Finding Shed Deer Antlers On Our Morning Hike In Southern Vermont

For the last few weeks the dog and I have been following the deer tracks around our place on our morning walks. We’ve spooked a good sized buck twice. This morning we saw some blood along with the tracks and I started to worry about the big fellah. We came around a corner to an uprooted pine and found one of his antlers on the iced over pool that formed in the root ball hole. Before even processing that find, the dog found his other one in a space where he’d bedded down recently. Both antlers still had bright frozen pink blood on their nubs, and no signs of chewing from rodents. I’m guessing he dropped them both last night, or early this morning. Seeing him around was an experience in and of itself, but finding both of his antlers makes it hard to avoid feeling a bond. Will be keeping an eye out for the big fellah all year now, and hoping he does well.