Age this Mule Deer

[Speckle55]

Todays picture's of a Mountain Mule Deer buck(gf pic's with permission)

can u tell his age

will be a dandy

when he makes another year or 2

give it a guess

David

[OL_JR]

Don't feel confident in aging mule deer at all but what the heck. I'll say 4.

[Grizzly Adams1]

Originally Posted by OL_JR

Don't feel confident in aging mule deer at all but what the heck. I'll say 4.

He's in his prime, enough said.

Grizz

[7magtime]

He’s definitely a gooder for your area David, hopefully you can catch up to him next season!

[whitetail Junkie]

3.5 year old

[Mulehahn]

I would have to agree and say he will be turning 4 this spring. He needs to fill out a bit more but he will be in his prime for the next 2 years I would guess and stat to get shorter but thicker mains starting in 2024.

[fishnguy]

Looks like a young deer to me. But I once shot a deer that I was sure was old, called him a grandpa, only to find out he had almost brand spanking new teeth when I skinned the head later. There should be a thread somewhere about it. So I am definitely not one to make these calls on deer, lol. I’d go with going to turn 4 as well.

[scalerman]

About 3 cubic feet in my freezer

[Pathfinder76]

Not very old and not yet in his prime.

[buckman]

Younger buck perhaps 4. He will be a brute when his antlers have time to get some mass.

[58thecat]

Originally Posted by buckman

Younger buck perhaps 4. He will be a brute when his antlers have time to get some mass.

Yup and a few more pounds of pepperoni too

[Ackleyman]

3

[north american hunter]

I would say he needs a couple years before he reaches his prime

[silvertip]

My heart skipped a beat !!!

Just love Mulies

[Bushrat]

His third set of horns.

[Phil McCracken]

4 would be my guess also. Tall!

Would love to see him in a couple of years.

Thanx for sharing...

[Bushrat]

His third set of antlers. So 3.5 year old last fall

[Pathfinder76]

Truly old Mule Deer are a rare bird. I’ve shot two in my life that either had no front teeth or one front tooth left. I’ve never seen another.

[Greatwest]

Nice healthy looking deer. I will also guess in that 3-4 year old range. He doesn’t have that old grey looking face like the old boys get.

[Smokinyotes]

I wouldn’t be surprised if that buck is only coming 3 this spring. He doesn’t have a mature body size which makes his head gear look bigger. I’d give him at least another year maybe 2.

[lambski]

Good to see there still around...maybe ill pull my tag this fall and head into the mountains...I mean my backyard!

[Battle Rat]

Hasn't filled out in the body yet.
Inside his ears and shot main beams.
Maybe 4 or 5 so he be pack some more on in the next couple years.
MD are slow maturing compared to WT.

[walking buffalo]

I asked my Newfy friend.

8 points
Eight years old.

[marky_mark]

Originally Posted by walking buffalo

I asked my Newfy friend.

8 points
Eight years old.

Lol
This is the winner

[weekender7]

3 years 8 months

[wbl170]

Not in his prime yet! But just a guess.

[Dewey Cox]

24 dog years

[Pioneer2]

Revert back to massive 3x3's at 7-8 years old he will be real nice.

[getatmewolf]

Maybe its just me but that buck does not look healthy and in good condition. He looks old to me, you can see hip bones and ribs, but i am used to looking at Mule deer that have easy winters and endless feed in southern AB, so they are usually filled out much more.
Could be a young deer in a CWD area as well unfortunately. I have seen many "old" deer with "young" looking antler growths, not much teeth left but spindly and small antlers.
After looking at hundreds (if not thousands) of bucks over the years in southern AB and being apart of many kills im always surprised and the only thing i know for sure is aging a mule buck on the hoof is not easy, using antler size alone is unreliable.
The good old days of 138 you could see well over 100 bucks in a day and the ones i was lucky enough to be a part of years ago we were always surprised. Many of the 200" or close were suspected to be fairly young in the 4-5 age range.

[trapperdodge]

Agreed. The first thing that occurred to me was health. He looks a bit gant.

He has some height and may continue to develop.