HuntingStories6

It was the 2001 firearms season. I had been hunting a few days along with my family and fellow hunters Roger Blaine and Kevin Ferman. We were on our way back from Deer Haven in the 'Flage (short for camoflage - the previous color of our farm use Chevy) during the middle of the day. As we rounded the corner of a field we call the apple field, three does ran across the trail. Not entirely unheard of for this time of the year
especially during the rut, but what made this case unique is that one of the does was a piebald. A piebald is a deer with white coloration covering a significant portion of its body. It was not an albino as many hunters would wrongly call it. Albino's lack any pigmentation, having pink, translucent eyes and absolutely no brown or black hair, just white. Kevin and Roger excitedly looked at the deer but they were running full tilt and weren't exactly sure about taking a shot. They asked if they should shoot and I told them absolutely, especially
the piebald because they are so rare. Piebalds and albinos both represent an anomally in deer genetics. They are not caused by inbreeding as some unversed hunters would suggest. Why? Because deer don't inbreed. Does are the dominant group, a matriarchal society of mammals. As such, they will not be receptive to bucks of the same bloodline (sons, brothers and fathers) and actually force them out of the area. Rather, it's a numbers game. I'd speculate that a very small percentage (less than 10%) of deer ever get this coloration. However, if deer numbers are high then the likelihood of encountering a piebald is also high. Or it may simply be that "one is due." That's how these recessive colorations occur. We went over all this back at the Old
House with the understanding that this is a potential once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to harvest a piebald. We hunted a few days but never did see the piebald again.

Then, one morning I decided I'd hunt in the Bear Hollow area. I had set up a stand on a point that overlooked a shelf covered by hardwoods. This position was easily approachable from the ridgetop and was all-in-all a choice hunting spot. I drove out to the ridgetop in the 'Flage and got out. Immediately, I heard deer running from the treeline down into the hollow. Shit, I parked too close! I decided to continue on anyway,
being as careful as I could. This took me some time as it was deathly calm and frost lie on the ground. When I finally got into the stand, it was only about half an hour before I heard a deer approaching. As I strained to hear where it was coming from, I realized that it had to be part of the group that I had spooked earlier, I managed to cut them off. As the deer finally approached from my right, I immediatly recognized the deer, the yearling piebald that I had seen just a few days earlier for the first time. I had to twist quite a bit to shoot to the right, but luckily for me, I had the stand next to a thick cedar which provided me background cover. As always it seems, when I was finally ready, the deer stopped behind a tree which covered its vitals. I waited for an
eternity it seemed but finally the deer took about two steps from behind the tree and with one roar out of Mr. Goodbye (my trusted Model 70 Winchester 30-06) the deer fell. The 165 grain ballistic tip Nosler partition I
loaded found its mark in the deer's ribcage. I excitedly descended from the stand and went over to the deer. Though it was rather small, my first thought went to the color and not size of the deer. A piebald! Though I had seen a few on the farm, I knew of nobody who had taken one. I was quite proud of my kill and continue to be. I am having the hide tanned, my first. It will be a constant reminder of a good hunt and
Whitey-the piebald doe.