Snow, Sheds & Sorghum: Late-Season Deer Survival | Chasing Giants #311

Published: 2026-02-08
Episode page
Duration: 64 min

In this episode

antler-shedding

• Don Higgins predicted many bucks would drop their antlers in February despite the cold snap not accelerating shedding as much as expected. 3:13
• Terry Hamby noted it’s fascinating that shed timing varies by region each year depending on weather and deer stress levels. 3:21
• Don Higgins recalled a year when a severe week-long ice storm kept deer in cover without eating, causing the majority of bucks to shed antlers all at once. 5:20

banter

• Terry Hamby joked that few people know Don Higgins voted for Hillary Clinton, despite his image as a conservative Christian. 44:52 (light moment)

captive-deer

• Don Higgins noted that captive deer needed to be wormed three consecutive days because their digestion is much faster than a cow’s, which only needs one dose. 10:07

chasing-assurance

• Terry Hamby promoted his father’s podcast, Chasing Assurance, currently covering discussions on the original 12 apostles. 61:14

chasing-giants

• Don Higgins predicted 2026 will be a fantastic year for Chasing Giants and Real World Wildlife Products, citing incredible new opportunities in the last 30-60 days. 59:23

clear-cut-management

• Terry asked Don what triggers the need to re-address a clear-cut area once invasive saplings regrow into an impassable jungle. 11:40

cwd

• Tyler Aker asked Don’s opinion on states like Oklahoma allowing release of captive deer into the wild to combat CWD. 48:32

deer-behavior

• Don Higgins recounted that one evening his wife Robin took the dog out and saw about 50 deer scattered across their yard in every direction. 1:50

deer-nutrition

• Don Higgins learned from raising captive deer that they require a much higher-fiber diet than cattle. 9:17
• Terry Hamby said hunters and land managers should focus on maximizing deer nutrition and health as stewards of God’s creation. 50:07

drones

• Don Higgins argued drones are more dangerous for poaching than thermal scopes because a drone can scout an entire township quickly across multiple properties. 46:28
• Mitchell Fanky asked whether thermal scopes or drones pose the bigger poaching threat and which one Don would ban if he could only outlaw one. 45:21

events

• Don Higgins announced he will host a seminar with Mike Mitchell of Mike’s Mighty Micros in Vermontville, Michigan on February 17. 16:31
• Don Higgins announced the Shipshewana Show, the Midwest Sportsman’s Classic, runs February 19-21. 17:11
• Don Higgins announced a live Chasing Giants podcast Thursday and the premiere of the Doubting Thomas hunt video with discussion on Friday at the Shipshewana event. 17:22
• Don Higgins announced the Whitetail Management Conference will be held February 25-26 in Arthur, Illinois alongside the Real World Dealer event. 17:46
• Don Higgins announced he will speak at Shelbina Christian Church in Shelbina, Missouri on March 19. 18:12
• Don Higgins mentioned he’ll try to attend the Wisconsin Deer and Turkey Expo where Scott Fenendael of Extreme Custom Food Plots has a large booth. 18:28

fae

• Terry Hamby noted that FAE sponsors the entire Midwest Sportsman’s Classic and has been great to work with as event promoters. 21:50

faith

• Terry Hamby said he believes God has blessed their platform because of their commitment to honoring Him and sharing Jesus through it. 59:45

food-plots

• Don Higgins observed during a property walk that his grain sorghum plot was completely demolished by deer while soybeans remained plentiful. 28:32

frost-seeding

• Don Higgins experienced the same clover failure as the listener, having drilled clover with his PH G Series drill only to have it die when rain stopped for two months. 52:29
• John Helmick asked whether to fully replant his failed clover plot in spring or frost seed it instead, and when and how much seed to use. 52:10

grain-sorghum

• Don Higgins plans to find a place to plant more grain sorghum on his property this spring after this year’s plot was totally consumed. 28:57
• Terry Hamby’s consulting clients, initially skeptical about planting grain sorghum in high deer density areas, became fully convinced after it provided an unbrowsed late-season food source. 30:05
• Don Higgins explained the Real World Grain Sorghum blend contains three different sorghum varieties selected from their testing. 30:52
• Don Higgins noted grain sorghum tolerates drier sites and years better than corn or soybeans and can be planted as late as July 1 in his area. 31:42
• Terry Hamby recommended adding grain sorghum to a food plot rotation when corn or beans aren’t viable options due to browse pressure. 32:44
• Jonathan Vilches from Miami, Florida asked whether deer bedded in the sorghum this year amid the storm and how best to keep a winter water source open. 38:44

hunt-video

• Terry Hamby announced that hunter Davey killed a 200-inch buck on public land with a bow from a saddle, filmed by Luke of Timberline Productions, airing soon on Chasing Giants TV. 33:40

merchandise

• Terry Hamby announced a new limited-time three-hat pack available at the Shipshewana dealer event due to listener demand. 57:38

national-deer-association

• Don Higgins asserted the National Deer Association, formerly the QDMA, has become a left-wing propaganda network pushing CWD narratives. 50:40
• Don Higgins claimed the National Deer Association’s membership dropped from about 60,000 as the QDMA to roughly 6,000 members now. 51:07

personal-health

• Terry Hamby shared that he has lost 30 pounds since starting a diet after Christmas and that his joint pain is completely gone. 25:36

personal-story

• Don Higgins shared that the biggest misconception about him is that he’s always been wealthy with a great farm and that the farm alone explains his big bucks. 41:15
• Don Higgins recalled that he and his wife started out renting, then bought a cheap fixer-upper home for $12,500 before eventually acquiring his grandparents’ farmhouse and land. 42:03
• Al Foster observed that thirty-year-olds mistakenly compare their current situation to Don Higgins at 62 instead of comparing it to Don at age 30. 44:12
• Don Higgins said his motto “dream big because God’s reality is bigger than your imagination” stems from what happened on his own farm. 55:36
• Don Higgins challenged listeners to show another property where someone started with nothing on 100 acres and killed three 200-inch bucks, adding he expects to kill more. 56:40
• Brandon Wolf asked Don what he thinks is people’s biggest misinterpretation of him. 40:57
• Brandon Wolf asked Don whether, in his early farming years, he ever imagined building his property into what it is today. 54:47

prayer-time

• Terry Hamby announced Daryl Monk of WiseEye Technologies leads this week’s Sunday Night Prayer Time segment after the closing credits. 60:48

shed-hunting

• Terry asked Don why he varies his shed-hunting aggressiveness by situation and what his plan is for finding sheds this year. 35:30
• Terry asked whether Don would ever shed hunt with snow on the ground given reduced visibility. 36:57

shipshewana

• Terry and Don announced a partnership with FAE to present behind-the-scenes tours of pivotal habitat projects on their own sanctuaries at the Midwest Sportsman’s Classic. 21:00
• Terry Hamby announced breakout seminar groups at the Midwest Sportsman’s Classic featuring the Wensel brothers, Bobby Worthington, Brenton Henderson, Wes Delks, and Lee Mitchell. 22:18
• Terry Hamby announced that two of the biggest names in bass fishing history will headline the Friday Night Bites event at the Midwest Sportsman’s Classic. 22:40
• Don Higgins joked that since he’s judging the baking contest, entrants who want to win should bring a cherry pie, his favorite. 25:16 (light moment)
• Terry Hamby announced Al Foster and Joe Johnson will judge the trail camera picture competition at the Midwest Sportsman’s Classic. 26:15
• Terry Hamby teased that Chasing Giants will release a new product at Shipshewana in partnership with a new business partner, with an explanation of the partner change to come. 58:50

succession

• Don Higgins expressed confidence that his son-in-law and grandsons will continue his management program and keep producing 200-inch bucks on the farm after he’s gone. 57:04

thermal-scopes

• Don Higgins noted hunters using thermal scopes killed 16 coyotes in one night in his neighborhood this year, showing the tool’s effectiveness for predator control. 47:28

trade-shows

• Terry Hamby announced that Real World Wildlife Products keeps a list of dealer trade show schedules on its website so customers can buy locally and save on shipping. 16:02

trail-camera-contest

• Terry Hamby announced Chasing Giants is sponsoring a printed trail camera picture contest at the Midwest Sportsman’s Classic with no entry cost. 19:36
• Terry Hamby announced the trail camera contest’s best-in-show winner receives a $500 ASIO Camo gift card. 19:57

tsi

• Terry Hamby noted a common misconception that a TSI project only needs to be done once rather than maintained over time. 13:24
• Don Higgins recommended staggering TSI mulching on larger properties by treating about a fifth of the acreage each year to maintain varied regrowth stages. 13:08

winter-management

• Don Higgins advised that providing supplemental food is the most important thing hunters can do to help deer survive harsh winter weather. 6:04

winter-water

• Terry asked whether deer can get the water they need from eating snow when everything else is frozen. 40:33

winter-weather

• Don Higgins reported that after an 8-inch snowstorm and plummeting temperatures, deer stayed piled onto food sources for many days. 1:32

woody-browse

• Terry observed on a Southeast Ohio consulting visit that every browse tip in the open timber had been nipped off by deer due to heavy browse pressure. 8:18
• Terry asked Don to explain why deer eat the tender nipped-off tips of woody browse this time of year. 8:30

Deer activity

• Turning Point Buck (history) 2:47
• unnamed buck (history) 2:53
• unnamed buck (harvest) 33:40
• Doubting Thomas (history) 35:25
• unnamed buck (harvest) 43:24
• unnamed buck (harvest) 56:40

Listener questions

Question: Terry asked Don to explain why deer eat the tender nipped-off tips of woody browse this time of year. 8:30

• Answer: Don explained that the browse tip is the most tender and nutrient-rich part of the plant, which is why deer target it. 8:47

Question: Terry asked Don what triggers the need to re-address a clear-cut area once invasive saplings regrow into an impassable jungle. 11:40

• Answer: Don recommended using an FAE mulcher to reset overgrown clear-cut regrowth, noting it typically only needs to be done about once every five years. 12:50

Question: Terry asked Don why he varies his shed-hunting aggressiveness by situation and what his plan is for finding sheds this year. 35:30

• Answer: Don admitted he gets more aggressive searching for bigger sheds or sheds from bucks he plans to hunt the next season. 35:39
• Answer: Don said this year he likely won’t put much shed-hunting effort in until the cold weather breaks, to avoid pushing deer off food sources. 36:50

Question: Terry asked whether Don would ever shed hunt with snow on the ground given reduced visibility. 36:57

• Answer: Don said visibility is worse in snow but it depends on location; he actually found a shed 20 yards from his house yesterday, visible from indoors. 37:03

Question: Jonathan Vilches from Miami, Florida asked whether deer bedded in the sorghum this year amid the storm and how best to keep a winter water source open. 38:44 — asked by Jonathan Vilches

• Answer: Don said open winter water is less critical than most people think, especially once there’s snow on the ground. 39:38
• Answer: Don said his grain sorghum was completely consumed this fall and he has not observed deer bedding in it, though they might have without him seeing it. 39:51

Question: Terry asked whether deer can get the water they need from eating snow when everything else is frozen. 40:33

• Answer: Don said he’s sure deer can get sufficient water from eating snow. 40:45

Question: Brandon Wolf asked Don what he thinks is people’s biggest misinterpretation of him. 40:57 — asked by Brandon Wolf

• Answer: Don said the biggest misconception about him is that he’s always been wealthy with a great farm and that the farm alone explains his big bucks. 41:15

Question: Mitchell Fanky asked whether thermal scopes or drones pose the bigger poaching threat and which one Don would ban if he could only outlaw one. 45:21 — asked by Mitchell Fanky

• Answer: Don said that if forced to ban only one technology, he would choose to outlaw drones over thermal scopes. 47:02

Question: Tyler Aker asked Don’s opinion on states like Oklahoma allowing release of captive deer into the wild to combat CWD. 48:32 — asked by Tyler Aker

• Answer: Don said he is against releasing captive deer into the wild to combat CWD. 48:55
• Answer: Don argued wildlife agencies should implement good management rather than sharpshooter culls that kill CWD-resistant deer, letting nature take its course instead. 49:09

Question: John Helmick asked whether to fully replant his failed clover plot in spring or frost seed it instead, and when and how much seed to use. 52:10 — asked by John Helmick

• Answer: Don advised frost seeding clover as late as possible, typically in March, to get a few freeze-thaw cycles without leaving seed exposed too long. 53:39

Question: Brandon Wolf asked Don whether, in his early farming years, he ever imagined building his property into what it is today. 54:47 — asked by Brandon Wolf

• Answer: Don said he never envisioned achieving what his farm has become, calling it beyond his imagination at the time. 55:52

Prayer Time

Scripture: Hebrews
Theme: forgiveness through the blood of Christ
Darryl Monk reflected on Hebrews 12:24, explaining that Jesus’s blood shed on the cross spoke a better word than Abel’s blood, crying out for forgiveness rather than revenge, and closed by thanking God for that forgiveness. 63:08

Don Higgins described how an 8-inch snowstorm and cold snap kept deer piled onto food sources, recalled his wife once saw about 50 deer scattered across their yard, and predicted many bucks would drop antlers in February despite the cold snap not accelerating shedding as much as expected. He advised supplemental feeding as the most important thing hunters can do to help deer survive winter. Don noted his grain sorghum plot was completely demolished by deer while soybeans remained plentiful, and Terry Hamby said his consulting clients became convinced of sorghum’s value after it provided an unbrowsed late-season food source. Terry asked Don why deer target tender browse tips, how to reset overgrown clear-cut regrowth with an FAE mulcher, and whether deer can rely on snow for water. Brandon Wolf asked about the biggest misconception about Higgins, and Mitchell Fanky asked whether drones or thermal scopes pose the bigger poaching threat, with Don saying he’d ban drones first. Daryl Monk led a closing prayer on Hebrews 12:24.

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