When the gobbler doesn't care about you

[Hawkspur]

When turkeys are not responding to your call, or they are not interested in you... Do you
      A: move location
      B: wait it out
      C: try another time/day
      D: try different calls
          - Is it ok to use 5 different calls in one location or should you move and try a different call?

[Turkeyman]

Well, as long as you're making a decent call from a decent location and he doesn't care chances are he's occupied with a hen(s). He knows you're there. Exercise patience...don't pound on him like an idiot with a plethora of calls which, to him, won't be realistic. Chances are fair to middlin' that he'll check you out later. If not, tomorrow's another day.

[davisd9]

Take mental notes of where he is and about what he is doing then leave for a hour or so, show back up and get close to where those observations told you.

[Crghss]

     - Is it ok to use 5 different calls in one location or should you move and try a different call?

Both, I'll try different calls, if I have room to roam I'll keep going. Then circle back. Depends what my options are.

[Meleagris gallopavo]

Maybe a different signal other than a call.  I had 3 longbeards that were after some hens I was watching this year.  They'd gobble in unison after every sound I made with a pot call or diaphragm call.  I was watching them in the field and they went after a hen that had come out and ran back in the woods after seeing them.  Of course, they stood in the middle of the field and gobbled at every turkey sound I made and never looked my way.  I put the call down and started scratching leaves and making footstep sounds in the leaves and they looked right towards me and made a beeline to me so fast I really didn't have time to get the gun up.  I was in such thick brush that the angle they came in was such that I couldn't or wouldn't take the shot.  They can hear better than we can, so I'd try making noise in the leaves (if available) and see how that works.  If they have hens with them all bets are off.


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[TRG3]

When the gobbler knows where you are but decides not to come in but go the other way, it's a great time to take that nap to catch up on the sleep you missed last night while anticipating the hunt. I took a nice tom at 11:30 a.m. this spring when awaken from a deep sleep by nearby putts. While still somewhat groggy, I managed to switch shoulders and take him left handed at 40 yards as he was going away. I've taken several gobblers in that fashion over the years.

[GobbleNut]

When turkeys are not responding to your call, or they are not interested in you... Do you
      A: move location
      B: wait it out
      C: try another time/day
      D: try different calls
          - Is it ok to use 5 different calls in one location or should you move and try a different call?

Over the decades of doing this, I have concluded that there are two types of gobblers you will deal with when hunting that do not come to your calls.  The first is the "distracted" gobbler.  Those are the ones that won't come because they are distracted by something,...most of the time other turkeys, and especially hens.  Often times, these are younger birds that don't have a lot of experience interacting with hunters.  These birds are generally pretty willing to come to a call,...if you catch them at a time when they are not distracted.  They will also generally come to a much broader spectrum of calling tactics and hunting approaches. 

The second type of bird is the "suspicious" gobbler.  These are usually older-age-class gobblers that have "dun rid in this rodeo" a time or two, so to speak.  They have had some negative encounters with hunters, and as such are much less willing to go to turkey calling they hear but cannot see the source of.  Again, generally speaking, there is a much narrower spectrum of calling and tactics that will fool them into approaching.  Those tactics can certainly include the ones listed, as well as other ones mentioned throughout the OG forum. 

Simply put, the trick to killing those birds is to figure out what calling and tactics to use before their "suspicions" get the best of them.  That is often a very fine line to walk, and one that even the most experienced hunters fail to negotiate much more often than not.  In the end, all's a guy can do is to play his best hand,...and hope that the gobbler he's playin' with doesn't have a better one!   

[bobcat19]

Probably wait it out at least 30 minutes, if he's not answering I wouldn't do much calling if any. Remember what they did, they might do the same thing the next morning. If I had the option I'd move on try to find something else then return mid-day he might have lost his hens by that point.

[turkeyfool]

I think the three best options are wait it out (he knows where you are for sure and could come eventually if he wants to), circle around him and come in from the opposite side after 30/45 mins without making another call in the meantime, or after you've tried the first two, try to get as close as you possibly can without making another call. I've had all 3 work. The third one I try to do last because it's an all or nothing play, but I tend to just for it these days and if you're stealthy enough, you'd be amazed at how close you can get. You do need a little luck on your side. You kind of need to hope there's some sort of terrain feature in between you and him where you can crawl into his lap and while he may hear you crunching around, if you don't call, he'll most likely think you're a hen if you go slowly enough. Those are the ones where you step on a twig, he hammers and scares the  out of you, and you just sit down

[Turkeytider]

I know this is an older thread, but want to confirm what others have said about the gobbler knowing where you are, furthermore, they remember. I`ve had personal experience of talking to a bird, him going silent and moving away ( no doubt with hens ) , and coming back an hour and a half later ( a mistake on his part) . Dr. Mike Chamberlain told me that they have tracking data that confirms their unerring sense of " place " and how they are often apt to move back to where they first encountered a call after the hens he`s with leave him. Especially if hunting a relatively small property, I`ll usually stay put and wait for him. I`ve also always felt that the more you are up and moving, the greater the likelihood of screwing things up. JMHO.

[eggshell]

move on, the worse thing is to stay in the area and call more and move more. Leave and find another gobbler, come back later day, week or later season

[TurkeyReaper69]

I'm an impatient person (I know horrible trait for a turkey hunter), I will just make a mental note of that turkey, and then go find a new one to hunt

[Number17]

Gobblers have two choices, and it's pretty simple really.
Come in to my calls on your own, or I'll hunt you down and shoot you in the face for not cooperating.

[redleg06]

It depends on the context of the situation and can have quite a few variables.

There's times when waiting on a turkey to break is the best option but, as often as not, there's things you can do to put yourself in a better position to get him in range and, if not, I'm probably not going to bang my head against that wall all day.

[Tom007]

From your original post, you say they are not responding, if you know that they are there, I would slow it way down to feeding purrs, and leaf scratching, throw in a very soft Yelp. This calling sequence would be very minimal. If you know he's there, and he's not responding, he's waiting you out. Reverse the scenario, back down the calling, and proceed with the above. Call very minimal. More leaf scratching than anything.....it's worked for me several hours later.