Age; New Pic Added
- Thread starter bowhunterfanatic
- Start date
I'm on fence between 2.5 and 3.5. Neck looks broad base but he hasn't developed a bulging brisket yet and his legs are long. Looks plenty healthy regardless!
No older than 3.5
maybe 3.5
3.5
TheLBLman
Well-Known Member
Considering this is summertime,
3 1/2 or older.
Don't rule out 4 1/2 yet.
3 1/2 or older.
Don't rule out 4 1/2 yet.
Around here that deer could be 5+. These tiny little buggers don't change much as they age. I've got one deer I thought was 3.5yrs, 3 years in a row. Had I saw the first pic of him on the third year I'd have sworn he was 3.5. But since I knew better I had to re-evaluate how I look at them. Some deer are just dang tricky to age. Best we can do is play the odds.
TheLBLman
Well-Known Member
And much, much trickier in the summertime.
chart1300
Well-Known Member
3.5 would be safe I think. He doesn't have the face characteristics to be any older I don't think.
backyardtndeer
Well-Known Member
Looks like a 2.5 year old to me.
bowhunterfanatic
Well-Known Member
Gonna push this one back up to the top. This guy is 3.5, right? He's showing up almost every single day in the daylight. I actually saw him just a few minutes ago while driving in to check the camera. He's really testing my resolve by showing up so regular.
No older for sure
Yes he's 3.5 at the very most, possibly a rare stud 2.5. The predictability of him showing up like that in daylight almost every day is a very clear indicator that he's a juvenile. Drive in to check cams on a 5yr old one time while he's there and you likely would never see him on that cam again, maybe any cam. Old bucks just won't tolerate pressure because they know it's dangerous. Young ones don't know it yet so it doesn't bother them nearly as much.
However, the choice to shoot or not is yours and yours alone. We each make our own decisions for our own reasons. I've hunted places where a 5yr old might not have a rack like that. I've hunted places where you'd sooner see a unicorn than a 5yr old. I've hunted places where if a 2yr old didn't have a rack like that or better then he was a runt. It's all relative to what you've got to hunt and what stage you're at in your hunting experience. If you've not killed deer of that caliber yet then you'll be kicking yourself if he disappears. If you have bucks like that & bigger under your belt then maybe challenge yourself by seeing what he can become next year. Really you don't need any justification to shoot or not. Totally up to you.
backyardtndeer
Well-Known Member
Could be 3.5, but he's not any older than that.
Yep. Im dealing with one now. Passed him at 3.5 in 2021 at 7 yards (early october) . Got his pic sept 8 last yr at 3.5. And have got him a dozen times this month at 3.5. He is stuck in a time warp. Thats why i hate to shoot a deer before rut
megalomaniac
Well-Known Member
2.5
I think 3.5. But definitely no older.
The worst part about it is there's the occasional huge body thick neck young buck that throws a monkey wrench.
yep. i killed a a buck that i knew was 5.5. send his teeth off and was floored when he came back as most likely 4.5, with a next highest probably being 5.5. not a huge deal, he was a big cull anyway but i was very surprised
