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What can I do?!

9K views 66 replies 37 participants last post by  TimberHog 
#1 ·
I'm at a point where I'm not sure what to do..... every time before I go hunting I wash everything with scent stuff and spray down the rest. I take a shower with scent stuff and do not smoke at all until I'm done for the day.

Last year was my first time ever hunting from treestands and blinds (I am from out west). I had deer bust me and blow at me all the time. I was really impatient and tried to force shots all the time.. This year I keep my bow ready and don't move around while I wait and not force situations that aren't there.

This morning I am sitting in the stand, bow ready and I'm not movin. Out of nowhere about 50ish yards behind me down wind a doe starts FREAKING out. She blew about 10 times and you could tell she was jumpin around going crazy. There was no way for her to see me at all. She smelled me and went nuts. I had several encounters with her last year and she always blew at me but nobody else.

My buddy that I hunt with will piss and **** from or next to the stand. Drink coffee and spit chew all over the place. He has deer come in all the time and they never spook. He can't remember ever getting blown at while hunting.

What makes me stand out from everyone else? What do I do?
 
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#4 ·
I'm at a point where I'm not sure what to do..... every time before I go hunting I wash everything with scent stuff and spray down the rest. I take a shower with scent stuff and do not smoke at all until I'm done for the day.

Last year was my first time ever hunting from treestands and blinds (I am from out west). I had deer bust me and blow at me all the time. I was really impatient and tried to force shots all the time.. This year I keep my bow ready and don't move around while I wait and not force situations that aren't there.

This morning I am sitting in the stand, bow ready and I'm not movin. Out of nowhere about 50ish yards behind me down wind a doe starts FREAKING out. She blew about 10 times and you could tell she was jumpin around going crazy. There was no way for her to see me at all. She smelled me and went nuts. I had several encounters with her last year and she always blew at me but nobody else.

My buddy that I hunt with will piss and **** from or next to the stand. Drink coffee and spit chew all over the place. He has deer come in all the time and they never spook. He can't remember ever getting blown at while hunting.

What makes me stand out from everyone else? What do I do?
Just depends. I got blown at 8 times yesterday. Swag Im in is a prime location but almost impossible to not get winded. I was pretty pissed by dark yesterday. I also eat a ton of meat and have high testosterone. I truly believe that makes a difference on body odor/predatory smell to deer...Barry and Gene Wensel are two legendary bowhunters and authors and have touched on this and other odd things such as the animals 6th sense. Neat stuff
 
#12 ·
Others will argue this first point but I stand by what I have witnessed. Generally speaking if a deer smells you they don't stand around snorting. If the wind changes and your scent surprises them they'll let out that initial "holy sh&t" snort and be gone. With that being said most likely you have been seen in that stand before. Maybe you didn't know it but you have been seen. Therefore, any old doe worth her salt will eyeball that stand every time she walks even close to it. If it doesn't look the same each time, she is going to notice the difference and even the slightest movement will set her off. Either move your stand or hang another in hopes of killing her cause she'll bust you every time going forward.
 
#14 ·
What kind of spray are you using? I use the scent killer and top secret scent defense. I have had Deer down wind from me this weekend and shot one of the does. One doe came in 5 yards behind me but busted me when I was making sure a tick wasn’t on me.
I got a buddy who smokes out of his stand. Doesn’t do it at prime time but kills a lot of deer ever year doing it.

Bottle Fluid
 
#17 ·
What kind of spray are you using? I use the scent killer and top secret scent defense. I have had Deer down wind from me this weekend and shot one of the does. One doe came in 5 yards behind me but busted me when I was making sure a tick wasn’t on me.
I got a buddy who smokes out of his stand. Doesn’t do it at prime time but kills a lot of deer ever year doing it.

View attachment 279058
I use bio strike and d/code

I cant believe your buddy doesn't get busted... thats nuts. Have you had any luck on base this year?
 
#21 ·
move the stand and play the wind. I had a doe like that on the 80 acres of private that I hunt. I could step in the woods off the road and that ol nanny would start blowing. She met her fate with a blackpowder bullet and I aint no more trouble like that
 
#25 ·
I'm not currently a bowhunter, but a hunter. I have questions.

You say she "blew and went crazy". Can you elucidate? What is "going crazy"? How long after you first heard her blow did she stay in one spot? What do you think she did? If she left out of there, how long after she started blowing?

This time of year, or any time it's warm, I've had doe blow and blow, near by, but what they did after was the key. I can think of two occasions that they ended up moving TOWARDS me after that. Once, I am pretty sure they were blowing at my truck which I parked several hundred yards upwind (only parking spot). So she ended up running away from the truck and towards me. She got close to me in a shooting lane, and saw me. But that didn't bother her. But it wasn't me she was blowing at.

One other time I suspect it was a bobcat or coyote she was blowing at. She went all around me, blowing a lot. I suspect she had little ones, or last years deer, with her somewhere. She wasn't blowing at me I don't think, since she really never really left.

Other times I've known they were blowing at me. I just chalk it up to "I ain't gonna kill that deer", and usually another one shows up later.
 
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#29 ·
Last year she blew at me and was jumping around blowing non stop. This morning it sounded like she was doing the same thing and towards the end of it she sounded further away like she was runnin off.

I guess i am assuming it was at me because I have encountered a doe multiple times in that area either when I am walkin through or sitting the stand and she blows every single time. Usually once she blows i dont see another deer the rest of the day. Could be coincidence i guess
 
#26 ·
I’ve had a doe on public land bust me and four buddies multiple times. She has a split on her ear is how I know her. No matter what direction I came in what wind she would bust us. I moved my stand and let her have that area. Going back for here during muzzleloader. She has done this to us as long as I have been stationed here.
 
#30 ·
Where is this? Our herd is coming back, but last 5 years, there's been a lot of days I saw no deer.

I just think.........and could be way off, I'm about the dumbest deer hunter on this board, for sure.......that if she is blowing like crazy but not really leaving, she is either not blowing at you, or she smells you but can't locate you. But on the other hand, it COULD be you. This is why deer are magical, mystical creatures and can not be patterned 100%.

You stay at it, and you'll win. The one trait that will ensure deer harvest success is perserverance.
 
#31 ·
IMO, you’re not going to beat a deers nose, no matter what scent elimination procedure you follow every time. If a deer is downwind of you they’re going to smell you. Certain deer may not react, may ignore you, may do any number of things, but they know you’re there. That doe knows your stand and knows to check it every time she comes through the area to see if you’re there or not. Like AC said you need to move a little further downwind and pop her, that’s the only way you’re going to break her from the habit.
 
#32 ·
Leave the stand where it is, but move closer to where she is. Either in a lock on or climber. My guess is she knows that ladder stand, and is scoping it out every time she is near it. If you move the stand, she will know something is up. Fool her to think no one is in it, and pop he from a new hidden location closer to where she scent checks you. As said above, you arent beating her nose. But you can fool her
 
#35 ·
I'm at a point where I'm not sure what to do..... every time before I go hunting I wash everything with scent stuff and spray down the rest. I take a shower with scent stuff and do not smoke at all until I'm done for the day.

Last year was my first time ever hunting from treestands and blinds (I am from out west). I had deer bust me and blow at me all the time. I was really impatient and tried to force shots all the time.. This year I keep my bow ready and don't move around while I wait and not force situations that aren't there.

This morning I am sitting in the stand, bow ready and I'm not movin. Out of nowhere about 50ish yards behind me down wind a doe starts FREAKING out. She blew about 10 times and you could tell she was jumpin around going crazy. There was no way for her to see me at all. She smelled me and went nuts. I had several encounters with her last year and she always blew at me but nobody else.

My buddy that I hunt with will piss and **** from or next to the stand. Drink coffee and spit chew all over the place. He has deer come in all the time and they never spook. He can't remember ever getting blown at while hunting.

What makes me stand out from everyone else? What do I do?
If u are in a block of woods that get hunted a lot there could be a problem.
We had what we called a crazy doe on about a 1/2 mile x 1/2 mile and this doe would start blowing 1/4 mile from you and blew till it was 1/4 mile on the other side of you every day.
I hunted this spot and never could get one up on that crazy doe. Good Luck.
PS. and everyone that hunted it told the same story about the crazy doe. So it was not just me.
 
#36 ·
Okay so I’ve read most of this thread but not sure of this has been mentioned...I did see where you said your buddy does all kinds of things on and around his stand and never gets busted...soooo...maybe your should phit and siss everywhere like he does and spit tobacco and see if that works...I think you’ve got a chance!!
 
#39 ·
Is it just this one doe giving you issues or most deer? If it’s just an old nanny, then move and kill her. If it’s more than one deer, you’re set up wrong.

Your buddy stinks worse than you, that’s why they just leave before getting in close. They’re almost making it into your stand before smelling you. You can’t stop your smell, it’s impossible, but you can play the wind.
 
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