How to Find Deer Horn Sheds

A stack of shed antlers

While deer hunting season only lasts a few months, the process of tracking and bagging that trophy buck can last all year. After each mating season, bucks shed their antlers. The following spring, their rack will grow back bigger than before. Hunters that find large deer sheds can assume that the previous owner lived through the hunting season and is still residing in the area. As a result, conscientious hunters comb through their hunting grounds in late winter and early spring for such a sign of their dream trophy.

Things You'll Need

• Binoculars
• Hunting dog (optional)

Instructions

Instructions

1. Determine when the rutting season ends in your area. Hunters living in the southern regions of the United States find that the rut ends in late December and early January. Those living in northern regions or Canada find that the rut ends three or four weeks later. Immediately after the rut is the best time to should start looking for shed antlers, although larger bucks may hold onto their antlers until late February or March.

2. Look for shed antlers around your old hunting grounds. Deer typically stay in one area most of their lives, so if you saw deer in that location earlier, chances are they will drop their antlers nearby.

3. Look near food plots, bedding areas, water sources, and along well-traveled game paths. Create a circuit that you can travel during every trip. Try to walk your circuit several times a week, as rodents will consume freshly antlers.

4. Use a hunting camera to discover if deer are still frequenting the area. Move it from week to week to find prime locations for deer activity.

5. Use binoculars to save time, and look unusual protrusions rising out of the brush. Some sheds will be resting out in the open, while others will be mostly buried in leaves or snow.

Alternative: Dog Training

1. Purchase a hunting puppy, such as a Labrador retriever.

2. Give your puppy antler sheds to use as chew toys. This gets your dog used to the smell and taste, which aids in scent identification later on.

3. Play fetch with your puppy using the antler sheds. At first, throw the shed a few feet and say "Find the bone!" Give your dog a small dog biscuit after retrieval. As your dog gets older, throw the shed farther and farther.

4. Hide antler sheds in your yard and tell your dog to "Find the bone!" This develops their ability to find sheds via scent and sight without first seeing you throw them.

5. Take your dog shed hunting. When you see a shed ahead of you, tell you dog to "Find the bone!" If your dog is having trouble, throw a rock near the shed. This will cause your dog to run towards the rock and discover the shed. Eventually your dog will be fetching sheds without any aid from you.

Tips & Warnings

• While shed hunting with your dog, walk into the wind, as this aids your dog in scent identification.

References

• Big Game Hunt: Shed Hunting - In Search of Lost Bone
• North American Whitetail: A Nose for Shed Antlers
• Hunting Blades: Finding Deer Sheds/Antlers
• Buck Manager: Time to Hunt for Deer Sheds
• Deer Hunting Guide: Deer Antler Sheds