How long will scent linger?

[dan]

Moisture actually helps hold scent. The dryer it is, the faster it will dissipate.

I used to be a believer that a whitetail could smell human for a week or whatever. I'm not sure. Hard to tell - or prove. Anyone know how long at K9 or bloodhound can track for - time wise?

I have seen them track a 3 day old scent to its source... I am sure they can pick up a scent much longer than that, but following it would be tough.

[dan]

http://youtu.be/kTsi3Dcdf2o

I can never seem to get this video out of my head. I feel like it really puts the smelling ability of some animals into perspective. I wish I could find the whole video, the dog tracks him no problem at all.

He even crosses a river and the dog barely misses a step. If the dog could continue to track him through moving water, I surely wouldn't put much stock into how much rain effects the ground scent you left behind.

[bbvideo=425,350]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kTsi3Dcdf2o&feature=youtu.be[/bbvideo]

[Ridgerunner7]

Ive spoke at length with guys that run tracking dogs who have told me that extreme dry conditions make it difficult for th dogs to pick up scent. In addition, a heavy rain fall also makes the scent trail almost impossible to follow. The best conditions for these tracking dogs to follow game is moist/damp conditions . I would assume scent layed during these conditions would linger the longest... And scent laid during extreme dry conditions or extreme wet rainfall would discipate the quickest.

[ Post made via iPhone ]

[Brad]

I don't know how long it lasts but I know the first spot I killed a doe at this year is getting left for the rut before I touch it again, two people looking for a deer leaving scent all over for an hour, if I were a deer I'd vacate for awhile.

[ Post made via Android ]

[SouthernHunter]

walked through 2 1/2 feet of water

Has anyone heard of the cadaver dogs trained to locate bodies underwater? I don't know much about them but I believe these dogs smell scent particles that rise or float to the waters surface from a cadaver. It makes you wonder if using standing water, creeks, etc. for access is really fooling deer at all.

When she reached the exact spot where I came out of the water and cattails she completely freaked out!!

I believe sometimes deer can be alarmed not only by foreign/human odors where they shouldn't be, but natural odors where they shouldn't be as well. This is just me speculating, but the doe may have smelled the water that came off your boots where you exited the standing water/cattails. I know it was raining but I would guess that the standing water smelled different than the rain water and a deer could differentiate between the too. Smelling that marsh water were it tracked/dripped off may have tipped her off that something wasn't right. I know you are not the only animal that comes in and out of the cattails but I think deer, especially a wise deer can sense when a human has been trampling around even when no alarming odor is present. I think deer can detect the actual disturbance left from an animal without actually smelling the animal itself. Who knows, it might have been the lack of scent that freaked her out.

Thanks for sharing. Examples like that remind us of how easily a deer can bust you, regardless of how scent conscious you are.

[seazofcheeze]

I read a really good book on teaching tracking dogs to track when I was training my dog. Its called "Tracking dog: theory and methods" by Glen Johnson. Long story short, Glen argues that dogs track two different ways. The first way is by smelling the actual odor from what the dog is tracking (think dead skin cells, sweat, blood, boot scent, etc.) This scent is used by the dog for approximately the first 3 hours after a track is layed. The second way the dog tracks is by smelling broken and/or disturbed vegetation. Glen did a lot of experiments to come to these conclusions. He also says that moisture makes the track stronger but heavy prolonged rain dilutes it significantly. While I'm not a deer biologist, I'm assuming a deer's olfactory system works in a similar fashion.

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[SouthernHunter]

The second way the dog tracks is by smelling broken and/or disturbed vegetation. Glen did a lot of experiments to come to these conclusions. He also says that moisture makes the track stronger but heavy prolonged rain dilutes it significantly. While I'm not a deer biologist, I'm assuming a deer's olfactory system works in a similar fashion.
[ Post made via Android ]

I've wondered the same thing. A fox or coyote can smell the freshly dug dirt at a dirt hole set without any bait or lure applied. I figure deer have a nose just as sensitive as K9s, but I'm not sure they possess equal brain power. Anyone who has trapped or hunted coyotes and foxes will probably agree that they are about the smartest critters in woods especially when using their nose, but I imagine mature deer are not far behind, if at all. Especially older age bucks.

[dan]

Has anyone heard of the cadaver dogs trained to locate bodies underwater? I don't know much about them but I believe these dogs smell scent particles that rise or float to the waters surface from a cadaver. It makes you wonder if using standing water, creeks, etc. for access is really fooling deer at all.

The dogs small the gasses and oils that come off the body and float to the top... I think our skin particles would dissipate in the water... The body is in the water, thats different than us passing thru... Im not an expert of scent and water therefore all I can go on is what I have observed. I have seen deer go thru standing water where I have and not smelled me... The times they have smelled me in water I think it was the vegetation I touched passing thru the water such as cattails.

[Black Squirrel]

during the youth hunt this past Saturday We had rain all afternoon. The radar told me it should let up for the last hour and a half or so. It rained during our walk into the stand and for at least an hour after we got to the stand. He decided to pass on a doe with fawns. As the doe hit our entrance path, she went on full alert, and didn't hang around. So she defnately smelled our risidual scent, in the long grass we walked through a couple hours before. I think it takes a pretty good rain to wash away scent. I don't believe you get a free hunt just because it rained.

[JakeJD]

Has anyone heard of the cadaver dogs trained to locate bodies underwater? I don't know much about them but I believe these dogs smell scent particles that rise or float to the waters surface from a cadaver. It makes you wonder if using standing water, creeks, etc. for access is really fooling deer at all.

The best, mature buck that I have arrowed to date cut my entrance track. I wore rubber boots and walked through 6-12" of water on my way in that day. The buck cut my track and did not bust me. This is heavily pressured public land, and the buck was not alarmed in the least. Thus, I am sure that the buck did not catch my trail.

I try to use water for my entrance / exit whenever I can.

[Reflex011]

I agree with the majority of the posts here. I have have some deer freak out on first entrance and some walk right over my trail. Here is an encounter I had 3 years ago. Was planning on doing an all day sit 2hrs west of my home on the first of five days of solid hunting. The tree I was going to sit is just a hop across a usually crossable river. With a day pack, stand, sticks, and bow, an hour before first light in 20 degrees I get up to the river and notice it much higher than normal. I was too exited packing for the week I didn't realize the heavy rains the previous three days would have an impact on me. Well after trying numerous spots to cross i was not about to turn around. Off with the boots, socks, n pants, and quickly crossed!! That took the wind right out of me! Got on shore and used an extra shirt to quickly dry my legs and feet, threw on my two layers of pants and grabbed my knee boots put on the left sock and sock liner and boot and reached in the right one and no sock liner...... I pulled out my flashlight and shined by my feet nothing. Looked across where I stripped down and there it was on the edge of the bank in the dead grass. I thought, no way in I'm dealing with this river again till dark! So I hung my stand and sat it. At sun up all my eyes were fixed on was the sock. My thought was at least it's within shooting range if something got close to it! I had a group of does mid morning walking the opposite side of the crick right towards the sock and I thought ohh crap... Here goes a big scene. But the mature lead doe crossed my trail and followed it with curiosity towards the bank. She lifted her head, looked around, and continued right to the sock. She snift the area where I crossed and then found the sock!! She kinda seemed startled, then honest to God, licked it. Yes, no lie, swear on my mothers life, licked it. She then back peddled and turned around, rejoined the waiting herd, and returned the way they came slowly grazing. Never seen anything in my life like it. 100% true story. No kills that long, cold sit. I got wet again on the way out.

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[Mike]

Scent could easily linger for months or more, I'm sure some emergency bathroom breaks leave scent for years out there :). How long will a deer react to it is the relevant question to hunting. They could show no reaction within minutes to it (have witnessed this), to probably a max of 5 days IMO. I really think more like 3 days but deer behavior seems fairly back to normal within 3 to 5 days after opening weekend of gun if the human activity stops and I think its related to scent left in areas (among other things).

[christian1]

http://youtu.be/kTsi3Dcdf2o

I can never seem to get this video out of my head. I feel like it really puts the smelling ability of some animals into perspective. I wish I could find the whole video, the dog tracks him no problem at all.

He even crosses a river and the dog barely misses a step. If the dog could continue to track him through moving water, I surely wouldn't put much stock into how much rain effects the ground scent you left behind.

[bbvideo=425,350]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kTsi3Dcdf2o&feature=youtu.be[/bbvideo]

Sorry, but the only thing I took away from this was that if I wash down in acetone something might actually be able to smell where I walked.

chris