Question:
According to Woody's take on deer reproduction, those does would
either go into estrus again the following month and be impregnated,
or would go into estrus every month or so without getting pregnant,
driving the bucks into emaciation through repeated rutting. Which
is it?
Answer:
Not necessarily. Estrus is light driven. If it's past the light cycle
which triggers it, then they won't go into estrus. PLEASE try reading
the literature, there's tons of it out there which can tell you a vast
amount of information about Whitetail deer.
If the doe miscarries or absorbs the fetus (very rare occurance, btw)
it would have to be soon enough for the light season to trigger breeding
again.
As for the bucks getting worn down, that can happen pretty darned fast if
they are constantly fighting and chasing does. Besides, you missed the
ENTIRE point of Woody's post. He was explaining to you that it would be
useless to sterilize only the dominant bucks, because as long as there was
ONE buck left, that would be the one who ended up dominant after the others
wore out.
The does WILL keep cycling until they are bred, but only through a certain
period. By the time they are all bred, the weather is getting quite severe.
They generally have fawns in April/May/June, depending on the area where they
live. Older does who don't breed, aren't cycling.
