Ohio 2013 Rut Report.
- Thread starter Jackalope
- Start date
They both eat good. I believe I've told the story here before that I tell all the animal lovers when they ask what I raise on my farm and how I can I eat what I raise.
My come back is "I raise only what I can eat and I've ate dog already". Then the horror starts. You see I went to a Sportsman Dinner and ate some coyote. Same thing right?
This rut is DONE! I had 5 does feeding in the plot tonight where I also had a decoy out. The does feed around, sniffed and stomped at the decoy until they decided it was OK. Then 15 minutes before end of legal light, a nice 3 year old 8 (I call Pretty Boy) came out and fed with them. He never even bothered to bump or chase them does. He then fed up to my decoy, after about 20 minutes and then postured up for a bit. Thats when I threw my grunt tube at him to scare all the deer off the plot.
dante322
*Supporting Member*
That's not a bad lil guy there.... I sure hope something happens for us over the next week.
Mao
Member
Short of seeing some horny 1.5 year olds, I'd agree. Another shitty rut for this guy...
Drove another extra 15 miles on my way home this morning through farmland USA and saw zero deer,nada,zilch....sad
The best days I saw were Nov 1,2,3,6, and the hardest days being the 13,14,15. On the 14th I saw 10 bucks by 9am and rattled in 3 with one calling session. The two biggest then proceeded to rumble at about 60 yards. I have not seen a shooter buck from the treestand all year however. I'm hanging the bow up for a bit. I slept in today and have a full schedule today that does not include treestand time.
I really don't know what to think. My buddy sat on the opposite side of the field from me on Saturday evening and had 3 bucks, two shooters, bumping doe. He said the biggest one was grunting behind them.
On my side? Nothing other than a cruising 8 point on Saturday morning.
On my side? Nothing other than a cruising 8 point on Saturday morning.
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For me, the 28th through Nov 4 were awesome. I did not get to hunt very long any of those mornings, but each hunt was intense for the first two hours after sunrise. The rut seemed pretty normal to me this year, and it's still ticking along I'm sure. What local does were bred, and what are left to be bred will determine what you all will see for the remainder of the season. I've seen some of the best rut action of the year in January. That sounds like bunk, but it's the truth. One hot doe in your neighborhood and every buck around will come looking.
The one pictured below was killed on Dec. 17 a few years back after I'd spotted him locked down with a doe. This deer showed up on the property the year before in late December due to one hot doe. We had killed the dominant buck on the property earlier that season, so this fella just never left. From the time he showed up on the property until his death, I don't think he ever strayed far from the farm. I had pics of him nearly every day for a year.
The rut is a 3 month process. Over the next week, some of the biggest deer of the season will be arrowed. Many of them will get shot due to following a doe, or looking for one. I'm willing to bet some of our members will shoot bucks in gun season that mistakenly followed a doe right down the gun barrel.
Anyone that still has a tag and is not in the woods from now till gun season is out of their minds, IMO. One of the better weeks of the season right now. You may not see as many, but you will likely see the biggest. This is not the time to be giving up!
The one pictured below was killed on Dec. 17 a few years back after I'd spotted him locked down with a doe. This deer showed up on the property the year before in late December due to one hot doe. We had killed the dominant buck on the property earlier that season, so this fella just never left. From the time he showed up on the property until his death, I don't think he ever strayed far from the farm. I had pics of him nearly every day for a year.
The rut is a 3 month process. Over the next week, some of the biggest deer of the season will be arrowed. Many of them will get shot due to following a doe, or looking for one. I'm willing to bet some of our members will shoot bucks in gun season that mistakenly followed a doe right down the gun barrel.
Anyone that still has a tag and is not in the woods from now till gun season is out of their minds, IMO. One of the better weeks of the season right now. You may not see as many, but you will likely see the biggest. This is not the time to be giving up!
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rgecko23
*Supporting Member*
I wanted to give up after sitting in that nasty cold weather last night and seeing 3 doe at last light. I will be at it all day on Friday since I have off work, and the rest of the weekend. Something has to show its face. I have been so close already. If the weather turns cold as it is rigt now. I am done. Its too crazy to be sitting there freezing. I read that this weekend will feel like summer to the temps we are going to be getting after the first of the year.
I was off the 7th thru the 17th and seen very little daytime rut activity. The best day for me was the 16th day before the moon and that weather front. Had deer every where that day. Other than that I seen very little and only 2 shooters during that time. I was in tree day light to dark half those days. Spent time of 5 farms in three differant counties as well. Just a very slow rut in my area. The last time I remember seeing a good rut was 2009 and 2010.
I hunted almost every day from the 8th of November to the 17th of November...and only saw some half way decent chasing the week prior. Go figure. I'm in SW Ohio and there are a lot of crop lands around. We hunt 4 different good sized farms and didn't see much of anything on any of them. From farm lands to hardwoods, the mature bucks seem to not be so wild around where I'm at. However those 1.5 year old deer seem to always have their tongue hanging out. I've seen more 1.5 year old scrappers this year than in all my years hunting.
That's okay though...cause I know the big boy is out there.
That's okay though...cause I know the big boy is out there.
Fullbore
Senior Member
It was my observation that most of the active rutting was from dark to dark. I was off from the 8th-17th and hunted every hour possible. I did see some day time activity, mostly 1.5-2.5 year old bucks. I saw 3 shooters from the stand, but 2 of them were at the last 15 minutes of day light. Those bigger bucks just don't show themselves like their younger brothers. Lol. It would be interesting to see what you miss in your tree stands after dark. It seems as I get home at dark, every dog in the neighborhood is raising hell. Huh! Timing and choosing the right stand on the right day is a flip of a coin. Sometimes I just get it right. Lol.
I observed minimal rut activity this year as well. I truly thought the last week of October through the first week of November it would be smoking based on the moon. Apparently is was in some places, but it was absolutely dead for me, and it just never picked up. I kept waiting (and still am) but it just isn't happening. I have hunted 5 different farms across two counties, and only a couple days did I see some chasing. Most days I didn't even see a deer. I will be at it Thanksgiving morning, and then all day Friday, Saturday and Sunday. Right now I see my chances of killing a mature buck turning into a pipe dream though. There just isn't a decent deer population on really any of the places I hunt. I'm with Brock though, never give up. As much as I love seeing deer, I keep in the back of my mind that it only takes one of them suckers walking by (the right one) to make my entire season. If I didn't think that way I would have no other option but to give up. It's the world the DOW has allowed us to create.
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I saw a respectable amount of rut behavior. Looking back though, all but a couple occurrences were 2.5yr old and younger bucks. I saw one shooter chasing. I hunted. I hunted a LOT. Couple sub 120" bucks cruising. Really never saw any big boys this year either.
Buckmaster
Senior Member
Nothing after Nov 14th for me. Back to normal. An occassional doe, small bucks, and no sign of big boy.