Scent Glands

[EatDeer]

ORIGINAL: JPH

I was told that same thing back in the day. But the same guys that told me that bought into a lot of old wives tales (slit the throat, they never look up, etc.)

Since I have never read anything about "fear scent" from any reputable publication or seen evidence of it in my hunting career, I consider it to be a tall tale.  

  The foot stomp has startled me before a couple times, any other deer watching the ordeal, at the time, would have been warned something in the area was a danger. I'd think that any running or jumping deer would leave the "danger scent" if stomping produced the odor. Deer stomp in scrapes to leave a visual marking, and to leave the inter-digital gland scent, an that isn't keeping the other deer from scent marking the scrapes. I too, believe the deer warning stomp, is more audio- visual, then scent related.        

[coach]

 I have never heard of anything like this in my life.  The stumping of a deer is to alert other deer
in the area that something is not right. They stump to get the other deer's attention. That's it.
Deer lives with bobcat, cougars, wolves, coyotes, human...ect.  If they were leaving this....danger
scent everytime they stumped....there would no deer around.
 
I've been busted, stumped...you name it......I stay in the stand and keep hunting.  Tuesday afternoon I
got busted by a small 8 point that stumped and left the area whistling making sure every deer from Ontario to California know I was there.   20 minutes later a nice big doe came the same trail.  She's in my freezer now.  I guess she didn't smell the " Danger scent ".   Maybe she had a sinus infection.
 
I do like the web link that Woods Walker has above.
 
Good job

[DeanoZ]

OK, so it seems the answer is somewhere in the middle..as is the concenus.  I have seen deer paw or stamp their hooves when they know something is not right and I'll buy off on that as a possible warning sign, but not for the purposes of warning other deer.  What coach and WayneL said makes a lot of sense to me. I've been busted on stand, wih the pawing and stamping only to have other deer cruise by the same spot later that day.  Thanks for the feedback all...and especially the research Woodswalker!

[beagleman23]

This is two topics being rolled into one.  Deer have numerous types of glands all used for one basic function which is to communicate their presence in a specific area to all other deer.  There was an article in one of the latest issues of 'Deer and Deer Hunting' were an editor was watching a group of bucks after the rut.  Only two of the bucks had not shed their antlers but all 6-7 went and and rubbed their forehead gland on a sign post rub one at a time after one of the bucks with antlers started.  As far as the interdigital gland, all my reading show it's for continual communication all year round.  It helps them locate other deer and, I believe, deer trails easier especially after dark.  As to the hoof stomping, this is a method along with head bobbing to identify a suspicious object by attempting to make it move.  Does this cause more scent to be placed in a small specific area on the ground?  I would say yes.  Would this change the specific odor? Doubtfully, it's a very small gland between their toes.  The only additional question would be if the added scent would cause alarm among passing deer.  I doubt it and from my personal experience the answer would be no.  The snort is often equated with a danger signal because of a deer bolting right after and sometimes continuing to snort.  The actual reason is that the deer is clearing its' scent receptor glands to specifically identify danger-you.  Usually after they first see movement or an object they're associating with danger.

[FlDeerman]

I've had deer blow,stomp and then have another one walk in a short time later.I had a doe blow and I thought I'd been busted,it turned out she was blowing at another deer I guess as a warning.   

[chase22us]

I was huntin a few weeks ago here in S.C. in a cutdown. A doe was feeding she began stomping her front foot, soon after ran off. Few minutes later a bobcat came out to the samw spot . So I guess its some type of danger alert.

[HiddenHornsRanch]

Ive been around deer that will constantly stomp when a squirrel runs up and down a tree, and Ive been around ones that wont stomp at anything until its basically on top of them...I worry more about snorting because they are most likely to run off than when they are stomping, Ive lost many deer to one snorts opposed to the stomping, all the stomping does is just keep them alert...Ive also seen does stomp and snort at certian bucks that wander into the area, I think it just depends on the personality of the deer...