Is age the ticket?

[WTNUT]

I'm really enjoying reading everyone's views and philosophies on this.
I'm going to throw this question out to you guys; This buck walks under you. It's the first time you've seen him and you have no data or trailcam pics of him (even though you do run cameras, he appears to be a random rut buck on the roam). You don't know his age.... do you draw your bow or let him walk? (I guess the way I presented this it's mainly for the guys who hunt old bucks, but anyone can give imput.)

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It is hard to tell from that pic. However, that body in that pic is what our 5.5 year olds look like. I don’t know where that buck is or what a 5.5 year old looks like in that area. But, for us that buck would be a shooter. Again, we shoot based on age not antler score.

That having been said, one photo can fool a person but that looks like a really nice buck no matter where he is!


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[Bowsnbucks]

Cat - As to your pic and ? at post #49 - If I saw that buck under my tree, he'd be in trouble. I realize that a bunch of guys in the mid-west with better soil, ag, genetics (?), etc. would probably not shoot this buck. But in the mountains of Pa. - this guy is a shooter every time. A couple years ago, my one son shot a buck very much like your pic, with slightly shorter tines, but a wider rack. That buck was most likely one of the 3 best bucks in the surrounding 5 miles of mountains. The body and neck were massive & I put his age at 3.5 minimum, and probably 4.5. That's about as good as it gets in the mountains here, with a few, rare outlier exceptions. 125" to 130" for a mountain buck is a wall mount every time. ( And I should point out that for 40+ years an 80" buck in these mountains was the big time. AR changed the age structure, if nothing else. ) Private camp acreage these days has most planting food plots, but public land has a miniscule amount of food plots planted by the Pa. Game Commission.

Other parts of Pa. get bigger bucks due to private land, more ag., less pressure from numbers of hunters. S.E. and S.W. Pa. are noted for bigger bucks. The most obvious difference between those 2 areas and the mountains is LOTS more ag. Percentage-wise, the biggest number of big racks come from these 2 corners of Pa. ( I'm only referring to larger-racked bucks, not necessarily older bucks. A 4.5 yr. buck in Pa. is an OLD buck. Most that are shot are 1.5 and 2.5 yrs. old. 99% of guys here don't "age" a buck before shooting. If it has 3 pts. on a side, he's gonna see lead. )

 

[Catscratch]

Same deer different pic. Old or not? Shoot without knowing?

For comparisons. This guy was running around the yard yesterday. He has decent antlers but appear young to me (and acts young). This brings me back to my original question. If I had better nutrition could this young and dumb deer have big enough antlers to be a shooter regardless of age?

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[Catscratch]

Catscratch:

I tried my best two years ago and blew it. I mis judged the distance and hit slightly low. I think the reason he wasn’t mortally wounded was the fact that he took a step as my arrow reached its destination hitting him right in the leg joint and most likely deflecting the arrow.

this picture is days before I hit him

this is him last year

and this is him this year (harvested by my cousin the day before our gun opener)

I estimate him at 176” when I hit him and as you can see after the injury he has gone down a lot. I am going to boil the leg bone and dissect it to see if the blade that broke off my broad head is in there. The leg bone was twice the thickness as the other side and the joint was fused together leaving the leg as nothing more than a kick stand.


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I got to say that is an amazing deer! I love everything about him from the drop tine, the way the one beam curves down, and the mass.

 

[S.T.Fanatic]

I liked him a lot more two years ago but it's a much better story now and his first deer with a bow to boot!!!!

 

[Catscratch]

I liked him a lot more two years ago but it's a much better story now and his first deer with a bow to boot!!!!

He was huge 2 years ago, but what a unique rack the way he ended up!