Can Whitetail Smell Your Mistakes?

We've already had the Youth and Liberty Hunts in Michigan. Most archery hunters are starting or gearing up. Hunters are staking out the best places on their property or state land. Many of us may be setting or checking our stands. The time is fast approaching when we will be sitting in the woods in the cool dark early mornings as the first glimpses of sunlight break the darkness. We will be waiting for the big buck we've been watching on the trail cam, or a nice sized doe to put meat in the freezer.

The Debate of Being Undetectable

Dan Shipton practicing fly fishing techniques on Michigan river. Photo by Depositphoto.

Years ago, when I was hunting, I had a friend tell me that you need to stop eating venison and any red meat for 3–4 weeks to cleanse your body from smelling like a predator. Many of us have a couple of different spots, especially on our own property, so depending on the wind we can sit in a different spot. Others I've hunted with insist on trying to find the most natural scented area to sit in, or to add to their ground blinds. In my area that means cutting fresh pine boughs and placing them on or near the blind or sitting the blind near pines. Many of us see marketing for scent blockers and even special laundry soap to add scent blocking agents to our clothing. Maybe we've tried some. I've known others to try to buy the deer urine scents to cover any scent.

Then we go into the woods in our camo or orange blaze. We use scent blockers, or use attracting scents. Then it still takes most of deer season to bag our deer. We arrive at Thanksgiving Dinner with the extended relatives and Uncle Jake comes in smelling like cheap cigars and beer. He's bragging about how he was able to get his newest trophy kill last week right after daybreak on opening day. Everyone knows Uncle Jake smells like old cigars and beer even when going to church, let alone when he's at deer camp. Yet, every year Uncle Jake has bagged a deer and fills the freezer.

The question that comes to mind is, will it matter if I purchase some of the expensive camouflage or new scent blockers? Are deer really put off by our scent all that much? Do scent attractions like urine help or not? Before we go to the expense of buying new laundry soap or dozens of different scent agents is there any effect in making our hunting chances a greater success.

We should realize there may not be a perfect answer to the question of what makes us stealthier in the woods. Biologists sometimes debate whether scent or sight is more important to worry about for whitetail hunting. There is a lot of science that shows that deer have a superior smell, but motion and ultraviolet reflection may play a part in it as well. Hopefully understanding that experts are still debating and questioning can offer us a little encouragement in our search for blending into the woods in a better way.

What Science Says About Being Stealthier in the Woods

Carl T. Johnson DNR Center sign in Cadillac Michigan where fly fishing clinic is held. Photo by Depositphotos.

The look into this debate started last winter for me, as I watched an episode of The Southern Outdoorsman, "Biologist's Guide to Going UNDETECTED by Bucks". They had Dr. Karl Miller, who clearly stated that scent is not a whitetail's only or even best sense for protecting against predators, including hunters. Dr. Miller in his studies has determined that their sense of sight, and specifically ultraviolet and blue reflection are a greater concern than formerly understood.

To really understand scent and why it is important to whitetail hunting we must get into the biochemistry of the animal's olfactory processing. Scent is the generic term that experts like Dr. Bronson Strickland Mississippi refer to technically as volatile organic compounds (VOCs) (DVM, 2019). Everything gives off some sort of organic smell, which is referred to as its VOC. Everything includes organic and inorganic substances, even though we are focused on organic compounds.

The human body is a complex organism and according to research by Ziwei Zou and Xudong Yang written in 2022 our body and breath emit between 25–47 different VOCs in this particular study. Other studies show that we emit up to 1800 VOCs from our entire body and breath (DVM, 2019). We can admit that we smell, and our scent is different than the wildlife smells around us.

Additionally, we have to consider how well deer can smell. What is the strength of the nose on an average whitetail deer? Most studies conclude that smell is likely the greatest defense a whitetail deer has. According to Bill Winke of Bowhunter, an average whitetail can smell someone about a quarter of mile away, which can be further depending on wind and humidity (2012). John Kuhlman states that whitetail deer have 870 million olfactory senses, while the average human has only six million and the average dog has about 300 million olfactory senses (Ilearntohunt, 2025). Kuhlman points out that some studies even say scent from shoes and clothing can be detected up to ten days after a person has spent time in the woods.

We may never have the perfect solution to prevent deer from smelling our scent. The facts demonstrate the importance of limiting our scent as much as possible, even if we cannot fully remove our scent or block it entirely. So, what are some things we can do?

Learn to Control your Scent and Visibility

In looking at the differing opinions the conclusion that I've arrived at is that we have to try to control both scent and visibility the best way we can. Working in combination with this end will likely give the best chance for your next attempt at bagging your next whitetail deer.

Some Advice for Controlling Visibility

• Beware of ultraviolet reflection of clothing. The sight of a whitetail deer initially isn't all that great, but since they can see about 320 degrees and movement spooks them easily sight does matter. Studies reveal that deer eyesight is like that of human red-green color-blindness, but far higher on the blue and ultraviolet spectrum. Ultra-violet light reflects from blues and whites naturally. Today's modern laundry soap is made to enhance color reflection and capture ultra-violet rays to keep clothing looking new and fresh to human eyes. This reflective enhancement means that washing in regular soap can cause all your clothing to be more reflective of ultra-violet rays and be seen more easily by deer. This means even camouflage that is washed in most laundry soap will become more reflective to whitetail eyes. Instead of blending into the environment they will make you stand out.
• Ultraviolet Blocking Laundry Detergent is a must. The blocking agents in this soap will dull the reflection of the ultraviolet rays and make you stand out less to the deer when you're sitting in the field.
• Stillness is still key. Miller and others throughout history, including advice from big game hunters like Fred Bear, still hold true. Sitting still matters if you don't want to be detected by deer when you're in your stand or ground hunting. According to Miller, staying still when ground hunting may be one of the most essential elements, because in higher deer stands deer are less aware that you are there.

Advice for Controlling Scent

There are a lot of products out there that attempt to cover your scent and the scent of your clothing. However, controlling your scent is the best defense. Doing what we can to prevent contributing to our scent in the woods begins long before heading to the woods and lasts into the day of hunting we have planned.

Laundering Hunting Clothing:

• Washing in Unscented Soap. Heavy scented soap and softeners will stay in clothing and will stand out against the natural smells of the woods.
• The Best Choice is Unscented UV Blocking Laundry Soap. This will give you the best of both scent control and ultraviolet sight control.
• Dry Clothing on the line. Letting your clothing dry on a line will also reduce adding any scents from past dryer sheets. It will also help remove any leftover smells of cleaners.
• Store Clothing in Airtight Containers. When you've cleaned and dried your hunting clothes make sure to store them in airtight containers or bags. Avoid getting any of your other clothing scents or household scents on them before heading out to the woods.

Control or at least Minimize Ground Scent.

• Stay on the well-used trails. Choosing to stay on the beaten path will help reduce how much ground scent you are putting on the ground, bushes, and trees as you make your way to your stand.
• Store your hunting boots until you're in the field. If you have a dog, you may have noticed that sometimes they will smell our shoes. Even my wife's cat's do this. This is because animals can smell where we have been off of our shoes. This means that our shoes may be laying scent down from home, our vehicle, the office, the mechanics shop, or the grocery store. If you have designated clothing, you keep in storage it should include your boots. Put them on when you get to the trail leading into the woods, so you leave less of your scent on the ground.
• Know the Wind Conditions. Even the slightest breeze will carry scent far away from you into the woods or field. If you've had time to scope out your hunting site and you know which way the deer move at different times of the day, use it to your advantage and stay downwind from deer's usual movement.
• Understand Natural Temperature Air Movements. Air flow tends to move downward when it's cooler or cooling, and upward when it is warmer and warming. This means you can figure on how scent may change if a cold front is coming. More importantly it means gaining a better understanding of how the change of temperature throughout the day may affect wind and air flow. This will determine where your scent is floating even in the slightest of breezes.

Uncle Jake, Luck, and The Rut

So, as I pointed out at the start of this article, we've all known someone who seems to do everything wrong and always has a deer hanging on opening day. Does all this advice guarantee your success? Absolutely not. There are many factors that may contribute to the success of Uncle Jake who smokes and drinks but comes home successfully. First, he may keep his hunting clothes stored just for hunting and never washes them, meaning they no longer reflect the UV rays and likely to have less unnatural scent.

Second, Uncle Jake and those like him may go out into the woods in the same area where they hunt, often enough that the deer and other animals are familiar with their scent. Personally, some of the people I've known who are like this not only hunt the same areas, but gather wood, collect sap, and spend time out in the woods during various hunting seasons. They are walking the same trails so often that their scent isn't as unfamiliar to the wildlife around. If you own your land or hunt some relative's land it might do you well to spend time doing things in the same, you plan to hunt before the season starts.

Another factor to consider is that the rut can remove all the rules. Once the first frost hits and the rut goes into full swing bucks go into a mental fog with only mating on their minds. Scent plays a big role, but the truth is over the years I've heard stories of hunters having bucks nearly walk into their blinds. I've also experienced the crashing sound of bucks during the rut making so much noise squirrels run and birds fly away. When the rut is in full swing the work we put into preserving silence, blocking scent, and striving to remain unseen sometimes just doesn't matter.

Finally, as with many hunting and fishing experiences, luck will always be a great part of the hunt. We can do everything the experts suggest. We can cover our scent, clean our clothes to avoid UV reflection, know the right time of day, and watch the weather. Then, as my buddy Jason pointed out after shooting a nice doe a few years ago, sometimes they will walk up looking right at you. There is always something to be said for moving slowly and quietly if that happens. Yet, at the end of the day sometimes it's just pure luck that helps you get your freezer filled with venison. One thing is sure; you can only get the deer if you get out there. Blessings on the journey and good luck in the fields.

— Dan Shipton

Works Cited

• McCoy, Clint A. (DVM). "The Science behind a Deer's Sense of Smell & Scent Control." North American Whitetail, 14 Oct. 2019, www.northamericanwhitetail.com/editorial/science-behind-deers-sense-of-smell-scent-control/368596.
• John, Jeff. "Top 9 Collectible Lever-Action Rifles – RifleShooter." RifleShooter, 15 Feb. 2022, www.rifleshootermag.com/editorial/9-collectible-lever-action-rifles/457052.
• Kuhlman, John. "How Far Can Deer Smell? A Guide to Not Getting Winded." Ilearntohunt, Kalkomey, 23 July 2025, www.ilearntohunt.com/blog/how-far-can-deer-smell/.
• The Southern Outdoorsmen. "Biologist's Guide to Going UNDETECTED by Bucks." YouTube, 7 Oct. 2024, www.youtube.com/watch?v=MurgcfttP-g. Accessed 2 Oct. 2025.
• Winke, Bill. "Can Deer Tell How Far Away a Source of an Odor Is? – Bowhunter." Bowhunter, 9 Mar. 2012, www.bowhunter.com/editorial/can-deer-tell-how-far-away-a-source-of-an-odor-is/309382. Accessed 2 Oct. 2025.
• Zou, Ziwei, and Xudong Yang. "Volatile Organic Compound Emissions from the Human Body: Decoupling and Comparison between Whole-Body Skin and Breath Emissions." Building and Environment, vol. 226, Dec. 2022, p. 109713, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.buildenv.2022.109713.