Episode #250 - Prepare for Late Season Big Buck Hunting

Published: 2024-12-01
Episode page
Duration: 70 min

In this episode

antler-anomaly

• Terry asks what causes a hard antler to have a hole going back into it, rather than a horizontal hole. 45:37

antler-damage

• Nick Dressler from Saint Liberty, Illinois asks what causes acorn-like tips on some of his buck’s antler points. 43:56

antler-testosterone

• Terry jokingly asks whether the size of a buck’s testicles relates to the earlier antler damage discussion. 53:42

breeding-behavior

• Colton Willis asks whether a doe still with her small yearling is a sign she hasn’t been bred yet. 54:29

community-tragedy

• Don recalls that three young women in his local community were killed in a UTV accident this past summer. 24:15

consulting-results

• Don reports fantastic client consulting success this fall, including two more clients killing 200-inch bucks and several in the 170s-190s. 61:07

consulting-season

• Don says over half of his consulting visits this year are in Illinois, more than ever before in his home state. 59:06

deer-hunting-community

• Don says the best thing deer hunting ever did for him is the people it brought into his life, and he wants to use his platform to help others. 22:26

deer-management

• Don predicts his farm will produce big bucks almost every season if the current management program continues. 5:00

doe-behavior

• Colton Willis asks whether does blowing at a mature buck chasing other does signals the does are being harassed by him. 54:08

farmstead

• Don and his son-in-law Corey have been clearing out old buildings and fence on a new farmstead that Corey and Andrea recently purchased. 0:45

friendship

• Don met Kyle Birch a few years ago during a consulting visit on his farm. 20:32

gear-endorsement

• Terry says ASIO camo has become so popular that most social media photos of hunters with deer now show them wearing it. 18:01
• Don’s friend Joe Chambers in Nebraska reports that this camo blends so well into trees that deer do not see hunters wearing it. 18:44

grandkids

• Don believes his grandson Walker is emerging as the most passionate deer hunter among all his grandsons. 2:43

harvest-totals

• Don reports twelve deer have been killed on his farm so far this year, a mix of bucks and eight does. 7:25

hunting-history

• Don did not shoot his first buck until age sixteen, unlike his young grandson who has already taken several deer. 5:41
• Don notes today’s young hunters have huge advantages over his generation thanks to abundant deer and social media resources. 6:15

late-season

• Don recommends hunters abandon stands used all season for late season, since mature bucks likely already know they’re being hunted there. 37:08
• Don says he now prefers shooting his bucks in October so he doesn’t have to sit out in the late-season cold. 39:49
• Don jokes that after years of pride in enduring freezing hunts, he now sits with a propane heater and proves to the world he’s a wimp. 42:32 (light moment)

late-season-patterning

• Drew Harmon from Floyd, Virginia asks whether certain bucks establish a late-season pattern of showing up at the same time and place each year. 46:13

loss

• Kyle Birch lost his son about a year ago, around the same time Don’s daughter was diagnosed with cancer. 21:13

mental-health

• Kyle Birch’s son battled mental illness, depression, and anxiety before dying by suicide, and Kyle was the one who found him. 26:59

mental-health-awareness

• Terry says the Kyle Birch video is not a hunting video but is meant to raise awareness about people, especially men, who bottle up their feelings. 27:40

podcast-announcement

• Don and Terry announce they will record a Chasing Giants podcast live at the Iowa Deer Classic on Friday night, March seventh. 16:07

podcast-purpose

• Terry says using the podcast to have one conversation that saves a life or brings someone to Jesus matters more than late season strategy. 57:48

rattling

• Glenda Neodor from Auburn, Nebraska asks why Don doesn’t rattle on every hunt to increase his odds of seeing an otherwise unseen buck. 50:00

seminar

• Don is building a new PowerPoint presentation on managing a property’s buck herd that he believes no one has ever presented before. 11:31
• Don announces a January 24 evening seminar event with a meal at Mount Hope, Ohio, requiring advance ticket calls. 13:39

velvet

• Ricky Lunsford from Williamstown, Kentucky asks what causes some bucks to still be in velvet late in the season. 48:04

video-recommendation

• Terry urges listeners to watch the Thanksgiving video, saying it can be a tool that encourages someone struggling. 57:06

work-ethic

• Terry praises Walker as a hard worker rather than just a trigger-happy kid hunter. 6:29

Deer activity

• unnamed buck (harvest) 1:49
• unnamed buck (harvest) 2:33
• Zacchaeus (history) 8:24
• Mel (history) 8:24
• unnamed buck (harvest) 8:30
• unnamed buck (harvest) 12:29
• unnamed buck (harvest) 27:20
• unnamed buck (trail-camera) 32:11
• unnamed buck (trail-camera) 33:06
• unnamed buck (history) 33:46
• unnamed buck (harvest) 44:02
• unnamed buck (history) 49:13

Listener questions

Question: Nick Dressler from Saint Liberty, Illinois asks what causes acorn-like tips on some of his buck’s antler points. 43:56 — asked by Nick Dressler

• Answer: Don explains the acorn-shaped growths result from damage to the antler tip while it was growing in velvet, not from old age. 45:09

Question: Terry asks what causes a hard antler to have a hole going back into it, rather than a horizontal hole. 45:37

• Answer: Don says that’s usually caused by a stick or similar object getting stuck in the antler while it was still growing. 45:52

Question: Drew Harmon from Floyd, Virginia asks whether certain bucks establish a late-season pattern of showing up at the same time and place each year. 46:13 — asked by Drew Harmon

• Answer: Don says more new bucks show up on his place during late season than at any other time of year. 46:54

Question: Ricky Lunsford from Williamstown, Kentucky asks what causes some bucks to still be in velvet late in the season. 48:04 — asked by Ricky Lunsford

• Answer: Don explains low testosterone, sometimes from very small or absent testicles, causes bucks to remain in velvet longer. 48:32

Question: Glenda Neodor from Auburn, Nebraska asks why Don doesn’t rattle on every hunt to increase his odds of seeing an otherwise unseen buck. 50:00 — asked by Glenda Neodor

• Answer: Don says he avoids frequent blind rattling because it risks alerting every buck in the neighborhood to his stand location. 50:36

Question: Colton Willis asks whether does blowing at a mature buck chasing other does signals the does are being harassed by him. 54:08 — asked by Colton Willis

• Answer: Don recalls a doe was indeed being harassed by a buck, and theorizes does blow to trick the buck into thinking there’s danger so he’ll leave them alone. 55:14

Question: Colton Willis asks whether a doe still with her small yearling is a sign she hasn’t been bred yet. 54:29 — asked by Colton Willis

• Answer: Don says no, does often leave their fawns for a day or two to breed with a buck and then return to reconnect with them. 56:19

Question: Terry jokingly asks whether the size of a buck’s testicles relates to the earlier antler damage discussion. 53:42

• Answer: Don says he has never noted any correlation, since he doesn’t inspect that closely. 53:52

Prayer Time

Scripture: Colossians
Theme: rooted in Christ
Wes compares a failed food plot with poor soil to the need for a strong spiritual foundation, quoting Colossians on being rooted and built up in Christ, then prays for listeners facing financial, family, and health struggles to find comfort and grow deeper in faith. 65:40

Don and Terry discussed farm updates and management, including twelve deer killed on Don’s farm this year (a mix of bucks and eight does), grandson Walker’s growing passion for hunting, and Don’s confidence his farm would keep producing big bucks under the current program. A significant segment covered Kyle Birch, whose son died by suicide after struggling with mental illness; Terry framed the related video as an awareness effort rather than a hunting piece, and Don spoke about wanting to use his platform to help others, citing losses in his own community including three young women killed in a UTV accident. They covered consulting success, mostly in Illinois, and late-season strategy, including abandoning stands used all season and Don’s preference for October hunts to avoid cold. Listener questions addressed antler abnormalities, late-season buck patterns, velvet retention linked to low testosterone, rattling risks, and doe behavior. Wes led a prayer comparing a failed food plot to spiritual foundation.

Unofficial fan project. AI-synthesized from public episodes; may contain errors.