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Post by smallchunk on Jun 28, 2018 15:41:38 GMT -6
Alright, we talk about it all the time. How old is he?!? I shot a bow buck this last fall that made me happy, even though he scored under 115”. As he was coming in, I know he could grow bigger next year, but I have just not shot enough to want to pass something like him. To this day, I am happy I let one go on him. I heard from a lot of people that he was a 2.5 and he could have been a good one in a couple of years. I was thinking he was 3.5 due to the decent mass he had. I decided to send in the teeth to see. No idea how accurate of a place it is, but I got my results back. They say 4.5. I’m kind of mind f***’d right now?! Can these places get it wrong? I was definitely not thinking that he was that mature. Once I do some digging, I’ll post up some pics of him. Art, I know you sent in some teeth too. Did you send to the same place?
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Post by smallchunk on Jun 28, 2018 15:43:00 GMT -6
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Post by Catscratch on Jun 28, 2018 16:09:38 GMT -6
I shoot deer. Their age doesn't matter to me. Sometimes I have a long term history and kind of know a bucks age... but antlers and situation are what matters to me. And to answer your question; I think they certainly can get it wrong.
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Post by smallchunk on Jun 28, 2018 16:19:15 GMT -6
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Post by kl9 on Jun 28, 2018 18:03:29 GMT -6
Looks 3.5 all day long to me. Yes they can be wrong. Was the aging source local?
Edit: looks like MT. Doesn’t mean they’re wrong, but they could be.
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Post by kl9 on Jun 28, 2018 18:07:41 GMT -6
Congrats on the nice buck btw
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Post by Freeborn on Jun 28, 2018 18:52:16 GMT -6
I would also say 3.5 years old. I don't see the mass I would see in a 4.5 year old.
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Post by Sandbur on Jun 28, 2018 19:44:03 GMT -6
Alright, we talk about it all the time. How old is he?!? I shot a bow buck this last fall that made me happy, even though he scored under 115”. As he was coming in, I know he could grow bigger next year, but I have just not shot enough to want to pass something like him. To this day, I am happy I let one go on him. I heard from a lot of people that he was a 2.5 and he could have been a good one in a couple of years. I was thinking he was 3.5 due to the decent mass he had. I decided to send in the teeth to see. No idea how accurate of a place it is, but I got my results back. They say 4.5. I’m kind of mind f***’d right now?! Can these places get it wrong? I was definitely not thinking that he was that mature. Once I do some digging, I’ll post up some pics of him. Art, I know you sent in some teeth too. Did you send to the same place? We sent to the Texas lab which sold out about Jan 1 to the Montana lab. I guess the Texas lab has been forwarding samples to Montana for a few years. I suspect they can be wrong, but they say growth rings are quite evident in our climates. I accept 4.5 and he looks similar to a 4.5 of my daughters. Did you weigh him? Nice deer. I am not sure of location where you shot him, but woods deer are about one year behind farm deer on Antler growth in central MN. If you are happy with him, shoot him and don’t worry about what others say.
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Post by Catscratch on Jun 28, 2018 19:55:37 GMT -6
Great buck by the way. And just to show that I suck at this I would have guessed all day long that that deer wasn't over 2.5yrs old.
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Post by Sandbur on Jun 29, 2018 6:40:19 GMT -6
Great buck by the way. And just to show that I suck at this I would have guessed all day long that that deer wasn't over 2.5yrs old. I think the guess of yours is based on Antler growth in your environment. Different in some places in the northland. My guess would have been 3.5. I know several cases where there are two brothers in their fifties and sixties. One is six four and the other is five six or seven. You never know. Might even be fence jumpers involved.
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Post by Sandbur on Jun 29, 2018 6:48:56 GMT -6
Great buck by the way. And just to show that I suck at this I would have guessed all day long that that deer wasn't over 2.5yrs old. Question for small chunk and cat. In your area, are most yearling bucks spikes or small baskets? Add or subtract one year based on that and you will tend to be correct. I hunt one area of each case for yearlings. As numbers have increased where I live and the late spring, this might be a year of spike yearlings instead of baskets. However we have a tremendous amount of feed once crops are in and still considerable alfalfa besides.
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Post by Catscratch on Jun 29, 2018 6:54:45 GMT -6
Great buck by the way. And just to show that I suck at this I would have guessed all day long that that deer wasn't over 2.5yrs old. I think the guess of yours is based on Antler growth in your environment. Different in some places in the northland. My guess would have been 3.5. I know several cases where there are two brothers in their fifties and sixties. One is six four and the other is five six or seven. You never know. Might even be fence jumpers involved. No scares, ears aren't ripped up, back doesn't sway down, belly is flat and not hanging down, face isn't short/blocky and gray. I just see a younger deer, but you are 100% right that I'm comparing him to what I'm use to. And I find the argument "he would have been good in a few yrs" a bunch of BS. I never see them again in a few yrs! I pass deer all the time that I probably should shoot but find them borderline for what I want. I hope to see them again in a yr or two but it seldom works. If he gets your heart beating shoot the damn deer and be proud of it.
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Post by Catscratch on Jun 29, 2018 6:57:02 GMT -6
Great buck by the way. And just to show that I suck at this I would have guessed all day long that that deer wasn't over 2.5yrs old. Question for small chunk and cat. In your area, are most yearling bucks spikes or small baskets? Add or subtract one year based on that and you will tend to be correct. I hunt one area of each case for yearlings. As numbers have increased where I live and the late spring, this might be a year of spike yearlings instead of baskets. However we have a tremendous amount of feed once crops are in and still considerable alfalfa besides. I actually think most yearlings in my area are spikes or 3 pointers. I don't really see a lot of baskets. They seem to jump from spikes to 110 class deer between 1.5-2.5yrs old.
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Post by terrifictom on Jun 29, 2018 7:16:10 GMT -6
I would say they got the age right. The live pics are from early September. He would have looked different in mid to late October with swelled neck. I think more guys under estimate deer age. Not all bucks are going to be booners when they reach maturity.
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Post by MN Slick on Jun 29, 2018 7:21:59 GMT -6
Nice buck! I've been able to follow a number of deer as they age and many simply don't have the goods to be high scoring. I think your buck was a minimum of 3.5 and could very easily be 4.5. Too big a body for 2.5 and too much mass. Based on him having 8 points, fairly standard tines and already showing mass I'd say he probably wouldn't have got much bigger in the future. The spindly long tined 3.5 year olds are the ones that seem to have the best chance to go big from my experience. I've sent quite a few teeth in and have been surprised at some of the ages that come back. Mostly I thought the bucks were older than they were aged at. I wish it was more accurate but it's inexact for sure. Check this article out. wiredtohunt.com/2017/07/13/the-big-fat-cementum-aging-tooth-test-how-accurate-is-it-really/
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