Hello everybody, my cousin shot this "Mutant" deer as we label him this weekend. We have seen him around the last 2 years and saved him for my 15 year old cousin to shoot. As you can see he has very unique antlers. We discovered when fielded dressing him that the deer did not have any testicles! Must be the reason for his deformity. He appeared to be about 2.5-3.5 years old and weighed 130 lbs live.

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"Cactus" or "Stag" deer. Definitely rare, but maybe the 3rd one that I've seen on this forum this year.

pretty sure i had one like that last year out at one place.... wierd stuff

Global Warming...just ask Al Gore..

Very cool, funky bases. Those are rare in most places. In Llano, we see a lot of them though. In 5 years we've killed 6 I think. We've also seen at least that many more.

This might be a stupid question. You said it had no testicles but did it have the other male part or was it a doe.

"Cactus Buck".....I killed one kind of like it about 12 years ago. Don't see too many like that.

that is a weird looking fella

Yep, my Nephew took one similar to this in Llano over Thanksgiving. Had testicles, but they were WAY under-developed.

oh yea that's unique for sure. where was it taken?

Pretty cool stag.

I read an article on that subject once. I forgot what it's called. It happens to the horns because of the testicles.

Look more like warts than antlers.

Would that be tagged as a buck or a doe?

Buck.

And to answer the other guys question, yes, they do have a pecker.

Acid rain

Outside of Gorman, TX

Usually what is more the case, if the testicles are for some reason not developed they will stay in the velvet with their first set of horns and so on down through the deers life. Sometimes they loose their testicles in fences or in a fight. I have killed several with no testicles and wrote TP&WD about them.

As an antlered deer.
From the TPWD hunting regs.
Notice: It is unlawful to possess a deer or pronghorn antelope with proof of sex removed unless the deer or antelope is at a final destination and has been quartered. Proof of sex for deer is:
•
the head (skinned or unskinned) of a buck deer with antlers attached;
•
the head (skinned or unskinned) of an antlerless deer;

I found it. It's called Testicular Atrophy. What causes it? Who knows. Studies have been done on Mule Deer and Whitetail alike. What happens is, when the Deers testicles don't drop, or, are underdeveloped or injured, the Antlers are effected. Usually, these Deer will never shed their Antlers. That's why when you see this in older Bucks their Antlers are Huge. They never stop growing, and becuase of lack of reprducing hormones, they don't shed / cast their Antlers, and spend their entire lives in velvet.

Let me guess. Llano or Mason county. We used to kill 1 or 2 a year in velvet and no testicles, but I never saw one quite like that.

We killed three last weekend(mason, castell), was going to kill more but ran out of time. i'll post pictures as soon as I can get them up loaded.

The one I killed was like that one but 5 inches taller. We got a cool one that 12 pts including the 4 inch drop : )

You could have tag it as a doe sex does not matter its all horns!!!!!! TPW states if it has one inch or more harden horn precluding the skin then its a buck. But in the photo it was still in velvet there fore no harden horn precluding the skin so its a doe.

Three GW's have told me Buck tag.... I kill at least one a year... Use a buck tag!!!

I think they are caused by black panthers nibbling at their antlers