Whitetail Tooth Aging Results came in

[DPHunter4570]

Some of you might find this interesting. I made it a point to send the teeth off for aging for all the older bigger bucks killed by our group this year. I sent them off to Montana to Wildlife Analytical Labs for their cementum annuli aging. I've used them before for a black bear, its quite easy. I sent 5 bucks off total, but I thought I'd post the most interesting one up here.

This was a big old buck that I had a few trail cam pics of last year, and just a few this year. He was an old bruiser with a great rack, worn down, skinny, with little teeth left. It was hard to get the incisors out for aging, they were just little nubs! Its no wonder he only weighed 166 pounds dressed, he could hardly eat. Have to assume he wouldn't have survived another winter. This buck would have been over 200 in his prime. A great buck to take, like many, the rut got him. He stepped out right before dark on opening night of Illinois gun season and one of the guys got him.

Ended up being aged at 8.5 years old. For around here on these heavily pressured areas, that is pretty darn old for a whitetail deer. Very interesting and neat to know. Definitely worth the money and I'll keep doing it each year as we get more and more into being selective and growing bigger deer here on our property.

The trail camera picture is this buck back in 2022. you can see how his main beams started drooping down, pretty cool. I wish it was going to my wall, but glad it was one of our hunters in camp that got him!

 

[wildwilderness]

That’s a nice old buck to take. Definitely not getting any bigger

 

[HuntingGold]

Old deer, regardless of antler size have earned my respect. That is a nice deer and my hat is off.

 

[deewayne2003]

That’s a nice old buck to take. Definitely not getting any bigger

Agreed

I just sent off 75 jaw bones to Oklahoma department of wildlife; we have to send in 1/2 the lower jaw for every doe we take as part of the states DMAP program.