Shed Antlers: The Ultimate Tip to Trophy Buck Locations with Bob Zaiglin
Day 5: Bob Zaiglin on Why Becoming a Year-Round Deer Hunter Can Help You Take Trophy Bucks
Editor’s Note: Searching for shed antlers and hunting bucks without a gun when the season is over will help you compile the most-complete information about the whereabouts of deer. Well-known deer manager and writer, Bob Zaiglin of Houston, Texas, a certified wildlife biologist, has overseen numerous Texas ranches through the years. According to Zaiglin, hunting sheds helps you learn where deer are concentrated on any particular piece of property. The area where you find the most sheds will be the regions where you will discover the most deer. Also sportsmen can pinpoint the corridors deer are using to enter agricultural fields to feed, water and bed and the places where the deer are hiding from hunting pressure.
 The outdoorsman who wants to become a trophy hunter and consistently take big deer must learn to hunt all year long and carry his gun into the woods only during hunting season. Not-enough time is available during hunting season in most states for a trophy hunter to unravel the mysteries of the big bucks.  Even if the sportsman does determine what the deer in his area are doing, the season may be over before he has a chance to intercept a buck in the woods. Although deer are not that smart, they have learned to avoid hunters.
 Most always on any given piece of land, a few bucks continually will escape hunters. These deer seem to have a sixth sense about how to avoid hunters. Unless a hunter is willing to hunt trophy bucks all year long, he not only never may find a trophy buck to hunt, but also he'll never develop a strategy for taking that deer. If you truly want to hunt a trophy, the odds of bagging that trophy buck are best for the hunter who makes the commitment to hunt deer all year long.  Shed hunting is an integral part of trophy buck hunting for outdoorsmen who understand what sheds mean, where to look for the sheds, and what to do after they find them.
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