Spooking Deer

[.308sniper]

If you spook a deer how long will it take it to come back?

[Redhawk1]

If you spook a deer how long will it take it to come back?

All depends on the deer, I have spooked them and within a few minutes they come back. I also seen them not come back at all.

[beemanbeme]

I don't know how long it takes them to "come back" but they don't run very far before stopping to see what spooked them.  
I've spooked deer out of my yard as I left to walk to the mail box (1/4 mile) and when I got back, they were back in the yard.  But those were "east of the big river" deer that were habituated to living around humans.  
Often, the tail up, fleeing for their lives routine stops as soon as they get a bit of brush between them and you.

[Leverdude]

Took 15 mnutes for 2 to come back this past Wed & 10 minutes after I shot one 3 more came back. Depends on how you spook them I think & wether or not they know what it was that spooked them.

[Graybeard]

Assuming that a given deer will return at all to where you saw it is a bit of a stretch. It might, it might not. Unless there is some good reason why it wants to be in that particular spot it may never in it's entire life be in that same spot again.

Was it just traveling thru? Was it bedded? Was it feeding? Was it a buck chasing a hot doe? Is the deer in it's core area? These are all things that will have an influence on whether it returns at all and if so when.

One feeding on a favored food source might return quickly. The same might apply to a buck chasing a doe if the does is still there. If it's outside it's core area and only moving thru it might not ever be right there again. If it was just feeding as it moved along but not on a favored food source it won't necessarily return any time soon if at all.

If it was just traveling from point A to point B, it might return again if its journies take it that way again but unless spooked again soon and it comes back the path just taken it might not be soon.

I think the "WHY" of it being there is the over riding decision criteria here.

[Leverdude]

GB's got a real good point. Why theyre there is probably the most important thing about it. I tend to hunt feeding areas mostly because the properties here in south western CT aren't all that big & since I aint rich I usually hunt after work or ocasionally before. That said I try & find where theyre coming out in the evenings to eat. If I spook them before they see me & they havent scented me they often return, not always by any means but I'v learned not to throw my hands in the air in frustration when it happens but rather try & be sure they went far enuff not to see what I'm up to & proceed to my stand. Seems more often than not as long as they are relitively undsturbed n an area they circle downwind & ease back in.
Now, like he said if the deer was just passing thru he might just decide not to go that way anymore & if you spooked them from a bedding area I doubt they'd come back the same day. Bucks, grown up ones anyway dont tolerate this sort of thing like does & young deer do in my experience. Spook the bigboy & your very lucky to get the drop on him in the same area.