Editor’s Note: Chris Kirby, the president of Quaker Boy Calls in Orchard Park, New York, is a World Champion turkey caller and has been hunting deer and turkeys all his life. His father, Dick Kirby, founded Quaker Boy Calls, and he and Chris have hunted all over the nation with bows, rifles, pistols and muzzleloaders. Quaker Boy and Mossy Oak have partnered to create the Deer Thugs and Turkey Thugs brands of calls, and a portion of the sales from each one of these calls goes to help wounded warriors through the Hope For The Warriors Outdoor Adventures Program. According to Kirby, “Stalking deer is as much about what to say and when to say it as it is blowing the correct and an accurate call.”
When the Weezzy Snort-Wheeze call was first introduced to the deer-hunting community, there was quite a bit of skepticism associated with whether or not the Weezzy Snort-Wheeze actually would call in bucks. The Deer Thugs Weezzy is a very simple, uncomplicated call that anyone can use, and it can be deadly effective. One of the most important and overlooked aspects of deer calling is that deer calls have a certain time and place that they can be effective in, and the snort-wheeze is very definitely a situation call. I’ve had tremendous success using the snort-wheeze in areas with a more-balanced deer herd - for instance, one buck for every one doe or up to one buck for every three does. Competition for does is what causes bucks to be called in more effectively using deer calls. In my home state of New York where we have way too many does for the number of bucks we have, I don’t use the snort-wheeze very often. I believe the snort-wheeze call is specific to your region of the country and the quality of the deer herd. The snort-wheeze has been extremely effective for me in the Midwest and in Texas.
The grunt call and the bleat call are the calls I use most effectively anywhere in the country, but I always have a snort-wheeze call in my daypack. When you see a big buck traveling by himself, and you blow the snort-wheeze at him, I’ve seen bucks stop, turn, look and come running in to my stand site to run off what they believe to be an intruder buck that’s expanding his home range and moving into their territory. The last buck I took with a snort-wheeze was on a hunt in Texas.
I started calling by rattling and grunting and called in two small bucks. I could see the bigger bucks circling and trying to get downwind of my calling site. This buck knew that he should be able to see a buck fight when he heard the rattling and grunting coming from my calls. Once I finally blew the snort-wheeze at him, instead of being casually interested and trying to get downwind, he immediately bristled-up like a wild turkey in full strut, laid his ears back in an aggressive posture and came marching stiff-legged to my stand site. Before he got within range, he started hooking a small sapling with his antlers and going to war on that little tree as if to say, “I want you to see and hear how tough I am and realize that now I’m coming after you.” He left the sapling, but he was still bristled-up and ears back. Then 40-yards from my stand was where I took him. I know for certain if I hadn’t given that deer the snort-wheeze call when I did, he would have gotten downwind of me and smelled me or snuck in behind me. I believe that buck was thinking “Okay, I heard the rattling and the grunting, but I didn’t see the deer. However, because I heard the snort-wheeze, I believe at least one buck is in that area. I’m going to go down there and run him off.” Remember that the snort-wheeze call works oftentimes when all the other calls fail to bring a dominant buck to within range of your rifle or your bow.
Day 2: Let’s Talk Grunt Calls
Tomorrow: Why and When Chris Kirby Likes Loud Grunt Calls Like the Deer Thugs Brawler and Meat Hook
