Posted: 4/19/2026 7:17:04 PM EDT
| So we just got a picture on one of our trail cameras and it shows a young buck with what appears to be antlers in velvet. They are just a little shorter than ear length. I didn't expect to see antlers at all at this time of year and definitely not in velvet. Is this a thing? I'll try to post a picture if I can but that'll be a bit. |
| I've seen some antler growth just as you described in my area, it's normal. The bucks did seem to retain their antlers later than usual this year though, I saw some that still had last years antlers into early February of this year. Most have dropped by mid January. |
Life's battles don't always go to the stronger or faster man. In the end, the one who wins is the one who thinks he can! - SCI, NRA
Team Ranstad
Team Ranstad
| A bit off your topic, but do y'all see many piebald deer? They say they're more frequent in the southeast. We have a small herd of them that we see on our dog walks up here in the pacific northwest. We see them about every three years. First time we came upon them I thought they were elk. We walked up to them and were only 6 feet away. We just saw them this week. It feels the same when I see an eagle. |
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Originally Posted By im_monster_man: A bit off your topic, but do y'all see many piebald deer? They say they're more frequent in the southeast. We have a small herd of them that we see on our dog walks up here in the pacific northwest. We see them about every three years. First time we came upon them I thought they were elk. We walked up to them and were only 6 feet away. We just saw them this week. It feels the same when I see an eagle. I've seen one in ~20 years of hunting. |
TEAM GIMMICK 2026
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Originally Posted By TinSpinner: I've seen some antler growth just as you described in my area, it's normal. The bucks did seem to retain their antlers later than usual this year though, I saw some that still had last years antlers into early February of this year. Most have dropped by mid January. I noticed this too. There were bucks on my place that still had their antlers until the beginning of April. |
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Originally Posted By im_monster_man: A bit off your topic, but do y'all see many piebald deer? They say they're more frequent in the southeast. We have a small herd of them that we see on our dog walks up here in the pacific northwest. We see them about every three years. First time we came upon them I thought they were elk. We walked up to them and were only 6 feet away. We just saw them this week. It feels the same when I see an eagle. I’ve been hunting pretty since 1990. The first deer I shot was a piebald. I haven’t seen one since. |
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Originally Posted By im_monster_man: A bit off your topic, but do y'all see many piebald deer? They say they're more frequent in the southeast. We have a small herd of them that we see on our dog walks up here in the pacific northwest. We see them about every three years. First time we came upon them I thought they were elk. We walked up to them and were only 6 feet away. We just saw them this week. It feels the same when I see an eagle. There is a piebald at my place, a doe that is probably 3-4 years old. She isn't as abnormally colored as some I've seen pics of but still very unique. The white belly hair goes about 1/3 of the way up one side with a few white spots above it and a few spots on the other side, also a few white patches on her face. I haven't seen any piebald offspring from her though and I know she has had several fawns. |
Life's battles don't always go to the stronger or faster man. In the end, the one who wins is the one who thinks he can! - SCI, NRA
Team Ranstad
Team Ranstad
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Thanks. I've never seen a piebald in the wild, just in pictures. Are there real world advantages to putting mineral blocks out for deer? I don't have any experience with them and I've heard some say "yes" and others "no". How about feeders? The people who used to hunt our property, before finding out someone else owned it now, had feeders out there so I'm curious if we should do it as well. It's another thing I have no experience with. Since we will be completely moved in long before deer season there shouldn't be anything to screw this season up (in theory anyway) so I will definitely be hunting this year. |