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Permanently damaged antler on deer...what to do?
#5958269
10/03/15 12:52 AM
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Joined: Sep 2014
Posts: 94
Microsktr
OP
Outdoorsman
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OP
Outdoorsman
Joined: Sep 2014
Posts: 94 |
Hello everyone, Once again, I'm thrilled to be on the eve of yet another deer season...got the crossbow warmed up and I'm itching to go. However, a visitor came calling the other day with a disappointment. Last season I saw a 1.5 year old buck that had his right antler missing. His left one was intact (had about 3 points or so), but not fantastic in terms of quality. I chalked up the missing antler as due to injury, and he got to walk. The other day, he showed back up for this season...he has 4 points now on his intact antler (again, the intact antler is not great, just so-so), but it's plain to see that the pedicle on his missing antler side is permanently damaged. There's just a brown spot where his antler should be...not even a nub of an antler. He's a 2.5 year old deer now, and I seriously think he will never recover from it. However, I'm in a quandary now...I would really like for my teenage son to go ahead and harvest this buck, but have no idea if this buck can even be classified as legal, since I'm in an antler restriction county. Can anyone help me with regulation interpretation for an Antler Restriction county when faced with an antler profile like this? Appreciate any words of wisdom you can provide.
AF(Retired)/DV; busted mine to save yours then...bustin' Bambi to save the American hunting dream now!
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Re: Permanently damaged antler on deer...what to do?
[Re: Microsktr]
#5958315
10/03/15 01:22 AM
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Joined: Aug 2010
Posts: 60,296
stxranchman
Obie Juan Kenobi
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Obie Juan Kenobi
Joined: Aug 2010
Posts: 60,296 |
If the one side looks good for his age then I would not be worried about him at this age. That damaged antler is not genetic. His offspring will not look the same as he does.
Are idiots multiplying faster than normal people?
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Re: Permanently damaged antler on deer...what to do?
[Re: Microsktr]
#5959042
10/03/15 06:01 PM
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Joined: Aug 2004
Posts: 6,170
Jimbo
THF Trophy Hunter
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THF Trophy Hunter
Joined: Aug 2004
Posts: 6,170 |
Unfortunately that buck has a forked antler so it is not legal to shoot. In order for a buck to be legal in an AR county the deer must have either a 13" inside spread or it can be a spike with at least one main beam that is slick. In your case there is not a beam on the other side and the one good antler is branched, so the law doesn't allow for the injured antler. You might ask a Game Warden to get it straight from the horses mouth so to speak, but until you do it would be best to let that deer walk until you do.
Thursday at 12:45 PM #33 Once i learned that i didn't "NEED" to kill something, and that if i did kill something all the fun stopped and work began, i was a much better hunter.
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