What attracts deer when hunting?

J

JFox

Member
Apr 21, 2017
66
2
Missouri
Honestly I try to stay away from attractants, with a few exceptions. For Missouri whitetail, every once in a while I will use doe in estrus scent, on a drag rag behind me, but generally only if it's right before the main portion of the rut, and only if I'm walking in a ways to a spot. Part of the enjoyment for me is studying the animals, spending time in the off season seeing where they're hanging out, even if it means just grabbing a book and sitting on a hillside somewhere for a couple hours in the evening after work. If you learn their patterns and where they like to go well in advance of the season, I kinda find that one doesn't really need scents or attractants. And I rarely ever call or rattle. Granted this is for whitetail, in a state where baiting with food is illegal, and just about everyone uses cover scents (hang your clothes outside for a day, especially around a real Smokey fire), doe pee and rattle bags/bleat cans. The less presence I have in the woods as far as new scents or sounds, the better in my eyes. I've never hunted mulies so I couldn't offer an educated opinion about them, and if you're going out of state and don't have the opportunity to spend many hours in a week or month studying and scouting, Google earth/OnX maps are great resources for finding areas that look like hotspots.
These methods work for me with Midwestern whitetail, between the wife and I we usually put up enough deer in a season to get us through the year. I'm sure many of y'all have very different experiences, this is just what works for me. Hope this helps, OP!
 
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