Deer scents?

[Gary O]

any of you folks use them?

 

[matrem]

Yes, been using them for years.
They're just one tiny part of the equation, and my experience has been that they can hurt you more than they help under some circumstances.
Don't get me wrong, they can also "close the deal" at times, if everything else is right.

 

[Freedom_fighter_in_IL]

Gary, as matrem pointed out, they can hurt more than help when not used properly. Also, if you want to get a mature buck, refrain from using the "el cheapo" scents. Purchase quality products with no preservatives and from one deer. Also, when using scents, use the proper one for the proper part of the season. Such as, In pre-rut a good Tarsal gland with Buck urine in a mock scrape will do wonders along a known active trail. Another one is a fairly new product called "herd in a bottle" or something like that. It is a collection of urin from many "relaxed" deer and it will send a signal to a cruising deer that there are other deer in the area and it is "safe" to enter that area. Some of the cheap crap scents out there will SOMETIMES attract a mature buck but rarely. They will bring in your yearling deer that aren't educated. One of the best things I have found in 40+ years in the field hunting white tail is to take the Tarsals and the urine and bladder from a fresh kill, put them both together in a ziplock, put them in the freezer (preferably not one the wife uses unless you don't like certain parts of your anatomy in the location that they are currently in) And use that for next season. There are many scents out there that the only thing they will attract is your wallet. Do some research and get only quality scents. If you want a good list of them PM me and I will be glad to help you out.

 

[dakotasin]

i never could get the scent thing to work w/ me, so i opted to learn how to still hunt and that has been working well for me. about like scents though... if done wrong, doesn't work.

 

[FLAvalanche]

I use Code Blue doe in heat. I like Code Blue because each bottle is from ONE deer not a mixture of multiple deer like most other scents. I use wicks around my stand to attract and hold deer, I use it on my boots as a cover scent and drop a drop here around the house to annoy the dogs and girlfriend.

 

[Freedom_fighter_in_IL]

I use it on my boots as a cover scent and drop a drop here around the house to annoy the dogs and girlfriend.

You must be a young fella there FLA because through life I have learned, that is the 2 things you NEVER want to annoy. Dogs will find your favorite boots and "annoy" you. Wife/GF well there are MANY things they could find. Just a small "life lesson" there. Take it from an old man, those are the ones you want to keep just as happy as possible.

 

[Captcurt]

200 Proof!!

Started out in the 60's with Pete Richards Indian Buck Lure. Have tried most of them over the years and the only one that I can honestly say works is Buck Stops 200 Proof. It is the one I always go back to.

My huntin buddy's boy finally tried it and had a spike trail him to his stand and then licked the rung on his ladderstand. He said that he would never doubt us again.

 

[Loyalist Dave]

It also depends on your hunting area and the density of the hunters, no? Folks with only one or two hunters per square mile or even less, a scent might work very well. Here in the east, well in some of the fringe areas bordering suburbia where one can still hunt (there are plenty of deer), you can SEE the other hunters in droves in orange..., it often looks like a plane dumped a load of construction cones in the woods! So on opening day the bucks get assaulted by numerous versions of buck lure from multiple locations, and have no idea which way to turn. I worry about keeping my scent down, and as somebody else wrote, I also still hunt. Works well every year..., in fact I think that the fact that my area is relatively clean when it comes to scents..., might encourage the deer to move into my area.

LD

 

[FLAvalanche]

Take it from an old man, those are the ones you want to keep just as happy as possible.

The dog just lays there licking the spot and as far as the GF goes, you gotta keep em guessing.

 

[Captcurt]

Double Duty.

I have also found that scents can be of great benefit when used properly. When the little lady gripes about me hunting too much I simply put on my camo, douse myself with doe pee and sit in the middle of the livingroom. Ten minutes of that and I'm on my way to the woods.

Works swell!

 

[Kingcreek]

I stopped using scents a few years back after too many bad experiences. a mature doe will absolutely freak when she encounters a scent not normal for her home territory. I will sparingly use an estrus scent during the rut when hunting only the big guys, but mostly I prefer to position myself to use the scents that the local does are putting down.

 

[Vlad357]

I have not had a lot of luck with attractant scents, but I make it a point to walk down to the barn and step in a few cow pies when I go out to a stand. I think that works as a pretty good masking scent. Although last Saturday the opening of bow season in WI I had two bucks come in together and hang up about 50 yards away. My guess they smelled something funny, even over the cow pie boots.

 

[courtgreene]

the acorn scents work well as covers here. why? because we have massive amounts of acorns. I have had no luck with attractants, and I generally stay away from them for that reason. As cover scents go, though, it's important to use something found where you are hunting... if not, it's going to make deer freak out and avoid your area. Deer are like baptists, anything new or different is obviously dangerous and must be avoided. fwiw, I'm a baptist, I can say it.

 

[FLAvalanche]

My main cover scent is a dirt scent. Can't go wrong with dirt...

I also like to use an orange blossom smell when the orange trees are in bloom.

I've also found that sometimes, the best thing you can do is to not use scent and just plain get them used to you. I've stopped using cover scents when I check the cameras and fill the feeder. The hogs, which are more skittish than the deer and can smell better, have, I believe, simply gotten used to my scent being there.

If I go hunting alone the pigs will come in like clockwork. If I take someone else they won't come in until we leave and that's been verified by the cameras.

 

[HGUNHNTR]

I like to grind up juniper berries in an old blender and use that for a cover scent. Other than that, play the wind. I don't use any attactants.

 

[Arkansas Paul]

Just cover scent for me.