Texas weather

So I am sitting in the stand as I have been the last 4 weekends in a row here in the southern part of live oak county. Rut should be happening mid December exept I have seen zero rut activity and future weather forcast doesn't look to promising either. Shouldn't their natural instincts take over and at some point just say get her done? Otherwise the rut might take place after the season closes on the 18th. Opinions, suggestions welcome.

Rut happens every year and will continue to happen. With all the green around now they deer are spread out in many areas so you may not see a concentrated rut this year.

My experience has been that the rut will happen regardless of the weather. If it's too warm then the majority will take place at night while we are in bed asleep.

Both of those responses were not what I wanted to here lol but I guess it is what it is and got to keep on keepin on. Only takes one mistake.

Don't get locked into hunting a blind over looking a feeder. Hunt the deer and not let them hunt you. Use your TC to find where deer are moving/feeding other than feeders. Make a ground blind in those locations. Put some corn in an area with lots of deer activity and a TC to see what/when the deer are there. They are hitting fresh green growth now more than oats/corn in my area. Not hitting feeders everyday either. When they do they feed their way in and then feed their way out without staying as long as they normally would in the past month or so.

Ditto^^^^

Hunt the does. Find the "womens" then set up the ambush. Bucks are going to go where the ladies are, you can count on that more than a feeder. I have taken many bucks by getting out of the stand and focusing on areas that would surprise you, the does where using those areas and the bucks just can't say "NO".

That would be my oats plot every evening got a group of about 12 does that flock there

Guess this is why it's hunting and not killing.

Exactly.

I keep up with hunting reports in several parts of the country, and this year the story's been the same in every region...SLOW. Even here in Kansas, as well as the time I spent in the Panhandle. SLOW.

I've got one heckler on another site who thinks the lone culprit is low deer numbers, but the TC pics and other observations don't support. There may be a few less deer, but our herd is not decimated by any stretch.

Some folks refuse to believe that the deer are not concentrated around the few food sources we've had during drought conditions. But better range conditions have allowed the deer to spread out and compete less for food. Over the last few years, I think we've gotten used to seeing our herd's drought habits and better conditions have changed a lot of things.

That is where I wold concentrate, there and maybe trails to the plot. That is also where I see the most deer here, even when acorns where 1/2 deep! Over exaggeration, but it was a heavy crop this year.

Not if you are as tall as txhntr

Probably why he hasn't taken one in TX yet LOL, can't swim in them acorns!

Nahhh....he keeps getting lost in the short grass.

And I always though "Honey, I shrunk the kids" was a fantasy movie, didn't realize in wa a TREX documentary

Well the experts were right.( not that I doubted them) but I brought my father to hunt with me this weekend since he hadn't been deer hunting in 17 years. I knew there was a older mature 8 point with chocolate horns at one of the stands that never has shown up at a feeder but I have seen him for split seconds crossing one of the roads. So I put him in that stand last night and told him to watch this road. He did and like clock work he comes out running a scrape line and makes the mistake of stopping for a split second and boom perfect shot right through the center of the shoulder. He goes 60 yards and piles up. Went and helped him find the deer and he had broke of his g1 but still a great management buck. Pops was so excited he sent me a text after the shot that said" did you hear that shot it was me, I don't remember shaking this much and this long after the shot". Was worth it to me even if I don't get one for the rest of the season. But when we drug him out of the woods his neck was as swollen as could be and his hocks had urine running down to his hooves and boy was it fool. So rut is in full swing in live oak county. Pictures to follow tomorrow when I get back to the office.

Congrats to your Dad.

Congrats to your dad!!! I think its more exciting when a family member gets a deer!!!

That is great, meat in the freezer