How can I prevent Buck Fever?

Question

I went hunting once before but as soon as I heard the buck I got terrible buck fever and i am afraid to go huting again what can i do to prevent it

Answer 1

I've been hunting for 28 years now and I still get buck fever. And It doesn't have to be a buck. The best answer I can give you is hunt. Where you can see the deer coming. The longer you watch them. It gives you more time to calm down. The day I don't get excited when I see a deer is the day I stop hunting

Answer 2

Ali,

Like a h I agree that it never goes away and the excitement or adrenalin rush of the hunt itself is an integral part. If you are saying you froze when you heard the buck one way of learning to cope with the hunt, the close proximity of the approaching deer and the pending shot may be to take a camera instead of a gun into the woods with you.

Don't take a camera with a zoom lens, take a normal lens and see how close the deer can get to you before you take the photo. This can teach you how to control your breathing while holding steady. It also can help you calm down and still get the photo (shot) and allow you to do the same another time with a rifle, shotgun or bow.

I know this works as I had a friend who shook so bad and just plain panicked with a gun whenever he saw a deer. I sent him out with my camera and the next week he not only had some great photos, but was able to shoot a deer his first morning back on stand with a gun, the same one he had gotten a couple nice photos of.

Just keep in mind that the excitement of hunting is part of it and should not be a cause for you to freeze up or shake or panic. Slow breaths in and out, calm yourself and squeeze the trigger. It's mechanics once you conquer the panic.

Good luck and get a photo book you will need one for your new hobby. It is addicting and you don't need a license or season.

Answer 3

It is a choice, really. If you are afraid to kill an animal, then it probably won't be pretty.

If you really are excited about hunting and you truly want to get a buck, then a good way to avoid buck fever is just to take a deep breath when you see something. Keep taking deep breaths. It will slow down your heart and keep you more in control of your heart rate, etc.

So basically, just make sure that you want to shoot the animal and that you won't regret it. If you think that you will regret killing the animal (like Elmer Fudd always does when he thinks he killed Bugs Bunny) then you probably shouldn't be shooting in the first place.

But if you really want to get an animal, just take a few deep breaths. Also, having a dead rest helps with your shot. You can buy a stick that acts as a dead gun rest that will help your accuracy at a hunting and fishing store.

Good luck!

Answer 4

Don't think about it. Concentrate on your aim, trigger pull, and surrounding objects (clear shot?). When everything comes into place.. squeeze the trigger till the gun goes off. If you channel your focus and control your mind, the adrenaline won't be a major factor until after it's done. It's the same for a lot of other jobs in life.. pilot, policeman, fireman, etc where you must face sometimes mind boggling events and deal with them quickly and positively. You'll find that if you " just do it" .. the "holy crap" will come after the kill, and not before.

Answer 5

Ali you cannot prevent Buck Fever, but you can learn or teach yourself to manage it.* The more you are exposed to hunting deer or watching deer the better you will become at managing buck fever. The more experience you gain, the easier it is to manage.*

Answer 6

As a bowhunter, I constantly practice. Practice, practice, then practice more. I envision game coming from different angles, and at different ranges. If you shoot a rifle, try using a target face of a deer. Maybe even use a poster or photograph of a deer.
Also, don't get frustrated or pressured in thinking your experience needs to be perfect in all ways. If you have practiced it in your mind for a while, try to tell yourself you will perform just fine.
If you think you can, you can.
Practice makes perfect.

Answer 7

Recommend spending as much time as you can during the closed seasons—in the timber.
Observing them, and other animals.

Take a camera-“shoot” them with it. Let your mind become acclimated to seeing them often. And after “shooting” them with your camera you will feel much less prone to “buck fever”.

Plus think of the nice wildlife photos you will have to share.

Answer 8

It's an adrenalin rush that's what you have to control,which is next to impossible until shooting a deer doesn't excite you so