Deer weight question

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browtines

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If a buck weighs 130 lbs live weight today, how much weight will he put on before the rut. Taking in consideration that he is a 3.5 yr old with unlimited soybean fields as food source? Anybody got a guess or any data out there to show. Just wondering.
 
Since he has had all Spring and Summer with lots of healthy feed and is already 3 1/2 years old, I wouldn't think a buck could gain much at all before the rut since that's just about 3 months out. Maybe 5 or 10 pounds at most.
 
Hunter 257W said:
Since he has had all Spring and Summer with lots of healthy feed and is already 3 1/2 years old, I wouldn't think a buck could gain much at all before the rut since that's just about 3 months out. Maybe 5 or 10 pounds at most.
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Deer fluff up pretty quick. Necks swell, coats get much thicker, and like many other animals fat is created for warmth.
 
looking at a 3.5 year old buck's neck now and during the rut, plus the fat and extra muscle all over, I'd guess at least 20 lbs, maybe more
 
I've seen no data on this. However, considering how much weight a buck can lose during the rut, I would think the increase from now until the rut would be substantial. Everyone must remember bucks do not have a constant hormone production like we humans do. Bucks will soon go from being almost chemically emasculated to super 'roided up, which allows for substantial muscle gain.
 
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Unless he contracts some disease, he will gain 11.73 pounds over 97 days. He will lose approximately 45-pounds if it is a severe rut. If it is a relaxed rut, the weight loss will be 31.77-pounds. That will then be regained between Jan 5 and March 11.
 
I was thinking like a cattle farmer as far as eddible meat gain - didn't think of the big testosterone surge and neck muscle gain in a whitetail. Yeah, 20 or more lbs is believable when you think about it.
 
Hunter 257W said:
Yeah, 20 or more lbs is believable when you think about it.
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I would say several times that. A buck can lose 30% of his total body weight in the 4-6 weeks of the rut (that's 60 lbs for a 200 lb rut-weight buck), and post-rut, bucks don't look as "small" as they do now.
 
I would agree, 50+ lbs isn't totally out of the question for some already big bodied mature bucks to pack on in the next 2+ months!
 

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