Fan Club wrote:Az-
Using a gobble call on public land is one of the most dangerous things you can do in all of turkey hunting. A strutter decoy is a bad idea here as well.
Most hunters won't approach hen calls, but almost all will go after a gobble if they hear one. If an actual gobbler shows up he might get shot at from three or more different directions.
Certainly you can see the danger involved in this scenario. Some fools, and especially inexperienced ones, will do anything to try and tag a bird, don't know or care about ethics and won't respect your position or privacy. This situation has only worsened over the years as private land is harder to find and public lands have gotten overcrowded.
This is, of course, an extreme example but public land stories abound about hunters that have been shot, decoys that have been shot, or conflicts that arise from hunters going after the same bird. Suffice to say, save the gobble call for the private land where access is limited and you know who is there and where they are.
You should be safe to gobble on your sister's ranch.
Great advice Fan!! I hunted a WMA locally last year because I'd exhausted all my other places and the price of gas. Luckily, I got to on to gob who responded to a box. He was in a gully below (from the sound of him, couldn't get a visual) He was close enough that I set up with gun up, clucked and purred, scratched leaves a little and waited while waiting for him to stick his head up over the terrain break . After about 10 min. with no response, I put the gun down and scratched again. BOOM!!!! Someone down below me who never even called (at least that I could hear) took a whack at the bird. I never even heard or for that matter saw the shooter!!!!

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