You know it’s (deer) “hunting season” in Texas when you see 50 lb. bags of corn stacked like this in front of all the convenience stores.

Hunters use this corn to draw deer closer to their stands. While it is sometimes scattered by hand, the corn is most commonly distributed by automated feeders like this one. These feeders are generally located in a clearing that allows the hunter a clear shot at the deer as it munches on the bait.

Some hunters are critical of this method, suggesting, “It isn’t really hunting.” But I don’t have a strong opinion since I have only hunted deer for one (unsuccessful) season.

In my one-season foray into deer hunting, I did use a feeder, but never saw a single deer in about 8 trips to our lease. The reason? Hunters with whom I shared the lease sabotaged my site. They realized early in the season that I had some deer coming to my feeder and none had been to theirs. So before I got the chance to see any deer, my “partners” decided that if they weren’t going to see any deer, then no one would. Nice guys, they were.

In case you are wondering how I responded, for the first time in 20 years, I’ll publicly admit to using all my unused ammo on their stands and feeders. By the time I was finished pulling the trigger, there wasn’t enough of their stands or feeders left to take anything home after the season ended.

After that bad hunting experience, I sold my gun and haven’t been in the woods since.