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Old 02-17-2019, 10:14 AM
Brock1 Brock1 is offline
 
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Default Hard Winter Pressures and deer sheds

I am shocked to not see a ton of people showing pictures of sheds with the winter we are having.
no one has posted in over 2 weeks on the shed thread.

I am guessing because it has been so cold most have not made it out.

But I would guess with this much snow and this 3 week blast of cold that the deer are dropping early.

anyone else seeing this?

I was in Valleyview country for late season ell on the 18-20th of January and there is damn near 2 feet of snow and it has been cold. Not good.

I even found a fresh elk shed at the bales we hunted.
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Old 02-17-2019, 10:19 AM
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The bucks are still carrying their antlers around here.
Depending on the day I see 30 - 50 whities (mostly does and fawns) each evening feeding across the road from my place.
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Old 02-17-2019, 10:24 AM
elkhunter11 elkhunter11 is offline
 
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Both mule deer I saw this morning were still antlered.
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Old 02-17-2019, 11:48 AM
pikeslayer22 pikeslayer22 is offline
 
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Still carrying here also
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Old 02-17-2019, 12:06 PM
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Whitetail and moose to still carrying,
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Old 02-17-2019, 12:56 PM
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Some of my coworkers have found deer and moose sheds while out oilffeild surveying, one already in dec( 5 point wt) I have not seen any myself. I have seen some bucks still packing. The deer look to be in decent shape. I would say the winter is average. Have seen bucks with horns till april. -40 takes the joy out of being in the bush.
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Old 02-17-2019, 01:49 PM
Badflies Badflies is offline
 
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Saw a dozen mule deer in lethbridge, antlers on yesterday.
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Old 02-17-2019, 02:10 PM
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A few WT bucks this week seen still have horns attached , N of Edmonton.
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Old 02-17-2019, 03:00 PM
pikeman06 pikeman06 is offline
 
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Same in east central. See bucks every morning and night the odd one with one side but that's about it. I'm sure a few have shed already but I hate making them run as it is when the snow is deep and the does and cows are pregnant. I'll wait until the snow is gone almost this year I think. Lots of bush getting knocked down around here they would have a long run to the next bush in some cases.
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Old 02-17-2019, 06:11 PM
trapperdodge trapperdodge is offline
 
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Saw 2 mules this afternoon. One had both sides the other only one so they must be starting.
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Old 02-17-2019, 07:14 PM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Brock1 View Post
I am shocked to not see a ton of people showing pictures of sheds with the winter we are having.
no one has posted in over 2 weeks on the shed thread.

I am guessing because it has been so cold most have not made it out.

But I would guess with this much snow and this 3 week blast of cold that the deer are dropping early.

anyone else seeing this?

I was in Valleyview country for late season ell on the 18-20th of January and there is damn near 2 feet of snow and it has been cold. Not good.

I even found a fresh elk shed at the bales we hunted.

Winter has not been that harsh...a week or two of -30's and knee deep snow here, we did dip three times to -40 but seen it way worse for 4-6 weeks -30's or colder with deep hard crusted snow now that's hard on'em.
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Old 02-17-2019, 08:27 PM
Koschenk Koschenk is offline
 
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Saw 2 mulies yesterday still packing, moose on cam with one side gone.
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Old 02-17-2019, 08:30 PM
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I’ve been out shed hunting once and found a nice mule shed in the snow. With more snow just fallen it’s gonna be tough to find the rest in the powder.
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Old 02-17-2019, 11:27 PM
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Checked a field today that was absolutely pounded with deer but no bone haven’t seen any bucks packing so not sure if they have shedded yet or not. Also the 3ft of snow doesn’t help to find them either
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Old 02-18-2019, 10:17 AM
calgarychef calgarychef is offline
 
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I saw an absolute pig of a whitetail buck yesterday. Didn’t have my Gino’s but I could see the antlers from a looooonnngg ways off. Guess that guy is still packing.
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Old 02-18-2019, 10:20 AM
Ultimate Predator Ultimate Predator is offline
 
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Found more dead deer then sheds so far
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Old 02-18-2019, 12:32 PM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Ultimate Predator View Post
Found more dead deer then sheds so far
Definitely agree with his found 3 dead deer coyote crap all around each spot.
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Old 02-18-2019, 12:43 PM
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I dont even start getting excited about looking until the middle of march
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Old 02-18-2019, 12:53 PM
HunterDave HunterDave is offline
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The longer that they keep them the healthier they are. This year around here they are very healthy by the looks of it. Whitetail started to drop their antlers a couple of weeks ago and the mulies still have them on. This is a very good sign.
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Old 02-18-2019, 02:57 PM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by HunterDave View Post
The longer that they keep them the healthier they are. This year around here they are very healthy by the looks of it. Whitetail started to drop their antlers a couple of weeks ago and the mulies still have them on. This is a very good sign.


I don't belive this is true, I could be way off base, but it was my understanding Bucks or bulls dropping antlers has to do with a decrease in testosterone to a critical level. Which means that the does in thier area may have all been bread out early in the year. Rather than late.

Saw super healthy looking big thick body bucks all shed south of Calgary. 7 or 8 in a group. Only one that had antlers left was a young spiker
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Old 02-18-2019, 03:55 PM
Jeff336 Jeff336 is offline
 
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Just checked my cameras today and as of yesterday some mulie bucks are still packing out in the mountains. Snow isn’t as deep as I expected. These bucks looked full and healthy. No recent moose or elk pics so can’t speak to them.
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  #22  
Old 02-18-2019, 05:41 PM
HunterDave HunterDave is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by CanadianEh View Post
I don't belive this is true, I could be way off base, but it was my understanding Bucks or bulls dropping antlers has to do with a decrease in testosterone to a critical level. Which means that the does in thier area may have all been bread out early in the year. Rather than late.

Saw super healthy looking big thick body bucks all shed south of Calgary. 7 or 8 in a group. Only one that had antlers left was a young spiker
Yes, shedding antlers is related to testosterone levels but the healthier the buck is the higher his testosterone levels are. That's why you can't pick a week in the year when bucks always shed their antlers.....it varies with the conditions. Some years they start dropping antlers in December, other years they will still have them on in March. One year I found a fresh shed at the end of November. Watch the same herd of deer for a few years and you'll see how it changes.

https://www.wideopenspaces.com/deer-shed-antlers-pics/

"Contributing Factors

Some deer shed their antlers earlier or later than normal depending on different factors. Wounded or injured deer usually cast their antlers earlier than normal because injuries activate the osteoclasts cells early. The same situation goes for deer with declining physical conditions.

Deer that are in good condition, live in a mild climate, and have a high quality habitat will keep their antlers well into the spring months. Deer with poorer conditions, live through harsh winters, and have limited nutrition based on their habitat will shed their antlers earlier."
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  #23  
Old 02-18-2019, 07:47 PM
Zachh1 Zachh1 is offline
 
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Yes, I also saw a whitetail the other day still carrying antlers.
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  #24  
Old 02-19-2019, 08:12 AM
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I checked my cams Saturday, All still carrying. Zero shed bucks on cams. All look to be in great shape, much better then last year.

Some really great bucks made it through the season too!
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  #25  
Old 02-19-2019, 09:10 AM
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Mulie's west of okotoks still carrying.
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  #26  
Old 02-26-2019, 08:18 PM
Cjj Cjj is offline
 
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Live out east of Calgary and I'm starting to see a few that have dropped (in the last week)
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  #27  
Old 02-26-2019, 09:09 PM
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50/50 here, one on, one on the ground...Mulies
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  #28  
Old 02-26-2019, 09:12 PM
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all mulies in city Ive seen still packing , white tails too
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  #29  
Old 02-26-2019, 09:54 PM
Kurt505 Kurt505 is offline
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I seen a one antlered whitetail last weekend north of Westlock, I’m heading back out tomorrow for a few days and I’ll be doing a bit of scouting so I’ll report back on what I see.
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  #30  
Old 02-26-2019, 10:08 PM
LKP.80cal LKP.80cal is offline
 
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Seen a couple muley around red deer, still packing.
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