Question about leaving gutpiles.......

[Randy]

I hunt some relatively small acreage on private land. My question for those in the same situation is, do you gut your deer where it falls or do you move the deer to an area where you believe it will not affect the deer in your area to gut it? If you move the deer to another area, why? Do you think a gutpile will affect deer movement? I'm not sure why I do it but, I always move the deer beforehand.

[Tecumseh]

I gut them where they fall and by the next morning it's gone,all the critters that come out at night consume it.I've shot deer the next day out of the same stand I've shot deer out of the day before so I guess it's personal preference.

[Chrud]

We usually leave them. I would probably move them if they fall in a food plot, field or logging road. The gut piles are usually gone within a couple days by us, so it isn't a big deal.

[MUDRUNNER]

In my experience gut piles don't seem to bother deer at all.I've seen deer actually smell a gut pile.I guess they smell the bladder or something.I do usually try to drag the deer a little ways before gutting,just to keep any coyotes that it might draw away from my spot.

[davetucker]

i usually go with what the land owner wants and if possible i gut it were it lays.my sons and wifes deer this year were shot 100 ft apart in the same field.I dressed them in the field.my sons deer we found in the woods about 125 yrds from were he shot it(never seen a deer die so hard).it got pretty dark so we drug him out so we could use the truck for lights,and the woods was pretty thick were we finally got him to die.wifes dropped right were it was shot and we dressed it right there.so i don't believe it has an affect on the deer.whatever you belive in and if it works for you.

[Guest bow_hunter101]

The gut piles don't affect the deer at all. My dad shot a button buck one night and left the gut pile on a main deer trail right at the edge of a field. I thought it would mess up my morning hunt, but a 6 pointer came down the trail, literally jumped over the gut pile, walked into the field, and I shot him in the tracks of the deer my dad killed the night before. Ever since that happened I don't give a second thought as to where I gut my deer.

[wtnhunt]

The gutpiles will not scare off deer, neither will blood from a dead deer. I pretty well always gut my deer back at the house where I have running water. I have taken gut piles back and put cameras over them Randy. Deer will investigate the piles, have gotten several pics of groups of deer. So will yotes and other scavengers too though.

[Guest bigalt78]

i usually gut them right where they fall. One time just recently i killed one gut it and went back the next morning and had about five deer walk directly where the gut pile was and killed another one that morning. i've never had a problem with it. it really dont bother the deer.

[toddyboman]

i usually move the deer away from the area I'm hunting. I always figured the gut pile would bother other deer but maybe not...:confused::o

[wtnhunt]

i usually move the deer away from the area I'm hunting. I always figured the gut pile would bother other deer but maybe not...:confused::o

I used to have some gutpile pics from my old stealth cam loaded somewhere. I am trying to find them now. Will post them here when I find them if I do.

Here are some of the pics I was talking about.

[Adjam5]

When I hunt the suburbs...the gut pile comes with me. No evidence. When I am in a more remote hunting area. The gut pile stays where it the deer layed. I might drag it to a better spot to gut it, so if a yote comes by it will be in a shooting lane for future hunts.

I have seen other deer sniff gut piles and walk around them. Not alarming them at all.

[rhine16]

I've only gutted a deer in the woods once. We always carry it back to the house to gut em.

[buckee]

Gut piles and the scent from dragging out your deer is a deer attractant more than a deterrent. Use it to your advantage. I do

[Shawn]

I gut them where they fall and by the next morning it's gone,all the critters that come out at night consume it.I've shot deer the next day out of the same stand I've shot deer out of the day before so I guess it's personal preference.

Same here. I also have watched another deer walk right past a gut pile a hour or two after being gutted. Steam rising and all. I dont think it affects them at all.

[BearClaw]

Ditto here! I only gutted one in the past 4 years. We take them up to my buddy's garage and hang them and gut and skin them up there. It's just easier and cleaner. But as I recall, the gut pile I did didn't last long.

[NS whitetail]

right where they fall. By the next day -- the yotes and ravens have it all cleaned up.

[QDMAworks4me]

When we hunt on our farm we move all the deer to a specific spot to gut them, unlike many of you we DID see a change in deer movement and it was directly related to the gutpiles. Once the gutpiles were moved they started to filter back in. We were filling our doe tags and had a couple gutpiles out in front of the syands at one time, they stopped coming around when that happened. The way I look at it is if you have a gutpile you are going to bring in the yotes directly in front of where you are hunting. On our farm the yotes stay on the other side of the crick for the most part and keeps the deer moving on this side during the daylight hours. I have read an article by Charlie Alshimer that says wait three days and your gutpile should be gone and you can return to hunting in that area, of course he lives in NY so it may be different in other states where the yotes are heavier populated.

Just my 2 cents

[Guest Andrea]

We never field dress our deer. With as much problems as we have with stray dogs that ruin hunts....we sure don't want to start feeding them. They get brought back to the house where there's sinks, a cleaning rack ( automatic wench thingy) and running water.