decoy tactics

Turkey decoys have been used for years and have been deemed highly effective among turkey hunters. However decoys require hunters that use them to know the proper techniques. Hopefully this post will help every new turkey hunter understand how to properly use turkey decoys.

 There are quite a few different types of turkey decoys out there. I usually use the foam body collapsible variety.  They are easy to store in your hunting vest or pack they are light weight and fairly realistic. There are also hard bodied silhouette types which are basically just flat fabric stretched on stakes and painted like a turkey.  Moving decoys are becoming more and more popular these decoys work with either a jerk string or an electronic motor.  The advantage to moving decoys is that they give you that little bit of extra realism which can bring in that weary tom and give him confidence.  An extremely popular moving decoy is made by Primos and it’s called the killer B.

Now that you know a little about the types of decoys it’s time to talk about uses and strategies. I will also share with you some tricks that I’ve learned over the years.  One of the number one reasons hunters use decoys is to give an animal confidence, this rings true with turkey hunting as well.  for instance if you’re trying to call in a tom and he is responding to your calls but he just won’t come within range,  if he sees that decoy odds are he will come to investigate.  He will be ready to fight or breed.  The reason is that  he hears the call and he’s interested but then when he sees the decoy he is convinced this is not just a hunters set up but that this one is for  real. This is why decoys have become such a huge part of turkey hunting.

Set up and strategies

When setting up your decoys there are some things you should think about that will make you more successful.  Remember when that bird comes strutting in all of his attention will be focused on your decoys so do not put the decoys in a spot directly lined up with yourself. This step will insure that the sharp eyed gobbler won’t be looking right at you.  Using decoys as a focal point for the turkeys can be very effective but it can also get you in trouble.  An important   thing to remember is that if you choose to use a jake, (young male) decoy then be aware the best time to use this decoy is early season when the hierarchy is being established. This means that toms will be looking for a fight and will likely come to chase off the weak jake.  If you decide to use a jake decoy face him towards yourself toms will approach him from the front ready to fight, meaning you will be completely concealed. Here is something that can only be discovered through experimenting.  Some times when you have a tom that has seen decoys before and knows better than to come within range use this trick it will make it look like a hen and jake decoy are breeding. The tom will throw his better judgment out the window and come charging in.  This is most effective early season.  Another effective strategy is to set up between the moving tom and your decoys way you will not be seen but when using decoys.  Always remember if you set up the decoys out of your effective range then they do you no good so keep them close.

Too old to fight?

 Yes sometimes if a gobbler has some age on him 3 years or older he will not be much into fighting. What I am saying is that his all bark. In this case using a jake decoy can be like shooting yourself in the foot.  This gobbler will want nothing to do with getting his feathers kicked and just be on his way.

I hope this 3 part post has encouraged some of you great hunters to head into the spring woods for long beards this year.

Good hunting and God bless,

Ryan Lilly