Originally Posted by
deernutz
......What puzzles me is he was born with the same genetics and will die with the same genetics. If he was a stud at 4 and a rag horn at 7. What does it matter if he breeds. He's still passin on the stud genes even if he looks raggy at 7.
Must be part of the shoot all the spikes logic!!!!
I agree 100%. IMHO, If he was truly a stud when younger, he will pass on his genes no matter when he mates with a doe. As the buck gets older he will reach a time in his life when his antler development will begin to slow. This was the case when my buddy shot the biggest deer any of use have ever taken. The buck dressed at 269 pounds but had 11 small, thin points. The buck was aged at 9+ years. Very old for a deer in our part of the country. If he could have successfully bred a doe at that age, I am sure his genes would have been passed on.
As far as the spike logic...young bucks may often have only spikes when they're yearlings. Most all the spikes we have taken were only a year and a half old. Very rarely will we see a mature buck with only spikes.