“Scents are kind of like fishing tackle,” Wildlife Research Center’s Ron Bice said. “You’ve got your Rapalas, Daredevils and different lures in your tackle box, and sometimes some work better than others. Just because you make 10 casts and you don’t catch anything doesn’t mean you throw out a proven lure.
“You may not get a bite every time, but the first time you see a buck walk into your scent setup you’ll go, ‘Oh my goodness!’ and become a true believer.”
According to Bice, the best time to start using mock scrapes in areas where there is deer activity is immediately when velvet is shed and when the rut ramps up just before the peak.
Essentially, once the peak of the rut is occurring mock scrapes will be less effective because bucks will be with the does that are in heat.
However, in Louisiana where the weather is warmer and unlike the North where the rut can be more specific, he said mock scrapes can often be used all the way through the hunting season.
“The peak of the rut, when the majority of breeding is going to be done, 90 percent of it is going to be done in a 36- to 48-hour window,” said Bice. “In the Deep South, that window is expanded over a longer period of time.”
