Mock Scrapes: How to Fully Take Advantage of Them

Mock scrapes are an effective tool to add to your arsenal in an attempt to kill mature bucks. However, understanding how deer use them and setting them up accordingly will make a huge difference in the results you see. Read on to learn how to make mock scrapes and how they can help you kill that old buck you’ve been chasing the last two seasons.

Why Create Mock Scrapes

Mock scrapes get bucks to visit a precise location. The advantages are obvious if the scrape is located near your treestand or blind, but building mock scrapes in areas that will likely only be visited at night can help you kill a big buck too. By placing a trail camera near your mock scrape, you’ll get a pretty good idea of how many, and what quality of bucks, are frequenting the area. Mike Adkins of RFO Outfitters in Mount Sterling, Illinois said, “We use a lot of mock scrapes to get pictures. They work really well.” You can use this information to determine if the area is worth investing your hunting time or if it’s time to look elsewhere.

How Deer Use Scrapes

Deer visit scrapes throughout the year, but peak activity levels occur during the pre-rut period (typically late October.) When a buck works a scrape he may paw the ground, urinate in the scrape, and lick the overhanging “licking branch.” While working the licking branch he’ll also rub his face against the branch, leaving scent from the pre-orbital gland next to his eye. This scent, combined with the scent of his urine, is a calling card for other deer. Adkins said that, by making scrapes, bucks are “telling all the does in the area that ‘I’m here and I’ll be back’.” Creating mock scrapes gives hunters the ability to determine the location where these interactions take place.

Location, Location, Location

This rule applies to mock scrapes as much as it does to prime real estate. Selecting the proper site for your mock scrapes can be the difference between hours of wasted effort and a mature buck on the wall. Adkins said, “You need to [make mock scrapes] where deer are. If the deer aren’t using an area, [your mock scrape] is not going to get used.” Look for funnels between bedding cover, trails skirting the edges of food sources, and areas where logging roads intersect. All of these locations are prime candidates for mock scrapes.

Next, consider access. You’ll need to visit your mock scrapes fairly often to freshen them and check trail cameras. Therefore, they should be located somewhere you can get into without spooking a bunch of deer. Otherwise, you’ll be doing more harm than good by creating the mock scrape. Adkins said, “Be as quiet as possible. Either [check your cameras] during the middle of the day or do it at night.” Adkins uses a battery-operated cart to check field edge cameras and only checks cameras inside cover if he is taking a hunter in or out.

Timing is Everything

Adkins starts most of his mock scrapes around the third week in October when scraping activity is at its peak. However, he’s recently begun experimenting with mock scrapes started in early September. Hunters can also see good results by making mock scrapes in mid to late summer. These early season efforts are typically a hit or miss proposition, but if you can figure out a buck’s early season pattern, it may be the key to tagging him on opening day.

Starting Mock Scrapes

After you’ve selected the perfect site for your mock scrape it’s time to get to work. Adkins said, “Use rubber gloves to make sure you leave no human scent behind at all. We’ll use a stick and make a mock scrape out on a field edge, usually within 10-15 feet of another scrape. We’ll saturate the area with what we choose to put on it, and then put a camera over it. You’d be surprised how well they work.” Adkins makes his scrapes approximately three feet in diameter. He also stressed the importance of placing mock scrapes under licking branches. He said, “Without [the licking branch] you have nothing.”

Stink It Up

The next step in creating mock scrapes is creating the illusion that deer are already using the scrape. Do this by adding deer scent. Start by adding buck urine and, as the rut approaches, put in some doe in estrus urine. You can also doctor the licking branch by adding scent collected from the pre-orbital gland. Refresh the scent every week or so. Better yet, use a timed dropper to avoid frequent trips to your mock scrape. Once the bucks are in your area and find the mock scrape, they should start adding their own aromas, making the spot irresistible to any buck cruising through.

An alternative to using real buck and doe urine is the use of synthetic scents. Adkins uses those made by Windpro. Other manufacturers include Tink’s, Buck Fever, and Wildlife Research Center. Synthetic scents typically last longer than natural deer urine and are said to create curiosity in deer that can’t be replicated with natural scents.

How to Hunt Mock Scrapes

You’ve found the perfect location, built your mock scrape, and doctored it with deer scent. Trail camera photos and on site scouting while freshening the scrape show that deer have been actively using it. It’s time to get serious. To avoid educating deer, Adkins hunts trails leading to and from mock scrapes, but not over the scrapes themselves. That said, plenty of bucks are killed over mock scrapes each fall. Just remember that this may be a one-and-done type of opportunity and make your play when conditions are right.

As mentioned, bucks typically use scrapes most in the pre-rut period of late October and early November so these are great times to be perched above mock scrapes. However, if your trail camera reveals that a shooter buck is using the scrape regularly during daylight hours, the time to hunt it is now. Wait for the right wind, don your scent free gear, and hit the stand.

Making mock scrapes is a great way to alter an unpredictable buck’s routine so you can put an arrow or a bullet through him. Get out and make one today and see if it works for you.