Buck The Norm

Written by: Ryan Reading, Fall Obsession Pro Staff

In this article I would like to cover something others have spoke on for years but many hunters either don’t believe it’s possible or chalk the behavior up to just some pre-rut activities.

Let’s set the scene. It’s October 1 and across the country most whitetail seasons are open for hunting. You have watched your cams snap away photos all year long and you itch to get in that stand. Most hunters are waiting for those daylight photos of that big shooter buck to show up while others plan to flood the woods every weekend.

At this time of the early season most hunters aren’t focused on doe coming into estrous. This is the topic that mystifies hunters and splits the general hunting consensus. Most hunters believe that the dwindling daily daylight is what sparks the breeding season. Other hunters believe moon phases set the tone and everything in between.

What we have noticed in New York recently, and using collaborative information from New York online hunter forums, is there are indeed does that come into heat early in October and possibly late September. While our recent Tactacam photos have shown bucks fighting and chasing one mature doe for many hours, this would indeed, possibly mean, she is coming into heat soon. This information that we acquire and with other hunter forums, we have noticed, bucks the normal thought process of the standard rut activity strictly taking place from October 25 through November 18. While the majority of the rut breeding and chasing will take place then, some does estrous cycles seem to happen earlier.

I myself believe that as long as I pay attention to what the deer are doing and learning from it, that will make me a better hunter.

I’m not saying the rut is taking place in early October. What I am stating is there are scenarios, older does, and areas that may see does or a lone doe come into estrous very early. While this is uncommon it seems to be happening. I encourage you to start paying close attention to these activities and if you are getting this type of activity, especially close to sunrise or sunset, you may want to be in your stand because you might just find yourself in an early season hunt that pays off with a hot doe dragging a good buck into your shooting lane.