7 yr old Colorado buck

VANDAL

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Feb 29, 2012
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Here is a pic of my 2011 Colorado buck I just got back from the taxi- 188" with a 31" outside spread. I also submitted the bottom jaw to Robby at WeScout4U to get him aged...the results came back and he was 7 years old. Knowing the age of this buck really topped off a tough hunt and great experience. This buck survived years of hunters and predators, not to mention the brutal winter of 2008. I would defintely recommend aging your bucks or bulls- without lab data you can guess at a bucks age based on a variety of charactoristics but there is no sure way to judge a bucks age.

I love Colorado!

DSCN0642.jpg
 

robby denning

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Thanks Vandal! Glad you liked the aging service. The great thing about your buck is that even though all of Colorado is a draw, the unit you killed him in is not a premium unit, almost OTC, which makes the buck all the more special. Good job.

For anyone wondering about accurate lab aging, here is the link. Always save your lower jaw bones on your best animals, you never know when you might want to age them- I've sent jawbones in years after they were killed.

http://wescout4u.com/how-big-is-my-buck/

The oldest animal we've aged in 14 years of operation was a 10 year old buck killed in 2010, and from all places: Northern Utah.
 
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twp1224

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Feb 27, 2012
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nice buck...I wonder if he was on the decline and would have been bigger earlier in his life?
 

robby denning

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twp1224, according to most biologists, that buck would have been in his prime and that likely was his best rack he'd grow. That's what's neat about aging them, you know when they are at their (likely) prime.
 

Jared Bloomgren

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My muley that I got this last December was guessed to be that old as well. Hard to know for sure without having the test results done.
 

robby denning

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Jared, that is what I learned when we started sending in jawbones for testing. I could tell a 2 year old from a 6 year old, but outside of that, no way. Once they hit 4 years, it's tough to age them from a 9 year old.

Killed a Colorado buck with a 360 pound weight (on a certified truckers scale), worn teeth, split ears, scars, heavy (6" bases) and was sure he was nearing end of his life.

NOT, lab results came back and he was 6 years. Probably hadn't even grown his best rack yet and may have approached 400 pounds in his prime.
 
D

david long

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nice buck...I wonder if he was on the decline and would have been bigger earlier in his life?
Over the years I have filmed numerous bucks for pretty much their entire lives. Most bucks I filmed grew their first good rack at around 4.5 years of age and then were in their prime between the ages of 5.5 - 8.5 years of age. Four good sets of antlers would be about all you could get and they wouldn't show up the next year.
 

robby denning

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David is right, that age class is where I've seen the best antlers in the deer we've aged at the lab.
 
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