite part of hunting in my later years was trying to devise a plan to get the deer I wanted where I wanted him, when I wanted him there. Sometimes it worked sometimes it didn't and that was OK. I got to where I didn't want to kill anymore anyway, but I sure do miss the challenges presented by different deer and the locations they live in. I know this will sound a little strange but I enjoyed being beaten by them much more that I enjoyed killing them.
My results and experience may or may not translate to anyone one else, their deer and their locations. I only know what I saw and experienced
My results and experience may or may not translate to anyone one else, their deer and their locations. I only know what I saw and experienced
I get what you're saying Kim about enjoying getting beat as much as winning the match. There are games within the game that's for sure.
Joel
Senior Member
I have been hunting very small areas where I use the corn just to hopefully draw them to where my set up is. Personally I've found it works way way better in the late season. It's like they know they shouldn't be there but they come anyway.
I have a little more room to move around this year so to speak so I'll probably dump some bait at a set up for my daughter and let her shoot a young deer. I'll be waiting patiently with no bait when I hunt solo and if I'm still hunting in the late season I'll drop some coin on a bunch of corn. Shit gets expensive if you do it all season.
I have a little more room to move around this year so to speak so I'll probably dump some bait at a set up for my daughter and let her shoot a young deer. I'll be waiting patiently with no bait when I hunt solo and if I'm still hunting in the late season I'll drop some coin on a bunch of corn. Shit gets expensive if you do it all season.
cspot
Member
Ok. Question for the experts. What is someone like me supposed to do when I am only at my hunting spot every 2-3 weeks. I show up on Friday night and leave on Sunday. Sometimes I come in Saturday night and leave Sunday. Any solutions as it is hard to dump feed and have it still there in 2 weeks.
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Rain and coons are your biggest enemies. The old gravity feeder method works good for preserving and dispensing corn. Something as simple as a 55 gal drum with a mouse hole cut near the ground and a secure top. The coons will still take their share but the corn will stay good
cspot
Member
I may try that next year. I haven't had any luck with keeping a spin spreader running. Seems like after a year they quit working. Now with the drum do you just set it on the ground or elevated? I was also looking at those bank outdoors feeders that mount on a post. Seem like those with a plastic pipe covering the post may deter some of the raccoons especially the smaller ones from getting on it.
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