Aoudad Hunting Talk

I'd like to ask and talk a little about Aoudad... I just got a new lease, and it has Aoudad. I took a 27" a couple weeks ago, but honestly that one was dumb luck combined with random acts of being in right place at right time and rifle at the ready...

I wand to attract them to my feeders, and I have seen a couple on the cameras but thats maybe one time every 2 or 3 weeks.

Here is what Ive been doing so far trying to scout them. I've been looking for beaten paths in the tree-lines around the mountain bottoms. I've been trying to figure out what Aoudad scat looks like so I can identify areas where the frequent, but this lease has several different exotics, and Im not too familiar with most of them.

I've overseeded the fields around my feeders with oats, and I am feeding a corn/protien mix. I'm probably going to start hiking up into the mountais soon while the temps are still tollerable looking for them as well.

I never feel shut down on this lease as there are plenty of hogs to hunt as well.

Does anyone have any other ideas on how to track/scout Aoudad?

Put alfalfa out at feeders that brings them in.

Also put a gravity flow protein feeder up for a little bit get them use to coming to feeders.

Aoudad are pretty transient naturally - they will travel quite a bit. We have them on our ranch, but they will be there for a couple weeks hitting a feeder, and then disappear for a while. As robert mentioned, sweeten the pot, but don't expect them to come in much in good range conditions.

The females can become fairly predictable on feed, but rarely will the big males be. Best bet is to get the males when they are with the females Oct-Feb or so.

Sometimes you can get them coming in off season when the neighbors quit feeding and the range is poor.

For stalking them - cover lots of ground with your binos to locate them. I would focus more on open hillsides and mountain tops than the bottoms - they'll come into the bottoms, but I've personally seen them more on the tops.

Prints are pretty distinctive - a fair amount wider at the heel than most similar sized exotics and very much heart shaped.

as robert said, the only way I know to get them comming into feed regular is by using a gravity feed protein feeder.

as previously mentioned, look for the sheep grazing on hillsides in the evenings. Its been my experiance that they come down from a higher elevation to feed, so your not going to be able to get on top of them. Use your glass and stalk to within a comfortable rifle range for a shot.

I have a few bails of Alfalfa out, as well as salt blocks.

I am feeding a corn/protien mix already. Is the gravity feed still necessary?

Also for using glass, there are very few areas on the hillsidesthat glass would even be benificial, all of the mountains around the lease have pretty dense tree coverage.

Yes it is still better if you let them free feed on protein. Tubs of horse and mule feed helps too.

Salt blocks work as well.