About Ben G. Expertise Any small-game hunting relative to the Eastern United States or big game hunting including whitetail deer, wild boar, and turkey, including calibers, equipment, techniques, whitetail deer rut, etc.
Experience I have hunted whitetail deer since I was 10 years old. I began hunting wild turkeys and wild boar shortly thereafter. An outdoors columnist for a small, weekly newspaper and have written for two print monthly hunting magazines and a variety of online publications.
Organizations Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation, National Rifle Association, National Wild Turkey Federation
Yes, a whitetail doe sure can grow antlers. In fact, it happens more frequently than many people realize.
Some researchers that I have talked to estimate it to occur in only one doe in every 1,000 to 5,000... a very small percentage, but when you estimate how many deer we have on the continent, that adds up to quite a few does sporting antlers!
I actually saw a study from 1985 that was conducted in one of the Canadian provinces that found one in 64 does (eight in 517 does studied) was antlered. There may have been unknown biological factors that caused the number there to be higher.
Of course it's important to note that not all "does" that appear to have antlers are does after all. If a reproductively functional doe has antlers, they will almost always be in velvet. If the antlers are polished, the deer may appear to be a doe but is probably a reproductionally-malfunctioned male deer.
This is because male deer typically have three testosterone surges per year: The first testosterone surge causes their antlers to start growing. The second causes the velvet to start to peel, and the third causes the antlers to fall off in late winter. It is entirely possible for does to have a testosterone surge. There are various causes that biologists have found for this surge: One reason is they may have a tumor, another is that the doe may have a hormone imbalance due to something that went wrong during her first pregnancy. Typically, a fully-functional female deer cannot have that second testosterone surge.
There have also been antlered deer found that were true hermaphrodites.
One thing you'll hear a lot of folks say is that hunters should kill antlered does because they cannot reproduce. This is untrue. An antlered doe is a true rarity, and that makes it a trophy that I'd shoot in a heartbeat, but antlered does can most definitely reproduce and give birth to healthy, normal fawns!
I hope that answers your question. If I can be of any more help, feel free to ask!
