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Offline Lawful Larry

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Dropped Antlers???
« on: December 19, 2005, 02:45:21 AM »
I was dropping off my deer for meat processing and saw something that was unusual.  A hunter brought in a buck that had dropped his antlers.  

At first I thought it was a doe.  He said that the buck had been wounded, he thought, during muzzle season in the right shoulder.  The wound was mending, but it was still ugly.  He said that some thought that the wound may have traumatized the deer so much that it dropped it's rack early.  I had never been so close to a buck that had dropped his rack.  You could see that the antlers were dropped off and not shot off.

Has anyone else heard of a buck dropping their rack early?
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Offline Redhawk1

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Dropped Antlers???
« Reply #1 on: December 19, 2005, 02:52:15 AM »
They can drop from late December on. It is not as common in December as to later on. When the bucks testosterone levels drop after rut, that is when they drop there antlers. Now remember even in December the late season doe's come into heat. But the wound may have been part of it??
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Offline Questor

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Dropped Antlers???
« Reply #2 on: December 19, 2005, 02:58:28 AM »
I've found freshly shed antlers on Christmas day in Minnesota.
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Offline John

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Dropped Antlers???
« Reply #3 on: December 19, 2005, 05:06:53 AM »
Yep, like the others have said, it's not too early. My brother found a shed yesterday right here on my place in NE Oklahoma.
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Offline Catman2

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Dropped Antlers???
« Reply #4 on: December 19, 2005, 06:12:46 PM »
Another thing to think about is infection at the base of the antlers.  Bucks can develop an infection at the base of the antlers from cuts caused by fighting and rubbing their antlers.  I know from personal experience.  I shot a nontypical 9 point (22" and 24" main beams and only a 9" spread)  several years ago and was in the process of dragging him to truck when his left antler came off in my hand.  He had developed pus pockets at the base of that antler and this had weaken the bone.  My taxidermist said he has seen this several times in the past.  So be careful when handling that trophy buck...try not to use his antlers to handle him.  Good luck hunting!
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Offline bunsen

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Dropped Antlers???
« Reply #5 on: December 20, 2005, 03:49:14 AM »
Three years ago during our muzzleloader season I shot a nice 10 pointer.  When hit he stumbled/lunged over a hill out of sight. He made it about 30 yds.  I was totally stunned when I found what appeared to be a head shot doe.  :shock:   No antlers, just two round red spots on the head. A fellow hunter got me calmed down, this was the largest buck I have ever fired at, and NO rack. We found both antlers where the blood trail went between two small trees, he fit through but his rack didn't. No problem said the taxidermist, and he was right. If the antlers come off when dragging him out, don't worry, they go back on.  :-D
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Offline mstake

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Dropped Antlers???
« Reply #6 on: December 21, 2005, 01:54:36 AM »
Yeah i harvested a buck around 8 years ago in northern Va that had already lost his horn. I shot him 2 days before christmas. I thought it was a doe till i field dressed him. It was nothing big, i am guessing a spike or fork horn. the blood spots was about the size of nickels. My father shot at a nice 8 or 10 last year and missed. the buck ran about 150 yrds and stopped. When we glassed him he only had one antler. I wanted to go find the other horn but we were hunting close to posted land that i didn't have permission to go on. That was the week after christmas.
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Offline jro45

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Dropped Antlers???
« Reply #7 on: December 21, 2005, 02:30:45 AM »
Some bucks drop them early others drop them late. Thats the way deer are. :D
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Offline Mikey

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Dropped Antlers???
« Reply #8 on: December 21, 2005, 03:22:24 AM »
I owe the biggest mouthful of cowpocky I've ever had to an 8 pointer whose left antler broke off at the base when I was dragging him out.  I didn't see any pus pockets, just a clean break at the base.  I understand that antlers are akin to warts on whitetail but I could be wrong.  Many of my antlers are ones I have found after the season is over.  However, I also find that in some areas the bucks may keep their antlers right through the winter unless they begin to bother them too much.  Mikey.
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Offline slave

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Dropped Antlers???
« Reply #9 on: January 14, 2006, 04:46:36 AM »
See it often in Ohio. We run a late ML season. You see some with only one side droped as well.
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Offline Leatherstocking

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Dropped Antlers???
« Reply #10 on: January 15, 2006, 04:18:26 AM »
I had a strange experience a few years ago (in early December in the Hudson Valley region of NY). A buck walked up to within about 20 yards. Clearly a buck - had a decent  antler on one side with 3 points and a broken stub on the other. Today I would not have shot this deer but back then I was not as selective. Anyway, I shot it. It ran about 75 yards and dropped. When I walked over to it I saw no antlers. Didn't freak out too much because I had a doe permit. But still, I really started questioning my sanity!! Turns out it had the small stub, but the other antler was gone - fell off on it's last run. I finally found it a few yards before he dropped. Then, when I dragged him, the other antler fell off in my hand. Deer seemd OK otherwise.  

By the way - this is my first post on this site. Seems like a great site!! Looking forward to spending more time here.
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Offline Mikey

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Dropped Antlers???
« Reply #11 on: January 15, 2006, 08:15:59 AM »
Leatherstocking - Welcome aboard.  Hope to hear more from you.  Mikey.
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Offline Lawful Larry

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Dropped Antlers???
« Reply #12 on: January 17, 2006, 07:05:35 AM »
Quote from: Leatherstocking
By the way - this is my first post on this site. Seems like a great site!! Looking forward to spending more time here.


Welcome to our site and don't be a stranger.  There is a wealth of info from some great people here.   :wink:
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Offline Leatherstocking

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Dropped Antlers???
« Reply #13 on: January 18, 2006, 03:37:24 PM »
Mikey/Larry,

Thanks. I can't believe the variety of topics covered here. A guy at work always talks about the site, so I finally checked it out.
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Offline BirdHunter94

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Re: Dropped Antlers???
« Reply #14 on: December 29, 2008, 02:31:28 PM »
I remember you telling me about that, LeatherStocking   :)  ----->I had a strange experience a few years ago (in early December in the Hudson Valley region of NY). A buck walked up to within about 20 yards. Clearly a buck - had a decent  antler on one side with 3 points and a broken stub on the other. Today I would not have shot this deer but back then I was not as selective. Anyway, I shot it. It ran about 75 yards and dropped. When I walked over to it I saw no antlers. Didn't freak out too much because I had a doe permit. But still, I really started questioning my sanity!! Turns out it had the small stub, but the other antler was gone - fell off on it's last run. I finally found it a few yards before he dropped. Then, when I dragged him, the other antler fell off in my hand. Deer seemd OK otherwise. 
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Offline rockbilly

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Re: Dropped Antlers???
« Reply #15 on: December 29, 2008, 04:56:47 PM »
I have knbow of them dropping their horn early, but often there is a reason for it, diet, lack of minerals, infection, etc.

We are experiencing a rather unsusal problem here in my are of Texas this year.  Deer are breakling their horns off or breaking off tines.  I have spotted several deer with only one anthler.  This seems to be a problem area wide.  The deer taken in for processing have been checked out and seem to be healthy.  It not unsusal to see one or two with broken horns, but one processor said 99% of those processed through his facility had broken horns, another said the number is very large but did not say exactly how many had broken horns.

It has been a weird season here.............
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Offline S.B.

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Re: Dropped Antlers???
« Reply #16 on: December 30, 2008, 01:38:41 AM »
In Illinois, a state biologist told me that whitetail begin dropping their antlers as soon as rut is over? I suppose other causes could occur.
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