Sep 2010
Not a hunter but a stupid question?
Hello all, I am not a hunter or oppose to hunting I just don’t have the opportunity to go and live far from any place you’d be able to hunt. Anyway, my question is, I was watching the outdoor channel, and I see hunters rattling/rubbing deer antlers together. It looked very odd but then minutes (after rattling) a huge buck came running into an open field. Are they attracted to the sound? What makes them do that? A bit confused.. Is this some kind of a mating call? Also, the hunters on the show use terms like: 5 point or 10 point. What does that mean? What is the acceptable points (?) while deer hunting? Also, I see when they get shot they’re still able to take off running for a few feet. How is that possible?
Thanks for the invitation,
Theo, in San Diego
Rattling antlers attracts bucks if done during the annual rut. It is a Challenge sound that attracts the other deer. The point system refers to how many antler tips the deer has, which increases with age.During the mating season the dominate males fight each other for breeding rights many times this consists of them facing off locking horns together and shaking and pushing each other to establish who is the larger and stronger male. This attracts other males kind of like a fight attracts spectators. So this is why rattling brings deer into the open field. Adrenaline is what is pumped through the animal after being shot, which gives them the ability to run long distances before the die. There you go.. The real question is did you enjoy the show?
BB
Hey BB good reply. Let me kick in a little .02
During the “rut”-mating season male deer (Bucks) act like teen age boys. They fight each other over turf and females. The antler rattling sounds like fighting deer, and others will come to investigate/join in.
Points are how many points(tines) are on a set of antlers. Generally, more and bigger is always better
. Now some states have minimum restrictions, to give the younger deer more time to mature, and to make sure hunters are shooting older, more mature bucks that might not have too much longer to live anyway.
I shot a 2 point this season, but through the scope it looked like a doe, and I hunt to fill the freezer.
Darren