Antlers

[Giggles]

I was talking antler grow with a friend who is just getting into archery, and came across a question that I'm not sure of, so here it is:  For the very few bucks that do not drop their antlers in late winter, will they drop off when the new growth begins or is there not any new growth and they are what they again for that year too?

[MtnMuley]

Deer do not drop their horns because of new growth.  They just drop their horns later on into the spring.  Different areas throughout the state drop at different times.  There are some cases of he/she deer (nutless freaks/does with horns) that don't drop their horns or ever rub off the velvet, but this is rare.

[jgrimes]

When a buck's testosterone levels drop to a certain level their antlers are shed. Disease and/or poor nutrition will have a buck shedding his head gear earlier as they play a part in testosterone levels. There's a lot of info out on the web about antlers and the science behind them. Have fun learning!