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John's Journal...
Entry 173,
Day 1
SECRETS FOR CALLING BUCKS
Understanding The Rut Phases
EDITOR'S
NOTE: Jerry Peterson is the founder and product
designer of Woods Wise Products, the makers of quality game calls in Franklin,
Tennessee.
QUESTION: What are the basic facts a hunter should know
about the rut?
PETERSON: Most importantly, you must understand the phase of the rut you
are hunting. If you don't know, you can make two simple observations of
the does, and also look at scrapes to determine the rut phase. Generally,
when bucks make scrapes, they are looking for, but not finding does. During
the prerut, bucks work scrapes to their maximum. When they stop tending
those scrapes, you know you are going into the peak of the rut. The bucks
no longer have any reasons to tend scrapes because they are finding what
they are looking for. Secondly, you can look at the doe's tarsal glands
on the inside of her hind leg and gauge the phase of the rut by the color
of the glands. For example, a solid-white tarsal gland means there is
no rutting activity whatsoever going on. The prerut phase is marked by
a chocolate-brown center in the white tarsal gland. And during the peak
of the rut, the doe's tarsal glands are jet black. The fourth point about
the tarsal gland is once she has bred, she licks it clean. So you can
gauge the progress of the rut by looking at every doe you see.
Once
you know what phase the deer are in, by gauging scrape activity or studying
the does' tarsal glands, you can begin to determine what calls to use.
For more information on Woods Wise Products, call 1-800-735-8182,
or visit their website at www.woodswise.com.
TOMORROW: SECRETS FOR CALLING BUCKS
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