Photo: Blue Bird

Can human pee attract deer?

Yes, deer are attracted to the odor of urine. Not just that from does in estrous, but also urine from other mammals – even you – in the fall. Biologists have told me that mammal urine is socially interesting to deer, and other mammals, but not distinguishable among species or even gender.

pressconnects.com - Deer urine outlawed? Don't worry about it

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Dave Henderon

Correspondent

Did you see where state wildlife biologists are lobbying for a prohibition of the use of deer urine-based scents by hunters? Yeah, they feel that the prohibition is necessary to better protect us from the spread of Chronic Wasting Disease. It was in this newspaper, right up there on the front page where adults might read it, so it must have been important.

My suggestion was “don’t worry about it.”

But many hunters are worried. Witness the caterwauling of affected sportsmen who claim the “right” to use deer urine as an attractant scent, and are willing to pay multiple dollars per ounce for it. Yeah, you read it correctly, they pay double figure tariffs for a bottle of pee. The scent industry is, in fact, a quite sizable, and lucrative. But you should know that the whole thing is smoke and mirrors. Yes, deer are attracted to the odor of urine. Not just that from does in estrous, but also urine from other mammals – even you – in the fall. Biologists have told me that mammal urine is socially interesting to deer, and other mammals, but not distinguishable among species or even gender. If you don’t believe me, pee near your treestand and watch how deer wandering past react to it. I guarantee whey won’t spook like the “experts” say they will. And you don’t need that $12 pee jug in your deer stand. Let 'er loose right from the tree. Granted, a buck can tell if he is trailing a doe in estrous – and is therefore probably receptive – but he probably gets that clue from the odor of her urine after it has passed over the tarsal glands on her rear legs. Urine-based deer attractants used to advertise that they contained pheromones — sexual identity markers. But years ago, biologists pointed out the pheromones secreted by deer dissipated in less than an hour in open air. And they couldn’t be bottled. That put an end to that advertising. Back about that time, it also was revealed that many deer-scent manufacturers didn’t own any deer. Some bought deer urine, but others were using goat and sheep urine, which was more abundant, and pretty much the same thing as deer urine. This column will draw the ire of scent manufacturers, all of whom will deny that they do anything untoward, and that their scent is totally natural, etc., carefully avoiding some other facets of the argument.

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One scent company representative that I hunted with told me that his company demanded of urine deliverers that they sign an affidavit that the pee they delivered came from does in estrous.

He was winking when he said it.

Today, the major manufacturers do use deer farms, probably to avoid bad publicity. So the basis of their product does come from a deer, but not necessarily from a doe in heat. Think about it. A whitetail doe comes into heat in the fall, for 24 hours. If she is not bred in that span, she will come back into heat again 28 days later. If she is not bred at that point, just wait another 28 days. Doesn’t make much sense to think that those millions of gallons of deer urine used to make scents each year came from just from does in heat, does it? How would the gatherers even know that a particular doe was ripe? There are no visible signs. Only deer know for sure. I know a guy with a herd of milking goats who cages his ewes when they are in estrus and cannot keep whitetail bucks away from the wire in October and November. The bucks recognize the smell, and that’s all that matters. A few years ago, when the scent industry was under attack for its dubious business and advertising tactics, Charles Alsheimer of Bath – a field editor for Deer & Deer Hunting Magazine – rocked the scent world when he described in print the use of “White Lightning.” That’s what he called the vaginal secretions of dairy cows, which are quite prevalent in Bath and Steuben County, that drove horny whitetail bucks nuts. Charlie is a friend, a strong Christian, a helluva deer hunter, has his own deer herd and was named one of the top 50 figures in American deer hunting in the 20th Century.

So I believe him.

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Pa. Youth Pheasant Hunt Oct. 7

On Oct. 7, the Wilson F. Moore Memorial chapter of the National Wild Turkey Federation will sponsor a mentored and guided, mentored youth pheasant hunt at Salt Springs State Park near Springville, Pennsylvania. Pre-registration is required since there are only 20 openings for 12- to 16-year-old hunters. All 12- and 13-year-olds must be accompanied by adult family members (at least 18 years old), or by an adult serving in place of a parent. All registrants for this event must be 12 years of age by Oct. 7. Hunting licenses are not required. To register, go to the Pennsylvania Game Commission website. On the PGC Home page, look for the green Education box in the upper, right-hand corner. Click on it and find Junior Pheasant Hunt program, click on that and look for the second paragraph of the Instructional Junior Pheasant program, where it says register for a hunt or registration. The hunt at Salt Springs State Park is listed on page 2 of the registrations. Everyone in attendance must wear the required amount of fluorescent orange (orange vest and hat - minimum) when they are in the field. Participants will meet at Salt Spring State Park at the Buckley Road parking area, not the main Salt Springs State Park lot and not where the red dot shows on the PGC website. That is incorrect. There will be three different areas in which to hunt. The Park is located 8 miles north of Montrose off of Route 29. Henderson’s outdoors columns appear in the Press & Sun-Bulletin and Ithaca Journal on Thursdays. If you have a comment or data pertinent to the columns, send it directly to Henderson Outdoors, 202 Prospect Street, Endicott NY 13760 or email it to dddhender@aol.com.

pressconnects.com - Deer urine outlawed? Don't worry about it

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