AND SOME PEOPLE CALL THIS THE 'OFF' SEASON!

Deer hunting season may be many months away but right now is perhaps the most important time of year for making those dreams of trophies come true.
  
This time of year I try to console myself and cope with my bowhunting withdrawal by dreaming of the season to come a half-year hence.  Visions of older, larger bucks course through my mind, seemingly unbidden.  Maybe this is what they mean when they tell me I'm obsessed with deer.

But I just can't help but think of the 21 bucks we saw and chose not to shoot last fall.   About six of those bucks appeared to be 2 ½ years or older.  One was at least 3 ½ years old but did not offer a reasonable shot.  Now, if just half of the 2 ½ year-olds survive this winter then we can expect to see at least 3 new 3 ½ year-olds this coming fall.  And if that 3 ½ year-old, that eluded me like a celebrity fleeing paparazzi, manages to survive this winter he'll almost certainly be a buster this fall. 

All these dreams and schemes can be made much more likely by providing a conscientious nutrition program for deer.  Deer hunting season may be many months away but right now is perhaps the most important time of year for making those dreams of trophies come true. 

Given the nature of the antler growth cycle, February and March are the key months to establish your Antler King Trophy Deer Mineral licks and to ensure an abundant source of high protein feed with Antler King Trophy Deer/Elk Pellets. 

You can only influence antler growth from about February until the end of August.

If you wait until April, May or even June you are simply missing out on some of the most critical opportunity to develop the largest racks.  You'll no doubt start noticing bucks casting their antlers in late January and February.  This is a sign that the new year's growth is underway. 

Physiologically, there is no downtime between shedding and commencing the new growth.

Even though it may seem like buck's antler growth is dormant for a couple months there is a lot going on that will determine how big they'll be come fall.  In fact, deer's bodies begin re-distributing nutrients shortly before they even shed their past year's rack.  For this reason it is imperative to provide mineral supplements and high-protein feed right now to make the most of the "window of opportunity" in the antler growth cycle.

If you have a winter pellet feeding program on your property you should be switching from your high-energy menu to your high-protein menu in early February.  This means if you've been blending corn and oats with protein pellets since late fall, you should be phasing out the corn/oats and feeding straight pellets from now until spring green-up.  After spring green-up you can let your Antler King Trophy Clover food plots provide for the protein requirements.  A diet of at least 18% protein (remember this must be protein sources digestible by deer) is needed to maximize antler development.  Protein is also critical to the reproductive cycle.  A pregnant doe's protein levels directly determine the mortality rate of her fawns.  If pregnant does eat a diet with a protein level similar to corn they can expect to lose between 27 and 42% of their fawns. 

If you haven't already done so, now is the time for you to get those mineral supplement licks going.  Deer like and utilize minerals all year round but around the beginning of February they absolutely crave the stuff.  This is because their bodies are telling them that they need to allocate an abundance of specific minerals to stimulate maximum antler growth and for does to give birth to more and healthier fawns. 

At a rate of at least one lick site per 40 acres of deer cover, you'll want to set these licks up in areas currently being used by deer.  I like to put out several extra lick sites per 40 acres and then let the deer tell me which sites they prefer.  I'll concentrate on those sites for the balance of the antler growth cycle right on through August. 

Another great pleasure in having a winter feeding and mineral program is staying in touch with the woods and the deer.  I learn more about their habits, see evidence of movement patterns when they are most obvious in the snow and get to hunt for shed antlers. 

Shed hunting has become a much-anticipated part of my year round "deer hunt".  A winter feeding program makes shed hunting considerably easier and more exciting.  Generally, unless otherwise disturbed, deer will spend 90-95% of their time in close proximity to their primary food source.  Usually in winter this means a range of a half-mile to as little as a couple hundred yards from the feed.  We do our shed hunting by following the obvious trails from the feeders back toward the bedding areas.  Try not to penetrate the bedding areas so as not to disperse the deer.  You'll be pleasantly surprised at how many sheds you'll find right near the feeding areas!

Cure your cabin fever and take a hands-on approach to growing this fall's trophy buck right now with a winter feeding and mineral program.  This fall you'll be glad you did!

Craig R. Johnson
Antler King Trophy Products Inc.

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