Wow that's the smallest fawn I've ever seen this time of year. Mom looks Mature and healthy. Is there a third rut? Wonder when the little fellar was born, July? Our deer usually loose their spots by September, so he's at least two months behind. Is that even a winter coat? I think he's got a chance with momma watching out for him and all those beans. But how far north are you?
Pretty good evidence of the lack of rut activity in MN right there. I had a mature doe with twin fawns this year that were obviously the product of her second estrus cycle. They still had spots towards the end of October while all the other fawns in the area had lost theirs a month earlier.
The rut in MN will never be normal as long as the orange army is turned loose every year during the peak breeding cycle. To answer dipper's question, it is highly uncommon for does to have 3 estrous cycles in one year(they are supposed to have only 2, if they do not get bred the first time), but not impossible nor unheard of. It's really hard to tell the age on that doe, but she may have been the product of a late second rut breeding herself, thus she would not have came into estrous until the second rut period last year, and then may have not been bred during that time, causing her to go into estrous again, but at an even later date, close to when a 3rd rut would have occurred. I have seen a few trailcam photos of does being mounted in January over the years. That little one most likely doesn't make it if the winter turns any time soon, but who knows, they are very resilient creatures.A result of having a firearm season during the rut????
Harvest that puppy dog before the winter does. Won't be a whole lot of meat but it should be tender as hell and you will know that the animal didn't go to waste.
In my area of SE MN the antlers seem to drop in mid February.Do u guys over there see late holding antlers?
I do not. Most bucks have shed by late January here, last year some had shed before the new year.