Buck#1
This buck was shot over the weekend near Fredericksburg. The guy who shot him said the Taxidermist aged him 6.5 to 7.5, guys on the lease didn’t believe he was that old.

What are y’all’s thoughts on age?


Buck #2
East Texas buck.this buck was not shot over the weekend. I had this deer in bow range for about 30-45 minutes Saturday morning. I believed him to be a 3yr old 8 point. After checking my game cam pics he appears to be more mature than the deer I thought he was. Am I correct in judging him as a mature deer, or is it how he is posing in this picture? I’m guessing 4.5. I probably would not shoot this buck so early in the season since there is a 150ish inch 11 point I’ve had on camera for 3 years at the same stand location.

To me, #2 looks older than #1.

#1 is 5-6, #2 is 4.5-5.5

Lots of grey and bone showing on #1, I'm going to revise up, 6-7.

7 or older on the first buck. Most of the Hill Country deer do not look as old as they really are. Their diet is limited due to the habitat, so they go thru swings in nutrition most of their lives. If they do not have mast crops or a lot of rain they are going to look younger than their age. Right now majority of the deer are not in great shape going into the late fall. Recent rains are going to help.
Second buck is 4 yr old to me, more pics and might go to 5. For me, 1 to 2 yr old are young bucks, 3-4 yr old bucks are middle-age, 5-6 yr old bucks are mature and 7+ are post mature. The stained and round tarsal gland is what I go by first on bucks then body shape and size.

I'm going with 5 yr old on the Hill Country buck and 4 on the East Texas buck.

But I'd like to see the tooth wear on the Hill Country buck.

6.5+ on 1st one
4.5 or 5.5 on 2nd one