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Post by whiteoak on Dec 24, 2006 14:36:59 GMT -5
Went out yesterday morning to try and add a little more meat to the freezer. About 9:30 I seen a deer heading my way and thought it looked like a very large doe. At about 75 yards she turned and gave me a pretty clear shot. When the smoke cleared I seen the deer bolt and head right toward me. It went down a spoil bank and I lost sight of it, but before it did I seen that it was limping pretty bad. After I reloaded I went over the spoil bank and there she laid, but when I got closer I knew that something didn't look right. When I got to her, HER was a Him. He had done shed his rack. There were two bloody and half scabbed over spots where his rack had been . I was sick. After inspecting this deer it was the worst shape deer I had ever seen. It was in very poor condition. You could see his rib, spine and hip bone showing clearly through his skin. His head was huge compared to his neck. It looked deformed, but at one time he was a large deer. He still weighed 175 lbs before I field dressed him. I would think that if he was healthy he would have went well over 200 lbs. This is the earliest I had ever seen a buck drop his antlers.
After I got to looking at him I noticed that his right front shoulder was broken and I knew I had hit him high through both lungs. Someone had already hit him. I found part of what I think was a sabot shot gun slug in his shoulder. I guess the rut and the fact that hed been shot caused him to be in such bad condition. I doubt he would have made it through the winter so now I felt better about taking him. Has anybody else ever got a buck that had dropped their antlers. I have seen bucks as late as Febuary that still had their rack. I was told and have read that the larger racked bucks shed their antlers first, Is this true? I sure would like to see what he had for a rack. I think I will go out and see if I can find his sheds, but I have never had much luck in finding any shed antlers and looking for sheds in the spoil banks for an out of shape wuss like me, will be tough.
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Post by buckeater on Dec 24, 2006 14:43:45 GMT -5
i shot one last year second weekend of muzzleloader that had aleady dropped his and one the year before same weekend but i could see his pedicals.
ive read that stress is a big part to do with them dropping early
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Post by whiteoak on Dec 24, 2006 14:57:24 GMT -5
i shot one last year second weekend of muzzleloader that had aleady dropped his and one the year before same weekend but i could see his pedicals. ive read that stress is a big part to do with them dropping early If stress is a factor, then I would say that this is why he had already dropped his antlers. This deer was very stressed by looking at him up close. |
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Post by mbogo on Dec 24, 2006 16:13:06 GMT -5
Stress is a big factor, if not the biggest factor of when antlers are shed. Older bucks drop their antlers earlier because they usually rut more heavily than young bucks and thus endure more stress. I would guess that older bucks also have more difficulty dealing with stress also.
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Post by mullis56 on Dec 24, 2006 17:11:14 GMT -5
What county did you kill him in? A lot of blue tongue bucks, that lived are deformed, feet, losing antlers, etc. Just a thought....
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Post by whiteoak on Dec 24, 2006 21:51:24 GMT -5
What county did you kill him in? A lot of blue tongue bucks, that lived are deformed, feet, losing antlers, etc. Just a thought.... Pike County |
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Post by dabutcher on Dec 25, 2006 12:06:07 GMT -5
i just took in a deer to process and it has already dropped its antlers, by looking at him skinned, he had been chasing does hard no fat and loins sunk in.
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Post by gobblerfreak on Dec 26, 2006 0:07:52 GMT -5
 On the same token I saw the biggest deer I've ever seen here in Delaware co. early last March with antlers still attached! He had a HUGE (at least 195 to 200" main frame) 10 point rack with about a foot and a half long "kickstand" drop tine on the left side (I'd be affraid to guess his score countin the drop tine). Jumped him up while huntin sheds on an older lady's property. He only ran about 60 yds. then stopped and turned to look behind him, I watched him for about 3 min. through my Binocs. I'd guess his weight around 255 on hoof. Obviously a VERY MATURE BUCK. I'm leanin more twards the stress bein a major contributer, than age.
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Post by esshup on Dec 26, 2006 0:26:42 GMT -5
I did the exact same thing the evening of the 24th, 4:21 p.m. It was a buck too, no antlers. The pedicles are about 1" dia. He has a large knob above his left knee about the size of a large grapefruit, and he's pretty thin. I'll request that I get the leg bone back when I take him in to get processed tomorrow after work. No obvious marks in the skin, so I don't know how old the wound is, or if it is just a tumor. I'll age him tomorrow, I didn't have a chance to do it today.
esshup
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Post by Woody Williams on Dec 26, 2006 8:44:16 GMT -5
I think Illinois has a late January antlerless only season and that is a concern over ther that the guys are shooting bucks that have dropped their antlers.
Indiana - If some one shoots an antler dropped buck in late season it is counted as an antlerless deer, not a buck.
There has to be 3" of visable antler on the deer's head to be counted as a buck.
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Post by raporter on Dec 26, 2006 8:59:46 GMT -5
Whiteoak, if you are dragging deer out of those Pike county spoil banks you can't be in to bad of shape. ;D
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Post by whiteoak on Dec 26, 2006 12:48:37 GMT -5
Whiteoak, if you are dragging deer out of those Pike county spoil banks you can't be in to bad of shape. ;D It's getting harder to do every year. I was lucky that this deer was close to a 4- wheeler trail and I could get to him pretty easy with my 4-wheeler. I only had to drag him over a couple spoil banks. Thank God |
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Post by Old Ironsights on Dec 26, 2006 13:27:38 GMT -5
I think Illinois has a late January antlerless only season and that is a concern over ther that the guys are shooting bucks that have dropped their antlers. Indiana - If some one shoots an antler dropped buck in late season it is counted as an antlerless deer, not a buck. There has to be 3" of visable antler on the deer's head to be counted as a buck. I almost hate to mention this - but wouldn't that truly screw with the "results" of the OBR, and wouldn't moving gun season further out of rut exacerbate that situation? |
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Post by whiteoak on Dec 26, 2006 20:11:16 GMT -5
I think Illinois has a late January antlerless only season and that is a concern over ther that the guys are shooting bucks that have dropped their antlers. Indiana - If some one shoots an antler dropped buck in late season it is counted as an antlerless deer, not a buck. There has to be 3" of visable antler on the deer's head to be counted as a buck. I almost hate to mention this - but wouldn't that truly screw with the "results" of the OBR, and wouldn't moving gun season further out of rut exacerbate that situation? I would guess that probably 95% of the bucks that survived this far probably still have their antlers. I think the fact that this deer was wounded and in such poor condition was the reason he had dropped his. Most buck I always thought started dropping them late January early Febuary, but I have seen bucks with their antlers even in March. It would be nice to know the number of bucks killed in season that have dropped their antlers. |
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On the same token I saw the biggest deer I've ever seen here in Delaware co. early last March with antlers still attached! He had a HUGE (at least 195 to 200" main frame) 10 point rack with about a foot and a half long "kickstand" drop tine on the left side (I'd be affraid to guess his score countin the drop tine). 
