Deer decoy advice needed

[Mike Belt]

I'll add that a small bit of motion does wonders to attract deer where they may not have seen the decoy initially. I used a battery operated tail wager for a while but they tend to make a "clicking" sound so I quit. I went through a couple of them with the same results. Now I just use a sheet of a paper towel that will lightly blow in the wind.

 

[gatodoc]

I've set up a buck decoy in fields several times. So far only had young bucks come to check them out.

left an archery buck decoy in a field in AL last year during the rut ( bout now) the next day it was knocked over and laying 30yrds away next to a trail leaving the field. One leg was missing. Never got a picture. But kept looking for a buck with the fake leg stuck on his antlers.

 

[Headhunter]

I'd probably set up in the cover.

My advice is NOT to set up in the cover. It is very difficult to place a decoy where deer will see it and also a deer standing dead still, decoy, in cover especially thick cover, is an ALARM to other deer. Deer react in many ways to a decoy, in the wide open, they generally at least come look at it, although they do ignore it at times. Every single time I have placed a decoy in cover, every single deer that did see it, spooked and quickly.

I have killed several does when using a decoy as a doe. Does hate an "unknown" doe showing up. They will check out a doe decoy quickly and they focus on it. Not really, but it seems like you could go jumping jacks and they wouldn't notice you.

I believe a decoy that is a buck is best for bucks. Several bucks have came to a buck decoy for me, just nothing I wanted to kill.

The hardest part is placing the decoy so deer can see it. It is crazy to put a decoy out and think most any deer that comes by can see it, but my biggest issue has been deer I can see from the stand but they never see the decoy. The deer needs to see the decoy for it to attract them and it is hard to get a decoy where they can be easily seen by the deer.