Today, the bowhunter has a vast array of game lures available to choose
from. Of course there isn't enough room in your pouch for all of them so
you need to narrow it down to the most effective scent available. I generally
only carry two types: Doe in estrus and a food lure where appropriate.
How do I decide? Testing, testing and more testing! Until I see deer react
favorably to it, I am not sold. The folks at Xtreme Scents have introduced
a line of all natural food lures that has met my criteria - it attracts
deer! How do I know? Testing, testing and more testing!
Xtreme's game lures are available in apple, corn, carrot and molasses scents.
Each scent is a unique blend of all-natural ingredients that gives off
a powerful aroma. Once applied the lure is advertised to last up to 24
hours.
My package of Xtreme Scents Game Lures arrived late in the season so
testing during hunting situations was limited. One of my 2001 bucks was
lured into my position by a dragline covered in Excite Doe in Estrus lure.
Also near my position was an Xtreme Scent Strip soaked in corn scent. When
the buck approached the area he left the dragline and not only investigated
the corn scent but also proceeded to lick the strip! I can't be positive,
but I think his nose was still touching it when my arrow zipped through
his lungs! That however was a limited test and was not enough to sell me.
So, the testing continued.
I tried the lures in Pennsylvania's late season but if you have ever
hunted PA in late season you know what I was up against. Whitetails in
Pennsylvania are already wound tight as a drum but in the late season,
after being chased by a million hunters, they are just plain whacked out!
Since I couldn't even find a deer it was time to get creative.
I live on a small hobby farm and just out my back door there are goats,
field dogs and miniature horses galore. My next test was to see if these
well fed animals would even notice the lures, so I placed each scent on
a different fence post or tree throughout the pasture. The first victim
was the dog. As he was flying by one of the scent covered trees to investigate
a rabbit that was crossing my yard he almost turned himself inside out
trying to stop. He immediately turned and checked out the molasses scent
for a full five minutes. A while later the horses moved into the upper
pasture where the lures were located. When it was all said and done every
one of the horses were at one of the scent locations or another within
20 minutes. The distribution was as follows: 6 horses at the apple scent,
5 at the corn, 5 at the molasses and 1 at the carrot. The goat was unfortunately
too busy playing on the rock pile to care much about anything! Another
test I used the horses for was longevity. As stated above, Xtreme advertises
their scents to last for 24 hours. I placed more scent in a gated pasture
and after 24 hours let some of the horses enter. Sure enough, before long
they were sniffing around and licking the covered trees. Good results so
far, but I was still not satisfied. A thought kept haunting me; " you need
to test it on the real deal".
I had an idea! Since spotlighting deer at night is legal in Pennsylvania
where my home is, and even PA deer come out at night, I decided to take
advantage of the situation. Near my home there is one particular field
that is almost always loaded with deer, making it the perfect spot for
my test. After getting permission from the farmer I drove four stakes into
the ground at 30-yard intervals each having Xtreme scent strips nailed
to them. Each stake was covered in one of the four scents and all were
placed at the far up-wind side of the field. An hour after dark I came
back with all of the necessary testing equipment - my truck, spotlight,
notepad and pair of binoculars. As the deer started to feed into the field
the lead doe immediately worked her way across the field to the apple scent.
Not all of the deer in the field ended up at one of the four stakes but
at least one deer was seen at each. Most of the deer that did respond ended
up at the corn scent while the rest were evenly distributed between the
apple
and molasses scent. Only one investigated the carrot scent. Out
of the 30+ deer that entered the field that night 19 reacted favorably
to the Xtreme scent posts! Not a bad showing. Finally I was satisfied that
these scents did what they were supposed to - attract deer!
As you can see from the testing, Xtreme Scent's food lures do what they
are intended to do - bring game in. Carrot had less of an effect than the
others and did seem to have an overall weaker aroma. Then again, the deer
in this area may not recognize that scent as a potential meal. Your area
may produce different results based on the deer's natural food sources.
Molasses had the strongest odor and attracted a significant number of deer
and horses. The apple scent's performance was at about the same level as
the molasses. The corn scent was the most visited by all subjects tested
and was successful during a hunt as well.
All in all I was pleased with the results and will continue to test
Xtreme Scent Game Lures in the upcoming season. One of the advantages of
a food lure is that it can be used at any time during the season with success,
especially before or after the rut when bucks are focused on "beefing up".
Make sure to check your state regulations before using these scents in
a hunting situation. If all is clear, Xtreme Scent Game Lures may be your
ticket to a filled tag and a full freezer in 2002.
Value: 4 of 5
At $7.99 for an 8oz bottle just about anyone can afford to take advantage
of a deer's need to feed.
Effectiveness: 4.5 of 5
While not all of the deer observed were attracted to the scent, enough
of them were to convince me that this product does its job. One suggestion
for the manufacturer: increase the strength of the carrot scent if possible.
For information on this or any other Xtreme Scents product contact:
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Xtreme
Scents Game Lures