Do you shed hunt? If so, you are already out putting boots on the ground searching for brown gold. If you're not, you should be getting ready to hit the ground running in the next couple of weeks as more and more deer are dropping their antlers throughout the country. Here are six tips that will help you find more sheds this year.
- Search for sheds around food sources. This is a no brainer. If food is concentrated, the deer will be concentrated. So, bucks and does will be using the same food sources, making feeding areas a prime location to shed hunt!
- Search near bedding areas. In these winter months, deer are likely to stick near their bedding areas the majority of their time and only moving to feed. Find the bedding area, which is typically on higher ground and comprised of shrubby, thick vegetation, and do a thorough search for dropped antlers. Be careful as to not educate bucks too much on your presence and entry/exit paths.
- Look for sheds after a snowfall. Let's face it. Shed hunting is hard because you never know the exact route a deer is taking. Well, after it snows, you can follow that exact path! Use snow to your advantage and follow deer trails near buck bedding and feeding areas. You will be surprised at what you will find.
- Search areas where deer have to jump. Deer are constantly jumping over fences and logs. These are perfect areas to search for sheds, because every time a deer jumps and lands, there's a good chance their antlers will come off.
- Look in brushy areas where there is an abundance of overhanging vegetation. Rubbing "loose" antlers on overhanging vegetation is a very popular method for shedding antlers among White-tailed Deer. Find those thick bedding areas and the paths leading in and out of them and I bet you'll turn up a few sheds.
- Finally, do not mess everything up for next season. As always, be conscientious of your scent and do everything you can to eliminate human scent when shed hunting. Rubber boots are an effective, first line approach to reducing human scent when shed hunting.
That's a wrap on 6 Essential Tips for White-tailed Deer Shed Hunting! Do you have a go-to tip? If so, please let us know in the comments below.