By Dusty McGehee
If you aren’t privy to talking hunting and fishing with anyone, I think it would be wise to learn the lingo… especially if you’re a newbie. These lines are in no particular order, and I cast no judgement, as I’m perfectly fine with anyone taking game legally.
You can’t eat them horns!
This is usually said by someone who shoots small bucks and needs an excuse. It could also be used by someone who enjoys doe management (myself included). I would advise doing a neck roast in gravy and the rest in fried or grilled steaks. Studies show you actually can’t “eat them horns.”
If I don’t shoot him, my neighbor will.
Also, another excuse to shoot a young buck and logic defies the one pulling the trigger. Congratulations on shooting that young up and comer buck. I suggest you and the neighbor determine what deer were on the “hit list” for that season.
Once a spike always a spike.
Someone who wants to shoot a spike. There is plenty of scientific evidence that proves this theory wrong.
He would’ve been a good buck next year. (While looking at the buck in back of truck)
This typically comes from a hunter close by that had trail cam pics of him. This person also speaks like he/she can breathe life back into the animal, but studies show, they can’t. Little does he/she know that this buck will not live to see another year. So far nobody has successfully done CPR on a dead deer in the back of a truck.
Bucks are starting to chase in Shiloh.
This is said 3 weeks before the actual rut starts when someone in Shiloh sees a 4-point buck chasing a doe in late October.
I want to manage for trophy bucks in Lincoln Parish.
Truly impossible but WE can try.
I shot a good’un chasing a doe across my shooting lane, but I wasn’t sure what he was.
9 times out of 10 this will be a young basket rack buck, but hey if you get excited, pull the trigger.
This dink buck was chasin’ all the deer out of the plot so I shot him.
Happy hunter wanting to shoot a dink buck.
I ain’t never seen a game warden around these parts.
Someone who is contemplating doing something illegal.
A goodun came across my lane right at dark that was about “yay high and yay wide”
Go ahead and divide that by 2. He was NOT that big.
This buck looked like he had a rocking chair on top of his head!
Impossible. I’ve yet to see a buck with an actual rocking chair on his head but maybe it’s a 7-point.
That’s a good buck rightchair (right there) while peeking over into your truck bed.
You killed a nice buck and its rightchair in the bed of your truck. Congratulations.
Turkey hunting lingo: Did you hear any birds?
You know they are lying when they say NO. If they say they heard birds in a certain area then you should steer clear of that area. If you ask me, I will confuse you with my response. Turkey hunters are the biggest liars in the woods.
Fishing spots
Same as turkey hunting; assume the opposite of what someone tells you.
I try to be honest, but when it comes to turkeys, all bets are off. Reading this article may not help you figure out how the average hunter thinks, especially me. Did I hear one? Maybe… but you might want to go in the opposite direction of where I pointed. If you see my truck in the same spot on two consecutive days, then you don’t need to ask any more questions.
If you do need to ask, I heard 2 birds gobbling WAAAYYY over there. Good luck.
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Dusty McGehee is a native of Downsville and a 2006 graduate of Louisiana Tech University with a bachelors in wildlife conservation. He is currently employed by WestRock and serves as an environmental engineer at the Hodge Mill. Dusty is an avid hunter and crappie fisherman, fishing crappie tournaments with his son when he is not in the woods. He and his wife Rachel have three young outdoorsmen/women: Anders, Ridge, and Mae. If you have a story idea or question about the great outdoors, you can reach Dusty at dusty.mcgehee@westrock.com.
