Just when you think you've seen it all, a hunting story comes along and makes you realize you haven't by a long shot.
Philip Chaput harvested a good-sized buck Oct. 27 in North Dakota. It wasn't until the whitetail hit the ground, however, that he realized something pretty bizarre about this deer.
"At first I just thought it was a monster buck. It wasn't until it was dead that I saw it had two heads," Chaput said.
That's right, two heads! It turns out the deer was carting around a dead buck's head that was locked up tight in its antlers.
Chaput wasn't sure if he'd previously seen either of these bucks before they locked up.
One question remains, though. What the heck happened? One possibility is that a particularly vicious fight resulted in the severing of one head. Perhaps a vehicle collision decapitated the one buck, which the live buck discovered and tangled with regardless. Or, maybe a locked-up fight ended with one of the bucks losing its life before coyotes had their way with him.
"The way that he (dead buck) got locked up in the fight, I think it's neck snapped during it," Chaput said. "After that, I think the live deer dragged it around for about two weeks as the severed head was decaying. I think the live deer was looking and found a way to detach the body/deer from itself via barbwire, fence post or tree. The severed head was rotting and had lots of dirt in its open areas."
Whatever the case may be, that sure is something you don't see everyday. Sure, bucks get locked up all the time, but how often does a hunter harvest a deer with a dead buck's head attached?
The memories are certain to last as well. According to a Facebook post, they were unable to separate the racks, so they plan to mount them as is.
This is a cool story, Philip, and most definitely a once-in-a-lifetime experience. Thanks for sharing!
Images Courtesy of Isabella Bopp/Facebook.
Did you enjoy this post? CLICK HERE to view more articles by Justin Hoffman. You can also check out his Photography Site Justin Hoffman Outdoors, as well as follow him on Facebook Justin Hoffman Outdoors, Instagram hoffmanoutdoors, Twitter @HoffmanOutdoors, or subscribe to his YouTube channel Justin Hoffman.
NEXT: 17-YEAR-OLD ARROWS BRUTE OF A BULL ELK FROM 10 YARDS IN OREGON
