Does Bear Bait Deter Deer

[asphalt599]

Myself and a few of the other guys in our deer camp buy a bear tag in the hopes of seeing a bear while deer hunting. We recently had an issue and our entire freezer at home thawed out. Majority of what was in the freezer is being chucked. I just finished de-packaging everything in the freezer....what a pain and what a waste.

What are your experiences with putting out bait piles for bears while deer hunting. There is no doubt the deer will smell it, but will it spook them and put them off?

 

[blasted_saber]

No.

Ive had a bear bait directly beside a deer garden and both got used daily.

As an aside, bears may not necessarily be interested in piles of rotting meat this time of year. You might attract more scavengers and coyotes then anything else.

 

[45CAT]

Just boil a can of honey,

 

[Butcherbill]

We can’t bait bear in BC, we can bait deer though. I had a bear find my early season apple pile on private land I have access to, it didn’t stop the deer very much but it was pointless to hunt there as the beat wouldn’t stop coming back through and eating my apple pile like the pig it was lol. I just moved elsewhere and connected with whitetails in other spots.

 

[doublelung]

I've had lots of deer come check out my bear bait. IMO doesn't bother them one bit.

 

[Ed Smurf]

I recently cam across a gut pile during my deer hunt very close to my stand. Would this affect the deers' movements? My bait pile is quite close.

 

[John Y Cannuck]

I recently cam across a gut pile during my deer hunt very close to my stand. Would this affect the deers' movements? My bait pile is quite close.

I've shot deer near gut piles many times. The pile won't bother the deer, but, it can attract other animals that will. I even had a deer sampling a gut pile once. At one camp we had three deer shot on different days within 20 yards of each other.

 

[John Y Cannuck]

I bear bait with corn and molasses, or dog food and molasses. The deer love the molasses and corn. Probably would eat the dog food too, but the bears like that better than the corn so usually it's gone fast.

 

[scruffee]

No, I have a trail cam picture of a 150 inch Whitetail literally stuffing his nose into a freshly baited barrel.

That bait site is completely saturated in bear scent, bait scents, attractants, etc. and there are still deer walking through consistently.

 

[scruffee]

I recently cam across a gut pile during my deer hunt very close to my stand. Would this affect the deers' movements? My bait pile is quite close.

Not at all. Deer are surrounded with the death of their own kinds their entire lives. It does not phase them, that being said, the carcass or gut pile will attract predators that could temporarily spook them off the bait but they will be back shortly after. Last year, the day after I shot my 167 inch non-typical, a "friend" hunted my spot (without me knowing) and shot a 140 inch deer mere yards away from my gut pile.

Like carcasses, deer have constant encounters with predators, they'll flee at the sight or scent of one but will eventually be back.

 

[Found]

We have shot bear and deer out of the same stand in the same year. Also had a doe coming by my bear bait almost daily one fall, I think she knew she was safe and wanted to see if I was their.

 

[longbranch*]

I recently cam across a gut pile during my deer hunt very close to my stand. Would this affect the deers' movements? My bait pile is quite close.

I saw a deer stick its nose in the gut pile of from his buddy that was shot the day before. This year I watched a doe feed within feet of the buck I shot that was still laying in the alfalfa. I thought I might witness an "emotional moment" or something, but no, she didn't even look at him.

 

[John Y Cannuck]

Deer foreground, bear and cubs background. That should answer your question.