For those that know!! To Decoy or Not to Decoy?

[The Nailer]

I've read alot lately about the negative aspect of decoys, do you think they hurt or help? And if they help what do you think the best set is?

[DeerCrazy]

Over the weekend I was watching the outdoor channel. They showed this setup of a decoy jake mounted on a hen, they had a string attached to the tail of the jake, by pulling on the string the jake would rock back 'n forth on the hen. I don't know how well this really works in the real world, but the toms on this program were really hot. Showed one attacking the decoys.

Mike

[RealDcoy]

I no longer use decoys in the area I hunt. It seems that these birds have either been pressured for years on end, or they are just genius birds. My situation does spoil me a bit. I hunt a friends property that has public on the east & west, a lake on the North, and another hunters property on the West.

We have had a few sets of birds roost in the same areas on the edges of the property for the last 4 years. There is a small land bridge between the lake and a pond. The turkey drink from the pond, and very often travel its edges to get to their dusting area. I have scouted and seen more than one group of turkey at one time at this bottle neck, and not care a bit. But the 3 times we have used dekes, they would not pass and would hang 150 yds away. Have this birds become so accustomed to a pattern that dekes would spook them?

I am going to hunt a different part of the property this year though. So we will see if I need them there. The birds seem to enter and leave this area in the same spot every time without fail. ( Except this spring probably!)

[maytom99]

While decoys aren't a 100% guarantee of success, they do help out more than they don't. I personnaly like the Carry-lite brand of decoys over the rest that are out on the market now. Like the saying goes, "I wouldn't leave home without them". I also like the show that the tom's put on for the decoys as they come in, it gives you that much more to watch and enjoy.