It's a long video but neat to watch. The two bucks obviously locked in a fight and the one didnt make it. Lucky for the one buck these two guys gave it there best and cut him free http://www.fieldandstream.com/blogs...drowns-rescued-hunters-rowboat?src=SOC&dom=fb
Great to see an effort to save the buck. Unfortunate truth is that buck was so stressed from dragging the other around and trying to free itself that it is more likely to die than to survive after being freed. That was before being hit in the antlers 10-15 times with a sledgehammer! That part made me wonder about the entire process. Deer die from septic shock as a result of this type of stress. Similar to fighting off other bucks for 3-4 weeks during the rut, the bucks are not resting, feeding or drinking as they should. This combined with extreme physical actions like fighting and making whoopee, and the muscle breakdown occurs so quickly that the liver can't cleanse the blood of the debris resulting from the muscle damage. That is when septic shock occurs, and death follows. I saw a fantastic documentary where a buck was tracked using hundreds of cameras during the rut. It was a dominant buck that was older and over the course of the show, he guarded his does day and night. Great footage and an unbelievable animal to boot. He did not survive that year's rut cycle. No mortal wounds from fighting, just septic shock.
Do you remember the name of that documentary? Sounds very interesting. The buck I shot last year was rutting hard and had 0 food in him...and almost no stored fat. One track mind I reckon. He might not have made it through the winter.
