Question about deer growth

I was wondering, do deer grow much between ages 5.5 and 6.5? Or is the majority of the growing done before that up until say 4.5? I had a buck on cam last year that didn’t do much from ages 5.5 to 6.5, so I was wondering if this is the case most often, or if it just depends on the deer. Thanks.

Body/skeleton wise they usually are done growing at 4, they will add weight every year till 6-7 yrs of age. Antler wise there are a ton of variables. Some deer jump from 3 to 4, some from 4 to 5, some from 5 to 6 and some from 6 to 7. Some even getter better up till 9 yrs or so. What factors in are genetics, nutrition, rainfall the year the buck was born, rainfall this antler growth year, age structure of the herd, rutting by age class, buck to doe ratio, injury during the rut, etc...to many factors to say why bucks do what they do from year to year. With the right genetics and nutrition bucks will gain antler growth every year. Those size of those yearly gains are again limited to genetics and nutrition. Many bucks will average around 5%-6% each year after age 2 or 3. Wet years with rainfall in all the key months from late rut to post rut into the spring then summer can have a huge effect in one year on antler growth. Seen bucks jump 20%-30% at mature ages.

Personally seen a buck gain almost thirty inches between 5 & 6. Seen the same between 6 & 7. Biggest I have ever heard evidence on is about 50. A lot has to come together to provide for these increases.

Ask Steve.

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Great post stxrm!

There is also some evidence/research that shows a mama living in chronic drought conditions where food is scarce will drop bucks that will have to take years before the genotype can start expressing phenotypically, even if given ample current food sources. It could even be several generations. So there are a lot of factors that go into body phenotype and antler phenotype expression that may have nothing at all to do with the actual animal and current conditions but simply the genetics (which this falls under the global "genetics" as STX said) being turned on and off that can be generational type changes. When you start looking at phenotypic expression of genotypes, it gets really messy.

Maternal condition has been well studied in Mule deer also

Easy google search for some great research papers “maternal condition in Mule deer”

Heck I saw a spike do 50 from 1-2






STX

I hunt low fence with native genetics. We have strong age classes of older bucks. A lot of the five year olds run themselves way down in the rut. I’ve seen a lot of those same mature and badly rutted down bucks with above average head gear have an off year antler wise the following year at six only to bounce back at 7 with their best antlers to date. Have also watched a buck that made gains every year till he was killed at age 9. Most of our bucks that end up eventually getting big make the biggest jump at 4. Prior to that we can often not identify the deer that will blossom.

Edit to add full disclosure: we also let a lot of bucks walk well past their prime being overly optimistic.

I am confused. Growing body weight or antler?

Smokey, great post. A lot of other really good post too but as much as I respect Smokeys knowledge, it doesn’t seem he goes all in(often enough) on topics like this.
As far letting them go past prime, how do we ever know anything till we push the perceived limit. Go too far and then come back and adjust.
Question Smokey-would the 6s not get run down also and hurt growth at 7, or are you assuming rutting isn’t as active after 5?

Nothing is absolute but it appears where I hunt, with our herd dynamics that age 5 is an age when a good many of our bucks are finally physical enough to compete and confident enough to broadly expand their ranges during the rut and run themselves ragged going girl crazy. As they continue to age they seem to learn to settle into areas they can dominate well enough to satisfy their instinct to mate without as much need to travel. They also seem to learn to identify and spend more of their time with does they are more likely to score with as opposed to wasting energy harassing them all nonstop. I think that plays heavily into the fact that there are short windows where those nocturnal bucks are seen in daylight and then disappear.

In South Texas, a lot 4 yr old bucks get really run down the worst in herds with great age structure. The 5 and 6 yr old bucks have set territories for the rut and defend them. 4 yr olds get pushed around and move trying to find their spot, they fight way more than most of the other age class it seems. The highest death losses/rut mortalities on some ranches will be in the 4 yr old age class. Many of them are pushed off of a ranch and get killed on neighboring properties. It is well known fact that most ranches in South Texas do not take their best bucks until age 7. That is the age when most are not rutting as hard and grow their best antlers. Little Roy Hindes told me once that any of their top 6 yr olds that went downhill at 7, they would then let go till 8. At 8 they bounced back and had their best antler growth year. On a larger ranch I managed in the Hill Country our best bucks were at 7(all native genetics to that ranch). The genetics on that ranch was slow to develop for some reason. Many bucks were mediocre/average hill country bucks at 4 or 5 would then be their best at 7 or 8. We tried to let our better bucks go till 7 to take them. The largest jump I was able to see on a buck was from 3 to 4 on that ranch. As a 3 yr old I was able to find one shed and he would have been around upper 150's as a 4x5 with one mule deer fork and kicker making him an 11pt. The next year he was a 5x5 with matching mule deer forks and I think he was easily in the low to mid 180's. They let him go to 7 and he dropped down from around 200 to 193 gross. 100% native Hill Country genetics. Most of the bucks went up about 5%-6% per year after age 2. A few bucks would do 10% from one year to the next.

Yeah, when he scored 45 then jumped to 95 at two, you should have still killed him.

Thanks Smokey.
We have a 150ish buck we think is 5. He’s the most visible buck we have out of many 4s and up older than 5. He never stops, even after the rut. He’s a good looker too, so if he grows next year and doesn’t slow down we may not ever know what 7 would look like.

I know it almost sounds counter-intuitive, but we are seeing tis "rebound" effect also. Now that most of us on the place have taken nice trophies, it is easier to have patience and allow deer to get old. Somes never get nowheres and end up being mistakes which never should have been allowed. That's the tough part. Somes mature into special animals. Somes come from nowhere and end up the wall - like the double drop I shot this year. Sunofagun was old (at least 7 1/2), but no one knows which deer he was before this season

Getting where when I see a potential trophy for the first time, I am now realizing it might take two or three more seasons for him to reach full potential. Next year is not the way I see it any more.

Wait so I was right on the age.... Who know


I agree with you on the 2-3, but that's on heavy long term feed programs like yours

A blind hog and acorns comes to mind.

Well I'm pretty chubby right now, so it's becoming less of an anomaly, and more of core occurrence

I think I was just wishing . . . .

I get it but still cool deer.

Good comment about a long term heavy feed program making a difference in this year to year horn growth discussion.
I think most would agree a well fed health buck will have a better chance of peak antlers at older ages.

And often times the teeth of those deer on a long term heavy feed program will not indicate their true age.

I agree with that but I’ve about decided I don’t trust aging by tooth wear, or lab or any aging method. I rely more on history with the deer and just observing. To consistently get even within one year on any method is optimistic, IMO. No one ever knows for sure but it doesn’t keep us from trying(hard). But I really don’t want this thread to shoot off onto that.

After mature it's always been a toss of dice, especially past 6.5. I personally don't think you can feed enough to effect teeth At whole herd level. Deer forage to much. With that said I think upper age deer tend to consume more due to teeth condition.

This forum offers its members a long term heavy feed program. This thread and many others offers plenty to chew on and digest(or attempt). Kind of like deer, as youngsters we don’t know what we don’t know so we blindly flounder around, then we full grown and think we know it all and bounce around showing all, then the olds actually know that they don’t know and concentrate on what they do know and how to know more. Kinda…..
And so ends the session/sermon for today.

other than the animals actual structure its to much of a toss up... stress through each year of the animals life can affect a huge amount more than most give credit. IMO a buck has a very large range to what his capability is on antler growth every year... even a buck with a not so great makeup can blow up in his own right just from having low stressed year like mild weather or not competing as much for food/does and especially not having to go through rough weather stretch post rut... on the other hand you can have a deer thats been showing huge potential have a bad post rut or maybe just had to move a little more for food etc that just seems like he does nothing the next year but then pop right back up the year after that like hes a completely different deer