JUST BECAUSE YOU DON’T THINK IT SMELLS GOOD, DOESN’T MEAN A DEER WON’T.

By Aaron Carter

Before heading to the field for the evening hunt,I double-checked my gear to make sure I had everything, drenched my clothes and boots with scent-elimination spray and grabbed my bow. With the temperature hovering above 80 degrees Fahrenheit, I wasn’t looking forward to the long walk hauling my hefty treestand and gear to the stand site. And combating the smell of sweat would not be easy. Deer have extremely sensitive noses and can detect even the smallest levels of human and foreign scents. Such odors put deer on high alert. Still, I trudged on, hoping for the best.

BREAKING IT DOWN

When it comes to whitetail deer hunting, any technique that stacks the odds in your favor should be utilized. One of the most popular techniques to outwit the whitetail is the application of deer scents and lures. These take advantage of the deer’s keenest sense—its sense of smell—to better your chances of success.

There are essentially two types of scents or lures: natural and synthetic. As the name suggests, natural lures are made from ingredients—such as glands, musk, urine, secretions, oils and essences—that are not manmade. Synthetic scents, on the other hand, are formulations made to replicate those smells found in nature. In some lures, mixtures of the two are used. Those lures formulated using naturally occurring ingredients are especially appealing to deer; however, because they are natural products and subject to physical and chemical breakdown, they do not last as long as manmade scents. Synthetic lures last a lot longer because their ingredients take much longer to break down. For most situations either will work.

TYPES OF SCENTS

There are four main types of scents and each has its own niche. Curiosity scents play on the whitetail’s inquisitive nature. Deer are likely to investigate smells that are attractive yet unknown to them. This is the reason why these types of scents work best the first time they are used. The more they are encountered, the less curious the deer will be. Curiosity scents work best early in the season, before the pre-rut activity begins, for both bucks and does. During the rest of the season these scents will continue to attract does, which in turn will bring in bucks.

Deer must eat to survive, so it’s only logical that food-type scents appeal to the whitetail’s sense of smell. Some food-type scents work better than others. This can reflect the whitetail’s diet in a given area during that time frame. The smell doesn’t necessarily have to be native to an area to work. For example, when you walk through a place and smell food, no matter where you are it makes you feel hungry.

Food-type scents, like curiosity lures, work best during the early season for both bucks and does. Pre-rut, rut and post-rut will have does coming to these scents, as bucks feed very little prior to and during the rut. By attracting the does, though, you will most likely also attract bucks. A third category of whitetail attractants is territorial (or challenge) scents. Deer are aware of and keep track of all other deer in their territory. Each deer has a distinct smell to its urine, so an imposter—buck or doe—is quickly discovered.

There are several types of territorial scents. The first is ordinary deer urine. Introducing the urine of a foreign deer into the area will cause the local residents to investigate.

The second set of scents have characteristics—such as tarsal gland extracts—that make the local bucks feel their hierarchical position is threatened. Non-estrous doe urine can be used at anytime during the season, but buck urine and scents formulated to play off of a buck’s territorial instincts are most effective during the pre-rut, rut and post-rut.

Perhaps the most important category of whitetail attractant is the one that contains the sexual scents. These are the most commonly purchased and probably the most misunderstood. During the rut—a short time period each year, which can last up to a couple of weeks, when does are receptive to bucks—these scents can have the greatest effect and can significantly improve your odds of taking a big buck.

Urine collected from female deer in heat comprises most sexual attractants. Because these scents mimic those of a receptive doe, they work well during the pre-rut, rut and post-rut. Use of sexual scents before the pre-rut phase is a waste of the scent and your money.

SCENT APPLICATION

The way you apply the scent is as important as the one you select to use. Essentially, there are three ways to disperse a scent for hunting purposes.

The first, and probably the most popular, is the use of scent wicks. These range from cotton balls in old film canisters to specialized plastic containers that hold a presoaked cotton or synthetic felt wick that can be pulled out for scent dispersion and can also be closed to lock in the scent. Because the wicks have a large surface area exposed to the air, scent dispersion is excellent. This also requires more scent to be used, as it will evaporate faster than other methods. Simply saturate the wick with the scent and hang it four to six feet off of the ground in places you have a clear shot. For greater scent dispersion and masking effect, hang an additional one or two wicks or canisters on branches at the height you are hunting. This method works well with all scent types.

Drags and boot scent pads are other ways to disperse scent. A drag is a line connected to the hunter on one end with a cotton or synthetic, felt wick attached to the other end. Boot scent pads are wicks fastened to the base of your boots and serve the same purpose as a drag.

The idea behind these dispersion methods is to create a mock trail heading to and around your hunting location. Most often they are used with territorial and sexual scents, with the latter being the best. During the rut this application works well because when the buck crosses the path where you walked with the doe-in-estrous scent, it will naturally follow the scent trail to your location, thinking it’s following a doe.

When you enter the field add your favorite estrous attractant to your drag or boot scent pads and walk to your hunting site. When you reach your destination walk a circle around your stand and then hang up the pad or drag as you would a scent wick. When the buck follows the trail, it will give you an opportunity for a shot.

The third method of application is a dripper. There are several different types on the market, but they all follow the same premise. Essentially, the selected scent is poured into the dripper, which is then recapped. Turning the dripper upside down starts the flowing action. Some drippers work constantly, while others are regulated by temperature to operate during the day. These drippers condition bucks into thinking that receptive does are coming by only during daylight hours. This might be just the key to bagging a nocturnal bruiser.

The ideal scents for drippers are either territorial or sexual, with the latter being the best choice. The trick is to have the dripper ready to go and on location before the pre-rut and maintain it throughout the rut. During the pre-rut and early rut are your best chances to connect with a buck.

Reaching my destination, I quickly attached my climbing stand, fastened my pack and bow to the pull-up line, squirted a few drops of deer lure on a nearby sapling and the ground and began my ascent. Five minutes later, I glanced to my right and saw two bucks leaving their bedding area. Quickly, yet quietly, I wrapped the release around my wrist and prepared myself mentally in case a shot presented itself. The bucks meandered to the left at a distance of about 60 yards, stopping every few steps to eat acorns. Suddenly, the larger of the two changed direction and began walking directly toward my tree.

I stood in awe as the buck approached from directly downwind and came to the very tree to which I applied the deer lure. Standing a mere two yards away, the buck suddenly looked up in the trees. Alarmed, but unsure, the buck backed up, all the while watching me. As it eased to my left, I drew my bow, aimed and took the quartering away shot. Without the aid of a deer attractant and human scent neutralizer, I could have missed the opportunity.

Captions

This stinks!
Young hunter Jonah Whitley, 10, discovers his sense of smell is a lotdifferent than a deer’s.

Books, like this one from the Wildlife Research Center, are great resources for learning more about using deer scents.

The Scrape Line Kit, from Hunter’s Specialties, attracts dominant and
territorial bucks.
The kit includes multiple bottles of scent, scent cups, gloves and an instructional DVD.

Food-type scents, like those pictured below, work best during the early season.

Food-type scents, like those pictured below, work best during the early season.

Hanging wicks like the ones pictured here are an effective means of scent dispersion.

Hanging wicks like the ones pictured here are an effective means of scent dispersion.

The most common type of deer scent—sexual attractants—will make that big buck think you’re a doe and draw it to your hunting site.