Whitetail Antler

Photo-Picture Competition: send in a picture of your buck or whitetail deer and how is was taken by bow and arrow, rifle, shotgun or a antler shed find.

The morning wasn't starting out very well. My dad and I were late getting out to the field, it was nearly daylight. The stand that I was going to sit in that morning was clear back in the timber; it was a perfect spot to catch a mature buck moving in the cool morning air. Before I left the truck I made sure that I had my rattle bag, buck growl, and doe bleep. I had not sat in this stand yet, so my dad gave me directions on how to get there. It was a lot harder than I thought and I couldn't find it. I looked down at my phone and it was already 6:30.

The sun was up and I could see very well, which that meant the deer were moving. Not knowing how far away I was from my stand, I decided to climb up a large oak tree that had fallen over. When I got up there I got all my calls out and got settled, made sure I could pull my bow back, and I was set. As I was glassing the ridges that lead to the creek bottom I noticed that my tree stand was only twenty yards in front of me. So I packed all my stuff up and climbed down and carefully and quietly walked over and climbed up my stand. When I got up there I once again got my calls out and made sure they were easy to get to. As I settled down I heard a snort. It was a deer that was across the creek. It must have heard or seen me walking. I wasn't sure what to do so I grunted and wheezed back at it. It kept it running back and forth snorting back. So I just ignored the deer and hoped it would come over to check it out.

As I was sitting and waiting to see if the deer would come over my dad text me to make sure that I was safely in my stand. I noticed that it was already 6:55. It had taken me nearly 45 minutes to find my stand.

I text him back and said "Ya finally" He told me to go ahead and rattle and see if I could get anything to start moving. I texted him back and said "Ok, let me know if you see anything. I'll do the same."

So I waited a few minutes and grabbed my rattling bag and started to rattle. As I was rattling I kept glassing from left to right then back in front of me. Out of the corner of my eye I had seen some movement. I went ahead and stopped rattling. It was a buck and he was seventy yards away running down the ridge next to me. So I put the rattle bag away and pulled bow. I carefully hooked my release on to my bow and slowly stood up. As the buck came running over the hill it was looking around. You could tell by the way he came parading in that he was one of the top bucks in the area. He slowed down and came to a walk. He was walking on a trail that crosses twenty yards in front of my stand. The only thing I could do was wait. The buck was sniffing and chewing on the small weeds and brush that surrounded the trail. He slowly moved behind a large tree and giving me the opportunity to come to full draw with my bow. He slowly walked in to my shooting window and stopped with his nose to the ground. It was like it was planned. I slowly pulled the trigger of my release and the arrow went flying. It hit a twig, sending the arrow high and right into his spine. The buck fell to the ground and started kicking his front legs. It took me a few seconds to realize what happened.

"Oh my goodness I just shot my first trophy buck and it was with my bow." The adrenaline kicked in and my legs started shaking. So I sat down and knocked another arrow, just in case he was able to get up. I text my dad and said 'got him!'

My dad called me and I told him what happened. So he quickly gathered his stuff and headed over with the camera and deer cart. The deer was unable to move and I had to put another arrow into him. This day is going to be one of the most memorable hunts ever. We took many great pictures with my first buck. He has 11 points and scored around 145. We haven't got an exact score yet.

Trail cam

Well I just spent 4 hours dragging this 300 pound deer out of the bush by myself. My hunting partners all had other plans with other hunters for opening day of the rifle season. Looking back it was the greatest day ALONE I have ever spent.

The area I hunt in Saskatchewan, Canada is famous for large typical deer. The most untypical deer I had ever seen in my 17 years experience had been a 11 pointer with 5 on one side and six on the other.

So when this big non typical deer jumped out of the bush 20 yards from where I was sitting and rattling you better believe I was trying hard not to squeeze the trigger before I was aimed and confident. After my shot he ran down a hill and into the thickest forest I think we have in Saskatchewan. 300 yards of wishing i was dead and 4 hours later I'm phoning everyone I know to tell them of my split brow tine 13 point with an 8 inch droptine buck. :P

Hello, My name is Ben Connors and I live in Northern Wisconsin (Ashland). My father bagged a 21-point buck sometime in 81'-82'. The rack was stolen out of his pickup in Ironwood MI later the same year. I am sending the photos of the buck in the hopes that someone there may recognize the rack. It is very unique in that it has double points coming out of the main beams.

It was an 11x10 but the three pictures he has of the buck make it hard to count all of the points. According to my dad there was a broken tine that would have made it a 22-pointer, my older brother thought that one point was just not one inch long and that made it the 21 and not a 22 point. I still think that any hunting enthusiast would remember seeing this rack.

Can you please circulate these pictures to see if anyone would recognize it? Any information that I could get would be greatly appreciated. Thank you. I ask that you email me back at rdscommittee@badriver.com with any news at all, including if no one has ever seen it. Thanks again.

I found these three matched sets of antlers in one day, one field, in about an hours time. I have looked for sheds for many years but never had a find like this.

13 year old Seth from Catoosa writes in, describes his Deer taken with a rifle.

I am excited about my first 8 pointer it has about a 12 inch spread this is a fairly good deer especially for me to have just turned 13,its not a monster but maybe about a medium size 8 pointer for the area considering the average trophy is an 8 pointer with a spread of about 16 inches,i killed this trophy with a .223 remington model-700 a pretty small caliber for whitetail's but it looks like it got the job done.

I fired 2 shots, well the first shot i missed because i had "buck fever" my heart was racing and i was shaking so when i missed the first shot my automatic reflex is to pull the bolt action very quickly without knowing wether the deer has already ran off or what i just do it its my reflex so after i missed i looked back through the scope and within 3 seconds of firing the first shot i had already fired a second time this time i hit him he did a jump flop and ran 20 yards and fell on the ground kicking when the deer quit kicking i said yes out loud.

I then got out of my box stand and walked down into the food plot and bumped the deer with the but of my gun and it did not move so i felt its neck for a heart beat and i felt it slowly come to a stop and that's when i heard my uncle start up his truck,he was at his house about 500 yards away he is also a deer hunter but anyway my cousin rode half way with my uncle and heard me yell "yeah my first 8 pointer" so he jumped out of the truck at the gate and came sprinting when he got there i was holding the rack up and he and my uncle congratulated me so we took it to are pond and i got to do the "dirty work" in other words field dressing.

After i finished and told everyone at my grandmothers house and then i put my deer in the back of the truck and took it to the processor and the next day of school was the best part getting to brag about my first 8 pointer so this is my story about my kill and i hope you enjoyed it and i am very proud of it even if its smaller than your trophy.

How to Score Your Whitetail

Boone and Crockett Club

Typical minimum score =170

Non-Typical minimum score=195

Pope and Young Club

Typical minimum score=125

Non-Typical minimum score=155

NOTE: Typical and Non-Typical are measured exactly the same way except Typical you subtract for abnormal points and Non-Typical you add abnormal points. These score sheets are not exactly like Boone and Crockett but they will give you the correct B&C score.

Line A = Points per antler, left and right.

Line B=Tip to Tip spread.

Line C = Greatest spread.

These 3 lines do not add into score.

You can find more detailed information and official scoring sheets at

1) The inside spread is taken perpendicular to the axis of the head at the widest point between the main beams. Credit for this measurement cannot exceed the length of the longest main beam. If the spread is greater than the longest main beam then only the length of the longest main beam can be entered toward the spread credit. Place this measurement in line D, column 1. If the spread was greater than the longest main beam, place the difference in line D, column 4.

2) Take the length of all irregular points that measure one inch or greater. This is measured from the end of the point along the outer edge to where it intersects the main beam or where it comes off of another point. The total of all points place in line E, column 4 for typical and line E, column 1 for Non-Typical.

3) Measure the outside length of each main beam. Enter measurements on line F, columns 2&3. Enter the difference on line F, column 4.

4) Take the length of each regular point and its corresponding on the other main beam enter measurements on line G, columns 2&3. Enter the difference on line G, column 4. Repeat measurements for each regular point and enter in the appropriate space.

5) Take the circumference of the antler at the smallest point between the burr and the first point. Enter measurements on line H, column 2&3. Enter the difference on line H, Column 4. Repeat measurements for each circumference and enter appropriate space. If the fourth point is not present, take the measurement half way between the third point and the end of the main beam. Regardless of the number of points per main beam, only four circumference measurements may be entered per main beam.

6) Typical : Add the totals from columns 1,2,3. and subtract the penalty in column 4. Non-Typical : Add the totals from columns 1,2,3. and subtract the penalty in column 4.

Arrow hits

After waiting about one half hour, quietly proceed along the flight path toward the spot of disappearance. Scan the forest floor for the arrow. The shaft will tell you volumes about your hit, if indeed you did hit the animal. It's not unusual for an archer to be positive he hit the deer, but then find a clean arrow. This not only tells you the deer isn't wounded, but it will also save you lots of frustration looking for a deer that wasn't hurt.

The blood on the arrow shaft will also reveal valuable information about the hit. Bright red frothy blood indicates a deadly lung hit. Rich red blood means the liver was hit, also mortal. Dark red blood with seeds and vegetative matter in it indicates a paunch hit, and the archer should wait another few hours to allow the deer to further weaken.

If the blood trail is lost, study the line of flight that the blood trail indicates, then survey the cover ahead and walk over to the densest stand of brush or trees. More often than not, you'll find your deer lying dead just inside the cover. If not, begin making zig zag sweeps through the cover until the deer is found.

Huge Whitetail Trophy Management

Whitetail Buck/Doe Ratio:

A buck to Doe ratio of 1:1,1:2 and even 1:3 is exceptible. If you find that the deer herd in your area is over 1:5 then you will also find that there is heavy hunting pressure on bucks and that most bucks are under the age of three.

Whitetail Deer Genetics:

A trophy in one area may not be a trophy in another. I prefer B&C score as a guide to the quality animals you want in the herd. But point limits and spread limits which must be met to harvest a buck maybe easier for the hunter that doesn't know how to field judge a buck to B&C guidelines.

So you must choose which system you will use. EXAMPLE: 8 point and greater than 16" inside spread. EXAMPLE: 130 B&C. And if you could bare it do not harvest any rack bucks for 2 years if you are over populated with does. This will cause the Buck to Doe ratio to fall more in line and create more rutting activity just like we discussed earlier. Guess who breeds the does. That's right the stronger, more mature bucks.

Whitetail Deer Nutrition:

The organic makeup of antlers during the growing stage is almost entirely protein. Even after mineralization (hardening) is complete, a good portion of protein remains in these antlers. To grow the best set of antlers that his genetics and age will allow, a deer needs food containing at least 16% to 18% "digestible" crude protein. (Not all proteins are digestible to a deer.) The most important factor in growing trophy antlers is to provide the buck with nutrient rich food during the growth period from April through October.

Calcium is another element needed by deer during and after the antler growth period. Although a deer can borrow calcium from bones in other parts of his body and utilize it for antler growth, he still needs foods that contain a minimum of 0.45% calcium.

Phosphorus is also needed for antler growth. Although dietary phosphorus requirements are not completely known, it is believed that the lowest level a deer needs for adequate antler growth and other body functions is 0.30%.

Most people that know anything at all about managing whitetail's will tell you there are four important factors in managing a deer herd for trophy animals. They are: Age, Nutrition, Buck/Doe Ratio, and Genetics and northern locations, generally the further you go north the larger the deer therefore the larger the antlers.

The climate is harsher thus making the deer adapt. Deer must have more body fat to survive. During the antler growing season bucks are eating and storing fat for the winter to come. This also helps antler development.

Whitetail Bucks:

A buck does not reach his potential until age of three. During his first three years body development takes priority over antler growth. Three to five years of age is a bucks prime.

Generally a buck will start to decline after that. Some bucks on up until seven will still have antlers fairly close to the size of there antlers at age five. Depending on nutrition, availability, and competition for food. Bucks need to live to be at least three years of age and I prefer Five years for quality antlers.

Whitetail Does:

A doe should be harvested for several reasons to maintain the buck to doe ratio is the obvious one. But which does do you harvest. Harvest the old does that are past there best fawn bearing years. Leaving the mature 3 to 5 year does for breeding. Also harvest wounded does and ones that don't appear to be healthy.

Vitamin D is important in promoting calcium absorption and mineralization of bone. A deer gets all the Vitamin D he needs by absorbing ultraviolet light through its skin and eating vegetation that has been in direct sunlight.

Vitamin A is important to antler development once the bone hardening begins. Caroteens in "green" leaves can be converted to Vitamin A. Green leaves can become scarce during the winter months, but remain an important part of the deer's diet.

What is a Whitetail deer?

The White-Tailed Deer is a long-legged, fast-moving mammal. This deer is found over most of North and Central America and northern parts of South America. It lives in deciduous forests, conifer forests, rain forests, grasslands, farm land, marshes, and even deserts. It has a life span of about 9 to 12 years.

Anatomy: White-Tailed Deer are about 3 to 3 1/2 feet tall at shoulder. Bucks (males) weight up to 400 pounds (180 kg), does (females) weigh up to 200 pounds (90 kg). Fawns (babies) are usually born in May or June. Only bucks have antlers, which are branched; the antlers are shed each year, and later regrow.

Behavior: Deer are shy herbivores (plant-eaters) who spend most of the day eating leaves, grass, bark, acorns, and other plant material. Does often travel in small herds with their fawns.

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