Will the smell of coffee scare deer?

^^ ok i agree somewhat, but the point here is to eliminate as much scent as possible. If I can no longer smell the gas, it will be less "smellable" to the deer no?

Maybe. But you will never know for sure. Why spend money on something that has no more science behind it than any other superstition?

Perhaps, to a deer, the very things you use to suppress the odour to your own nose is even more "smellable" to the deer than the original odour you are trying to mask. How do those products "reduce" the smell to your nose and brain, anyway? How can it possibly work to prevent you from detecting the smell without creating other scents (floating chemical molecues) at the same time? What is the chemistry and physics of the product, and how does that relate to a deer's olfactory senses? I don't know, and I won't pay money for something that may, or may not, work and for which I can never really tell if it works or not. Why would I?

It's like those deer whistles people buy for their vehicles in the hope they will scare away deer and avoid collisions. Think about the science. First, there is no proof deer are more "afraid" of high pitched whistles than any other particular sound, even though there is evidence they can hear ultrasonic frequencies. Why would they be afraid of them? What logic is there to support that idea? What in their evolution would have made them fear high frequency sound?

Second, there is no proof the whistles even make any sound where people mount them on the vehicles. There are LOTS of places the air flow around a car would not actually go through the device to make any sound. Watch how snow doesn't blow off a vehicle in lots of places, even at high speed. So they mount something they can't hear, in a place they don't know if it gets air flow, and have no way to test it.

Third, the deer already hear vehicles quite clearly. Heck, even I can hear them quite clearly, and I don't hear as well as a deer. They don't get hit because they can't hear them; they get hit because they don't understand what is behind the bright lights, or how fast they can go, or what roads are, or anything else about those two ton steel and glass things. Their brains just don't work like that. Nothing in their evolutionary history has prepared them to understand the dangers of roads and cars.

Fourth, I would bet really good money that if you set up an oscilloscope beside a highway to measure sound frequencies, and drove a car past at 100 km/hr. the car will already be emitting the same high frequency sounds that the whistles are supposed to emit because a vehicle makes "white noise" as it moves. White noise is like white light - it contains all the frequencies including ones too high and too low for us to perceive. Of course we don't perceive them, because they are "ultrasonic" or "subsonic" but they are there just the same. Gullible consumers don't think about the science, and pay good money for something they can't perceive working, because some marketing guru knows people are easily misled about things they can't understand, or see, or hear.

Pay your money if you want. You can go through the rituals of scent reduction if you wish, but I think it's like all other superstitions. I don't bother, but I do hunt with managing my scent plume in mind all the time. I just assume any deer that pays attention will know where I am if he gets down wind.

We could talk about camouflage too sometime if you want. ;)
 
It's been my experience that there's only one scent that will send all animals running.....human. It doesn't matter where on the planet you're hunting, all animals detest human scent and there's nothing on the market that will eliminate it,cover it or mask it. The deer living on the outskirts of Toronto are as grossed out by our scent as a moose 50 miles south of the Arctic Circle getting a nose full for the first time in its life.
 
I don't believe in the scent hider products. Smelling like a pimp is not going to help you but play the wind!
 
^^ ok i agree somewhat, but the point here is to eliminate as much scent as possible. If I can no longer smell the gas, it will be less "smellable" to the deer no?

Correct. You will never manage to eliminate human scent. What you can hope to do is bring it to a level where it doesn't allert game to a flight situation. The combination of scent free clothes washing, showering with unscented soaps, keeping clothing in airtight containers, cover scents and attractants are important parts of my hunting rituals. I also hunt from downwind and only use knee high rubber boots to try to contain scent and prevent it from being transferred as I walk. 27 dead whitetails tell me it works. ;)
 
I watch them all summer long in the fields behind the house & try to move around & sneak up on them unnoticed. It's a real challenge to say the least. I'm amazed at their eyesight - especially with regards to movement & looming skills. Their hearing is absolutely uncanny - don't dare snap a small twig within 200 yrds. Their smell is often the least of my worries though, sometimes very good, sometimes just mediocre even when approaching upwind .... I think moisture/humidity plays a big part in this particular sense's efficiency.
 
The best idea for hunting from a stand, is not to smell, and not to move.

Both are near impossible to do. But, if you leave the coffe, the snacks, or whatever, back at camp, then at least you won't be tempted by them, and go through the highly visible motions of preparing to consume them.
Same goes for smokers, I doubt it's the smoke that busts a smoker, more likely the motions involved in smoking.
People will shoot deer, even though they smoke, or eat, or drink, but they'll never see the deer that were turned back before they were spotted by the movements of the hunter.
Some deer, like some humans just seem to be a bit thick, others are hypersensitive to their environment.

The stupid deer, those you can shoot.
 
Just a thought here. As I was reading this thread, I noticed the East is in favor of scent elimination. The west is not. Maybe the deer in the east are harder to come by? Maybe they have better noses? I don't know, just an observation.

I have been taking my coffee out to my "ground blind" (just a comfy chair I leave in "my spot") for a number of years now. The smell does not seem to bother the deer. I sit 1 1/4 miles from a main grid road and the deer most often are concerned about the vehicles going by over the hill than Me, my irish spring scent, my movements, my blaze orange jacket that I wash in tide, the cigarettes that I smoke while I wait for sunup, the bacon on my breath, or the eat-more bar or spitz that I munch on.

I still manage to harvest a deer or two every year. They may not be the biggest buck you've ever seen, if even a buck at all, but I still manage.
 
The best idea for hunting from a stand, is not to smell, and not to move.

Both are near impossible to do. But, if you leave the coffe, the snacks, or whatever, back at camp, then at least you won't be tempted by them, and go through the highly visible motions of preparing to consume them.
Same goes for smokers, I doubt it's the smoke that busts a smoker, more likely the motions involved in smoking.
People will shoot deer, even though they smoke, or eat, or drink, but they'll never see the deer that were turned back before they were spotted by the movements of the hunter.
Some deer, like some humans just seem to be a bit thick, others are hypersensitive to their environment.

The stupid deer, those you can shoot.

well as long as they taste as good in sausage I'll settle for shooting the stupid ones :D
 
The oldest rules in hunting are to keep the wind in your face and be quiet. Oddly, there are a 1000 products that can't or don't need to work when the wind is in your face, and 1000 more to make noise with.:confused:

When it comes right down to it, the vast majority of the big-game aninals that I have killed were fully aware of my presence and for whatever reason either didn't spook, waited too long, or believed that they were safe at that distance.
 
Just a thought here. As I was reading this thread, I noticed the East is in favor of scent elimination. The west is not. Maybe the deer in the east are harder to come by? Maybe they have better noses? I don't know, just an observation.

Eastern deer are usually shot at close range, less than 50 yards being the norm. A deer's nose is pretty refined at long range, but much more so up close.
Where I hunt, a typical "long range" shot is 85 yards.
Not that longer range shots are not possible, just that most areas are too damned thick, and the terrain to rough to see an animal farther out.
 
Even here in the wide open west most shots are close as well. A least in my situations. This year was one of the longest shots I've taken for quite a while 167 yds ( whoop de do ). For the most part 95% of the deer I've taken have been shot at 70 yards or less. Scent definitely takes these shots away if you don't watch the wind. When the wind is blowing the right way and they don't see movement you can sip coffee, smoke a cuban, and have burritos and cabbage for lunch. But if that wind shifts bye bye bambi. You here that snort and a stomp then off they go.

Oh and don't get me started about the complete uselessness of camo;)
 
I got my huts spot all picked out, ambush will be 10 yards with the crossbow. I plan on setting up my portable pop up table, stove and stuff so I can cook while im waiting..I also got some LED disco type lights for alittle ambiance in the hut :p
 
I didn't shower this morning before I left for a morning hunt and I didn't use any kind of sprays I also drank tons of coffee.

I had left my mug in my truck but the funniest thing is I had hunted around for about 1 1/2 hours didn't see a single deer had kept the wind in my face had done a circle around a logging slash thru trees always moving with the wind in my face then it happened I had to relieve myself right where the wind was blowing from me to the logging slash...

I was facing down hill into the trees finished turned around and not 50 - 60 yards from me were 3 does one (the largest) was standing with her head as high in the air sniffing that she could she had even stepped up onto a high point to try and figure out what that smell was.

It was almost comical how hard she was sniffing the wind it wasn't until I started up into the cut that they saw me this was around 10:30am and it was drizzling...

I left that area drove to another spot got out saw another doe snuck to within 7 - 8 yards of her went another 200 - 300 yards spotted a 3X3 blacktail buck appr 50 yards uphill standing perfectly broadside to me.

By the time I was able to stop I could only see his rib cage which totally worked for me one 325gr Hornady FTX @ 1850fps out of my T/C Contender carbine in 45-70 and he dropped on the spot...

So I say don't worry be happy drink that coffee and have a good time...

:D
 
In your neck of the woods, quite possible. Due to hunting pressure.
From Manitoba west, highly unlikely. In Alberta I've sat in a ground blind drinking coffee with a doe and 2 fawns milling around upwind at 7 yards.
 
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