Episode #89 - 2021 Rut Setting Up To Be FANTASTIC!

Published: 2021-11-01
Episode page
Duration: 67 min

In this episode

2022-plans

• Terry said they have been finalizing their 2022 sponsorship program and will be making related announcements soon. 28:47

buck-sighting

• Don passed on a 3-year-old nine-point buck that walked within 10 yards of his stand at dark, letting it move off undetected. 5:49

consulting-clients

• Don’s deer consulting clients had an outstanding October, with three of them killing bucks over 200 inches and others taking bucks scoring 196 and 192 inches. 11:38

corey-hamilton

• Terry joked that Corey, who climbs electric poles for utility work, would be the best ‘ninja’ among his friends. 7:06 (light moment)

deer-movement

• Don reported that deer movement and weather have been fantastic since he started hunting mornings on October 30. 2:50

deer-recovery

• Corey Hamilton’s buck was still alive the next morning, requiring him to stalk it and finish it with a second arrow. 6:41

disconnecting

• Terry left his cell phone at home during a 3.5-hour evening sit, finding the disconnection refreshing. 64:11

doe-management

• Rob from Ada, Michigan asked whether to keep aggressively harvesting does on his ‘fall doe factory’ property, and how to bring bucks back for fall. 42:53

foundation-policy

• Don explained the foundation board decided against raffling off hunts donated by outside parties, deeming it a bad idea to raffle random hunts at different places. 17:59

ground-blind

• A listener asked whether deer notice a ground blind placed in the middle of an open field and how to brush it in so it isn’t detected. 30:45

guest-announcement

• Don announced that legendary bowhunter Gene Wensel has agreed to appear as a guest on the podcast, likely before Christmas. 41:08

hunting-ethics

• Don recalled his father telling him they would do things the right way or not at all, after Don suggested gaming the family deer tag lottery. 57:16
• Easton McNeil from Mansfield, Ohio asked whether growing disregard for hunting laws should just be accepted as a trend, or whether there’s a better way to address it. 53:29

listener-appreciation

• The Metzger family, longtime podcast listeners, baked cookies and mailed them to Terry for his birthday. 2:00

moon-phase

• Mark Gingerich from Gays Mill, Pennsylvania asked whether Don pays attention to the moon phase, including red moon theory, when deciding when to hunt. 33:23

november-7

• Don noted that November 7 is historically the date when more mature bucks (‘boomers’) are killed than any other day. 63:28

november-rut

• Adam Rosendale from Forest, Ohio asked Don to elaborate on mature buck tendencies for morning hunting outside of November. 46:36

prayer-list

• Terry announced they started occasionally posting a prayer list connecting listener families in need with the podcast’s foundation. 14:57

raffle

• Don announced a raffle drawing on November 28 for a new Mathews bow and a late-season hunt on his farm. 20:26
• Don said he donated the bow and hunt this year, with raffle tickets priced at $20 each or six for $100. 21:45
• The church announced that 300 raffle tickets had already been sold. 22:28
• Terry repeated the mailing address for bow-raffle ticket checks: Solid Rock Chapel, PO Box 172, Sullivan, Illinois 61951. 22:57

rut-excitement

• Terry said he’s more excited for the rut than ever this year and still holds unfilled bow tags in both Kentucky and Illinois. 61:52

rut-report

• Don announced he’ll post a new Rut Report on Facebook and Instagram every evening. 66:03

scent-control

• A listener asked how Don handles urinating during an all-day tree stand sit — using a bottle or peeing off the stand. 39:01

social-media-scam

• Someone created a fake Higgins Outdoors Facebook page using Don’s stolen photo, falsely told entrants they’d won the contest, and directed them to enter credit card info — a scam. 9:15

sponsorship-policy

• Terry said the podcast won’t partner with sponsors or use products they haven’t personally tested, despite growing requests for partnerships. 28:43

technical-issue

• Terry explained last week’s podcast was cut short because a corrupted SD card kept the upload service from recognizing the recording. 30:11

vaccine-mandate

• Don suggested that electrical linemen have the most leverage to end the vaccine mandate by refusing to work until it’s rescinded. 24:44

wes-delks

• Terry noted that Wes Delks appears to be spending his hunting season remodeling a newly purchased house rather than hunting. 4:20

Deer activity

• unnamed buck (sighting) 5:23
• unnamed buck (harvest) 6:34
• unnamed buck (sighting) 39:55

Listener questions

Question: A listener asked whether deer notice a ground blind placed in the middle of an open field and how to brush it in so it isn’t detected. 30:45

• Answer: Don said a blind in the open works but makes entering and exiting without being detected by mature bucks much harder. 31:26
• Answer: Don recommended planting fast-growing Miscanthus grass around an exposed field blind to create quick concealment cover. 32:20

Question: Mark Gingerich from Gays Mill, Pennsylvania asked whether Don pays attention to the moon phase, including red moon theory, when deciding when to hunt. 33:23 — asked by Mark Gingerich

• Answer: Don said he doesn’t follow moon charts, believing weather and the rut phase matter far more than moon phase, though he thinks the moon has some effect. 36:47

Question: A listener asked how Don handles urinating during an all-day tree stand sit — using a bottle or peeing off the stand. 39:01

• Answer: Don recounted peeing from his tree stand and having a two-year-old eight-point buck walk up minutes later, smell the spot, and calmly eat leaves — convincing him deer urine doesn’t spook deer. 39:55

Question: Rob from Ada, Michigan asked whether to keep aggressively harvesting does on his ‘fall doe factory’ property, and how to bring bucks back for fall. 42:53 — asked by Rob

• Answer: Don advised Rob to eliminate human intrusion, stop worrying about doe numbers since uncooperative neighbors negate the effort, and give bucks security to draw them back. 45:47

Question: Adam Rosendale from Forest, Ohio asked Don to elaborate on mature buck tendencies for morning hunting outside of November. 46:36 — asked by Adam Rosendale

• Answer: Don explained that in November, mature bucks abandon feeding patterns entirely and are instead covering ground at dawn searching for does coming into estrus. 48:26
• Answer: Don added that a mature buck spotted on a November morning is typically covering ground rather than casually moving, so hunters must be ready to shoot quickly. 48:55

Question: Easton McNeil from Mansfield, Ohio asked whether growing disregard for hunting laws should just be accepted as a trend, or whether there’s a better way to address it. 53:29 — asked by Easton McNeil

• Answer: Don said hunters shouldn’t report every secondhand rumor, but should report law violations they personally witness, and must set an ethical example for younger hunters. 58:43
• Answer: Terry said he keeps the game warden’s number in his phone and will report anyone he personally sees breaking game laws. 60:21

Sponsors this episode

• BuyAFarm.com
• Victory Chevrolet
• 360 Hunting Blinds
• Lone Wolf Treestands
• WildlifeFarming.com
• QuietKat
• Vortex Optics
• Real World Wildlife Products
• Mathews Archery

Don reported his deer consulting clients had a strong October, with three bucks over 200 inches and others at 196 and 192. He said deer movement and weather had been excellent since he began hunting mornings on October 30, and he passed on a young nine-point buck at dark. Corey Hamilton’s buck was recovered the next morning after a follow-up shot. Listener questions covered brushing in an open-field ground blind with fast-growing Miscanthus grass, whether moon phase matters (Don said weather and rut timing matter more), tree-stand urination not spooking deer, managing a doe-heavy property, and mature buck movement patterns in November versus other months. A listener also asked about disregard for hunting laws, prompting Don and Terry to say they report violations they personally witness. The episode also covered a scam Facebook page impersonating the show, an upcoming Gene Wensel guest appearance, and details of a bow-and-hunt raffle benefiting the podcast’s foundation.

Unofficial fan project. AI-synthesized from public episodes; may contain errors.