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Old 07-26-2007, 05:16 PM
  #9  
JNTURK
Nontypical Buck
 
Join Date: Feb 2003
Location: ELK GROVE CA USA
Posts: 1,251
Default RE: Genetics conundrum...

Yooper........i was not considering pregnancy risk but more of genetic mutation on the sperm side......as you know both get copied...but he can mate with a young doe wherethen her genes are not as mutated as his........by mutation then that is the risk that his sperm will produce a deer with bad antler growth....the percentages of the mutation i am not sure.....but lets say a deer avg. life span is 9 (for example only).....and he was 7...that would mean he is 77% grown....relate that to a human...if a male human is 77% grown then he is what around 66 or so old....very high risk of getting even a younger female pregnant with the amount of mutated dna in the sperm having something wrong with the offspring...

also note that with even a slight chance of the older buck having any kind of mutation....because of his age he will be getting the does and matting...leaving a mature deer in his prime (3.5-5.5 years old) not mating causing the offspring to have a potential of not having good antler growth...if you owned the business i think you would not want to take that risk..that is probably why he is doing it...........or he just doesn't want to see some 70 year old guy mating with a younger doe??

Josh
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