This is off the Star Tribune website and at first kind of grossed me out but now I wonder if it would work? Has anyone tried it?
Following are step-by-step instructions on how you can make your own “home brew” deer scent.
• 1. According to biologists, a deer urinates about nine times per day, a total of about a half-gallon. The best place to find “yellow snow” is where deer are feeding and along the trails leading to those feeding areas. Deer often urinate in and near their beds, so also look for bedding areas. South-facing slopes and field edges, as well as evergreen cover, are locations often used by deer to bed down. A fresh snowfall will cover urine marks so wait as long as possible between snowstorms to search for deer urine spots.
• 2. A plastic bucket and a garden trowel work well for gathering yellow snow. You would be surprised how quickly you can fill a bucket.
• 3. Since a lot of excess snow is also collected while scooping urine into your bucket, it’s a good idea to boil out the surplus water. Your family will likely appreciate it if you boil your deer scent outdoors using a camp stove. Your brew is done boiling when you determine what is left is pure urine. There is no science to the process. Does the boiling process negatively alter your deer scent? I don’t know. I do know that in my tests the deer don’t seem to care.
• 4. After boiling, strain the liquid through a cloth and strainer to remove grass, twigs, etc., and pour into containers. Freeze the urine to preserve it until fall. Label the containers of urine so a family member doesn’t mistake it for iced tea, or some other palatable liquid. Before using my deer scent, I add glycerin to thicken the potion, which helps prevent evaporation.
As a youngster, I heeded the advice of my parents and teachers. I didn’t eat yellow snow. Instead, as an adult, I gather it.