Letting a dressed deer lay?

[Zradix]

Just wondering what you all have experienced with this. I've had deer sneak up behind me a few times when I'm dressing a deer. Within 15yds. Now I usually hunt with a buddy. What do you think about dressing out the deer and dragging it back within shooting range and just letting it lie for the rest of the day. ( during cold weather of course) That way me or my buddy might be able to use it as a decoy of sorts.

[sweet old bill]

Never tried that but again I sure would think that a nose of deer are it number 1 safety zone.

 I am sure unless you moved it a good piece other deer would smell the blood and guts from were you cleaned it.

  Now You may get a shot on coyote or fox by the gut pile.

the other issue is once I get a deer down I want to clean it all out and hang it. It the temps are warm I then also want to get the hide off and wash out the body cavity. I treat the deer just as I would a good piece of beef.

[Grayseas]

about 7 years ago my brother in law shot an 8 pointer,  the next day my father in law shot a five point sniffing the gut pile. I think they are just curious.

[hvyhitter]

I dont think that deer associate the smell of blood with "danger". Deer get cut, scaped,torn, and snagged their whole life. Many deer have some pretty impressive scars on thie hides and many farmland deer will have several scars down their back and on their legs from barb wire. Its the human smell that puts them off.

[bohuntr]

I have shot deer that fell real close to my tree stand and have had other deer come by later and walk right by them just giving them a curious sniff or two.

[fyrfyter43]

Last year during firearms season my father shot a doe out of one of my stands...the next day I shot a small buck that fell right on the gut pile from my father's doe.

[GingivitisKahn]

Yesterday I watched a young buck head-butt another young buck that someone had gut shot, after the injured one tried to lay down.  

I wouldn't worry about the smell as long as you're confident the meat is going to remain cool enough to avoid spoilage.

[Brian Krebs]

My uncle was a proponent of harvesting antlerless deer; and shot one on opening day of gun season. He got booed by other hunters for it.
 I heard laughter all over the woods; and it was opening day.... so I walked over to the source of it; and there was my uncle; dragging his doe; with a nice buck mounting it as he did so.
 Nobody shot at the buck; and my Uncle was uncharacteristically sour over the situation.
     
So- I guess you can leave them lay; or drag them out. I suspect the doe was in heat.

[GingivitisKahn]

Originally posted by Brian Krebs:
...and there was my uncle; dragging his doe; with a nice buck mounting it as he did so...

Lol - it's hard enough to drag deer out of the woods without having to put up with *that*.

   

[ed burgholzer]

last year,while sitting on the ground an 8 pointer came by chasing two does. i shot the buck at about 8 yards. watched him go down about forty yards away. i walked over to him. the two does started following me. they came within ten yards while i dressed the buck out. the does just stood there and watched me.. felt really weird..ed ..

[Whip]

A number of years ago a buddy of mine shot a deer and dressed it out where it fell about 100 yards from the stand.  This was on a travel corridor leading from a heavily used hay field.  I sat the stand the next morning and watched a literal parade of deer walk up to that gut pile, including a couple of huge bucks.  It almost seemed like they were all paying their last respects to there old buddy.

[Bob B.]

Many years ago, I was hunting with my flintlock.  It was about 25 degrees F, with a bit of a north breeze.  I shot a doe at 75 yards.  She dropped and died within sight.  I left her there.  An hour or so latter a buck walked on her path, he stopped often to grunt at her.  He eventually walked right up to her adn sniffed.  He then started to walk off, and I shot him as well.

That worked pretty well for me.

Bob.

[ALW]

I shot a buck one year in gun season.  The deer dropped in its tracks and never moved.  Another buck was following it a little distance back and walked right by the downed buck.  It started looking around like it was looking for the buck and then started circling.  It finally found the dead deer and started horning it on the ground.  Finally it walked off and right under my stand.  My dad shot that buck about an hour later.

Aaron

[swampbuck]

I propped one up to look like i ws laying down head up looking around,tucked the legs up under just like they'd be in real life...after several hrs rigor had set in and the drag kinda sucked worse than normal with the legs getting hooked up on brush.

[joevan125]

Many years ago me and a buddy of mine had a deer hanging up field dressing it when a young eight pointer walked up on us and my buddy spine shot him on the spot. we werent even being quit and he still walked right up on us.

[Jake Fr]

i shot a deer last year it ran 60 yds and fellin in cut bean feild and about 45min later we had 3 big does come and stand with him for almost an hour giving my buddy in the other satnd where her fel ample time to shoot one