Hunting during the rut is no doubt an exciting time for deer hunters. Firearms season overlaps with the high testosterone levels of the over-eager bucks, creating an absolute frenzy that leaves hunters on the edge of their seats. Because of the hormones throwing bucks for such a jagged loop, there's no way to predict their movement or their behavior, as a buck could be on your trail camera the day before your tree stand or blind and 5 miles away the next day.
However, hunting during the rut has its advantages. Raging hormones drive bucks to make mistakes. Their guard is down, while their blind determination to find a suitable doe clouds their inhibition, leaving them vulnerable to hopeful hunters. Josh McDaniel is just one of the many hunters to take the whirling confusion and use it to his advantage.
Thankfully for us, he caught it all on video.
The action starts fast and furious as a shooter buck comes in and gives him a shot. He quickly drops the deer with a single well-placed shot. That by itself would be an exciting hunt for most hunters, but it's not over yet. Just minutes later, a bigger buck shows up on the scene and spots the body of Josh's buck just lying there. Unbelievably, the bigger deer decides to pick a fight with the corpse. The resulting footage is just incredible to watch.
This was an incredible hunt to capture on a video and a memory that will last a lifetime. It's just unfortunate that Josh couldn't shoot that second larger buck. Did you see his neck? That buck was a beast! Having to pass that one probably stung for a while, we bet. Oh well, you never know what's going to happen in the deer woods. He had no way of knowing an opportunity at a better deer was only moments away. There's also no guarantee the bigger one would have given him a shot had he passed the first one. This video shows just how crazy bucks can get during the rut. They're pumped up on testosterone, and they're looking for a fight with any rivals they meet. It doesn't seem to matter if that rival has stopped breathing or not.
The lesson to take away from this is to be patient if you get a buck on the ground like this if you live in a state with multiple tags. We know you want to get down from the stand and check out your deer, but the animal's body just may be an attractant for another buck that happens to be in the area!
