August is a hot month here in Texas. I think just about everywhere it’s a hot month. Summer is getting its last kick in before the seasons start to change. All summer, the bucks have been laying around, getting fat off of the land, just like any other male animal on Earth. Hanging with their fellow males, feeling their antlers growing, looking forward to mating season, THE RUT!
As I write this in late August, antlers are just about finished growing. Care is taken not to damage them in any way while they are still soft. At my lease, we’ve been feeding protein pellets since the end of last deer season – yes, even before they shed their antlers. We strive to have their bodies using all the protein absorption it can, so when the antlers come off, the pedestals are ready for rapid growth.
Something else happens when they shed their antlers – their testicles start to pull up inside of them. This lowers the level of testosterone which decreases the need to compete and fight with their running mates. But as their antlers start to harden, testicles start to drop, they begin producing more testosterone, competitive attitudes start to develop, and the bachelor groups start to break up in the older age groups. From now to February, bucks have one thing and one thing only on their mind, DOES IN HEAT! Proliferation of the species is not a year-around event with whitetails, so they have to get when the getting is good.
Now when the groups start to break up, they start looking for areas where DOES live and travel. They start looking for active trails, make rubs, and they’re in a hurry to do all this. After all, they don’t have a calendar to look at to see when November will get here. All they know is that sometime in the near future, they will start to smell HOT DOES.
I am not a wildlife biologist, just someone who has hunted for 60+ years, spent thousands of hours in deer blinds, watching and waiting for Mr. Right to show up. These are my personal opinions about deer behavior. And you know what they say about opinions…everybody has one, and you know the rest of the saying.
Next month, I’ll fill you in on some of my other observations about the RUT, how it works, and how to make it work for YOU!
Written by Bill Moore, Founder of Hot Trails Scented Hunting Candles