Episode #148 - Are Bucks Shedding Antlers Early This Year?

Published: 2022-12-18 Episode page Duration: 71 min

In this episode

age-structure

• Alex Bains asks how many bucks per age class is ideal, and what buck-to-doe ratio to target per 100 acres. 53:10

antler-shedding

• Terry intentionally posted two similar-looking antler photos, one shed and one broken, to gauge listener reactions to early-shedding claims. 8:40
• Don recalls that after a severe week-long ice storm around 2010 coated everything, he found shed antlers ‘by the armloads’ in bedding thickets that spring. 62:55
• Terry jokingly bets breakfast that there isn’t actually more early antler shedding this year, just more visibility via social media. 64:49

buck-age

• Bryce Bowling asks whether it’s rarer today to harvest a quality 8.5-year-old buck or a 200-inch buck, and why. 46:47

consulting

• Don consulted with a father and son on two Michigan properties who fully embraced his management ideas. 9:32
• Don says he’s already booked one and a half times his target number of consulting visits for the winter. 10:56
• Terry relays that Wes Delks, with extra time since he’s not the weekly Real World GM, has a lot booked but still has some consulting openings. 11:55

coyotes

• Terry relays an analogy from trappers studying coyotes: removing a bunch of coyotes from a property doesn’t solve the problem because more move in due to available habitat and social pressure. 59:24

dixie-dozen

• The southern-region pilot blend has officially been named Dixie Dozen, pairing with Deadly Dozen for northern regions. 39:32

doe-management

• When the herd is healthy, Don’s personal philosophy is to shoot two does for every buck harvested on his farm. 58:09
• Terry applies the coyote analogy to whitetails, warning that killing lots of does for short-term population control tends to even back out over time. 59:59

fan-questions

• Don says the most common question he hears on the road is ‘Where’s Terry?’, showing fans’ curiosity about his co-host. 4:00

feeder-modification

• Todd Covey built a six-inch PVC adapter for feeder legs that wobbles so raccoons can’t climb up to reach the feed. 51:08

giveaway

• Don announces the Whitetail Master Academy giveaway’s grand prize, drawn Christmas Eve, is a free consulting visit with Don, filmed alongside Steve Shields. 18:30
• Additional Whitetail Master Academy giveaway prizes include a complete camo set donated by title sponsor ASIO Gear through Joe Miles. 19:17

humor

• Wes Delks had a severe bathroom emergency after getting out of his truck during a consulting visit. 13:06
• Finding no toilet paper anywhere in the client’s bathroom, Wes Delks cut the toe off his sock with a pocket knife to clean up and hid it in the trash. 14:10
• On another visit, Wes Delks had a bathroom emergency in the woods and made an excuse to step away from his clients rather than admit it. 14:59
• Don jokingly tells listeners to hand Wes Delks a roll of toilet paper the moment he arrives for a property visit. 16:29 (light moment)
• Terry jokingly asks whether Don smells his finger after getting Smokey’s deer lure on it while applying it to a rope scrape. 6:55
• Terry jokingly asks if Don also dabs deer lure behind his ears for fancy dinners out with his wife Robin. 7:24

late-season-bucks

• Terry relays Don’s theory that mature bucks appearing on a property only in the dead of winter were likely born there, meaning the pattern can take five to seven years to show. 27:42

listener-feedback

• A listener called the Chasing Giants podcast a ‘hate group,’ a comment that struck a nerve with Don. 5:24

marriage-advice

• Don advises young men to choose a spouse wisely before marrying, noting the most successful people he knows have very supportive spouses. 70:33

miscanthus

• Don announces Miscanthus preorders opened this week on the Real World website, and he’s already received over 200 orders. 39:56

nutricrave-corn

• NutriCrave corn will be sold in 80,000-kernel bags this year, matching standard ag seed-corn sizing so growers don’t need multiple one-acre bags. 36:58

off-year

• An anonymous listener from Farmville USA asks whether a well-managed property can have an ‘off year’ when good bucks pass through but don’t stay. 20:12

personal-milestone

• Terry announces he’ll celebrate 23 years of marriage tomorrow, with his wife having endured 27 hunting seasons alongside him. 69:38

podcast-growth

• Terry announces the podcast hit another record-setting week of downloads. 1:09
• Don credits the podcast’s growth to listeners telling their friends, since nothing else about the show changed. 1:17
• Terry says the podcast’s popularity comes from discussing what listeners want, which is why live events let the audience lead discussion instead of a straight PowerPoint. 3:22

podcast-values

• Don insists the podcast is a ‘truth group’ that speaks the truth, and some people simply hate hearing it. 5:41
• Terry affirms the show doesn’t hate people, only dislikes sin, as part of their commitment to biblical principles. 6:07

product-announcement

• Don announces the new Real World land management guides are expected between Christmas and New Year’s. 36:34

property-management

• Terry asks whether a property’s fixed reputation as an early- or late-season-only spot can really be changed through management. 24:35

pumpkin-hills

• Paul Whitworth asks how Don’s Pumpkin Hills experiment turned out last year. 36:20

screening-cover

• Chris Smith asks how to create screening to his bow stands without accidentally creating new bedding areas he’ll bump on entry. 42:33

soil-charge

• Terry announces Soil Charge has come out of its pilot program with phenomenal feedback on tissue analysis and browse pressure. 37:55
• Soil Charge is unique because it can be frost-seeded, providing an early food source unlike other products on the market. 38:46

speaking-engagement

• Don spoke at a Friday-night fundraising event for an Amish school in Michigan, arranged by his friend Nathan Buyler. 2:00
• About 400 people turned out for Don’s Michigan speaking event. 2:12
• Don’s laptop with his PowerPoint presentation froze during the Michigan event and wouldn’t respond. 2:27
• With his slides dead, Don improvised and the event turned into a roughly two-hour audience question-and-answer session. 2:37
• Terry admits he’s also had his PowerPoint fail before. 3:42

spring-seed

• Paul Whitworth asks when to expect announcements about new Real World spring seed offerings. 36:14

supplemental-feeding

• Terry believes mature bucks pattern him as much as he patterns them, since his feeder stays consistently filled year-round without spooking deer. 52:44
• Justin Ray, new to Kentucky hunting, asks whether it’s better to pour supplemental feed on the ground or use a feeder, and what type. 48:26

testosterone

• Terry recalls that Dr. Strickland discussed the drop in testosterone that triggers antler drop during a Master Class podcast segment. 66:09
• Terry asks whether a buck’s antler drop is physiologically triggered by a drop in testosterone. 64:06

trail-camera

• Don reveals the person who promised him a new trail-camera design already in development turned out to be a con man who stopped responding. 53:51

Deer activity

• unnamed buck (sighting) 8:38
• unnamed buck (harvest) 21:49
• unnamed buck (harvest) 46:28
• unnamed buck (hunt) 68:55
• Smokey (history) 69:00

Listener questions

Question: Terry jokingly asks whether Don smells his finger after getting Smokey’s deer lure on it while applying it to a rope scrape. 6:55 — asked by Terry

• Answer: Don admits he takes a whiff every time he opens the bottle and thinks it smells good. 7:12

Question: Terry jokingly asks if Don also dabs deer lure behind his ears for fancy dinners out with his wife Robin. 7:24 — asked by Terry

• Answer: Don jokes that his wife thinks he’s nuts because he actually likes the smell of cow manure instead. 7:28

Question: An anonymous listener from Farmville USA asks whether a well-managed property can have an ‘off year’ when good bucks pass through but don’t stay. 20:12 — asked by Anonymous Farmville USA

• Answer: Don explains that apparent ‘off years’ usually happen because the bucks that would have matured into shooters get killed on neighboring properties first, not because the property failed. 22:58

Question: Terry asks whether a property’s fixed reputation as an early- or late-season-only spot can really be changed through management. 24:35

• Answer: Don says a property’s character can absolutely be changed with extreme management, usually by fixing whichever ingredient—food or cover—is the weakest link. 25:08

Question: Paul Whitworth asks when to expect announcements about new Real World spring seed offerings. 36:14 — asked by Paul Whitworth

• Answer: Don says the new land management guides, due between Christmas and New Year’s, will reveal details about upcoming spring seed offerings. 36:34

Question: Paul Whitworth asks how Don’s Pumpkin Hills experiment turned out last year. 36:20 — asked by Paul Whitworth

• Answer: Don says the pumpkins he planted in gaps of his corn plot didn’t grow well, likely because residual herbicide from the corn stunted their roots. 41:08

Question: Chris Smith asks how to create screening to his bow stands without accidentally creating new bedding areas he’ll bump on entry. 42:33 — asked by Chris Smith

• Answer: Don recommends Miscanthus as the best screening cover, since only 3-4 narrow rows are needed, making a strip too thin for deer to bed in. 43:21

Question: Bryce Bowling asks whether it’s rarer today to harvest a quality 8.5-year-old buck or a 200-inch buck, and why. 46:47 — asked by Bryce Bowling

• Answer: Don says a quality 8.5-year-old buck and a 200-inch buck are about equally rare, though a 200-inch buck alone is rarer than an average 8.5-year-old. 47:05

Question: Justin Ray, new to Kentucky hunting, asks whether it’s better to pour supplemental feed on the ground or use a feeder, and what type. 48:26 — asked by Justin Ray

• Answer: Terry says either works but he prefers a feeder to keep feed out of mud, snow, and rain, and away from turkeys. 49:25

Question: Alex Bains asks how many bucks per age class is ideal, and what buck-to-doe ratio to target per 100 acres. 53:10 — asked by Alex Bains

• Answer: Don says there’s no magic number of bucks per age class—he just wants as many yearlings as possible—since every property and surrounding area differs. 56:06
• Answer: Don says buck:doe ratio is largely irrelevant for 99% of land managers whose properties are too small to influence area-wide ratios. 56:35

Question: Terry asks whether a buck’s antler drop is physiologically triggered by a drop in testosterone. 64:06

• Answer: Don confirms antler drop is triggered by falling testosterone, which makes sense since an injured, stressed deer eats less and would have lower testosterone. 64:19

Question: Terry jokingly bets breakfast that there isn’t actually more early antler shedding this year, just more visibility via social media. 64:49

• Answer: Don thinks it’s likely coincidence, since no unusual event this year would explain more bucks shedding early. 65:22

Sponsors this episode

• ASIO Gear

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