My kids gave me this Mineral/salt lick for Christmas. They know I like deer around my place and thought this might be a way to attract even more of them. So... do they work? How long do they last?
Yes they work. Should last 6 months or more. Sit it on a stump instead of the ground and it may last longer. You will get all sorts of critters....not just deer. Now you need a trail cam point ting at it I use the mineral blocks from tsc (for horses or cows). They are much bigger, and much cheaper. I get a year outta those.
I've had em last for months and I've had em get eaten up and a hole dug where they were in weeks. Pointing a trail cam at it is a must, good luck!
I'd wait to put it out until late winter/early spring. Deer don't seem to be attracted to the salt much in the winter, I think it's a combination of them needing the nutrients more in the spring, plus the blocks seem to work best when they get rained on and the salt/nutrients leech into the soil. Then the deer eat the soil as opposed to licking the block. So be prepared for the ground to be absolutely destroyed wherever you put it. They may dig down 6" or more in an area up to 4ft wide. If you have a stump you need to get rid of, that would be the place to put it!
I have used these trophy rocks with good success in areas where I don't want it to visible like close to property lines or on public land as they look just like a rock. Nice gift Setting up a camera is a must. The large blocks available at TSC and feed stores last longer and are cheaper but still are basically just an attractant. For those that want to go to the next stage and add some health benefits to the heard (especially nursing does), here's a cheap DIY mix that I think was originally formulated by a deer biologist. I have been using it for a few years now. Typically 1 part Di-Cal (Dicalcium Phosphate - but Mono-Cal works too) used as a feed additive for dairy cattle. Good for nursing does and then passed onto fawns. 2 parts Trace Minerals, 1 part stock salt. I bought 4-50lb bags of the materials at a local feed store for about $60. Should be much cheaper south of the border. Mix in 1-2-1 ratios together in a bucket, rake or till up a few inches of soil in a 3' circle, pour in the mix, then rake the mix into the tilled soil. Set up your camera south of the mineral site and there you have it. It should be put out twice in the first year, spring and fall and then just each following spring to benefit the does and fawns.
I just put out a new rock the other day. Have had 3 of them on this stump. It gets lots of visitors. Heading out in the cold in a few minutes to refill feeders today.
Our experience has brought us to put them out in April and take them up by the end of October. WE did try to leave them out all year long but during the winter months they would disintegrate and not from the deer licking them either as the deer will just stop going to them sometime in October. Yes, others are correct in that they will dig through the dirt to get the salt. We also will put out some white salt and also some mineral as I just think it is good for the deer herd but again, it is taken up in October every year. btw, we do not use the salt and mineral as an attractant but only for the health of the herd.
This is great info guys! Thanks, I didn't realize I would get this much activity from the lick. It's going out in the spring. Helps me better decide where to put it. I will put a trail cam up also. And share the pics...
I've been using different lick blocks and attractants with trail cams for several years now. The deer hit them hard in spring then taper off them late summer. I'll get several hundred pics per month in spring, then it gradually slows down to where I might only have a couple dozen pics in October.
Well... That explains why I have not seen any bucks in a while. They're all over at your place! Is that cam a no glow (black) or IR (red)?
Well, I have two locations going and it seems there is a current crop of ~10 bucks with half being spike/forks. I was pretty surprised with the numbers. I have seen a couple of these deer in the woods and am pretty sure the 10 pointer was nearly shot by me during gun season. He's smart...hesded into the thick crap where I couldn't get a clean shot. The cameras are Browning HD 12 megapixel. They are a red glow, which I know can sometimes spook...but these bucks have all looked at it and some have even smelled them and seem OK. Very happy with the cameras so far. I will put one on my salt spot come summer when the horns are growing.
That's been my experience, trail cam just catches birds and leaf movement while it melts into nothing.
I've not noticed this at all. We typically put the blocks out in early May and leave them until November. The deer hit them daily usually until late October. I have not put any on stumps yet; just place them on the ground.
Still waiting to put the lick out until spring/summer but have had the trail cam out for a couple weeks...
Is it normal for bucks in Ohio to still have their racks this time of year? I believe all the bucks up here have already dropped theirs.
I always buy a few bags of the red trace mineral salt and pour it all around a stump. I have seen them literally dig the stump out of the ground after a few years of putting it out at the same place. It's a great way to get an idea of what you have on the property.
It can vary from year to year. I've seen bucks still have antlers in mid-March and I've seen them drop in early December.
One of the properties I hunt, land owner just told me on Wednesday that he saw 3 bucks with their racks still on.
