Deer

geeme

geeme

A week or so ago deer got to my tomatoe plants. Since they did not mess with the rest of my plants and since I'm not really caring much about the tomatoes (a story behind that I won't go into here) I did not think much of it. However, I found a few days later that they about decimated my next-door neighbor's raised beds. This neighbor is on the other side of my house from where my tomatoe plants are. The neighbor on the side where the tomatoe plants are is a nurse who often works nights. When she works, she keeps her outside lights on, but when she does not work she has a motion-sensor light. My neighbor with the garden installed a motion-sensor light as he heard the light coming on might scare the deer away. I don't know if my other neighbor's motion-sensor light is what saved the rest of my plants or not, but let's say I'm skeptical. I've been told here that a mix of hot pepper and anise sprayed on the leaves will deter deer, so that's one of my weekend tasks over the next couple of days. So cut to last night…..
 
It was about 10pm and I needed to run to the grocery store. I got in my car, backed out of the drive and started down the street. However, a couple houses away, on the other side of the street, I saw a doe munching on one of my neighbor's plants. She clearly did not care about a car coming down the street, and she was heading in the direction of my house. I stopped the car, pulled out my cell phone, and called my son. (He's with me while he finishes up college, so we're not talking about a kid here.)  Convo:
 
There's a deer on the street and it's heading in the direction of our house. Would you go outside and make sure it doesn't get to our plants?
     Are you serious?
Yes.
     I'm not going to go outside and fight with a deer!
It's a small female. You don't have to fight it, just make some motion so it won't want to come near.
     You're kidding.
No, I am serious.
     You really expect me to do that?
Yes.
     What do you think I'm supposed to do? It's a deer!
I don't know - act like a boogy-man or something. 
     Sigh………… fine. [click]
 
Yes, the chile plants MUST BE SPARED!
 
So what about you? Yeah, I know peeing around your plants is supposed to help, too, but that's not going to happen here. I'm growing in containers on my back porch, and I just don't want that aroma around my house. Other than pee and cap and anise sprayed on the plants, is there anything that you've tried that seems to have worked? Anyone had motion-sensor lights ignored by deer?
 
Friend of mine in Minnesota used to raise rottweiler's for breeding purposes. 
 
He had a big adorable bitch that would always jump up on his bed and takeover.
 
He'd come home to find her sleeping on the bed all the time.
 
How did he solve the problem?
 
Mouse traps.
 
He got a dozen of 'em and set them spread out all over the bed.
 
Later when he came home the bitch was sleeping in the kitchen.
 
And all the traps on the bed were tripped.
 
She never got up on the bed again.
 
I'd say do something similar and spread them around the garden perimeter.
 
You could also rig a trip wire so that a bunch of them go off all at the same time.
 
If it works on a 120 pound rotty, then it should be no problemo working on deer.
 
And nobody gets hurt.
 
Except stupid mice.
 
Thanks for the link, neoguy - I think I'll try that. Have you actually used it? Just how bad does it smell to you?
 
Mousetraps sound hilarious, TB! 
 
No can do on Remington, fence and not even my compound bow - the city ordinances say I could end up in jail for shooting things, and I rent so am not going to get a fence. Plus, deer have been known to jump 6' fences, so I know that's only a mild deterrent. But yeah, the temptation is there!  :D
 
Geeme, buy this stuff from HD and just drape it over the plants. It is very light weight so it won't weigh the plants down. This is what I have guarding my tomatoes and although a clever squirrel has figured out how to get under it, the deer aren't that smart.
 
http://www.homedepot.com/s/deer+netting?NCNI-5
7091f5dd-ba30-47f5-ac74-128093c2b539_300.jpg

 
So far, so good. My next step was IEDs and an AR15.
 
Deer are not alarmed by human pee. It you were to pee underneath a low hanging tree limb, the deer will likely start using it themselves as a scent marker. It's called a scrape, and I believe I have a video somewhere of a buck using a scrape I set up myself.
 
I like the mousetrap idea. I once wired the large size traps to the legs of my corn feeders to discourage the racoons from shimmying up to the corn outlet. They never stayed set for long so don't know if it actually worked or I never ran out of racoons to train. ;)
 
mecdave said:
Deer are not alarmed by human pee. It you were to pee underneath a low hanging tree limb, the deer will likely start using it themselves as a scent marker. It's called a scrape, and I believe I have a video somewhere of a buck using a scrape I set up myself.
 
I like the mousetrap idea. I once wired the large size traps to the legs of my corn feeders to discourage the racoons from shimmying up to the corn outlet. They never stayed set for long so don't know if it actually worked or I never ran out of racoons to train. ;)
Click to expand...
 
Si senor.
 
Urine can often as not be an attractant as in the case specifically of doe urine in deer.
 
I do believe human urine does act to a somewhat limited degree on some animals as deterrent.
 
In Alaska at out camp in the bush we'd pee every where around camp to mark our territory and let the 
 
resident boo boo's know we were around.
 
Sometimes Yogi stayed away, sometimes not.
 
A jar of peanut butter is like cocaine to a bear so human pee be damned.
 
Some animals like feral cats don't cotton to it to well though.
 
I was having a problem with feral cats a while back and since marking all along the backyard fence I haven't seen 
 
them around.
 
There is one bad side effect of that though as you mentioned.
 
The possibility of it being an attractant to something else and causing a problem.
 
I'd hate to see my next door neighbor butt ass naked rolling around like a pig in a hog waller in it.
 
 
Ironically mecdave your avatar is Ed Roth's Rat Fink and you like the mouse trap idea.
 
Cray cray.
 
100% proven cure for all critters except really small baby bunnies...  A water scarecrow.  It detects temperature changes and shoots high pressure water at them and makes a decent noise while doing this.  Get the one with the decals it works best.  But I advise on using a different stake due to the strong pressure.  It is about 50 bucks at amazon.  (Remember your hard work is money also.)  It has a 2 year warrenty also.  Oh and use a reinforced hose and have some extra washers handy.  The smaller the critter the more refined you need to keep your settings for a smaller area. One more thing, you may want to get a splicer valve (forget name) to divide your water to two hoses if you need that faucet for general watering etc...
 
Another good thing?  It keeps my cats off my tender seedlings.  Oh yeah... :)
 
Hot Mama Bearz said:
100% proven cure for all critters except really small baby bunnies...  A water scarecrow.  It detects temperature changes and shoots high pressure water at them and makes a decent noise while doing this.  Get the one with the decals it works best.  But I advise on using a different stake due to the strong pressure.  It is about 50 bucks at amazon.  (Remember your hard work is money also.)  It has a 2 year warrenty also.  Oh and use a reinforced hose and have some extra washers handy.  The smaller the critter the more refined you need to keep your settings for a smaller area. One more thing, you may want to get a splicer valve (forget name) to divide your water to two hoses if you need that faucet for general watering etc...
 
Another good thing?  It keeps my cats off my tender seedlings.  Oh yeah... :)
Click to expand...
 
jajajajajaja....
 
It don't work on armadillos in Texas. Or skunks. Or 'possum. Or coyotes.
 
Ever body in N. Texas has a sprinkler system.
 
The critters think its awesome!
 
Shower time.
 
Compared to a N. Texas/ Oklahoma tornado, it ain't no 'thang. 
 
mecdave said:
That sounds like fun. Set up a infrared trail camera at the same time and watch all the action on your monitor the next morning! :)
Click to expand...
 
There are videos of this on youtube. 
 
 
 
One night I was out with my favorite Maine Coon cat, and I thought the darn thing was being overly sensitive,  No critter in sight...  But darn, next thing I know I see a fox high tailing it out of my neighbors yard.   Good thing since I worry about my cats getting hurt.
 
geeme said:
Thanks for the link, neoguy - I think I'll try that. Have you actually used it? Just how bad does it smell to you?
Click to expand...
 
I have not used it personally, I don't have a deer problem where I am, yet. But, I've heard good things about the stuff.
 
I'm probably a little more rural than you are, not far from the Zoo as a mater of fact. I saw deer run down my street last year for the first time in 25 years since I bought this house. I have a great protector for personal and real property in my beautiful and faithful German Shepard. She would let me know if something is amiss well before the deer got here, best dog ever.
 
I know you're on the eastside, I guessing around South Euclid. If that's the case I'm surprised the deer population is that high around that area.
 
My dog was pretty good.  But the new dog is not as good - or the deer have increased or become used to her.  She is not always there either, and all it takes is  short absence.  The dog pee, human pee, crap, etc.  - they get used to it.
 
I used Irish Spring soap - put into sachets of remay and hung on the fence where my plants grew (these were beans, peas, and cukes, etc.).  Also around tulips.  Seemed to work for two years.  Then last year, when I had even more of these set up, it failed.  Not sure if they simply got used to it, or it really never worked (though it seemed like they avoided the soap areas and did eat some things not near the soap in the past).
 
You can get electric fencing here - works on battery and or solar - and a small setup is about 50 bucks.  I've heard that works if set up properly.
 
The mousetraps do work for dogs.  But my dog got to know the 'smell' of a mousetrap and knew if it was not there.  But it still worked for training and to let him know what he was not supposed to do. Most dogs hate aluminum foil - and that is easier to setup.
 
Deer can jump high, but hate to be near something that could tangle up their legs - so laying fencing at an angle - or setting out tomato cages - can work to keep them out of an area.  It has to be widely set up so they can't easily jump over it.
 
I've thought about grinding up a plant like irises which they hate, and spraying that on desirable plants - maybe with a spreader sticker.  But they are mildly poisonous so I'm not sure about doing this on peppers (maybe before they have any peppers on them?)  Not sure it works anyway.
 
Deer have a great sense of smell and rely on it, don't like strong scents.  You can hang fabric sheets, moth balls, scented soap (drill a hole in the bar for a string that goes through an upside down plastic cup so it doesn't wash away in rain).   These are not guaranteed to work if the deer get hungry enough, or it's windy, or for more than 3-4 feet away.
 
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