Post by Ron on Sept 30, 2016 9:33:13 GMT -6
While mock scrapes are not a new tactic, there is increased interest in licking branches and mock scrapes as a way of increasing a hunters odds of connecting with deer while on stand and as a way of directing deer to a specific location that works to the advantage of the hunter. For years we have been investigating the interactions between deer and their scrapes and licking branches and not just bucks because Does also utilize these "social networking" sites and while the focus of many hunters is on antlered deer, we cant overlook the interaction of does and the role the licking branch and scrape plays in the breading ritual and why bucks are drawn to the branch in the first place.
Observation shows that deer (both bucks and does) that visit a scrape/branch location spend the majority of their time not on the ground but rather on the overhanging branch (85% of their time on the branch and 15% of their time on the dirt below). The rubbing of the tear ducts and forehead (not specifically the antlers as once thought) and the mouth on the branch and then stopping to smell their work made it clear the branch was all about scent communication and more important than the ground below. We also concluded that time deer spent sniffing the ground had little to do with urine and more to do with identifying the specific deer via scent left behind from their interdigital glands between their hooves. Early on we learned it is a waste of time and effort to spend any time focusing on the ground/dirt. There is no need to create a scrape. Let the deer do that part. simply provide them the branch that works in your favor.
If you are spending any time with pee (purchased or your own pee), you may get a visit but from deer on trail cams but for increased and repeat visits and duration at the site, its the branch that is key. If the ground plays any role its due to the the interdigital gland which is the one gland deer can use to not only identify the exact deer that visited but also how long ago that deer visited and where they went afterwards. None of the other glands afford this level of detail so when you think about the ground under a licking branch, urine is very low on the list things deer care about (deer pee everywhere). Even if a hot doe visits a branch and pees in it, a buck will scent track her down via he interdigital scent trail (since she cant pee with every step she takes for thousands of yards). That buck with his nose to the ground is following here interdigital scent trail. When he locates her via the interdigital scent he can get down wind to check if she is in heat.
Early study of these branch sites was done with trail cams that only took still photos (the earliest with 35mm film cams) but it wasn't until trail cams that allowed video footage became available that we learned so much more about the interaction between deer and the branch and the role does play. Below this lengthy typing you will see pictures and videos from the early days and all the way up to last week's camera card pull.
This study of licking branches and scrapes led to research into the glandular communications deer use and then to experiments in harvesting those glandular scents to force deer to visit branches of our choosing. Years of trial (and error) led us to a lot of conclusion in regards to branch location and branch height and introducing glandular scent to the branch and eventually the creation of a glandular scent of our own.
The thought was rather than waiting for deer to create a licking branch (which are hard to find until a scrape forms beneath and by that time you have lost valuable time) and hope that the branch was in a suitable location for us to capitalize upon as a hunter (prevailing winds, travel routes, stand placement, entrance and exits routes, etc) that we could actually provide a licking branch in a location of our choosing that is exactly where we want it to advantage us as a hunter and the deer would take it over and eventually create a scrape beneath our branch as a way of increasing our odds of encountering a deer right where we want it.
The goal is to Draw in deer to a location of our choosing and Hold their attention long enough for us to make the shot or get a trail cam video/picture. Aside from using the branches in our hunting we use our branches as a way to inventory and catalog local deer on the property with trail cams. The earliest work (before branches) was on the sides of trees by either applying the scent directly or to gauze pads and then to a properly sited overhanging branch.
Our work led to the creation of a scent we made and had success with. Upon sharing the results with others in our immediate group of family and friends, they wanted some scent too. We make the scent from deer we harvest so the amount of scent we can produce is limited by the available cadaver deer we could get our hands on. When others wanted the scent we made the exchange with them providing their deer parts. Later we began working with taxidermists, deer grocessers and a larger group of hunters to secure enough deer parts to make the scent. Because of this we are limited in the amount of scent we generate each year.
Our sales thus far have been organic and repeat customers but we generate enough to offer the remaining bottles for sale. The scent is called "Draw n Hold" for a few reasons. First it draws deer to a spot you choose and it holds their attention long enough for a shot or trail cam picture. Secondly, drawing and holding a bow string at that moment of the kill are the hallmarks of bowhunting and we created this scent to use while bowhunting.
Here are some of our digital pictures and videos from scent trials over the years. We did not scan the earliest 35mm trail cam film photos from the earliest scent trials but we think you will get the point from the pics and videos from the last 6 year of data. You will see that the videos offer far more information and now we only set trail cams on video as we find still photos less than useful.
2011
2011
2014 Video footage from a tester in Ohio
2014
2014 buck video picked up by a trail can while my father was in his stand 20 yards away. Sadly the trail cam turns off a second before he arrows the buck. His hit was high and he was unable to recover the buck. He was spotted alive weeks later.
Another buck visiting a branch while a hunter is on stand.
2014
2016
Early still photo trail cam pics from the days of tree side application (prior to branches) and gauze pad application in trees and stumps.
If you are not using licking branches to your advantage as a bowhunter, you may want to consider giving it a try. If you are interested in getting one of the remaining bottles of the 2016 batch of Draw n Hold licking branch scent (about 40 of the 1 Oz. bottles are left at the time this thread was created), you can go to our products page at this link and click on the PRODUCTS tab at the top of the page.
innovativeoutdoorsmanllc.com/index.htm
You will receive a 1 Oz bottle of scent, a pair of rubber gloves (key to keeping your branch creation free of human scent), swabs and instruction for how to create or re-locate a licking branch to your advantage.
*****Before you buy Draw n Hold scent please read.*****
Before I go any further we want to do the opposite of what most scent makers do and we want to tell you what Draw-n-Hold scent IS NOT. Like you we are deer hunters and like you have bought our share of products with unrealistic expectations hoping for a magic potion and then because of unrealistic expectations, were let down by the manufacturer’s hype that did not match our results. Because of that we wont do that to you.
Draw-n-Hold WILL NOT create deer where there are no deer. If you have very little deer sign in your area and low deer populations, there is no product that will help you. Our scent wont create deer.
Draw-n-Hold WILL NOT pull deer of your neighbor’s land and keep them on yours. Thats not how this works. Place our scent where deer frequent naturally but you want to direct them to a dedicated spot so you can get a shot opportunity.
Draw-n-Hold WILL NOT pull P&Y and Booner bucks to your stand with their tongues hanging out waiting for you to shoot them.
Draw-n-Hold WILL NOT create a "territorial" situation where huge bucks are going to go to war over who get to use the branch. Deer dont think like that so dont fall for that hype.
Draw-n-Hold WILL NOT make you a better hunter that can ignore the wind who moves around in his stand too much and spends his time playing games on his cell phone or overhunts the same stand day after day and then blames the scent. Its just a bottle of scent. You still have hunt smart.
Draw-n-Hold WILL NOT guarantee instant results. Dont put it out and climb a tree expecting its "powerful aroma" will pull in deer. That's not how this works. Draw-n-Hold is a conditioning scent that needs time for the deer to find and establish a licking branch and an eventual scrape. Give it time. Be patient.
Draw-n-Hold WILL NOT be as effective if you get human scent all over the branch you are creating. Its so important that we are including rubber gloves so you have no excuse. Use them. You are attracting deer with this scent; don’t screw it up and scare them away with your human scent.
Yes that's deer hair in the bottle. Its part of the scent making process. Filtering and straining it out to make the scent "look nice" makes the scent less effective. We are not making cosmetics. You can expect particulate and "stuff" in the bottle that you dont normally see in store bought scent.
Now we will tell you what you can expect from Draw-n-Hold Scent and what you need to do to take full advantage of the power in the bottle. First and foremost, scout and find where the deer are. Then based on the lay of the land, prevailing winds, your approach to the stand and whether or not you are a tree stand hunter or ground blind hunter, pick an ambush spot that puts you at the greatest advantage. The deer sign will most likely be trails, funnels, field edges, ridge tops, river bottoms, etc. With your stand choice made, look to see if there is a tree with a suitable low hanging branch that will position deer exactly where you want them to stop for a clean shot. The branch tips and leaf cluster needs to be between 40 and 45 inches off the ground. If the best branch is a bit too high, use rope or chord and pull the branch down to the proper height and tie it off to the base of the tree.
If there is no branch where you need it, you can relocate a sapling or branch exactly where you need it. Try Oak, Maple, Apple or other deer favored tree species as they are more favored but any species that the deer will mouth/eat will work. Avoid conifers/pines.
These species can work but are too brittle and dont last. Tie or lash this relocated branch or sapling to an existing tree to hold it in position. Tie it securely as its going to be heavily abused by both bucks and does that are going to pull and tug at it. Bucks want to rake their antlers on the branch and both bucks and does will rub their eyes and forehead glands on the leaves/branches. They will also chew the tips so the height is important. Draw-n-Hold will attract does as well and during the rut, attracting does is always a smart move so if you make the branch too high, the does wont take advantage of it. Deer are smaller than you think. When you create a branch 40 to 45 inches off the ground, you are going to think its too low. Its not and your trail cam pics will show it.
Lastly since we only have a limited quantity of sent remaining, we expect to sell out and since we believe so strongly in the advantages of creating licking branches we will do what other scent makers don't do. IF you cant get Draw-n-Hold, buy another brand like Paul Palliks (good quality and fairly priced and did well in our testing) or Smokey's (much higher priced but still tested well). Dont miss the opportunity to take advantage of licking branches because we are sold out. (hows that for a sales pitch? We're telling you to buy from somebody else)
Good hunting. If you get interesting trail cam data you want to share with us, let us know. We would love to see it.
Observation shows that deer (both bucks and does) that visit a scrape/branch location spend the majority of their time not on the ground but rather on the overhanging branch (85% of their time on the branch and 15% of their time on the dirt below). The rubbing of the tear ducts and forehead (not specifically the antlers as once thought) and the mouth on the branch and then stopping to smell their work made it clear the branch was all about scent communication and more important than the ground below. We also concluded that time deer spent sniffing the ground had little to do with urine and more to do with identifying the specific deer via scent left behind from their interdigital glands between their hooves. Early on we learned it is a waste of time and effort to spend any time focusing on the ground/dirt. There is no need to create a scrape. Let the deer do that part. simply provide them the branch that works in your favor.
If you are spending any time with pee (purchased or your own pee), you may get a visit but from deer on trail cams but for increased and repeat visits and duration at the site, its the branch that is key. If the ground plays any role its due to the the interdigital gland which is the one gland deer can use to not only identify the exact deer that visited but also how long ago that deer visited and where they went afterwards. None of the other glands afford this level of detail so when you think about the ground under a licking branch, urine is very low on the list things deer care about (deer pee everywhere). Even if a hot doe visits a branch and pees in it, a buck will scent track her down via he interdigital scent trail (since she cant pee with every step she takes for thousands of yards). That buck with his nose to the ground is following here interdigital scent trail. When he locates her via the interdigital scent he can get down wind to check if she is in heat.
Early study of these branch sites was done with trail cams that only took still photos (the earliest with 35mm film cams) but it wasn't until trail cams that allowed video footage became available that we learned so much more about the interaction between deer and the branch and the role does play. Below this lengthy typing you will see pictures and videos from the early days and all the way up to last week's camera card pull.
This study of licking branches and scrapes led to research into the glandular communications deer use and then to experiments in harvesting those glandular scents to force deer to visit branches of our choosing. Years of trial (and error) led us to a lot of conclusion in regards to branch location and branch height and introducing glandular scent to the branch and eventually the creation of a glandular scent of our own.
The thought was rather than waiting for deer to create a licking branch (which are hard to find until a scrape forms beneath and by that time you have lost valuable time) and hope that the branch was in a suitable location for us to capitalize upon as a hunter (prevailing winds, travel routes, stand placement, entrance and exits routes, etc) that we could actually provide a licking branch in a location of our choosing that is exactly where we want it to advantage us as a hunter and the deer would take it over and eventually create a scrape beneath our branch as a way of increasing our odds of encountering a deer right where we want it.
The goal is to Draw in deer to a location of our choosing and Hold their attention long enough for us to make the shot or get a trail cam video/picture. Aside from using the branches in our hunting we use our branches as a way to inventory and catalog local deer on the property with trail cams. The earliest work (before branches) was on the sides of trees by either applying the scent directly or to gauze pads and then to a properly sited overhanging branch.
Our work led to the creation of a scent we made and had success with. Upon sharing the results with others in our immediate group of family and friends, they wanted some scent too. We make the scent from deer we harvest so the amount of scent we can produce is limited by the available cadaver deer we could get our hands on. When others wanted the scent we made the exchange with them providing their deer parts. Later we began working with taxidermists, deer grocessers and a larger group of hunters to secure enough deer parts to make the scent. Because of this we are limited in the amount of scent we generate each year.
Our sales thus far have been organic and repeat customers but we generate enough to offer the remaining bottles for sale. The scent is called "Draw n Hold" for a few reasons. First it draws deer to a spot you choose and it holds their attention long enough for a shot or trail cam picture. Secondly, drawing and holding a bow string at that moment of the kill are the hallmarks of bowhunting and we created this scent to use while bowhunting.
Here are some of our digital pictures and videos from scent trials over the years. We did not scan the earliest 35mm trail cam film photos from the earliest scent trials but we think you will get the point from the pics and videos from the last 6 year of data. You will see that the videos offer far more information and now we only set trail cams on video as we find still photos less than useful.
2011
2011
2014 Video footage from a tester in Ohio
2014
2014 buck video picked up by a trail can while my father was in his stand 20 yards away. Sadly the trail cam turns off a second before he arrows the buck. His hit was high and he was unable to recover the buck. He was spotted alive weeks later.
Another buck visiting a branch while a hunter is on stand.
2014
2016
Early still photo trail cam pics from the days of tree side application (prior to branches) and gauze pad application in trees and stumps.
If you are not using licking branches to your advantage as a bowhunter, you may want to consider giving it a try. If you are interested in getting one of the remaining bottles of the 2016 batch of Draw n Hold licking branch scent (about 40 of the 1 Oz. bottles are left at the time this thread was created), you can go to our products page at this link and click on the PRODUCTS tab at the top of the page.
innovativeoutdoorsmanllc.com/index.htm
You will receive a 1 Oz bottle of scent, a pair of rubber gloves (key to keeping your branch creation free of human scent), swabs and instruction for how to create or re-locate a licking branch to your advantage.
*****Before you buy Draw n Hold scent please read.*****
Before I go any further we want to do the opposite of what most scent makers do and we want to tell you what Draw-n-Hold scent IS NOT. Like you we are deer hunters and like you have bought our share of products with unrealistic expectations hoping for a magic potion and then because of unrealistic expectations, were let down by the manufacturer’s hype that did not match our results. Because of that we wont do that to you.
Draw-n-Hold WILL NOT create deer where there are no deer. If you have very little deer sign in your area and low deer populations, there is no product that will help you. Our scent wont create deer.
Draw-n-Hold WILL NOT pull deer of your neighbor’s land and keep them on yours. Thats not how this works. Place our scent where deer frequent naturally but you want to direct them to a dedicated spot so you can get a shot opportunity.
Draw-n-Hold WILL NOT pull P&Y and Booner bucks to your stand with their tongues hanging out waiting for you to shoot them.
Draw-n-Hold WILL NOT create a "territorial" situation where huge bucks are going to go to war over who get to use the branch. Deer dont think like that so dont fall for that hype.
Draw-n-Hold WILL NOT make you a better hunter that can ignore the wind who moves around in his stand too much and spends his time playing games on his cell phone or overhunts the same stand day after day and then blames the scent. Its just a bottle of scent. You still have hunt smart.
Draw-n-Hold WILL NOT guarantee instant results. Dont put it out and climb a tree expecting its "powerful aroma" will pull in deer. That's not how this works. Draw-n-Hold is a conditioning scent that needs time for the deer to find and establish a licking branch and an eventual scrape. Give it time. Be patient.
Draw-n-Hold WILL NOT be as effective if you get human scent all over the branch you are creating. Its so important that we are including rubber gloves so you have no excuse. Use them. You are attracting deer with this scent; don’t screw it up and scare them away with your human scent.
Yes that's deer hair in the bottle. Its part of the scent making process. Filtering and straining it out to make the scent "look nice" makes the scent less effective. We are not making cosmetics. You can expect particulate and "stuff" in the bottle that you dont normally see in store bought scent.
Now we will tell you what you can expect from Draw-n-Hold Scent and what you need to do to take full advantage of the power in the bottle. First and foremost, scout and find where the deer are. Then based on the lay of the land, prevailing winds, your approach to the stand and whether or not you are a tree stand hunter or ground blind hunter, pick an ambush spot that puts you at the greatest advantage. The deer sign will most likely be trails, funnels, field edges, ridge tops, river bottoms, etc. With your stand choice made, look to see if there is a tree with a suitable low hanging branch that will position deer exactly where you want them to stop for a clean shot. The branch tips and leaf cluster needs to be between 40 and 45 inches off the ground. If the best branch is a bit too high, use rope or chord and pull the branch down to the proper height and tie it off to the base of the tree.
If there is no branch where you need it, you can relocate a sapling or branch exactly where you need it. Try Oak, Maple, Apple or other deer favored tree species as they are more favored but any species that the deer will mouth/eat will work. Avoid conifers/pines.
These species can work but are too brittle and dont last. Tie or lash this relocated branch or sapling to an existing tree to hold it in position. Tie it securely as its going to be heavily abused by both bucks and does that are going to pull and tug at it. Bucks want to rake their antlers on the branch and both bucks and does will rub their eyes and forehead glands on the leaves/branches. They will also chew the tips so the height is important. Draw-n-Hold will attract does as well and during the rut, attracting does is always a smart move so if you make the branch too high, the does wont take advantage of it. Deer are smaller than you think. When you create a branch 40 to 45 inches off the ground, you are going to think its too low. Its not and your trail cam pics will show it.
Lastly since we only have a limited quantity of sent remaining, we expect to sell out and since we believe so strongly in the advantages of creating licking branches we will do what other scent makers don't do. IF you cant get Draw-n-Hold, buy another brand like Paul Palliks (good quality and fairly priced and did well in our testing) or Smokey's (much higher priced but still tested well). Dont miss the opportunity to take advantage of licking branches because we are sold out. (hows that for a sales pitch? We're telling you to buy from somebody else)
Good hunting. If you get interesting trail cam data you want to share with us, let us know. We would love to see it.