Mock scrapes

[mbucks27]

How early in the year do you guys start putting out mock scrapes?? Im going to experiment with a scent dripper this year and was thinking about starting one in mid sept. i have seen a few summer scrapes on my hunting property this year so i dont think starting one in mid sept with some active scrape will be too early. Any thoughts are appreciated. I will also hang a cam over it and share my results.

John

[deerpassion]

well since bow is so early this year its a toss up... but im gonna set one about a week before season and put a cam on it... maybe it'll get em at least curious or territorial and get em stoppin by every few days to check out who's in the neighborhood...

[Cabin Fever]

I always started mine the first week of October, when season opened ~Oct 15th. Some years (like last year), my scrapes are HOT before season opens, being visited by mature bucks. If you have community scrapes on your property anyway, I wouldn't hesitate to get one started mid-late Sept. Might be a good experiment anyway!

Scrapes are my favorite place to have cams setup to get videos in the fall! You learn so much and it's so cool to see how the deer interact with the scrape and overhanging branch! It's amazing to see how many bucks visit the same scrapes too! I bet 75%+ of the bucks come in and just work the licking branch, without actually freshening the scrape! Before setting my cams up over the scrapes, I always judged how hot the scrape was, by how fresh it appeared. NOT the case!!

[deerpassion]

I always started mine the first week of October, when season opened ~Oct 15th. Some years (like last year), my scrapes are HOT before season opens, being visited by mature bucks. If you have community scrapes on your property anyway, I wouldn't hesitate to get one started mid-late Sept. Might be a good experiment anyway!

Scrapes are my favorite place to have cams setup to get videos in the fall! You learn so much and it's so cool to see how the deer interact with the scrape and overhanging branch! It's amazing to see how many bucks visit the same scrapes too! I bet 75%+ of the bucks come in and just work the licking branch, without actually freshening the scrape! Before setting my cams up over the scrapes, I always judged how hot the scrape was, by how fresh it appeared. NOT the case!!

I always started mine the first week of October, when season opened ~Oct 15th. Some years (like last year), my scrapes are HOT before season opens, being visited by mature bucks. If you have community scrapes on your property anyway, I wouldn't hesitate to get one started mid-late Sept. Might be a good experiment anyway!

Scrapes are my favorite place to have cams setup to get videos in the fall! You learn so much and it's so cool to see how the deer interact with the scrape and overhanging branch! It's amazing to see how many bucks visit the same scrapes too! I bet 75%+ of the bucks come in and just work the licking branch, without actually freshening the scrape! Before setting my cams up over the scrapes, I always judged how hot the scrape was, by how fresh it appeared. NOT the case!!

that's interesting!!! I am gonna have to think of some creative way to get the camera up high and get it angled down at it so they don't spook with the cam as they are workin it and never return cause i got two regulars that are bruisers.. would hate to spoil it before it even began... maybe a wedge or something ... hhmmm... did you notice on any of your video's the bucks spotting the camera and reacting negatively to it... ? don't know if you watched that video on another post here a little while back about the research done with them spotting the trail cams? gonna give it a whirl any how...

[Cabin Fever]

They may notice it, but I've never had the kind of reaction that that guy did in his research! They may look at it and think, "WTH". I've gotten the same bucks visiting the same scrapes over and over again on video. Maybe because they are rutting and let their guard down? I dunno. I mount my cams 3-4' high and nothing special! The scrape where most of these videos were taken, are all me.... scrape, urine, and all! LOL

Some scrape vid's....

[mbucks27]

Thanks for the input guys and great pics Cabin!! I hope to have some good results and will def share my findings and pics.

John

[Paula]

he or they likes the branch hanging down, good videos. eyes in one of them looked wicked

Edited August 15, 2012 by paula

[growalot]

What are you guys using on the branch and ground?

[deerpassion]

i've been using code blue's mock scrape 1oz srpay bottle ... a couple a sprays on the scrape and one on the branch and your good for a week or two... been looking at getting some of the mock scrape dirt that comes in a pouch... real soil infused with the scrape ingredients that you mix in with the roughed up soil and it is supposed to reactivate itself with moisture or rain, so if you have a spot you don't visit regularly or is far from home you would be good for almost a month without refreshing it...

[WNYBuckHunter]

I used the mock scrape dirt stuff for the last 2 years, with mixed results. I had next to no luck with it last year. This year Im going to order some preorbital scent for the licking branches, and then just dig scent from scrapes on one hunting property and put them in the scrape at another property, and vice versa.

[Cabin Fever]

Thanks for the input guys and great pics Cabin!! I hope to have some good results and will def share my findings and pics.

BTW, those are all videos. The only one where the buck seems on on edge is the last one, but even then, he doesn't seem very spooked.

I've never put anything on the licking branch. I just whiz in the scrapes myself.

[ELMER J. FUDD]

I always wondered if the urine on the branch will confuse them. Does it even matter?

[mbucks27]

A guy i know swears by peeing in a scrape. He says he programs the deer to hunt him lol.

John

[nyslowhand]

Very KOOL videos, Cabin Fever!! Sure to get the blood flowing in any hunter! I'm pumped!!!

[deerpassion]

really, ya'll pee in your mock scrape or an existing one? hmmm might be worth a try, I wiz off the down wind side a my stand all the time and have had deer right at the base without spookin... food for thought...

[Buckstopshere]

Cabin...nice clips! What seems to work well for me is when I find a scrape with an overhanging branch on a property that I can not hunt, or hang a camera on, clip the overhanging branch and then zip-tie it to a scrape with a camera. Having looked at hundreds of vid clips of bucks at scrapes, it is amazing how little attention they pay to the ground scrape...95% of their attention is in the overhanging branch.

[Cabin Fever]

really, ya'll pee in your mock scrape or an existing one? hmmm might be worth a try, I wiz off the down wind side a my stand all the time and have had deer right at the base without spookin... food for thought...

Oh yeah. Sure saves a lot of $$ on buying urine too! Charles Alsheimer says that he urinates in his mock scrapes also.

I don't know why, but last fall, I had a grey fox come into my most active mock scrape on several occasions and it would roll around in it!

[Cabin Fever]

Cabin...nice clips! What seems to work well for me is when I find a scrape with an overhanging branch on a property that I can not hunt, or hang a camera on, clip the overhanging branch and then zip-tie it to a scrape with a camera. Having looked at hundreds of vid clips of bucks at scrapes, it is amazing how little attention they pay to the ground scrape...95% of their attention is in the overhanging branch.

That's absolutely my observation! That overhanging branch gets MUCH more attention than the scrape itself!

One other scrape observation that I've made is that, very few does visit the scrapes. I don't think they go out of their way to do it either, but just causally as they are walking by. I always read that does urinate in the scrapes and such, but I have NEVER once in 5+ years of getting literaly hundreds of scrape videos, seen a doe urinate in it! They walk by, sniff, and keep walking! They don't interact with the scrape or overhanging branch at all to purposely leave scent there. From my videos, I have to question if the "doe-in-heat" scents that guys put in the scrapes are just a complete waste of $$? I can see if you're laying a scent trail or bomb, but actually in a scrape, it may be too unnatural if does don't even do it. Also, I've heard of guys putting doe-in-heat urine on the overhanging branch, which I think is crazy unnatural! As important as that overhanging branch has shown to be, I let the bucks scent that up for me! They just rub their forehead glands all over it and sometimes even put it in their mouth. At times, it's like watching a dog play with its favorite toy or something!

[WNYBuckHunter]

In the past I used to spray or drip on some estrous scent on the overhanging branch, and noticed that after I did that, the scrape pretty much went completely inactive or got very little use. I stopped doing that last year. I noticed that last year, the same scrapes I had done that to in the past, and didnt last year, seemed to have a ton more activity for much longer. This year Im going to use the preorbital on the branch and a mix of dirt from other scrapes and my pee in them. Im anxious to see what happens.

[phade]

I have mixed results with cams over scrapes with video. Most see the cam, notice it, are 50/50 on bolting, and then go back to their normal routine.

I have a nice mature belly sagging buck that came in to a scrape, started working it, noticed the IR...and literally turned inside out and boogered out of there. He flat out came unglued. I've never seen a buck lose it like that before...not even when bumping one in person while hunting.

Last year, got a 2.5 and a 3.5 on video over a scrape...one never saw it and was worked up. The 2.5 noticed it, but went on with his way.

[phade]

really, ya'll pee in your mock scrape or an existing one? hmmm might be worth a try, I wiz off the down wind side a my stand all the time and have had deer right at the base without spookin... food for thought...

I've got mature bucks on cam in scrapes working them within hours of me peeing in them.

I used to tinker more with scrapes, but not so much now. Peeing in them is quick and easy...

[phade]

That's absolutely my observation! That overhanging branch gets MUCH more attention than the scrape itself!

One other scrape observation that I've made is that, very few does visit the scrapes. I don't think they go out of their way to do it either, but just causally as they are walking by. I always read that does urinate in the scrapes and such, but I have NEVER once in 5+ years of getting literaly hundreds of scrape videos, seen a doe urinate in it! They walk by, sniff, and keep walking! They don't interact with the scrape or overhanging branch at all to purposely leave scent there. From my videos, I have to question if the "doe-in-heat" scents that guys put in the scrapes are just a complete waste of $$? I can see if you're laying a scent trail or bomb, but actually in a scrape, it may be too unnatural if does don't even do it. Also, I've heard of guys putting doe-in-heat urine on the overhanging branch, which I think is crazy unnatural! As important as that overhanging branch has shown to be, I let the bucks scent that up for me! They just rub their forehead glands all over it and sometimes even put it in their mouth. At times, it's like watching a dog play with its favorite toy or something!

I have a few videos of does working scrapes...one peeing in it. Not common at all, though. I once saw a single doe cross a scrape I was hunting, work it, urinate in it, and then move on. 5 min later, another doe, with twins in tow, wanted NOTHING to do with the scrape and actually went out of her way.

[NFA-ADK]

Cool video's, thanks for sharing Cabin. Cool post!!! I am interested too WNYBuckHunter!!! Keep us posted!

[Cabin Fever]

Peeing in them is quick and easy...

AND a hell of a lot cheaper than Tinks!! Before heading out, I usually stop to get some coffee or fill up on water to refill the bladder! Tough to shut it off sometimes when you need to ration it between multiple scrapes!

[Tio1]

Try kischel scents mock scrape kit. Works great. I've been using it for yrs with cameras. If you know a traditional scraping area, open the scrape first and refreshen 7-10 days. The kit is glandular spray, interdigital, preorbital, and tarsal. They love the preorbital on the licking/ overhead branches. I like to have the scrapes open prior to bucks hard horn in early September. Good luck and hope this helps.