I'm not sure about the other provinces, but I know it is legal to bait for deer in SK. My question is, how well does it work? What do you guys use grain, corn, molasses, some magic dust?

Bad/good news...baiting will be illegal in Sask. this fall. Hunters will just have to start hunting!!!! I assume it will affect the outfitters a lot. No longer can they situate a client in a heated stand near a pile of grain to shoot a "saskatchewan monster" and charge $3500.00 for their "efforts."

the chef

calgarychef1,

That's great news. I hope that it is enforced as baiting has created quite the circus for outfitters over there. By eliminating baiting the trophy deer have a fair chance. Not that baiting is bad, but when thousands of hunters (within Canada and elsewhere) go there to shoot deer in freezing temps while they feed on a pile of whatever....well, it will impact trophy quality.

I've been in the woods and have come across bait piles that would impress most anyone. Hundreds of pound of feed brought in on a Quad some as few as a couple hundred feet off roads, some several miles in. Stands were located within a few meters etc.

Isn't there also a law against building permanent stands now too?

I don't disagree that it is good news that it will no longer be legal, but it still doesn't answer my question. How well does it really work? I just can't imagine it being all that effective with so many options for them to eat, especially in farm country.

quote:

Originally posted by Big Sky:
...How well does it really work? I just can't imagine it being all that effective with so many options for them to eat, especially in farm country.

I thought that I did answer your question, though indirectly. It is too effective. Trust me, I've baited before and the right combo of corn, apples, carrots and/or grain/molasses mix with a salt-lick is deadly on deer, early season and especially in late season. Even during peak rut, it still works as it attacts all the does and the bucks check the bait for does...

Canadianlefty, you cleared up better with that last post. I guess what I meant by not being that effective is that I figured it would mostly attract does/fawns. Unless has a hunt going during the rut I assume isn't going to be all that effective bringing in bucks? I'm a little surprised by the apples and carrots though. How do they keep them from spoiling, drying out, or freezing? Anyway thanks for the addition information as this is all unfamiliar ground for me. I'll likely never hunt over bait for deer, well at least definitely not in Montana. However, I like to learn about different ways and methods that are out there.

I have read on some message board that a lot of the big old bucks in an area will come to a bait site during the dark of night to feed and then have no need or inclanation to be out in daylight to feed. Therefore baiting in an area might make it HARDER to collect the biggest bucks in the area. There may be some logic in this but I don't know how much truth there is. Anyone who puts out bait at a trail cam location might be able to tell us if they get pics of the biggest bucks only after dark or day and night?

Robin down under

I tried baiting once,bought bag after bag of feed from coop(the one with the mollasses),and they ate it all.The problem was they would eat only at night.Cost me a fortune on gas travelling to the spot every day or two,also froze to death standing there all day waiting and seeing nothing.Whenever I'd have a good deer area I didn't need bait neither would I have to wait around long before seeing bucks.I hunted small game in zones where centerfire rifle deer hunting was illegal and would flush gigantic bucks from the grass like hares,at 100yd intervals.I hunted small game in zones only 2 miles away were rifle hunting was permited and went 15 yrs without seeing a buck.

[QUOTE]Originally posted by calgarychef1:
Bad/good news...baiting will be illegal in Sask. this fall.
QUOTE]

Where did you see/read this? This is the first I've heard of it!

I've been trying to remember where but damned if I can.

I did a search on google and didn't find anything saying there would be a ban, did find this though ...http://www.cbc.ca/sask/story/deer-cwd060214.html
I also checked the Sask. hunting regs and didn't see it there http://www.se.gov.sk.ca/fishwild/huntingguide/

I did a check and couldn't find anything either. Sorry if I goofed....I'm sure I read it though...damn must be losing my mind.

mutter mutter

the chef

quote:

Originally posted by Big Sky:
...Unless has a hunt going during the rut I assume isn't going to be all that effective bringing in bucks? I'm a little surprised by the apples and carrots though. How do they keep them from spoiling, drying out, or freezing?

1. Yes, in Quebec I have brought in as many bucks as does. It is a science- you can't just put out bait anywhere and expect to kill an animal. You have to have it strategically located to draw in bucks during daylight going from feeding to bedding area or vice versa. You have to offer them something different. It has to be in deep woods (bait in open fields rarely gets touched during dailight etc.
2. Apples and carrots do not spoil in mid-sept onwards. If you already have deer feeding on grain or licking salt, they will make the transition. Deer will eat frozen apples or carrots without a problem.

quote:

Originally posted by duffy4:
I have read on some message board that a lot of the big old bucks in an area will come to a bait site during the dark of night to feed and then have no need or inclanation to be out in daylight to feed. Therefore baiting in an area might make it HARDER to collect the biggest bucks in the area. There may be some logic in this but I don't know how much truth there is. Anyone who puts out bait at a trail cam location might be able to tell us if they get pics of the biggest bucks only after dark or day and night?

Robin down under

Read my comments above. You have to have the right conditions. That involves the best location among other things...

There is no secret to hunting deer.Bucks stay were they need to stay to stay alive,and that is were the land owner will protect them.He will protect them by denying access or limiting access to hunters.Feeding and bedding areas are usually in this protected space or land.If you have permission to hunt on such land and it is seldom hunted you will see deer everywhere.If you are trying to lure deer out of such an area with bait,good luck. If you hunt deer on unprotected land you can go a lifetime without seeing a buck,because there will be no bucks.It is easy to tell if there are bucks in an area by there scrapings.

Shootaway no truer words were ever spoken!!

I've hunted on the fringes beside a very good area...it's hard to get the big guys to come to my side of the fence and I can't get permission for the other side. In the full rut they will if I use sight, sound,scent to attract them and make them think I'm an interested doe. I did try bait-not for hunting that's illegal and unethical I think. I used it to see what was around. All I got were does, small bucks and a lot of night time activity that could have been anything. If I look across the fence with binoculars to the field I haven't got permission for I see..a large old cedar power pole not the new pressure treated kind. That pole is shaped like an hourglass from buck rubbing. That pole tells me there is a monster in the area but that I have to make him come to me. I did two years ago and put an arrow 2 feet above his back--another story of woe.

Last fall I got frustrated and found a different spot altoghether. A field with some great cover in the middle...no one had seriously hunted the area for a long time. I got my first P&Y buck out of that field. The point though is I still used my decoy, calling and some tinks 69. These things are all legal here and worked well.

If a fellow had access to an area that was a travel corridor from one great area to another it would be dynamite.

My brother in law's father owns a deer farm, I know first hand what deer love to eat. It changes with the seasons and it's amazing how dramatically it does change. But since I'm against baiting deer to hunt I tend to keep the info to myself. I'll gladly share my limited knowlege about other methods.

the chef

The rumor of banning baiting here in Sask. has been circulating for a number of years, although I have heard nothing that suggests this will be the year it happens! Sask. Enviroment(SERM) has had a very hard time getting advocates due to the outfitters and they have painted a pretty grim picture to those officials what it would mean in terms lost revenue to the province. The SOA(outfitters) convention made no mention of this debate & equally the recent SWF convention never even addressed the baiting aspect unlike many previous years. So in all honesty I can't see this happening this year.

To be fair in Saskatchewan at this point outfitters are regulated to the forest areas only(this of course excludes indian run operation on reservation lands). So unlike alberta they don't have the option of agricultural areas of central and southern sask to chase deer. This is one thing outfitters want access to if they do ban baiting here but the majority of resident hunters are strongly opposed to such a move. Here in lies a huge problem for SERM!!! Now a Canadian or Sask resident may bait in any zone but rules do apply in this regards. All baits and stands must be clearly signed on all crown lands. Baits on private lands require landowner permission only. Bait can not have legally more than 40 litres of bait or 2 square hay bails or a combination of both not exceeding 200lbs. They must be 500 metres from a occupied dwelling, campground or other area used by people. 200 meters from any numbered highway, grid road, forest access road, cross country or skidoo trails. Stands/blinds/etc on crown lands must be removed by Dec. 31 of that hunting year.

Of course enforcing these regulations is another manner, like most areas CO's are severely under staffed, under budgeted and rely heavily on public and hunters to help them. Also indian run operation are not subject to the same regs..b/c it is on their land!!

As far as baiting creating an unfair advantage, a lot more than ringing the dinner bell involved with baiting..just like any other technique. I personally do not bait and have no real desire to in the future. For me the baiting thing is simply a non-issue, as it has been around for years. I don't see it hurting our trophy status, pressure is up on mature bucks but that isn't just baiters but hunters like you and I. That said the quality and quantity is very good in this province.

I did bait for a period and it did nothing to improve my chances, like said it was more hassle than what it was worth. I would rather put that expenditure to scouting and other preparation for each hunting season.

As far as bait's used here mostly consist of alfalfa hay mixed with cereal (oats, barley), canola screenings or chick peas. Some use sweet feed or other enhanced mixtures. Salt licks are also layed down at these sites. Often baits are started and test baits are set up using a small portion of a salt block and alfalfa hay.

Any way sorry for the long winded response.

PS: Sask. 2006 Hunting Regs will be posted once the draw is finalized, this usually happens mid april.
SERM Website

Well it has been an interesting read so far. It also looks like baiting has produced mixed results. I did see this thread getting a little side tracked into information about "how" to hunt deer, rather than about baiting. I don't need to know "how". I've got that figured out pretty well. I was just curious "how" the whole baiting thing worked as it's a very unfamiliar method to me. It's not likely I'll ever see this type of hunting method first hand, but it has been interesting reading about what others have experienced. Thanks guys.

I dont know why hunters needed to bait deer with piles of grain or what ever else, I certainly dont call that fair chase. Isn't Saskatchewan an agricultural driven province!Here in Albera, what do you call hunting / sitting it out in a farm field at -30 below that is all alfalfa, or barley, oats, wheat? Just my opinion. Farmers do the so called "Baiting" for us.

Mighty Peace, yes sask is agricultural driven!! I agree their is no need to bait, in fact it is rather counter productive to bait IMHO, such areas. However is sitting on a planted/harvested field that much different? I personally don't think it is. Sure you can bring into the debate changing their patterns, funneling them to one spot but the fact remains they are wild animals and freely go anywhere. In my experience baiting didn't really prove a daily pattern of the same animals to the location, so it really wasn't a lot different than sitting over a main trail to a farmers field. Sometimes they come, sometimes they don't. I still had to find the right location to put the bait, just like choosing an ambush or stand/blind spot to set up in terms of bedding to feed movements. So scouting, knowing habits, etc is still very much part of the equation with baiting just like any other form of hunting. Like I said their is more to it than ringing a bell, a big misconception that if you bait them they will come...work must still be done with baiting (and not just keeping the slop pail full!). Have you ever baited bear? If so you'll know what I am saying. If you have never baited then how can you honestly call it not fair chase with no experience to prove this point? I have played both sides of this line and for me it isn't something I care do. Not because it was unfair but rather it made no sense and didn't fit into how I prefer to hunt.

You are entitled to your opinion so no beef here just giving you a different perspective.

For outfitters in the forest areas it is a bit different, choice food sources are not part of the equation. Baiting is used to remain competitve with neighbouring provinces where they have such areas to hunt with their clients.

MAN THE HUNTER
When man the hunter needed to aquire game for food, all sorts of methods and techniques were thought up to "more easily" get more meat.

Baiting, hunting with dogs, driving herds off cliffs, hunting at night with light (fire). All these things were invented by intellegent hunters. And no doubt they were respected heros in their time for helping the trbe to survive.

Now we have invented "fair chase" and "ethics" and "sportsmanship". Which has brought about debates as to what is 'right" in hunting methods.

Even the laws we make to govern hunting vary from place to place as they are most often the opinions of law makers as to what is "right".

Robin

Robin

Hello;

I guess my question is, does baiting have to be a conscious effort to affect Ethics and where do you draw the line? I'm surrounded by fields that during Hunting season are full of frozen Alfalfa and my neighbors habitually just dump excess grain in piles, beside their granaries. How would you legislate against taking advantage of a good thing?
Grizz

Foe several years I have helped a buddy who is an outfitter in SK. In SK. the outfitters pretty much write their own regs. or at least the older established ones do. The reason baiting is so big a deal is this.
Several stands over bait can de serviced by 1 guide. One simply takes hunters a-b-c-d to their stands and you're done. 4 hunters/guide are taken care of till lunch. Go with the truck and pick em up,take em back @ 3 o'clock. The 'success' rate with this method is near 100 percent. The season here is short and this method gets the guys in, deer shot, and back on the plane in 6 days. Bait used is generally alfalfa bales and a prepared livestock feed.
To answer the original question, baiting works here, but remember that it is used in the forest or 'bush' not in ag. land. In southern ag. regions some guys have tried it with limited success, but deer have several easy feed sources and don't frequent the bait. Mark