Bobtail – Ten Years Old and Counting!

Saturday Jan. 24, 2026 — This morning’s frigid double digit, below zero temperatures seemed a little warmer when I laid eyes on an old woodland friend.  Following another round of Iowa hunting seasons, the ten-year-old white-tailed doe I call Bobtail is alive and well.  This is welcome news for everyone who has been following her remarkable story.  

I call the deer Bobtail because, at some point in life, her tail was literally chopped in half.    Although we’ll never know the actual cause, an early encounter with a fawn-hunting coyote is a possible scenario.  What is certain is that the short, squared off portion of the tail that remains makes Bobtail unmistakably easy to identify.  Bobtail also has a distinctive white spot on her muzzle meaning that I can know it’s her, even when she’s coming down the trail head on. 

My first encounter with Bobtail came during the winter of 2017 when she, along with several other deer, streaked across the road in front of my truck at the Dave Rosendahl farm located just south of Clear Lake.    She was already a huge mature doe then, making her at least ten years old this year.  I’ve enjoyed dozens additional sightings, and taken dozens of photos, since that snowy day.    I’ve learned that Bobtail’s home range runs more than four miles in length and includes both public and private landscapes.    Bobtail has produced beautiful sets of twins every year since 2017, and may have raised additional fawns before we first crossed trails.   

Deer hunting is one of my favorite fall and winter pastimes.  Our family thrives on eating venison, and I am not opposed to harvesting does – I do it all the time – or at least I attempt to.  But having said that, I’ll also admit that I never draw my bow on an antlerless deer until I’m absolutely positive that the animal is not Bobtail.    I realize, of course, that this decision is based purely on emotion rather than any fact or science.   Let’s just say that I wouldn’t feel right about shooting a deer that I’ve been able to study and photograph for so many years.