I think he was 6.5 as last year I thought 5.5, but that is why I am so anxious to see the jaws.
Whatever his age, what would be the expectations of the deer surviving normally?
That really depends on the area of the state, natural food availabe, predators, and ratio/density of the herd. 7-8 yrs of age is pretty much normal for most areas of the state. Some more and some maybe a yr or so less. I have seen an article about a buck in McMullen that live to be 21 or 22 yrs of age and he was born in the wild. I have seen a doe in La Salle that had a radio collar on her that would have made her no less than 14 yrs old at the time. She was caught on a larger LF ranch somewhere from '84 to '86 and if she was caught the last year as a fawn she was no less than 14 yrs old. I have seen bucks that I thought could be 10.5 yrs on on this same pasture. I killed bucks that had no teeth left.