LOL, me either. But then again, my sense of smell may be compromised after years of working with skunk essence.

cfowler, you're probably smelling the fish oil that's in the bait solution. It can be detectable in some baits and not in others. It'll work good though.

so what do rat glands taste like? I aint that brave

They certainly didn't taste like bubble gum.

You work in my profession long enough you will get a taste of just about everything sooner or later. Not by choice, it is just one of those things that just happens.

When you are mixing or blending, tapping a bottle etc. Stuff just flies the right way and eventually some of what you are working with hits the bulls eye right in the mouth. I can't explain it much better then that.

WOW! TonyF is the buddy that stopped by and got this thing started again. His first words were, "Did you add some fish oil to this?" Of course I didn't, and hadn't smelled anything fishy up to a few days ago, so I suspected the only thing I added, rat glands. The fishy smell is very mild, but detectable. Thanks for letting me know. That makes a lot more sense.

So once a week I been shaking the jars. Turns the clear liquid into a sort of very light pinkish, milky color. Then I set them back upside down, or right-side up, to keep them turning. The kind-of fishy smell has disappeared or my nose just isn't picking it up. It's a nice mild smelling bait. Has a very familiar smell that I've noticed with other cat meat based baits. I bought two more bottles of the solution at the national. I'm gonna test some down a dirt-hole with a camera in the next month. Stuff has me curious, hope the critters are the same way!

The darker color at the top is more than likely the beaver castor in the formulation. Beaver castor turns dark as it ages and is exposed to air.

Paul if i bought the solution that had no skunk and wanted to add some to a quarter gallon how much essence should i add? i don't use to many really loud baits but wanted to have something for a change up if needed when it gets really cold here in Illinois. i made a gallon at the beginning of last season would've been about middle of October used small venison chunks as my base. it did turn rubbery on me i probably stirred and shook the bucket for 3 to 4 weeks every other day. then i put it in my bait room which stays around 60 to 67 degrees year round its an old closet in the basement and forgot about it till i got back from the wta rendezvous with a gallon of rauesatts coyote pee. thats when i noticed it was all kinda stuck together as one big rubberized chunk it does break apart very easily. my next question is can i grind it in the current state? id like to see which i prefer better ground or chunked. also i beleive the skunk would be better absorbed by ground meat at this point. thanks for all you do for us trappers

The skunk odor in my regular bait solution is almost undetectable once the bait is made. It isn't loud at all.

If you wanted to add more skunk when it gets cold, that is something you'll have to experiment with. For a quart of bait, I'd start with five drops. Stir, let it sit for a few days, then smell. If it's not loud enough, add two or three more drops. Do this until you have the amount of skunkiness you're looking for.

Yes, you can grind it when it's rubbery. The base for my Dig'r lure is 8 - 10 year old Beaver Medley Bait, which is made with bait solution. I grind it very fine.

thanks paul for the insight i appreciate it.

Dobbins with muskrat meat base hase been the best for me.

So the bait solution takes away from the natural meat (beaver/bobcat/rat) smell? The solution is the actual drawing power rather than the actual meat?

I see it more as the bait solution is the spice that makes the meat more attractive. It's kinda like when cooking a steak or beef roast. Is it more appealing with spices or without?

x2 If you get the "taint" just right , it's some good stuff

I made 2 batches one year. Both with chunked beaver meat. One with skunk and one without. Like Paul said.. the skunk gives it a different smell,but not overpowering. That year, the one with skunk I would have put up against any commercial bait on the market. I had so much confidence in that bait. As it aged it lost it's wow power. I also made some out of muskrat skulls and left it in the sun too long. It became liquid , It has a loud stinky smell that I use in cold temps that the coyotes are attracted to.

Any guess how many lb if meat it took to make a gallon? How long did you let it taint? Picking up a few beaver carcasses tomorrow. Thanks

It takes about 4# of ground meat to equal a gallon

I followed the directions that came with it. but the rest was just by site or smell. I just cut up about 1 inch chunks , The taint was about 10 days in spring weather...maybe 50 degrees or less....You want that smell you get when you realize you left a carcass in the fur shed too long and it's stinking up the place....but Not rotten.

Sounds good. I chopped up a medium beaver and then added a couple pounds of ground deer bc it didn’t seem like enough. Going to let it sit about 7 days and add everything. Thanks