Wisconsin Deer Hunting

Antlers: Not Just for Deer Anymore

All North American deer sport antlers; these antlers are grown and shed by the bucks of each species. They grace the wall of many whitetail hunters as well as others. How many uses are there for deer antlers? We will look into that as well as how they grow and what purpose they serve for the maker, the deer!

Whitetail bucks re-grow their antlers every year. In the late spring, the antlers will be covered in a thick tissue known as velvet. The antlers begin growing toward the back of the head, then abruptly change direction, and sweep forward. Antlers are actually bone and are one of the fastest growing substances in the world. Antlers can grow as fast as ½ an inch per day and are extremely sensitive at first.

The velvet is actually an organic live tissue that supports the antlers growth by aiding the supply of vitamins and nutrients the antlers need. After about two to four months, the velvet is no longer needed so a ring forms at the base cutting off the blood supply so that the velvet dies. At this point, the velvet begins to be shed and is aided by the bucks rubbing their heads against trees and saplings. Though bucks under two years of age generally have button or spike antlers this is not a hard and fast rule.

Shedding of the antlers begins in later winter for extreme northern states and will occur later in southern states. The shed process only takes about three weeks and occurs after the deer no longer need the horns to attract a mate or fight off rivals.

There are a few misconceptions about antlers among people in general but especially in the hunting community. Many people will use the term horn and antler interchangeably when they are in fact different. Antlers are dead bone that grow and are shed and then re-grown. They grow from pedicles on the head and are branched with the exception of spikes.

However, horns are living bone covered in layers of skin. They are not shed and will continue to grow throughout an animals, like bighorn sheep, lifetime. They are a permanent fixture and are not branched.

As stated above many people believe that the size of whitetails antlers determines his age. However, antler production is dependent upon nutrition and the whitetails genetic makeup, so it is conceivable that an older buck could have a small or spike rack. Good nutrition includes access to a high protein diet and little competition for resources.

We now know what antlers are, how they grow and what the deer need them for. Now do antlers have any good uses for humans? Well, yes actually they do. From décor to some herbal remedies, it appears that deer antlers are indeed useful to us.

We have all seen the movies with the older Asian woman grinding powders and offering what seems to be mystical powders to customers, only for them to find out it was powdered bull testicles? Well it seems that some believe that there is a medicinal purpose for ground up deer antlers. In northern Maine, a farm of privately owned deer and elk receives nearly one third of their income from ground deer antlers. The powder is placed into capsules and the users swear that they feel 100% better. Everything from arthritis pain to muscle growth has been attributed to its use.

Other uses include an art called turning. This is where a material is placed on a turner and a lathe used to shave away layers and display the beauty underneath. Many materials can be used to make many things from small pens to large bowls. An expert in the field said that the first material he ever turned was a whitetail deer shed antler that a friend had given him. He used the small areas near the point for pens and the larger parts for things like letter openers and magnifying glass handles. The finish you can achieve depends on how deeply you turn the antler. Lightly turned near the surface can give it a polished marble or head a little deeper into the soft part of the antler and get a granite finish.

Large racks have also been mounted and used as cap racks or coat racks. People have been doing that for years and it seems like the idea has caught on. There are sites on the internet where you can find almost anything made out of whitetail deer antlers. There are beautiful clocks and mirrors as well as candleholders and fireplace toolsets! Not to mention cabinet doorknobs, knife handles and beauty combs.  Seems like the only limits are in the imagination.

The grand champion has to be the whitetail deer antler chandelier. You have seen them in movies like the Scorpion King but were you aware you could purchase one for your very own? What humble abode would not be dressed up by such a display? These chandeliers are built using many shed antlers gathered or purchased from private farms. Multiple level chandeliers are made as well as a single.  The can be lighted by candleholders attached to the antlers or wired to make a stunning light fixture. You will feel like you are at a comfort lodge with one of these beauties.

Whatever your heart desires there is a use for harvested whitetail deer antlers. Make them a conversation piece for the dining room table or increase your health it is all up to you. You could even make some cash on the side if you live in an area with a large whitetail population. Take a walk in the woods and pick up the shed antlers then put them on eBay! Everyone knows if it is worth having you can find it there.

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