Spikes and Buttons breeding

[Jesse Jaymes]

I am NOT a whitetail junky or fanatic. But I do shoot them and hunt them. Wanted to ask a general question. This north Idaho and eastern Washington.

I live rural and have 10-15 deer in the yard nightly. We have some funky genetics. Lots of right sides are under developed or melted. And it's on many bucks. Not like an isolated injury causing deformities. Several have f'd up rights.

The most aggressive bucks running the does.....don't even have visible antlers. Had a button chasing deer all over for hours. I would guess he's breeding them?

Same with a melted horn spike. He's pushing does all week.

Wasn't until last night we had a Gagger buck mixed in. He wasn't pushing anyone around. He was lurking outside the group. He showed up out of nowhere. Never say him until three days ago.

Hunting northern Idaho last night. I've seen two shooter bucks in two weeks. I couldn't get on either of them. Here and gone over 1000 yards in a few minutes. Never stopped. Same spot yesterday I saw 4 different bucks. Two were spikes...tongues hanging out their mouths and does' mouths. The other two cruising and pushing were forks.

Do these bucks get to breed? Or is there a Gagger hanging out somewhere kicking their ass before they can mount a doe?

I obviously know about zero on true rut cycles....only third week of November in my area....shit gets real

 

[Rich M]

Any buck a doe will stand still for will mount a doe.

It is all the same genetics - that little spike might be a big 10 pt in 4 years. Plus the does provide 50% of the genetics too.

 

[dr.mooseknuckles]

What's a gagger?

I thought that meant something else.

I've seen much younger bucks chasing does, can't say that I've seen a button head do it, but definitely spikes and fork horns.

 

[Jesse Jaymes]

Jaw Dropper....Shooter....Scoreable Buck...

 

[dr.mooseknuckles]

Jaw Dropper....Shooter....Scoreable Buck...

Got ya. I though that was a salacious female

 

[BBob]

In Coues deer land the small bucks run around and harass does all the time. The big boys show up when the doe is ready and run the little guys off. Do the little guys get a chance to breed? Of course they get some but they’re dumb and chase after the does a lot of the time when they’re not fully in estrus. The big boys tend to be a little smarter and play it a little safer and show up when it’s actually go time. I’ve watched big bucks leave a doe for the day to go off and hide and come back to that doe later in the evening.

 

[camping1601]

In Coues deer land the small bucks run around and harass does all the time. The big boys show up when the doe is ready and run the little guys off. Do the little guys get a chance to breed? Of course they get some but they’re dumb and chase after the does a lot of the time when they’re not fully in estrus. The big boys tend to be a little smarter and play it a little safer and show up when it’s actually go time. I’ve watched big bucks leave a doe for the day to go off and hide and come back to that doe later in the evening.

Same for WT's. Young bucks will harass does into hiding.

 

[3855WIN]

A yearling buck is like a teen boy. Lots of running around with no plan. They will breed when given the opportunity. Also, a doe can be bred by multiple bucks. A whitetail isn’t like an elk where they gather up a harem. They stick with a doe for 1-2 days, then move on. During peak rut, this allows opportunity for young bucks.

 

[dtrkyman]

I have seen a 140" deer ram a 4 point, sorry forky off a doe while he was trying to get some!

The big boys are definitely more reserved than the little guys until the time is right, but if you have a really high deer population in a rural area there may well be too many does for the big boys to keep up!

 

[magnum44270]

Small bucks will chase does first, wasting energy, the good bucks will not come in or show interest until the does are ready….

 

[Honyock]

Older does usually don't put up with young bucks chasing them around and they run the small bucks off. I watched an old doe put a beat down on a spike this year.