[browning]

Im just wondering what everybody uses to hold a moose in a certain location during the preseason. Is there any tricks for weeks in advance of the hunt and what tricks do you use a few days before the hunt.

 

[Ridge Runner]

Hunt an awesome area, and unless something unnatural happens there the moose should be there.I make sure the area i'm going to hunt has alot of sign this year and has had sign most years.Find an area with water food and shelter with an abundance of diff size tracks through late summer and them moose wont be fat come season..I here of guys spaying mare in heat urine around an area for weeks in advance of the season and they say it works, me i wouldn't..

 

[SlickTrick]

You can use Moosejaws... I think you can get them in Saskatchewan

 

[Mister November]

we just tie the moose to a tree until the season starts...
lmao

 

[Mister November]

actually...the guys are right...
do lots of scouting...
make sure there are tracks and different size tracks.
scout the area well....you will see there patterns
where they travel...where they are bedding down and feeding and YES...anywhere near water is always a good spot
i will say that i used some of that moose bomb last year....
and where i sprayed the moose tore the ground and trees up like i have never seen before...i mean he was tearing trees out of the ground that where 4 inches in diameter roots and all
never seen a moose that aggressive before
but i sprayed where he was traveling!
and yes we seen him but never got a shot!
and when he came out of the woods...he was blowing snot out his nose big time!!!!
the boys were calling about 10 minutes before he came out....
of course he came out right where we were set up but the one that was calling didn't have a gun....and by the time he got to the guys it was too late...got dark on us!
i was 600 yards from where he came out..down the road in another blind..so..couldn't get close enough to get a shot...it was sat nite(after supper) and the guys who were sitting at the spot where he came out went down the road to the other blind we set up!!!
just wasnt our year!!!
the old saying....being at the right spot at the right time....well..they were there at the spot...just wasnt the right time!!
lol

 

[Bull's eye]

All great comments / advice. Like RR says, hunting over great ''active'' sign is a sure bet. Although some people still misinterpret sign.

An adult moose eats about 60lbs of leaves a day. Contrary to popular belief, only about 5-8% of their diet consists of aquatic plants.

Your little moose haven should have the following 3 components:

A 5 to 15yr old cut, providing a smorgasboard of food, this is where most of the cows/calves/yearling bucks will spend 90% of their time. This is why calling from a cut works really well, perfectly natural the cows are bedding / feeding right in that stuff;

Proximity to water (a brook, a bogan, a cedar swale, etc); Moose drink a lot of water;

Proximity to cover (here you're looking for a dense coniferous thicket or cedar swale). Moose have to regulate their body temperature, being such a large animal, and this habitat in extreme heat condition (above 20 Celcius is the treshold), moose will seek these shelterbelts to cool off.

For me, one of the best tools that has had a tremendous impact on our success rate is the trail camera.

If you can setup 3-4 sentinel cameras in potential spots, this invaluable tool will give you an EXACT inventory of what's roaming that parcel of land.

For example, you would be amazed at the sheer amount of sign 3-4 moose leave in a concentrated area. A properly positioned trail cam will reveal how many moose reside in the area, and the composition of the herd.

Our trail camera surveys have revealed in the last 3-4 years that one particular spot holds 10-12 moose, while other spots only have a cow and a calf.

Good luck in preparing your hunt, it is the best part of the journey!

 

[mocasonman36]

do lots of scouting should be some trees tore up a week or so before the season that lets you know theres a bull around and have a backup spot you might have company thursday morning you never know i like to get out tuesday and wensday if you can to get a idea where there at good luck.

 

[Sako]

If there is adequate feed and water in an area, I'll look for signs of a cow. Nothing will hold a bull in an area any better. Plus cows generally stay in an area they feel safe in. One of my favorite spots is a small finger of land between a beaverpond and a large brook. This area is surrounded by grownup clearcuts. This small piece of dirt has produced 6 bulls in the last 7 years. I've had the oppotunity to shoot a cow, there, but refuse to shoot my bait.

 

[browning]

Thanks for the tips. Yes I know scouting and such is best. I like the tip about looking in cover when the temp is hot. The guys that use moose piss do you put it out on say monday and the night before or do you only use it the night before only. Last yr I found numerous piss holes. Do moose use these yr after yr. This will be my first spot to scout because there is something there that they like to put them there last yr.
Last yr hunters did you find breeding holes before the season last yr. To me the time seems to change alittle. Last yr I found spots where you could see where the cow was already bread. The yr previous I didnt see this.

 

[Tobiquer]

If you find cows and calves at this time of the year, and they are undisturbed, and have lots of food, they will be in the same general area come September. Bulls are the wild card, but if you find a spot with a few cows, don't worry, there will be bulls in late September. As for patterning a bull - tricky, when the rut starts, they will cover some serious ground.

 

[Tobiquer]

I havent seen evidence of moose using the same holes year after year, but I do know that if you find some fresh ones the week of moose season, dont tell anyone else, you've got a good spot to start.

 

[Sako]

I haven't saw the holes used year after year but have found them in the same general area, usually within site of old ones.

 

[Bull's eye]

I haven't saw the holes used year after year but have found them in the same general area, usually within site of old ones.

Bulls cover a lot of territory during peak rut dates and they will dig a lot of breeding holes, urinate in them and bed down to impregnate their body, and especially their antlers and neck bell, which act as a scent disperser.

Finding one or 2 scattered love holes doesn't guarantee success, but it sure helps. A primary breeding hole where a dominant bull has herded a few cows can be gigantic in size, I have found some to be almost 20 sq ft, but extremely rare.

In 2005, I found a small grassy meadow that had 14 luv holes scattered about. We hunted that area hard, and never saw an animal there, the holes looked all to be at least a good week old, with the primary breeding activity over. Largest breeding hole was the size of the hood of a car, very impressive sign.

Instead, focus on the holes that are fresh. If you can locate a love hole with your nose, and there is still urine (actual liquid) in the hole, not evaporated, this is THE best sign you can find to hunt over, hunker down, put your thumb on the safety button, and let out a soft cow in heat call and brace yourself!

Good luck hunting.

 

[NBBearsden]

Instead, focus on the holes that are fresh. If you can locate a love hole with your nose, and there is still urine (actual liquid) in the hole, not evaporated, this is THE best sign you can find to hunt over, hunker down, put your thumb on the safety button, and let out a soft cow in heat call and brace yourself!

Good luck hunting.

I find that rattling, grunting, immitating another bull moose to be more successful than trying to pretend to be a cow,
I go back year after year to the same area, to find these "Holes", there's a spot that I hunt, I have seen the same moose
for the last 3 years, could have killed him 10 times, just never have a licence to hunt him

Seems like a breeding area will be used year after year by
the same bulls, unless major forestry operations went on,, clear cut etc...

I do my scouting during the Rut season
and usually when I come back the year after, the Moose are still in the
general area I checked the year before

 

[Axeman]

Come on guys...this one is very simple - just look around you for the answer. To hold a moose in one spot, simply herbicide all available food in the cuts around him.......no problem then - he'll be right in the cut not herbicided.

I thought after 15 years of seeing how this works you guys would all know this one!

 

[Riverboy]

The one suggestion I would make with regards to the three day moose hunt is try to find a spot that isn't going to be visited by every gun toting moose hunter in the zone you are hunting.I don't know how many times I've heard hunters complain about finding a honey hole before the season and then the week before the season,all the hunters hit the woods,setting up trailers,scouting on their bikes and 4x4's,building crows nests,etc.,etc.Those moose you had all locked up are now scared s#$%less and heading for cover and come opening day are five miles away in another area with some cover.Good Luck,boys.No tags for our group again this year.

 

[browning]

Well I guess the next question is to bow or not to bow. Thats of course if my licence holder will let me..

 

[Harry]

This late in the season i would look for females and try to find out what their paterns are. When the rut comes the bucks will travel from far to find those females to breed them. You can find a real nice bull now but come the rut he have moved on to find those horny females.