For 6 years we’ve been building a databank of deer afflicted with mysteriously swollen snouts. We call them “big-nose” here on BIG DEER; they are also referred to as “Bullwinkle” in some circles. The first case we reported was a big-nose buck from Michigan. Subsequently we have documented whitetails with swollen snouts from Texas, South Carolina, Florida and Minnesota. Yesterday I got this picture from Courtney, who just shot this big-nose buck near Furman, Alabama. No doubt the biggest buck we’ve seen with a swollen nose! So what causes it? As this article from QDMA explains: “The swollen snouts of afflicted deer result from chronic (long-term) inflammation of the tissues of the nose, mouth and upper lip… How and where deer acquire the Bullwinkle bacteria [...]

Can you shoot an arrow through a mysterious vacuum of tissue and air beneath a buck’s spine and above the lungs, and have that deer run off to live another day? Or will a broadhead shot here most certainly clip the lungs and/or cut vital arteries and kill the deer, even if you never find it? If you’ve ever pulled a shot high—and who amongst us hasn’t?—you’ve agonized over this as you tracked on a sparse blood trail, looking for a “dead” deer that might never have materialized. Is this “no man’s land” conundrum for real, or a myth? Dr. Grant Woods, one of the nation’s top deer biologists and a hard-core bowhunter, told me one time:  "This is a frequent [...]

Deer season might be over, but get you one more fix with the BIG DEER TV marathon, today 4-8 PM only on Sportsman Channel. Set your DVR! Thanks for your awesome support!    

Another deer season is over, and it’s time to clean our rifles and put them away for a few months. The best advice I’ve ever seen comes from an old book entitled “Do-It-Yourself Gun Repair” by Edward Matunas (out of print). I’ve been following Ed’s routine for years, and it’s the best. --You’ll need a cleaning rod, brush, jag, patches and solvent. The best rod is a spring-steel model with a plastic, nylon or similar coating and a swiveling handle. --Choose Shooter’s Choice or Hoppe’s No. 9 solvent. --Always use a cleaning-rod guide to protect a gun’s receiver from the sharp jag, and also to protect the rifle’s throat from damage. --Insert the rod into the bore from the chamber end [...]

Mike: I found this big old shed hanging in a pine tree. A fellow shed hunter south of me found the match 2 years ago and we thought that shed was one year old then. I have walked passed this tree 20 times in the last few years and never spotted it. Amazing how you just miss the simple ones!—Kelly K. from South Dakota Thanks Kelly, I find several things fascinating about your find. Apparently the buck was rubbing on the tree one winter day when this antler popped off. Maybe the abscission layer that hold the antler on like cement was dissolving and getting brittle, causing the deer’s head to itch? Also, that  rub on the pine has been there [...]