kgkoon

I've got a couple of questions for more knowledgable persons:

1. Will young bucks (1 1/2 years old) make rubs, and if so, will they do it profuseley; i.e. is their any difference between young and mature bucks in rubbing activity?

2. Will young bucks continue to roam together during the rut? I saw a spike and a 3 point walking together today, and wondered if young bucks separated during the rut like mature bucks.

Thank you for any information you can provide!

Striper Phil

I don't know but would like the answer to spikes vice older deer.

kgkoon

*shameless bump*
C'mon somebody has to have some information on this!! Thanks.

mugsy

yes young bucks will rub. the main reason bucks rub is to get the velvet off their antlers when it starts to itch. its the same reason you scratch an itch. it feels good. they probably dont rub as much as a big buck because they dont have as big an itch. as for small bucks staying together. i have noticed this too. i think they may run together just because they are young and they feel more comfortable in the company of other deer.

bigcat

I've seen bucks with their first set of spike horns rub, like someone said, to get rid of the velvet. I also got a laugh out of watching this same young buck sparring with a dead cedar bush.

Immature bucks will stay together during the rut, especially if there are a lot of larger, more dominant bucks in the area. This tends to suppress the young bucks' rutting urges.

skeeter 7MM

All buck rubs, naturally. Rubs are used to build up neck muscles, territory and show dominance. They are not done to remove velvet, velvet will just fall off. Velvet is the area in which protects and provides growth to the antler. Once growth cycle is reached, the velvet's blood supply will stop and the velvet will die. While it is true it can be rubbed off, it is pure coincedence..as the loss of velvet is the early stages of Pre-Rut.

Judging rubs to deer size and maturity is somewhat possible, but not an exact science by any means.

Younger deer will tend to:
Attack small sapling and trees
Rub closer to the base of the tree
Make square rubs in shape and hardly get the rap around effect
Their rublines tend to be sparse (hit here, hit there, etc)

Mature deer:
Stages, first the samplings, then smaller trees, then the big stuff as the neck needs more work.
Saplings are snapped off
Rub closer to eye level
Up and down the tree
Rectangular shaped rubs, with more rap around on the tree base
Rublines are very distintive and heavy. (you'll often see several trees in a line or immediate area that mave been worked)
Gauge the rubs by the hieght the reach, look for scrapes with high up snap twigs (or licking branches)

As far as roaming together, i think a lot depends on the herd of a given area. But it is fairly common for the small ones to sort of tag a long with each other...maybe for safety or the old....I don't know what the heck I am doing thing..learning the ropes. A big deer isn't overly concerned with these little guys, once he arrives the only thing that matters is the one that stands his ground...the rest are blurs in his vision. Dominant bucks will resort to fighting as a last ditch effort to win the breed rights. They often hunch and circle, stare and grunt at each other,etc. This is often enough for the littler bucks to "Say No thanks". If a buck approaches a given area sheepish, he either knows a) he's running thin ice or b) he's had his a$$ kicked before. So they very much know the score well prior to the rut being even full bore. This is not to say they don't try or have the urge to breed..they just wait their turn or if an opp. arises they are in. NAother reason why I think the little ones hang together, they may happen upon a hot doe and they then have a chance to breed...provided MR. BIG don't show up uninvited. Cause then it is may the best d!nk win!

Deerhugger11

I'd say skeeter hit it on the nose. I don't think they rub to get the velvet off their antlers. IF it is...then why do they rub for months and on so many trees and why are the so deep in th etree that it leaves a mark (deep grooves and marks)??? If we scrath our head, we don't rip the skin open, we gently rub the area. If a buck was just uding it to get velvet off, there would probably be no marks on the tree, cause the velvet is drying and is brittle and will come off with little resitance.

Why do they rub? To mark teritory and to let other bucks know who's boss. To build up neck muscles id a definate. and to get ready for the rutting fights. They work themselves into a mad rage and it is just like practicing for a fight with another buck.

Please correct me if you think I'm wrong.