BigDeer Archives - Page 189 of 342

21 10, 2016

October 21: The Best Hunting Starts This Weekend

admin2020-06-10T09:16:32-04:00October 21st, 2016|Big Deer Stories, Big Deer TV, BigDeer, Bowhunting, Deer Hunting, Deer Management|Comments Off on October 21: The Best Hunting Starts This Weekend

After lazy weeks of fattening up on grain and acorns in summer and early fall, whitetail bucks get antsy and start to move around more in mid-October. Historical “rut curves” assembled by biologists over decades show that bucks really begin to rev up their scraping right now, around October 20. Better yet, the data show that 5 to 7 percent of a herd’s does are bred by bucks around October 21, give or take a few days. That’s not a whole lot, but good things happen when bucks start to rip more scrapes and prowl for the first estrus does. The more they are on their feet, the better your chances of seeing and shooting one. Bonus: There’s little hunting [...]

19 10, 2016

Virginia Bowhunter Shoots Massive 7-Point Buck

admin2020-06-10T09:16:32-04:00October 19th, 2016|Big Deer Stories, Big Deer TV, BigDeer, Bowhunting, Deer Hunting|2 Comments

Today’s guest blog from fellow Virginia hunter Chris Davis. These are the stories I like the best, hard-working, hard-hunting Americans doing their thing, grateful for the opportunities we have, thankful for the chance to one day shoot a big deer: Opening day of bow season in Virginia, I went behind my house in the morning because I only had a few hours to hunt. I saw a fawn come by, but not much else. I noticed rubs on big cedar trees that were fresh. I decided to come back in the afternoon when I had more time. When I returned later that day I saw squirrels, birds and a few hawks flying around. Daylight was starting to fade when [...]

17 10, 2016

Nevada Gun Shop: Firearms, Ammo Prices Will Skyrocket If Clinton Elected

admin2020-06-10T09:16:32-04:00October 17th, 2016|BigDeer|4 Comments

Over the past 8 years, President Obama has been the firearms industry’s best salesman, with gun and ammo sales breaking record after record for months. But you ain’t seen nothing yet if Hillary wins on November 8. From the Washington Post: Now the Las Vegas gun store Westside Armory is predicting a Hillary Clinton victory in November, and it has a message for customers: Buy now, because things are going to get expensive. In an advertisement over the weekend in the Las Vegas Review-Journal, Westside Armory said it was holding a “Pre-Hillary Sale” on tactical rifles, warning of a price surge if the Democratic nominee wins the presidential election next month. “Don’t wait!” the advertisement reads. There is little question that [...]

14 10, 2016

“Stag Buck” Velvet Antlers: What Causes This?

admin2020-06-10T09:16:33-04:00October 14th, 2016|Big Deer Stories, Big Deer TV, BigDeer, Deer Hunting|2 Comments

BIG DEER TV producer Justin Karnopp sent me this text: Shot velvet buck with no testicles. Coolest buck I’ve ever killed! I can’t wait to see the video footage. This will make a terrific episode for next season, as a stag buck like this is very rare. According to QDMA a birth defect known as cryptorchidism causes a buck to keep velvet antlers beyond the normal velvet-shedding time of late summer: In extreme cases both testicles remain in the abdominal cavity and never descend into the scrotum. The normal production of testosterone is diminished, and the antler cycle of hardening, velvet shedding and antler casting is altered. These same results can sometimes be produced in a buck that is born [...]

12 10, 2016

Deer How-To: Hunt Terrain, Not Buck Sign

admin2020-06-10T09:16:33-04:00October 12th, 2016|BigDeer|Comments Off on Deer How-To: Hunt Terrain, Not Buck Sign

One of the biggest mistakes I used to make, and sometimes still do, was to find a mother lode of rubs and scrapes, rush in and hang a tree stand based on the sign. Sound familiar? Sometimes it works out, but most of the time it doesn’t. Why? Because a ridge or bottom where bucks lay down a ton of sign, especially scrapes beginning later this month, is where they spend a lot of time at night, and hence are apt to show up after shooting light. Something ODMA biologist Kip Adams told me once stuck: “Why sit and watch scrapes where a 10-pointer is likely to show up at night? Why not watch a heavy trail or edge of [...]