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Big Antler Experiment and Results (Picture /Text Rich)

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    #31
    Originally posted by Black Ice View Post
    Great info! I sometimes wonder what the difference would be on my family’s ranch with a high fence without introducing any deer.

    It would be cool to see two different scenarios:

    1. High Fence no new deer no feed other than corn
    2. High Fence no new deer and protein feeding


    Does anyone have any detailed info on the two listed options kinda like the OP posted?

    Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
    #2 is your best option, of course, if you are not going to upgrade genetics.
    You can at least control age of harvest.
    So, according to many on this site, All deer have the same genetic potential.
    If you believe that point of view, which I Do Not then you should be Good to go.
    All you have to do is high fence, feed the hail out of your native deer, and in 9 yrs you will harvest a low to mid 300" buck.

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      #32
      Very good info

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        #33
        Originally posted by bukkskin View Post
        #2 is your best option, of course, if you are not going to upgrade genetics.
        You can at least control age of harvest.
        So, according to many on this site, All deer have the same genetic potential.
        If you believe that point of view, which I Do Not then you should be Good to go.
        All you have to do is high fence, feed the hail out of your native deer, and in 9 yrs you will harvest a low to mid 300" buck.
        I wish there was a way to calculate how much money people spend on protein per inch of growth bucks see due to it.

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          #34
          Cool stuff

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            #35
            Wow. Lots to think on. Thanks.

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              #36
              Originally posted by EastTexasMan View Post
              I wish there was a way to calculate how much money people spend on protein per inch of growth bucks see due to it.
              I would bet on a cost per inch basis it is pretty doggone high..! In this case and I suspect in most if not all others that cost is seen in the pleasure derived from treating the deer well and seeing the results in antler growth. Obviously, it is not what one would consider "cost-effective" but in the same light I think the price we pay for venison might also not be "cost-effective". Yet the pleasure we get from hunting and feeding our family venison does not have a price tag on it either.

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                #37
                Care to share where the original release stock was purchased from and any specific pedigrees utilized?

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                  #38
                  Pretty interesting. Thanks for sharing.
                  I would think that from here on out things would continue to improve in antler size, mortality rates, and age of harvested bucks.

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                    #39
                    Originally posted by Black Ice View Post
                    Great info! I sometimes wonder what the difference would be on my family’s ranch with a high fence without introducing any deer.

                    It would be cool to see two different scenarios:

                    1. High Fence no new deer no feed other than corn
                    2. High Fence no new deer and protein feeding


                    Does anyone have any detailed info on the two listed options kinda like the OP posted?

                    Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
                    I am pretty sure that Marko, Encinal on here, their place is in your #2 category.

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                      #40
                      Originally posted by venado View Post
                      I would bet on a cost per inch basis it is pretty doggone high..! In this case and I suspect in most if not all others that cost is seen in the pleasure derived from treating the deer well and seeing the results in antler growth. Obviously, it is not what one would consider "cost-effective" but in the same light I think the price we pay for venison might also not be "cost-effective". Yet the pleasure we get from hunting and feeding our family venison does not have a price tag on it either.
                      you're spot on. there's nothing cost effective about deer hunting! gotta pay to play!

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                        #41
                        Great info. and thanks a ton for taking the time to share yalls findings.

                        Rwc

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                          #42
                          Great thread, I always enjoy your posts.

                          The mortality subject is an interesting topic.
                          It'll be interesting to look back in a few years to see if future generations have increased survival rates.
                          I think they will, but the brush country is a tough environment.
                          Best of luck.

                          And keep sharing the great pics.

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                            #43
                            Originally posted by STXJunkee View Post
                            Care to share where the original release stock was purchased from and any specific pedigrees utilized?
                            Not wanting to get in the weeds with this, but we studied and looked for deer genetics that was 1/4-1/2 northern (because we did want good mass with a lot of NT extras), and were recognized as consistent antler producers. The does that were purchased had 250” or more bucks in their pedigrees, along with being consistent producers. Just to name a couple, Maxbo and Dreambuck were both in the imported pedigrees.

                            Originally posted by Clark View Post
                            Great thread, I always enjoy your posts.

                            The mortality subject is an interesting topic.
                            It'll be interesting to look back in a few years to see if future generations have increased survival rates.
                            I think they will, but the brush country is a tough environment.
                            Best of luck.

                            And keep sharing the great pics.
                            Thanks to all of you that have provided encouragement and kind words regarding this post. Because of the high fence and imported genetics I anticipated that I was going to get some of the irrational comments that I have seen over the years at TBH, I really appreciate the cordial atmosphere that all of the posts have maintained.

                            It was through photography that I initially got the opportunity to meet this rancher/owner and to get involved in this unusual experiment. I hunted in south Texas and Mexico for about 50 years and seeing a 150 class buck was a real rarity but because a great owner has taken me into his program I have gotten the opportunity to get close to deer that would have been too big for my dreams years ago.

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                              #44
                              Thanks for sharing. Has the owner considered installing a predator apron along the bottom of his HF? The install cost might seem high, but fawn survival should increase and thus, would be cost effective over time.

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                                #45
                                Originally posted by DeerGeek View Post
                                Thanks for sharing. Has the owner considered installing a predator apron along the bottom of his HF? The install cost might seem high, but fawn survival should increase and thus, would be cost effective over time.
                                It certainly would be nice to have a predator barrier, however with 6.5 miles of high fence and quite a number of dry creek crossings, the cost would be prohibitive. The fence is run 3-4 times a month and snares are used at any entry points as needed. Following catches, the entry points are filled with rock available within the ranch. Even with all of this effort, there are a few coyotes that get in but we do not think that they greatly influence fawn survival.
                                Last edited by venado; 04-03-2018, 06:31 PM.

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