Episode #40 - Transition to Late Season and Picking a Contest Winner- Also, Thoughts about Mel Video
Published: 2020-11-30
Episode page
Duration: 76 min
In this episode
deer-aging
- John Ziegler asked why Don hasn’t sent teeth from Mel or the Joey Buck to be aged and whether he doubts the aging science. 58:28
doe-factory
- Cole Reagan asked whether extremely high doe densities push mature bucks onto neighboring properties with less competition for bedding and food. 47:16
faith
- Don believes God brought Steve into his life to combine their different talents. 5:00
film-school
- Don is launching a Chasing Giants Film School at his farm, with Steve Shields teaching hands-on videography and storytelling. 23:30
giveaway
- Don announces Ben Hall of Errol, New Hampshire as the winner of the free master class pass for the March 13 event. 72:23
joey-buck
- Don plans a future video detailing the Joey Buck he shot, showing how he located that deer. 73:36
- Don scouted the Joey Buck’s small habitat parcels for two years with trail cameras before killing it fifteen minutes into his first hunt there. 75:05
land-consulting
- Don is directing overflow consulting clients to his Real World partner Wes Delks, who follows similar principles at half the cost. 37:05
mail-video
- Don shot the buck known as Mail (Mel) on October 30. 1:32
- Steve Shields felt the mail video gave a genuine glimpse of Don as a person, hunter, and Christian. 5:41
- Don calls the positive response to the mail video one of the highlights of his hunting career. 11:19
- By the time of the podcast the mail video was approaching 120,000 YouTube views. 10:09
mechanical-broadheads
- Don urges hunters to avoid mechanical broadheads, saying losing a deer with one is a matter of when, not if. 40:40
podcast-plans
- Terry says the podcast will keep offering hunting-season insight even though Don has already filled his tags. 75:39
real-estate
- Terry recommends listeners contact the BuyAFarm team directly since they can match buyers to properties even if not listed on air. 45:59
rut-timing
- Don considers the first two weeks of December the worst stretch of the season for daylight buck movement as bucks recover from the rut. 30:42
sponsorship-disclosure
- Terry clarifies the broadhead discussion is not a paid promotion since Don has no affiliation with any arrow or broadhead manufacturer. 42:50
storytelling
- Steve argues outdoor content creators need real storytelling, not just gear talk, to hold viewers. 25:49
trail-cameras
- Terry urges hunters to log trail camera photos yearly to track individual bucks’ patterns, calling it crucial to closing the deal. 74:16
- Don plans to check all his trail cameras a few weeks after season to see which bucks survived and start planning next year. 69:41
wildlife-analytical-lab
- Wildlife Analytical Lab has grown about 800% in the past year according to its owner. 65:31
youtube-channel
- Don’s entire YouTube channel was built and produced by Steve Shields. 22:33
Deer activity
Listener questions
Question: Cole Reagan asked whether extremely high doe densities push mature bucks onto neighboring properties with less competition for bedding and food. 47:16 — asked by Cole Reagan
- Answer: Don says if does consider an area the safe zone, mature bucks are there too, calling the whole ‘doe factory’ idea a misleading fallacy. 48:36
- Answer: Terry adds that a skewed buck-to-doe ratio can hurt rut hunters, though he prefers more does to protect younger bucks. 54:11
Question: John Ziegler asked why Don hasn’t sent teeth from Mel or the Joey Buck to be aged and whether he doubts the aging science. 58:28
- Answer: Don explains he forgot to have Mel’s jaw saved by the taxidermist but is 99% confident Mel was four and a half years old. 60:29
- Answer: Terry says he trusts tooth-ring counting science over subjective wear estimates and has sent multiple deer’s teeth to Wildlife Analytical Lab. 64:15
Sponsors this episode
- BuyAFarm.com
- 360 Hunting Blinds
- QuietKat
- Real World Wildlife Products
- Vortex Optics
- Mathews Archery
- Lone Wolf Treestands
The episode centered on Don’s buck Mel, shot October 30, and the reaction to the mail video, which was nearing 120,000 YouTube views and which Don called one of the highlights of his hunting career. Steve Shields, who built and produced Don’s YouTube channel, said the video captured a genuine glimpse of Don, and Don credited God with bringing Steve into his life to combine their talents; the two announced a Chasing Giants Film School at Don’s farm teaching storytelling-driven videography. Don also discussed the Joey Buck, scouted for two years before a fifteen-minute first hunt, and gave season advice, including avoiding mechanical broadheads and expecting poor daylight movement in early December. Listener questions covered doe densities pushing mature bucks onto other properties, which Don dismissed as a misleading fallacy, and why Mel’s teeth weren’t sent for aging, which Don estimated at four and a half years old.
Unofficial fan project. AI-synthesized from public episodes; may contain errors.