Scouted...Unique Deadhead!

[BA-IV]

A buddy and I scoured pretty hard today in the rain and happened up on this skull. I would probably shoulder mount a crazy deer like this, I've always wanted a gnarly horned freak deer on the wall! Any guesses on age, no bottom jaws found.







[ Post made via iPhone ]

[rbuckleyjr1]

Neat looking rack. Looks like something out of a Tim Burton movie.

[Jackson Marsh]

That hook looks awesome! I have no guess on age.

[ Post made via Android ]

[rff]

Very cool! Great photos.. Thanks for sharing.

[ Post made via Android ]

[Peeps22]

Half whitetail half antelope. Nice find!

[ Post made via Android ]

[Hawthorne]

Cool find! Amazing it kept its color. Usually get dulled. I saw a deer like that one year multiple times didn't want to waste a buck tag on him. He had one normal side and a hook on the other. My buddy named him Captain Hook cause i saw him so much

[ Post made via iPhone ]

[muddy]

I'd say 3 or 4 years old.

[ Post made via Android ]

[hunter_mike]

That is cool, beautiful rack too.

[ Post made via Android ]

[Bonecrusher101]

Welcome to the freak show! That's old gnarly Charlie!

[ Post made via iPhone ]

[Outdoor814]

That's pretty wild, congrats on an awesome find!

[ Post made via Android ]

[vtbuck]

That is cool! A nice piece for in a man cave or cabin.

[ Post made via iPhone ]

[Florida-East]

My first thought was that it is a young deer just based on the height of those crest, particularly the first and second molar, though that being the upper jaw, those crest do not always wear the same. That premolar looks pretty worn, though that can start happening as early as 1.5. Can you take an additional photo looking straight at the bite surface of the teeth? I will post a photo of an example of a 1.5 y/o that I have for a comparison

[Florida-East]

Here is the angle that would be most helpful.

Here is an example of a 1.5 y/o, which was my first recovered deer (It still pains me to think about the handful of deer I shot with a bow when I first started hunting and didn't recover, or recovered days later).

As you can see in this photo, that first premolar is very worn, but is still a very young deer. The lower jaws are far more telling of age, but the top jaws can give away some secrets.

[vermonthunter16]

I was thinking the same thing about half antelope. Real cool looking rack. I love the freaky bucks.

[BA-IV]

I'll get a picture of the bottom this evening, I appreciate the help.

Now is the question I been running through my head...Did he die in his bed? It was raining and has been for weeks here in Louisiana so it's impossible to find any sign except for old rubs which I didn't find any in this particular area. It's about 200 yards behind a subdivision and cut in half by an extremely narrow deep creek that's hard to cross. I just may ease in there and throw a stand at it early season, because in mind someone shot this buck and was never recovered. They weren't hunting anywhere close to this place or they'd have found him fairly easy like I did, so I'm thinking he was headed or in his bedding area.