Mock Scrape Action

[13pt]

Thought I'd just share some fun mock scrape action from this season. One is a video of a doe hitting all three over hanging limbs…pretty neat. Merry Christmas everyone and enjoy.

 

[13pt]

Here's just a few more that wouldn't attach in first round…

 

[Snake]

Wow some great action and some really great bucks as well . Thanks for sharing.

 

[DoubleRidge]

Nice!! Thanks for sharing... Merry Christmas!!

 

[Wrangler95]

Some nice bucks,hope you get one and Merry Christmas

 

[13pt]

Some nice bucks,hope you get one and Merry Christmas

Thanks. Actually tagged out before Thanksgiving which included the very last pic I posted. Every buck I tagged, including a bonus buck 9pt on pubic land, I had checking my scrapes. Love working mock scrapes, which is all I've had to do since Thanksgiving…lol. It does give me a leg up on scouting for likely hot spots for next season…which can't get here fast enough!

 

[Linepaw]

Thanks. Actually tagged out before Thanksgiving which included the very last pic I posted. Every buck I tagged, including a bonus buck 9pt on pubic land, I had checking my scrapes. Love working mock scrapes, which is all I've had to do since Thanksgiving…lol. It does give me a leg up on scouting for likely hot spots for next season…which can't get here fast enough!

Very interesting 13pt. How did you get them started?

 

[backyardtndeer]

Didn't see your doe video, but a lot of nice bucks there. I will usually get mock scrapes started and once the deer take them over just let them go.

 

[13pt]

Very interesting 13pt. How did you get them started?

Glad to share. I'll give you the short version for now. Though I can make them work anywhere, it is better to start in an area they prefer to scrape every year. I'll start before opening bow weekend. I've had great success opening weekend especially when the weather cooperates like this year. I had one of my target bucks working my scrapes opening weekend and I missed him by not being patient and taking too long a shot and miss guessed my yardage…he was at 68 and I guessed 80 and shaved the hair off his back, but I truly believe the mock scrapes had him coming in regular. Now as the rut closes in, it will become harder to pattern then because a rutting buck will often travel 2.5-8 miles every day during the rut. That doesn't mean 8 miles away, but up to 8 miles distance in their territory, so while they will still hit the scrapes it becomes much more random. During the rut they are most helpful to get that buck to stop where you need him to stop if he does travel through. Ok, so I when I make these scrapes I always wear the same gloves which I keep in a zip lock bag along with the scent. I use one of my plastic rattling horns to make the scrape. I will apply some doe urine in the scrape, but the real magic is what I apply to the overhanging limb (which is a must). I use a gel which is a collection of the preorbital gland scent secreted from the corner of their eyes…scientifically called the "lachrymal gland". It's one of 5 ways bucks will leave their scent at a scrape, and this attractant seems to be the most effective. It has NEVER spooked a deer, and will pull in all size bucks and does, even the most mature. I'll dip the limbs into the gel leaving as much on the limbs as possible. It's effectiveness will depend on weather, but even when it gets rain a couple times I've had them working the scrapes two weeks later. I prefer to refresh once per week. Even here in late December I have them working scrapes, but the frequency is way down of course. There's a lot more I could say but I was just told to clean up the kitchen for company. Hope that helps a little.

 

[13pt]

Didn't see your doe video, but a lot of nice bucks there. I will usually get mock scrapes started and once the deer take them over just let them go.

Sorry it's actually the 5th picture and apparently you'll have to click on it to start video…I should have sent it separately.

 

[flankston]

Very nice bucks - I'm guessing the gel is a home made mixture? Do you make the mock scrapes on public land as well? That is a lot of traveling that you have to do if it includes multiple properties. Did you have any encounters with that third buck you posted? Nice looking deer. I've heard of people peeing in the mock scrapes and having success, have you had any experience with that? Also are the needed ingredients for the gel just something you collect from previous kills overtime? Also, you mentioned 1 of 5 ways they leave their scent, what are the other 4?

 

[13pt]

Very nice bucks - I'm guessing the gel is a home made mixture? Do you make the mock scrapes on public land as well? That is a lot of traveling that you have to do if it includes multiple properties. Did you have any encounters with that third buck you posted? Nice looking deer. I've heard of people peeing in the mock scrapes and having success, have you had any experience with that? Also are the needed ingredients for the gel just something you collect from previous kills overtime? Also, you mentioned 1 of 5 ways they leave their scent, what are the other 4?

Lots of great questions. 1) No, the gel I purchase from rackgetterscents.com. I've attached a picture. 2) Yes, I only hunt one WMA and I definitely hunt mock scrapes there as well. The third buck you mentioned is actually from that WMA. I was there yesterday checking cameras, and he was just there this week. I was getting him fairly often, and he actually checked one of my scrapes two days before the hunt at 8:30am, but we never connected. Oddly enough, the one I did get there I had never had on camera. He went straight to my scrape and started pawing it…which is what allowed me to hear him because it was wet, and then I busted him in my next opening with a bow…9pt, 5.5 yr estimate, 6 3/4" bases and 177 dressed. 3) Not anymore traveling than most hunters and I would say less. I usually refresh scrapes on my way out from hunting midday once a week. Also, because of my success effectively using scrapes, I've usually tag out on mature bucks before gun season, which means I'm not traveling hunting the rest of the season. I do hunt two large leases, and I have my 130 acres at home, but everything is close. This year took longer than usual and had its fair share of drama (another story), but wrapped it up the afternoon before Thanksgiving…hunting my scrape line. Now, sure I'm still keeping them active so still traveling, but hey it's fun and helps me game plan for next season. 4) I've never tested the "pee in the scrape" theory, and have heard conflicting reports on it. Honestly I'm not open to trying anything new since this works so well. 5) The other ways they leave their scents at scrapes are; a) their forehead scent as they thrash the overhanging limb, b) pawing the ground which leaves scent from their interdigital gland (between their toes), c) they bite and chew the end of the overhanging limb leaving their salvia scent and, d) of course urinating on their tarsal glands into the scrape. Those are the 5. Hope that helps.

 

[TNTreeman]

Great deer buddy.

 

[WanderingNomad]

Do you use a specific doe urine?

 

[13pt]

Do you use a specific doe urine?

Yes…also from rackgetterscents.com.

 

[AM84]

Thanks for the info. I tried some mock scrapes for the first time this year and had VERY limited results. I will look into these scents and consider trying them for next year. I'm very interested to hear any other info you don't mind to share about the process.

Thanks again for what you have already provided.

 

[MusicCityCajun]

Glad to share. I'll give you the short version for now. Though I can make them work anywhere, it is better to start in an area they prefer to scrape every year. I'll start before opening bow weekend. I've had great success opening weekend especially when the weather cooperates like this year. I had one of my target bucks working my scrapes opening weekend and I missed him by not being patient and taking too long a shot and miss guessed my yardage…he was at 68 and I guessed 80 and shaved the hair off his back, but I truly believe the mock scrapes had him coming in regular. Now as the rut closes in, it will become harder to pattern then because a rutting buck will often travel 2.5-8 miles every day during the rut. That doesn't mean 8 miles away, but up to 8 miles distance in their territory, so while they will still hit the scrapes it becomes much more random. During the rut they are most helpful to get that buck to stop where you need him to stop if he does travel through. Ok, so I when I make these scrapes I always wear the same gloves which I keep in a zip lock bag along with the scent. I use one of my plastic rattling horns to make the scrape. I will apply some doe urine in the scrape, but the real magic is what I apply to the overhanging limb (which is a must). I use a gel which is a collection of the preorbital gland scent secreted from the corner of their eyes…scientifically called the "lachrymal gland". It's one of 5 ways bucks will leave their scent at a scrape, and this attractant seems to be the most effective. It has NEVER spooked a deer, and will pull in all size bucks and does, even the most mature. I'll dip the limbs into the gel leaving as much on the limbs as possible. It's effectiveness will depend on weather, but even when it gets rain a couple times I've had them working the scrapes two weeks later. I prefer to refresh once per week. Even here in late December I have them working scrapes, but the frequency is way down of course. There's a lot more I could say but I was just told to clean up the kitchen for company. Hope that helps a little.

Here's just some anecdotal evidence of my experimenting with a mock scrape.
We just walked up to a tree with low hanging branches and on a road they liked to scrape on, used our boots to kick the leaves and dirt. Then we took a piss right in the middle of it. We drank a bunch of coffee that morning and it smelled exactly like it. We hung our camera up and watched DOZENS of deer come in starting that night. I think the smell made the bucks mad and they wanted to replace it with their own and get the coffee smelling buck out of their territory. That scrape got worked over for the rest of the year.

 

[flankston]

Lots of great questions. 1) No, the gel I purchase from rackgetterscents.com. I've attached a picture. 2) Yes, I only hunt one WMA and I definitely hunt mock scrapes there as well. The third buck you mentioned is actually from that WMA. I was there yesterday checking cameras, and he was just there this week. I was getting him fairly often, and he actually checked one of my scrapes two days before the hunt at 8:30am, but we never connected. Oddly enough, the one I did get there I had never had on camera. He went straight to my scrape and started pawing it…which is what allowed me to hear him because it was wet, and then I busted him in my next opening with a bow…9pt, 5.5 yr estimate, 6 3/4" bases and 177 dressed. 3) Not anymore traveling than most hunters and I would say less. I usually refresh scrapes on my way out from hunting midday once a week. Also, because of my success effectively using scrapes, I've usually tag out on mature bucks before gun season, which means I'm not traveling hunting the rest of the season. I do hunt two large leases, and I have my 130 acres at home, but everything is close. This year took longer than usual and had its fair share of drama (another story), but wrapped it up the afternoon before Thanksgiving…hunting my scrape line. Now, sure I'm still keeping them active so still traveling, but hey it's fun and helps me game plan for next season. 4) I've never tested the "pee in the scrape" theory, and have heard conflicting reports on it. Honestly I'm not open to trying anything new since this works so well. 5) The other ways they leave their scents at scrapes are; a) their forehead scent as they thrash the overhanging limb, b) pawing the ground which leaves scent from their interdigital gland (between their toes), c) they bite and chew the end of the overhanging limb leaving their salvia scent and, d) of course urinating on their tarsal glands into the scrape. Those are the 5. Hope that helps.

Great I will definitely keep this posted so I can practice next year. One last question is how do you decide on where to make the mock scrape? I believe you might have mentioned this earlier is some old scrape sites of the previous years but just any odd overhanging branch work? Better success in bedding areas or feeding areas? Maybe near a frequently used trail? I enjoyed reading your post. I always enjoy seeing good buck pictures and hearing the stories of encounters that the hunters have had. Thanks again and merry christmas!

 

[Gravey]

some nice bucks there.

 

[13pt]

Here's just some anecdotal evidence of my experimenting with a mock scrape.
We just walked up to a tree with low hanging branches and on a road they liked to scrape on, used our boots to kick the leaves and dirt. Then we took a piss right in the middle of it. We drank a bunch of coffee that morning and it smelled exactly like it. We hung our camera up and watched DOZENS of deer come in starting that night. I think the smell made the bucks mad and they wanted to replace it with their own and get the coffee smelling buck out of their territory. That scrape got worked over for the rest of the year.

That's awesome. You should market that and sell it. Certainly less effort than my scientific approach. Thanks for sharing.

 

[KevinC]

Glad to share. I'll give you the short version for now. Though I can make them work anywhere, it is better to start in an area they prefer to scrape every year. I'll start before opening bow weekend. I've had great success opening weekend especially when the weather cooperates like this year. I had one of my target bucks working my scrapes opening weekend and I missed him by not being patient and taking too long a shot and miss guessed my yardage…he was at 68 and I guessed 80 and shaved the hair off his back, but I truly believe the mock scrapes had him coming in regular. Now as the rut closes in, it will become harder to pattern then because a rutting buck will often travel 2.5-8 miles every day during the rut. That doesn't mean 8 miles away, but up to 8 miles distance in their territory, so while they will still hit the scrapes it becomes much more random. During the rut they are most helpful to get that buck to stop where you need him to stop if he does travel through. Ok, so I when I make these scrapes I always wear the same gloves which I keep in a zip lock bag along with the scent. I use one of my plastic rattling horns to make the scrape. I will apply some doe urine in the scrape, but the real magic is what I apply to the overhanging limb (which is a must). I use a gel which is a collection of the preorbital gland scent secreted from the corner of their eyes…scientifically called the "lachrymal gland". It's one of 5 ways bucks will leave their scent at a scrape, and this attractant seems to be the most effective. It has NEVER spooked a deer, and will pull in all size bucks and does, even the most mature. I'll dip the limbs into the gel leaving as much on the limbs as possible. It's effectiveness will depend on weather, but even when it gets rain a couple times I've had them working the scrapes two weeks later. I prefer to refresh once per week. Even here in late December I have them working scrapes, but the frequency is way down of course. There's a lot more I could say but I was just told to clean up the kitchen for company. Hope that helps a little.

Great information! I've made several scrapes over the years but have never tried the pre orbital gland scent! May try that next season!

 

[Shed Hunter]

I've never used pre orbital, but I have plenty of luck with real scrapes and no longer make mock scrapes (even though they do work great whether it's just scraping the ground or not)

Those are some nice pictures. And the one buck is particularly nice

 

[13pt]

Great I will definitely keep this posted so I can practice next year. One last question is how do you decide on where to make the mock scrape? I believe you might have mentioned this earlier is some old scrape sites of the previous years but just any odd overhanging branch work? Better success in bedding areas or feeding areas? Maybe near a frequently used trail? I enjoyed reading your post. I always enjoy seeing good buck pictures and hearing the stories of encounters that the hunters have had. Thanks again and merry christmas!

I really like to use a beech tree limb as an overhanging branch because they are so tough, but many times I just have to use whatever is available. I've used about everything from holly and mountain laurel limbs (both very though and stands up to the thrashing from their horns), cedar limbs, apple tree limbs, oak tree limbs, maple trees limbs and so on. Point is find the tree with the lowest limbs, and preferably along well used trails. I would avoid bedding areas for sure. Feeding areas are good if you can get in and out without spooking your deer. Some of those pics I posted came from an overhanging maple limb that was too high to reach until I broke it so it would hang straight down. It was my only choice in the spot where I needed it so I made it work. Notice some of those bucks are even standing on their hind legs to reach the limb good…pretty cool.

It's worth noting this is not a silver bullet. You can't just do this where there's few deer and expect to draw them in. And even where there's lots of deer it must be done carefully. If there's good deer traffic in the area, and done properly, then it's the best way I've found in 46 years of hunting to survey your local bucks and get them to make detours as they pass through the area and funnel them to where you need to get your clean shots. They won't pass up your scrape without stopping to leave some of their own scent and that's all it takes.

 

[flankston]

I really like to use a beech tree limb as an overhanging branch because they are so tough, but many times I just have to use whatever is available. I've used about everything from holly and mountain laurel limbs (both very though and stands up to the thrashing from their horns), cedar limbs, apple tree limbs, oak tree limbs, maple trees limbs and so on. Point is find the tree with the lowest limbs, and preferably along well used trails. I would avoid bedding areas for sure. Feeding areas are good if you can get in and out without spooking your deer. Some of those pics I posted came from an overhanging maple limb that was too high to reach until I broke it so it would hang straight down. It was my only choice in the spot where I needed it so I made it work. Notice some of those bucks are even standing on their hind legs to reach the limb good…pretty cool.

It's worth noting this is not a silver bullet. You can't just do this where there's few deer and expect to draw them in. And even where there's lots of deer it must be done carefully. If there's good deer traffic in the area, and done properly, then it's the best way I've found in 46 years of hunting to survey your local bucks and get them to make detours as they pass through the area and funnel them to where you need to get your clean shots. They won't pass up your scrape without stopping to leave some of their own scent and that's all it takes.

Yes here are a couple videos from last year of a community scrape that is there every year. I'm probably going to replicate this location using your method. There are multiple one's on this property but I would be interested in seeing if I can get them to come into my mock scrapes that are in better locations for a stand. I've also done a little more scouting of the property and observing and seeing new trails and sign I didn't know was there. Some of the patterns change later in the season and I've noticed they use the ridge tops more in December. This property is difficult in that getting to the food source is difficult without blowing out what is already in there or walking through cedar thickets. It was interesting in that the last video I posted the buck didn't acknowledge the scrape. I wound up harvesting later but found it interesting. The scrape was in the same spot this year as well and I passed on many bucks hitting it but didn't have my camera set up there. I had one set up on another scrape and had a nice 8 working it. It is funny how some scrapes are only 1 buck specific I believe, or at least that is what my camera tells me.