oh the myths that surround hunting.

[buck460XVR]

Much of what I read in the OP is not myth, but misinformation or misunderstanding of the law. Myths are something that generally cannot be readily proved or disproved(such as a Wild Turkey can see the slightest movement from 200 yards away), while the hunting regs of any state are readily available. But tahunua001 makes a good point, that many folks enter the woods without knowing the laws of their state, instead relying on barroom banter, internet gossip and what grandpa told them 30 years ago. On top of that, they insist on telling others the same misguided information.

Read and know the present regs of your state. Rules change every year here in Wisconsin and most of the time, the new rules are outlined in the pamphlet that comes with your license. Still every year I'm amazed at the amount of folks I come across in the woods that want to argue about what is legal and what isn't. I've come to the point of carrying that little pamphlet in my pack with me, not to show them how much more I know than they do, but to inform and teach. Much like when I reffed youth Hockey. Showing the coach the new rule as written in the book generally ended any argument over the call.

[TimSr]

One of the urban myths in south central Indiana leans towards the idea that deer know when deer season starts...

When those public ares that typically see a car or two a day suddenly have heavy traffic, and car doors opening and closing just before daylight, and all even before all kinds people walking through the woods, if they were around the prior year, they know what time it is!

[SPEMack618]

My little sister has bought into the myth of "if you are hunting Georgia whitetail you must dress head to toe in camouflage enough to make the guys at the AMU lose sight of you"

Seriously, she did the "puppy dog face" to Pops at Bass Pro and bought enough camo to hold a Duck Dynasty themed costume party.

[Double Naught Spy]

The one I like is that wounded deer always head to water.........
That guy myst have been a pond dam builder.

I have heard that a variety of animals run toward water. Psychics often claim that bodies will be found near water.

I am fairly certain that on the places that I hunt, an animal can run in just about any direction and be heading toward water. If you just based it on the 4 cardinal directions, there is water within a half mile in each of those directions on each place I hunt.

With that said, wounded animals will eventually go to water, but maybe not immediately after being wounded. Of course, non-wounded animals will head to water as well. Interesting.

I think where this idea may have come from is running animals ducking down into creek bottoms for cover and then succumbing to their wounds...near water. It wasn't that they were heading to water, but trying to get away.

[buck460XVR]

The one I like is that wounded deer always head to water.........
That guy must have been a pond dam builder.

I believe this come from examples of gut shot deer, and the thirst created by the fever associated with a gut shot.

My experience with mortally wounded deer is they often stop and bed when they get to a body of water because they do not have the strength to cross it or they do not want to go out in the open. Thus you find them dead, near water.

[TimSr]

Over the years, I've found many decomposing deer or skeletons, sometimes accompanied by arrows in very thick brush, briars and high weeds. I've always assumed that when they couldn't run, they found the thickest cover to hole up and then died there. In Ohio the thickest places in the woods are ravine and creek bottoms. I don't believe the run to the creek. I believe the run to the cover growing beside, around, and over it.

[Panfisher]

Hmm how many unwounded animals head toward water at least once a day? Just about any direction from where I hunt could be construed as running toward water.

[Double Naught Spy]

Tim, funny you should say that. I have had to use loppers to cut out hogs from thick briar, hogs buried so deep in the stuff they were hard to spot on thermal.

[reynolds357]

I did not say they would not cross gravel, I said they try to avoid it.

[Doyle]

Tim, the other way to look at it is that you found all those carcasses in the nasty stuff because the animals that died in more open areas were found by the shooters. I've seen hunters give up way too easily when the brush gets thick.

[mardanlin]

I had always heard that deer and cows don't mix but this past new years I got a large doe and saw about 10 other deer raiding the pasture while cows were still grazing. Never seen them with a bull around but I'm not saying it's a correlation.

[Unlicensed Dremel]

The deer I killed a couple weeks ago ran directly away from the water, up a hill to the plateau, then keeled over. Didn't find it until 8:00 the next morning, cuz I had been looking mostly around the water until all my flashlights went dead.

Cows don't bother deer at all - they are quite used to them (unless they're brand new on the property). That is, IF the deer can see them. But if they're making a lot of noise in thick woods, the deer will steer clear of the noise, of course - unless they can scent and thus ID the cows as cows.

[reynolds357]

U.D. Start feeding you yard mutt deer meat and let it lap up the blood when you are dressing them and you will not have to look for your deer anymore.
The yard dog will do it for you.

[reloader28]

The myth that bugs me most is that you have to have a 300 mag to shoot deer and at least a 338 for elk.

I guess thats easier than learning how to shoot.

[Bella]

Its dangerous to use a 30-30 to hunt deer. The bullet will richocet off the deer and injury an innocent bystander.

[jimbob86]

The myth that bugs me most is that you have to have a 300 mag to shoot deer and at least a 338 for elk.

I guess thats easier than learning how to shoot.

Dunno 'bout it being easier .... but it'd sure be more painfull that way ......

[TimSr]

I had always heard that deer and cows don't mix but this past new years I got a large doe and saw about 10 other deer raiding the pasture while cows were still grazing.

Years ago I spotted a group of deer at the opposite end of a cow pasture on a farm I was hunting. I got in behind a cow, and walked next to it, using it for cover all the way across the pasture. By the time I got across, they had wandered into the thick stuff and I couldn't get a shot, but they were still there and did not get spooked. It got dark as I was waiting for them to wander back into view.

I've heard stories about guys hunting on horseback in the west without spooking them. They don't connect the sound of a big 4 legged critter with humans.

[Blindstitch]

Animals can read No Trespassing signs.

[Double Naught Spy]

I had also learned that hogs and deer do not mix, but twice now I have shot hogs that were hanging out with deer.

With that said, I have seen hogs chase of deer on multiple occasions, once where a hog went after individual deer, but usually the mere presence does the job. The hog(s) come in and the deer move out. This seems to be the norm where I am.

Lesson? Hogs and deer may not usually socialize, they certainly do sometimes.

[Bella]

Deer will usually not socialize with horses, not a myth.

[Double Naught Spy]

That's interesting. I have certainly seen them doing it. Here is a thread on Texas Hunting Forum discussing this particular issue and people report them together...
http://www.texashuntingforum.com/for...orses_and_deer

The folks on Archery Talk notice horses and deer happily together...
http://www.archerytalk.com/vb/showthread.php?t=1892001

Over on Michigan Sportsman report both co-existing and avoiding...
http://www.michigan-sportsman.com/fo.../t-109601.html

At GA Outdoor News, again mostly all positive...
http://forum.gon.com/showthread.php?t=637302

In reading through the forums, the problems seem to stem from individual horse personalities and not from the species in particular.

[ZeroJunk]

I had an appaloosa mare that was an excellent horse. She was fine with goats and other horses that shared the pasture. But, she would kill or try to kill anything she thought was trespassing. She killed one of my hogs that got in there, probably weighed 200 pounds. Tried to kill my neighbors dog and would have eventually if we hadn't saved him.

I suspect she would chase a deer out pronto.

[cnimrod]

Slitting the throat to bleed it out after you've shot it.

[briandg]

...

[tahunua001]

slitting the throat is a myth? hmm... I've done it a few times... seems pretty plausible to me.