Stopping an elk in bow range

ia bhtr

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Mar 6, 2018
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OK guys , I know a somewhat ignorant question , on whitetails I bleat to stop them for my shot , with my one and only elk hunt coming up next month , " if " I get a bull in range , stop him with a cow call , or a bleat .......... orrr is that a stupid idea trying to stop the animal and that I should just stay quiet until he gives me a shot , really have no idea how an elk will react as compared to the whitetails I hunt

This will be with a caller set up some distance behind me , with me " hopefully " between the caller and the elk

I know this sounds like kindergarten stuff , but honestly I just dont know , hoping for some advice from you guys with experience ,Thanks one and all for any thoughts and advice you may want to share
 

Pgohil

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A lot of people will cow call, but that doesn't always stop them. If you give them a nervous grunt it will freeze them instantly in their tracks. But you have to be ready to shoot at that time. Elk nut talks about this in his app and videos. Definitely worth practicing so in the heat of the moment you don't swallow or spit out your mouth call.
 

Gerbdog

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Cow call seems to be the recommended path to stop them, a single "bark" sound will almost certainly get them to stop. My moms husband was trying to stop a bull down in NM and it ignored 2 cow calls and he finally went "meep" which didnt sound right to the bull so he stopped and looked, caught an arrow for his curiosity.

Def not a stupid idea to stop the animal , especially since you may not have a wide open shot and stopping the animal in a shooting lane will be critical
 

Pgohil

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Always stop an elk before you shoot. I missed a spike at 26 yd in the wide open because I thought he wasn't moving that fast but those long-legged critters move pretty quick.
 

wytx

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Ah yes, the full frontal freeze then a whirl and they are gone. cnelk must hunt the same bulls as we do,;)
 
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I yelled "meeehh" at a bull to stop him onetime like a deer and he didn't even look my way. Shot him while he walked. Hindsight it was sketchy. He died real fast, but a few inches back would've been liver.
 

Laramie

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If walking inside of 30 yards, I just shoot them. From 30-50 (my imposed limit), I use a nervous grunt to stop them. If they are moving toward you and you only have a frontal, let them keep coming. Fun version of chicken when only one party knows they are playing.
 

WTFJohn

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Just because you stop them, doesn’t necessarily mean you will have a clear shot.
Elk have a uncanny way of keeping their vitals covered.

Ask me how I know. ;)

It's incredible how good they are at it. But then the young ones do dumb things right after, bulls won't.

 

BBob

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Just because you stop them, doesn’t necessarily mean you will have a clear shot.
Elk have a uncanny way of keeping their vitals covered.

Ask me how I know. ;)
Yup, they often stop with a big fat tree covering the crease. If you're lucky and a good calm shooter you can sometimes sneak one in but they are really good at covering.
 

Geewhiz

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Keep in mind that if you stop an elk with an unconventional sound, said elk is now on high alert and is likely to jump at the next sound (bow shooting arrow).
 

Fullfan

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My son stopped this guy with a maaaa, like he was hunting white tails. Funny stuff but it worked
 

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I’ve stopped them with a cow call. But they took an extra step or 2 and vitals covered. No shot = blown opportunities. I’ve stopped them with a nervous grunt, no extra steps and dead elk. It’s not a hard sound to master.
 

WCB

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Do guys really thing bleating with your mouth at a whitetail stops a deer because they think it is another deer? I've stopped them with bleats, whistles, snorts, lip squeaking, etc.

make a little noise and see the reaction, if no reaction do it louder or different. If you make a noise and they start moving faster decision time. Elk, deer, antleope, etc I have used the same sound on all of them and it worked...the best one when they are ignoring you is "HEY" or "F@$king STOP!"
 
OP
I

ia bhtr

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When I use a bleat on a whitetail , never considered what it meant to the deer , just a noise to stop him was all I used it for , has never failed for me
 
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