BrianID
The old boy was breeding all the way up to the end of Dec. By that time he was looking pretty ruff. That combined with the high snow levels, made us think he would probably winter kill this year. We even added a corn feeder in the area to see if we could help him out, however he was one of the only bucks that would not use the feeder. I guess you can't teach an old buck new tricks! Well, I finally saw him again at the end of February, he was still packing, but he looked like he was wintering in 4 feet of snow. I wanted to intervene and stick another feeder closer to where he was, but knowing if I did the stress could finish him off. I decided just to sit back and let nature take its coarse. I watched him from an extreme distance for about a week, and then he disappeared for good. After the snow melted, I hiked into the area where he was and just as I started my hike I found a fairly large buck that had already shed and succumb to the elements. I am assuming this was him. Finally, as I made my way to the top of this canyon, I noticed a large piece of bone lodged in the top of some sage brush, not 100 yards from where I had last seen him several trips and countless hours later I found that other side, not 100 feet from where his other shed lay. I'm amazed I never found it before but with the thick oak and sage brush I can see how I missed it. Also my brother and his friend found what looks to be his 2002 sheds and he must have been sick in 2002 broken points everywhere the velvet on his main beam was not rubbed all the way and the horn weight was not even close to what his 1999 sheds were. What do you guys think? Is it possible for a mule deer to have a total bad year, then next year just look amazing?
