Need Advice on Exotics

[Mallard06]

Want to take my son on a hunt for his birthday

Target species would be trophy Axis and/or Black Buck

Looking at OX Ranch or something similar. All inclusive with other fun things to do like fishing etc.

Questions are:

What time of year is best to get a hard horned Axis? I’ve heard they shed periodically through the year.
And with Black Buck, when is best to get the black cape. I’ve always heard February/March

And lastly, any input on OX Ranch would be appreciated or somewhere similar or better

[hully1029]

No idea on OX Ranch, but depending on your location - check into T4 Exotics.

http://discussions.texasbowhunter.com/forums/showthread.php?t=675262

[Hawkpuppy 1]

West Kerr Ranch

[kenforu]

Double TT ranch off highway 41 great exotics nice place no fishing though.

[PROD49]

I've hunted a few of these ranches. YO I've been going to for 40 years and even have a Gold BB from there. Lately been a fan of Timberlake. Travis and family are so personal and you see a lot of game and I shot a beautiful Sika there. Saw lots of incredible fallow.

Want to take my son on a hunt for his birthday

Target species would be trophy Axis and/or Black Buck

Looking at OX Ranch or something similar. All inclusive with other fun things to do like fishing etc.

Questions are:

What time of year is best to get a hard horned Axis? I’ve heard they shed periodically through the year.
And with Black Buck, when is best to get the black cape. I’ve always heard February/March

And lastly, any input on OX Ranch would be appreciated or somewhere similar or better

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[Grady_jones]

the ox ranch is really fun great hunting and fishing.

[BOBSTER]

T4 Exotics is a great place, and with great accommodations. You will need to provide your own food, but there is fishing on the ranch. Axis are good right now.

[rtp]

Lazy J ranch near Normangee/Hilltop has it all. Might want to look them up and contact them.

[cj_sandman]

Blackbucks I believe are darkest between July and Sept and very light by April.

I was also told that if there are several males, the most dominant one will go darkest and the non-dominant males will be lighter than him.

[dope hunter]

Dont quote me on this, but I've been told BB get darker with age. That is why young BB males look a lot like females and eventually get darker.

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[Blackmouth]

I was one of the biologists at Flying A in Bandera for several years. The dominant blackbucks were darkest in late winter, could expect anything over 16" straight tape to be considered trophy at the time (early 2000's).

The axis would have hard antler right around now, this time of year was the peak breeding season. They bred year around as a population but right now was the prime.

They had fishing that you could do from the lodge or pay to fish one of the lakes on the ranch. Bandera also has several things to see on the weekends.

[diamond10x]

Take him to the OX and I bet he’d rather shoot the Sherman tanks than an exotic...

[Travis22]

Thank you peter. Hope all is well with the new ranch. Let me know if you need anything

[AntlerCollector]

Summertime is the best time for both animals. No idea where you live, but look at Diamond C also. I killed a nice Blackbuck there and saw some really good Axis

[Shane]

The summer axis rut is on the downswing now. Most of the remaining bucks on our place have broken tines. They fight a LOT. There are other bucks that are in velvet that will shed out in a month or two though. Biggest part of them are hard antlered in the summer though, and the main rut is June - August. Best time to get them before they get busted up is in May/June. There will always be some with hard antlers here and there at all times of the year though.

I've only killed one blackbuck. He is was pretty black. Had a few brown specks on his butt, but black everywhere else. Killed him on November 30th a couple years ago. My dad killed a bigger one on the same day that was jet black.