Injury-Caused Deformation

BrowningRage

BrowningRage

Long Time Member
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So, many of you may have seen the pics and video of my cousin's Book Cliffs deer hunt this year. For those who didn't, here are a couple pics of his buck:

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IMG_6842(2)[1].jpg


Anyway, when my cousin took it to his butcher, he immediately said the buck must have sustained an injury of some kind that likely made his antlers abnormal. Well, when my cousin picked up his buck, sure enough, the butcher found part of a mechanical broadhead stuck in the bucks shoulder. It had been there for a year or more. Anyway, thought it was a cool story and maybe someone out there recognizes this buck from "The one that got away" during an archery hunt in the last couple years..??
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Was the deformed antler on the opposite side of the injury? There is a theory that a serious injury on one side of the body can cause the opposite side antler of the injury to be deformed. Not sure if there is any science or statistic proof to that theory but one year in Colorado I killed a buck that when I was skinning the bucks he had a softball sized solid bone mass on his left back leg with lead bullet pieces just under the skin. The injury was likely several years old with no infection and a obvious broken leg from a bullet that had healed. The offside antler was deformed so the theory has always stuck in my mind.

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In 2007 my dad killed a bull with a deformed antler and no sign of a damaged or broken/healed pedicle. We were processing one of the hind quarters a week later and found a broadhead and about 12” of aluminum shaft parallel with his femur all healed up from a previous year. Maybe there’s something to that theory???
 
JakeH said:
I'm not disputing the claim, but there is so many bucks out there like this they can't all have been wounded. It's plausible the buck has been that way all along and was shot by an archer like that.
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Good grief muffs no one is saying an injury is ALWAYS the cause for a goofy side. But there’s enough examples of an injury causing this that it is a likely factor in a lot of cases.

The rack on my moose this fall had a funky right side. All the joints etc on his left side were all focked up. Put me in the group of people that an injury CAN cause a deformed side.
 
Have seen a few deformed antlers over about 60 + years and without exception there was always a deformed hoof on the opposite side.
 
SS! said:
Good grief muffs no one is saying an injury is ALWAYS the cause for a goofy side. But there’s enough examples of an injury causing this that it is a likely factor in a lot of cases.

The rack on my moose this fall had a funky right side. All the joints etc on his left side were all focked up. Put me in the group of people that an injury CAN cause a deformed side.
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I'm not saying it wasn't caused by the shot, or that an injury doesn't cause this to happen, But usually when I have seen an injury affect the antler development its a much more serious deformation. And usually a more serious injury.

My buddy's dad is a meat cutter, they find broad heads and bullets all the time and most of the time the antlers were not affected. And I have herd and seen many many more in person and online that are the same way. The buck I killed last year had a 22 slug in his shoulder, and was missing a tooth in his bottom jaw, thinking someone tried to poach him by shooting him in the head and when he ran off put one in his shoulder too but his antlers were not affected both injury's were at least a year old.

I have pictures of a buck that looked dang near identical as the buck in this post from 2016 I think we determined it was unlikely the same deer. But he was a pretty dang close match genetically and I have seen several over the years out there.

Again, not saying the shot didn't effect the antler development, but its just as likely the archer shot the buck as a big ass 2x4 going off the fact there are so many of them out there.

Lets see your moose SS.
 
I guess I should have explain the theory that was shared with me on my buck from many years ago. The people explaining the theory spoke of major bone braking injuries. That the nutrients, Calcium, minerals etc. that the buck took in from the feed was focused on repairing the broken bone and the antlers took the short end in priority of the nutrients needed to grow normal. Some how it was the opposite side that was impacted for whatever reason. Like I said, no science that I know of behind the theory but enough coincidences to make it stick in my mind. I’m sure ever injury doesn’t result in noticeable changes in antler development. My bucks deformed antler is one of a kind with five eye guards on a flat platform going into a hall circle in his main beam up to a small fork with not add any spread width to the rake. It was a split second shot and I thought I had shot a big wide buck. I was surprised and disappointed when I walked up on him. The buck has grown on me over the years and he is one of my favorite racks now.
 
Bluehair said:
Before I do internet push ups for Homer, does this non typical inducing trauma only work on mule deer? How about elk?

And for extra credit, how many pitchers will it take to change Homer’s mind?

0 to 10
10 to 100, or
>infinity
Click to expand...

Interesting timing on your “How about elk?” question. On the elk forum there is a thread titled Father and Son Elk hunt with a video attached. In the video the father shoot a bull with a perfect six point side on the left side and a webbed out five point on the right side. Near the end of the video their attention goes to the bulls right front leg that appear to be an old broken leg that had healed. Who knows but it keeps popping up of some oddity in the antlers with evidence of a injury to the animal.
 
In deer at least, it is well documented that a permanent injury to a leg will cause a deformity of an antler every year.

However, the other weird thing is that if the injury is in a back leg, the deformity is in the OPPOSITE leg. But, if in a front leg, it affects the antler on the SAME side.

And the injury has to be severe enough to show some kind of a limp (gate altering) when walking. Which leg was the arrow in? Should have been in the left shoulder to cause the deformity. Also, did they notice a limp when he was walking?
 
I have occasionally seen a live buck with normal antlers that has a severe leg injury, but make the assumption that the injury occurred after that years antler growth. Therefore, that buck is green lighted to be shot whether or not he meets the criteria to be shot otherwise, because next year his antlers will be deformed.
 
Correction, Google research says a front leg injury can cause a deformity on either side. But I have read in the past that it occurs on the same side, and the few I have seen in person have always been on the same side.
 
JakeH said:
I'm not disputing the claim, but there is so many bucks out there like this they can't all have been wounded. It's plausible the buck has been that way all along and was shot by an archer like that.
Click to expand...
True, I agree... some just come as they are. In this case, I thought it was cool that there was some suspicion of an injury, and then there was evidence of it as well... pretty rare find to have a broadleaf in your buck's shoulder.
 
twopointdn said:
Was the deformed antler on the opposite side of the injury? There is a theory that a serious injury on one side of the body can cause the opposite side antler of the injury to be deformed. Not sure if there is any science or statistic proof to that theory but one year in Colorado I killed a buck that when I was skinning the bucks he had a softball sized solid bone mass on his left back leg with lead bullet pieces just under the skin. The injury was likely several years old with no infection and a obvious broken leg from a bullet that had healed. The offside antler was deformed so the theory has always stuck in my mind.

View attachment 62200

View attachment 62201
Click to expand...
Unfortunately, I don't know which shoulder it was in. But I wouldn't argue if your theory turned out to be true.
 

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