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who has the better nose? Dog or Deer?

39K views 56 replies 37 participants last post by  nodog  
#1 ·
years ago watching some tv. I seen myth buster do a show about fooling a dogs nose. they used every clean method and every scent control used for deer hunting and could not shake the dog off the scent trail.

So knowing a dog nose and it's powerful sniffer! Do you think we got it all wrong! What I want to say is I think no matter what you put on the deer will know you are their.

what I think, deer can smell danger, let off by hunter in the form of hormones, or vib
by trying to cover these danger scent, and making them more claiming!

So knowing that the Dog nose can't be fooled by cover scent and such. What about the deer Nose, is it more powerful then the dog's nose?
Can Deer smell what are intention are??
 
#2 ·
there is nothing you can do to to hide your scent from a deer, other then don't let it get to him (i.e. wind)...The plethora of scent control gimmicks on the market are just that, gimmicks that hunters spend millions of dollar a year on. I gave up on all of it last year and focused solely on hunting the right wind, and had my best season ever. Early season a wore camo jeans and cotton camo shirt from walmart that were 19.95 each, some times I took a shower sometimes I didn't...stay down wind and none of it matters.

Dont hunt a good stand on a dead still day or those light swirly days, no options there.
 
#15 ·
I agree and disagree with this statement. It is almost impossible to fool a deer's nose, however, cover scents do work(to an extent). A hunter's best bet is definitely to hunt the right winds but I believe cover scents will help to a small extent. If you bath properly, wash your hunting cloths properly, and dont play the wind right...chances are you will get busted but that being said I have had deer come right up my wind and didnt notice me until they started getting close... they did catch my wind before I could get a shot with a bow, but I could have easily got them with a rifle so I think it all depends on the situation.
For me...I will continue to bath right, wash cloths right, and use some cover scents....but I will also play the wind as well. Besides, where I am the wind can change mid hunt so I want my best opportunity. You never know....maybe the buck of a life time smelled someone/something else and started jogging your way...maybe with some cover scent he doesnt notice your smell fast enough because he is to fixated on the previous scent he had caught and bam...perfect situation.
 
#4 ·
I know this sounds crazy, but do you think the deer nose takes it to another level by smell what are intention even are emotions?
I was cutting grass I see a doe and two fawns in the distances of the field that I'm cutting as I get closer and closer and closer the deer are claim as can be even with the loud mower blades hitting 3600 rpm and the diesel smoke.,I was about 20 yd from them and they could care less. This made me think why didn.t the deer run for there lives!! knowing that DEER slayer riding a John deere lol. but my thoughts weren't on killing them just in aw that I was so close to them.
did they smell that was not a threat to them.
 
#10 ·
i have found it is more how you act. i discovered it trying to scare a doe away that had spotted me i wanted her to go away. so i waved at her she looked and the started eating she looked again i did the same thing same result. the only thing i could think of i was not acting like a predator. i have seen turkeys and deer together how do they know turkeys are not black death. the way they act. now i do it all of the time it scares a few but most go back to feeding if it does scare them at least there gone and not going to blow out while you are trying to draw on the big buck. if it ever happens again go into sneak mode and see what happens. the smell of diesel will cover your scent but usually you can fool everything but there nose. from my experience if they get a good whiff they are gone. i have a dutch sheepdog nothing gets by her. the police use them for drug and explosive detection dogs. i don't think i have ever saw an animal with a better nose i had a german shepherd also she was good and bloodhounds are just plain amazing. deer have incredible noses also it would be nice to hear from an expert on the supper scent dogs verses the deer
 
#7 ·
The deer lives and dies by his senses. A dog is far far removed from being wild & relying on them, I don't care how many millions he has. The deer prevails, and not just how much better his senses are BUT by how he uses that information. That being key, I'd think.
 
#35 ·
This got me thinking. Yes deer rely on their senses for survival. Yet there are breeds of dogs who have been extensively bred through out the years to use their nose. Which one wins out? At the amount of receptors each have I'm sure there is not much one can smell over the other. Perhaps the difference comes down to the distance they can smell the scent? While deer are using their nose they also use their ears and eyes at the same time. Some breeds of dogs basically shut down all other senses other then scent when on the trail. They use their vision some but they seem to put a large percentage of their focus on their nose. I wonder if it would work in the same way that you read about blind people having a greater hearing ability simply by using one less sense. Sorry if that didnt make sense I sort of got to rambling. Lol

sent from my LG Escape.
 
#8 ·
i read somewhere it was 40/1 on some dogs
the best dog was a blood hound followed by a close second a german shepherd.
neither was in the same class as a deer.

i've been chasing these things for better than 50 yrs. you will never beat their nose.

there's always a reason that it seams they come from downwind, to you.
if you would have a smoke bomb going off,you would have seen it wasn't blowing downwind to them.
currents, updrafts,thermos just some of the reasons.you might fool them.

there's a whole chapter i could write on this subject.....there's a lot to learn in this dept.
 
#9 ·
Ok !Dogs can smell fear it's a fact. they can smell fear pheromones released by other dogs and humans alike.
so if fear being an emotion, I can say that a dog can smell emotions
and if a deer nose is greater what else can deer smell that we can't even grasp!
 
#12 ·
The brain power of a K9 more than makes up for the few million receptors he's short.

Once a deer thinks hes safe they will let their guard down and even hesitate to leave once alerted. Let your wind hit a sleeping K9 and see what happens.

You guys and your "hunt the wind and your safe" crack me up. How many times has your neighbor been burning leaves or whatever 2 blocks down wind and you can still smell it. Want to learn about the wind learn to read water in a river, its the same principal and never as straight forward as one thinks. Better yet take a smoke bomb and set it off in your tree and see where it goes.

In the end using the wind and scent control your buying time for an opportunity. If it all adds up to an xtra minute or so a lot of times that's enough to seal the deal.
 
#14 ·
A deer's whole life revolves around it's nose. Food, survival, and reproduction. It's stronger than anyone can imagine. And they're simply are no scent illimination products that work. Your basically paying T.V. hunters salary by buying that caca. But if spraying it on keeps you confident to sit longer, than by all means spray it on. Hunt the wind.
 
#16 ·
They claim deer have better noses than dogs but I believe dogs are smarter than deer. Take a coyote for example. I have not once in 20 years bowhunting had a coyote cut my track and either stick around long enough to shoot it or have it follow my scent to the base of the tree. An old coyote would be a harder target than any deer out there bowhunting. They are always on the move and the slightest hint of anything they are gone. Deer do not do that. I think they are more curious or maybe they are smarter in a sense they do not run for the hills every time they hit human scent otherwise they would probably always be runing. Who knows. Either one you are not going to beat.

I have had deer downwind hundreds of times and never even acted concern. Where they really downwind or were thermals at work or the wind was changing directions before they hit the deer. I am betting they were not truly downwind. I also think big mature bucks are different than any other creature out there. They seem smart in a sense I rarely have them flee. If they wind me let's say 50 yards out. Typically they stop in their tracks and start surveying as if trying to figure out OK where are you at and how am I going to avoid him. Many times they slowly slip back the way they came but do not raise much fuss about it.

A big doe on the other hand will either stop in her tracks, blow and take off for the hills or become more curious and follow the scent for awhile until 100% there is danger and they blow out of there fast. Most mature bucks I see rarely run, just kind of change direction and sneak away.

Maybe deer are like people, some are intelligent and some are not that bright.

Who knows. A lot of deer die each year.
 
#17 ·
They claim deer have better noses than dogs but I believe dogs are smarter than deer. Take a coyote for example. I have not once in 20 years bowhunting had a coyote cut my track and either stick around long enough to shoot it or have it follow my scent to the base of the tree. An old coyote would be a harder target than any deer out there bowhunting. They are always on the move and the slightest hint of anything they are gone. Deer do not do that. I think they are more curious or maybe they are smarter in a sense they do not run for the hills every time they hit human scent otherwise they would probably always be runing. Who knows. Either one you are not going to beat.
I agree! A coyote has fewer olfactory receptors than a deer, which would take to mean a deer has a better sense of smell. But I can count on one hand how many coyotes I have seen in the woods. Foxes have about the same as a coyote, but I see them quite often. I think the yote is just a more intelligent animal.
 
#19 ·
Deer Sense of Smell – Deer vs. Dog vs. Human – Fact #1

Biologists confirm that a deer’s sense of smell is much greater than even the most olfactory acute humans. In fact, biologists suggest that a deer’s sense of smell may be up to 1000x better than humans. This allows the deer to smell predators from great distances giving them a better chance to flee before conflict. Olfactory receptors are the measuring criteria for a sense of smell. Here is how the break down between deer and human works out:
◾Deer – 297 million olfactory receptors
◾Human – 5 million olfactory receptors
 
#20 ·
I know science says deer, but I think a dog uses scenting better. Killed a deer dead down wind behind my house a couple years ago. Called the wife to let out my lab to work the blood. Could see house from stand. Dog came from same direction as the deer and to my stand. He worked back and forth for a minute to pick me up and jumped up to check scent in tall grasses. within a minute or two he was full speed towards me. I just hung it that day and the dog never knew its location and I used a Ranger to get to the spot to hang it, from different direction. It took a dog 5 minutes to find me and a deer 5 minute to die from same direction. Apparently I didn't smell offensive to the deer, but my dog knew where I was very quickly and wind was consistent. So with that said I say dog.
 
#21 ·
Did you ever have a deer for no reason just look up and stare at you in your tree stand? like it knew you where there the whole time?
 
#25 ·
It doesn't matter which is better.
They're both good enough that you aren't beating either one without luck.

So, rather than spending money on scent control "products", spend it on rabbit's feet and four leaf clovers.
It's just as ridiculous. But, it's a whole lot less money.
 
#26 ·
hunting the wind is biggest thing ive learned from hunting...thanks to Major league bowhunter and stressting hunting the wind, I caught an eye for it and tried it out and I had a better season myself
 
#29 ·
I think people get bad information too as they judge only the deer they see and how they react to smell. We have all had dumb deer stand down wind looking at us at 20 yards...We all know nothing about the deer we don't see that winded us hundreds of yards away and choose another route...bottom line is, and this is ALL we need to know about scent - be as scent free as possible, hunt the wind to the best of your ability and know the mature deer are most vulnerable when distracted by p**** (the rut) and food, so be there when those times roll around.

thats all we can do in this pursuit of a giant, if was easy and big trophys walked in like idiots every hunt, it would not be nearly as much fun.
 
#31 ·
So knowing that the Dog nose can't be fooled by cover scent and such. What about the deer Nose, is it more powerful then the dog's nose?
Can Deer smell what are intention are??
Train a deer to track and then do a test. Trained dogs are looking for something, let a dog loose without a command to track and see how it finds the hunter.

Dogs and deer follow crushed earth, it doesn't have to be the scent of a human. Dogs do it to be rewarded and deer do it to find turned up food. Drop a human some where and then have to dog find the hunter without the earth disturbed.
 
#32 ·
..Drop a human some where and then have to dog find the hunter without the earth disturbed...
I've dropped ducks from the sky lots of times.

My dogs still find them fairly easily.
 
#33 ·
Deer have 297 million receptor and dogs have 227 million who' counting when it that close! then it comes down to brain power and how those receptor are used.
 
#34 ·
Now I Like the effect I get when I smoke my clothes, why is this?



































n smell pheromones as well as dogs and **Bees ** Bees become claim when they smell smoke does this also happen with deer?
I can't prove this! so it's just my ill logic to think this way. but in some way it makes cents.