Hunting Over Bait

by Zane Graham

There has been some debate on whether hunting over bait such as a corn feeder should be legal.

Where baiting is legal it seems like hunters are in favor of it and where it is illegal the hunters are against it. Coincidence? Personally I think hunting over bait is a good thing. In some states where there is heavy brush cover such as Texas, you likely wouldn’t see many deer if you didn’t bait. The bait draws some of the deer out of the brush and gives the hunter a better chance at success. It also can help the hunter study the deer better and harvest the best possible buck.

All of my hunting has been done over a corn feeder and it gives you a great opportunity to age the deer in order to make sure you harvest a mature deer. Some would argue that baiting is “cheating” and isn’t fair chase. After hunting corn feeders for 10 years I would argue against this. In 2011 I hunted the same corn feeder 20+ times trying to harvest a wide 8 point buck. I only saw him once and was never able to get a shot at him. There have been times where some deer, mainly mature bucks, will become nocturnal and only visit the corn feeders at night as I witnessed last hunting season. The only way to know they are coming in to the feeder is from the trail camera pictures. So from my experience it is safe to say hunting over bait is anything but “cheating” and success is no guarantee.