Forget the nose thing, lol.
Here’s what I put out to people that hunt the same property I do:
You’ll know a mature deer when you see it and it has nothing to do with antler size.
If it has NO neck…if it’s front end is larger than it’s back end (think Bulldog)…a sway in the back…sagging belly…walks in like it owns the woods/field/etc…other deer notice it’s presence…walks almost like a bulldog, mature deer have a certain gait in their walk.
If the deer is proportionate throughout its body, it’s not mature. We try and give each Buck 3.5-4.5 years before taking one. To me “cull” is a word for just wanting to shoot something. Here’s where folks will get upset…if you have an 8pt at 3.5 or 4.5, that deer needs shot. He will be nothing but an 8pt at 7.5 too. Yeah he’ll grow some tine length and add mass and even some stickers, but still a main framed 8pt. Nothing wrong with that until that 5.5+ 8pt that you let go starts running off your 130-140” 2.5-3.5 year old 10pts. I realize not everyone is into antlers, but we like seeing what nature can produce…we just help out a little by keeping them around.
The deer in the pics posted look young. They don’t have declining antlers, they were growing. I know weight is different in different parts of the country and even different in different parts of my State, but a 225#+ deer is mature down here and that comes with age.
Last edited by Wanna Be; 11/24/22 12:05 PM.