5 years ago I shot a bull on Mt. St. Helens with the right antler curved back at a funny hook. A 3 point antler on the left. Last year I shot a bull with a soft, bloody antler on one side, a 3x3. Neither bull displayed any sign of hoof rot.
After I saw that bloody, soft antler I did some researching, reading in my North American Elk: Ecology and Management book. I read that often times a 2.5 year old bull will have this same soft antler, this is found in elk all over North America. This is what I found: The 2 year old bulls start growing antlers later than the more mature bulls. When the antler growth stops the elk needs two full weeks of time for the antler to harden before rubbing the velvet off. At this time the testosterone levels increase in preparation for the rut. With the 2.5 year old bulls the testosterone will cause them to start rubbing antlers prior to the full two week hardening period is over, causing the end of the antler to be soft and porous (and full of blood with my bull last year) and easily break off during the rubbing process.
