How fast is deer velvet?

In fact, deer velvet seems more like science fiction than real life. They are bones that grow outside the mammalian body and each year they fall and continue to grow again. For white-tailed deer, at the height of growth, velvet will increase by 0.6 cm daily; For elk is nearly 2.6cm.

Imagine that one spring morning, you wake up and have two bones growing out of your forehead. In about a week, they will be 18 cm long, and two weeks later, you get caught up in everything while moving. Although there is still a lot to learn about deer velvet, this is some secret about the development of deer horns and what is needed to make them so big.

The pair of deer velvet only grows in males that do not grow in females, the selection in nature makes the stag must have unparalleled strength and valiant horns, sure to attract females to maintain the race.

Why do deer have velvet?

Pair of deer velvet only grows in males that do not grow in females.

Before going into the strong development of deer antler, we should know: white-tailed deer, elk . and many other animals around the globe are part of the deer family called Cervidae. . Male "Cervids" evolved to have horns, but not like horns, which were developed from bone and shedding and then grew back every year for a continuous cycle. Mostly, they are made up of living tissue while horns are made from dead-like nail tissue called "keratin" and remain attached to animals year after year.

Deer horns grow like?

The answer is short and simple , a combination of nutrition, genetics and age , but a bit more complicated than that. The perfect combination of these elements is difficult to track, but when the right formula is available, the horns will grow unusually large.

1. Nutrition

The better the living environment, the bigger it will be. As a general rule, protein-rich roughages contribute enormously to the development of velvet. According to the MSU Laboratory and a study from Texas, with a 16% protein diet, horn growth was twice that of an 8% protein diet.

Seasonal changes and precipitation will also affect protein levels in roughage, and supplemental feeding is often used to support horn growth.

2. Gene

What we know is that, like other animals, both parents play an equally important genetic role. Genetics will determine the shape and size of velvet, and studies have shown that large velvet is genetic.

However, other external factors also greatly affect the growth of deer velvet.

3. Age

Like the best things in life, they become bigger over time. White-tailed deer usually reach their peaks at four to six years of age, and for elk, they are usually eight to twelve years old.

How big deer velvet?

Male Cervids have two soft spots on the skull called the stalk . In spring or early summer, two small clumps form in the stalk and are covered in a sensitive skin called velvet. But surrounded by blood vessels, carrying oxygen and nutrients needed for growth. Velvet grows like cartilage and then calcifies into hard bones.

Male Cervids have two soft spots on the skull called the stalk.

During the velvet stage, cervids try to avoid contact with their horns with everything. Injuries on other parts of the body, such as the legs, can also affect the development of velvet. After the velvet is fully developed, it is cut off from the blood supply, and dried.

The connection between the stalk and the horn gradually weakens, and often in the winter, after mating, the horn falls off. After a few weeks, the cycle starts again.

Development cycle of deer horns

April to May (spring)

The development of horns starts from the stalks on the skull of the male "cervid".

June to July (Mid-summer)

When there is a lot of sunlight, growth is faster.

September (Late Summer)

As autumn approaches and the day becomes shorter, growth slows. The horn becomes mineralized, hardens and the blood stops flowing. Dry velvet, and then fall off.

October-December (Fall to winter)

Hard horns are now dead, and at this time, they are used for things like: rubbing trees, fighting, showing off to children .

January-March (Late winter to early spring)

Male "Cervids" can only maintain the connection between the stem and the gauze when testosterone levels are high, so when the light decreases, the connection weakens. Finally, the horns peeled off, scales formed, and within a few weeks, the growth of the antlers began again.

Male "Cervids" can only maintain the connection between the stalk and gauze when testosterone levels are high.

The tradeoff for deer velvet to grow

The two fast-growing bones on the head will consume something, and for deer and other "cervids", this cost is huge. Protein from food is an important factor for the development of healthy horns.

It is called mobilization of nutrients and nutrients extracted from other bones to complement the development of velvet.

In other words, to develop horns, the cervids need to borrow minerals such as calcium and phosphorus from the bones that do not bear the body's weight.