The MeatEater

On this episode of In Pursuit, the guys wrap up the home gym series by building the ultimate $10,000 setup—what’s actually worth the splurge, what’s a waste, and which “big ticket” pieces change the game (hello functional trainer, StairMaster debate, and all the toys you swear you need).

They also drop some real-world housekeeping: a Western Hunt Expo late-night workout at Ute CrossFit (cap is currently 50), plus a February Playbook discount for Mayhem Hunt programming—and then Rich casually announces a super-limited Colorado Hunt Prep Camp aimed at getting you mountain-ready for September.

If you'll be at Western Hunt Expo in Salt Lake City, then join Mayhem Hunt and MTN OPS for a workout at UTE CrossFit with Rich Froning!Where633 East 3300 South, #Suite B, Salt Lake City, UT 84106WhenFri, Feb 13, 2026 at 7:00 PM https://www.eventbrite.com/e/mayhem-hunt-x-mtn-ops-western-hunt-expo-workout-tickets-1980562731445?aff=oddtdtcreator

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This week on the show we're talking all things shed hunting, from western big game to whitetails, and even up to Alaska and we're joined by Ben Dettamanti of ShedCrazy. The only known person to find a shed antler in all 50 states.

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The field of archeology is full of examples of humans using antlers for sacred and ceremonial purposes. It is obvious that antlers have amazed hunters long before we started scoring them in inches and points. Some of the spiritual mystique of antlers comes from the fact that they are cast off and regrown every year, and that has been viewed by just about every culture on Earth as a symbol of rebirth and healing. Even badly broken antlers are replaced with a perfect set—usually bigger—the following year.

Evidence of the spiritual significance of antlers is found in their prevalence in graves, ceremonies, and religious beliefs. Wooden sculptures of stylized deer or people with antlers were found in the tombs of the Zhou Dynasty in China 2,000 to 3,000 years ago. Antlers were carefully placed at the head of the tombs and thought to guard the grave and ward off evil spirits. Antlered gods, deer masks, and antler headdresses were common in religious rituals throughout the world, and this widespread use demonstrates the powerful ceremonial force of antlers on humans.

Beyond the reverence of these bony structures throughout our entire existence, antlers—especially growing velvet antlers—have long been used in traditional medicine. Antlers have been promoted to support vitality, boost immune function, enhance joint health, improve recovery from illness, increase endurance or strength, enhance stamina, promote bone and cartilage repair, and improve sexual function. More recently, researchers are tapping into the mysterious and amazing properties of antler growth to investigate incredibly important advances in cloning, treating cancer, tissue healing, osteoporosis, limb regeneration, and more.

Since antlers are made of important elements like protein, calcium, phosphorus, and contain growth compounds and hormones, it seems intuitive that they might have beneficial health properties. The young growing antlers of deer (usually elk and red deer) are cut off when about two-thirds grown and then dried. Velvet antlers are usually processed as dried cross-sections or pulverized pieces of the cartilage and skin of growing antlers. From there, a wide variety of things are made, including broths, sprays, tinctures, creams, oils, food supplements, and pills.

Antlers have also been widely seen as a symbol of masculinity because, with the exception of caribou, they are almost exclusively a male appendage. This notion of masculinity is probably the origin of the use of partially grown antlers for medicinal cures and supplements. The medicinal use of velvet antler was first documented in a Chinese silk scroll, dating back more than 2,000 years. The scroll contains a wide range of medical treatments and prescriptions that use velvet antler in some form. The list of ailments that are treated with velvet antler products covers just about everything you would see in a medical dictionary. Because of the connection with masculinity, it is often purported to increase sex drive, improve fertility, and address other related issues.

Antlers are still used today as a component of traditional Chinese medicine, but are also now sold worldwide for the same purported benefits. Perhaps the most famous example of their modern use surfaced in 2013 when Baltimore Ravens linebacker Ray Lewis found himself in trouble just prior to the Super Bowl. It was alleged that he used deer antler spray containing IGF-1, a banned substance by the NFL. It is unclear if natural velvet antler has enough IGF-1 to produce any beneficial effects or if it can even be absorbed orally. One medical doctor commented that if a spray could deliver IGF-1 orally, the medical profession would be using that for patients who currently receive IGF-1 injections for various medical issues. One study showed that IGF-1 was indeed present in a commercial antler product, but it did not originate from deer.

Although less promoted than velvet, hardened antlers are sometimes ground up and used in traditional remedies across parts of Asia. In Siberia and Mongolia, antler extracts and baths are used for joint pain, inflammation, and circulatory issues. In some cultures, hard antlers are incorporated into salves or powders intended for wound healing or as nutritional supplements containing minerals and collagen.

Like all supplements, antlers contain compounds that have been shown in laboratory settings to aid certain medical conditions, but solid scientific evidence that any particular antler derivative actually helped human patients is rare. Claims are rarely based on rigorous scientific research with experimental controls, human trials, and adequate sample sizes. More quality research is needed before these supplements could be integrated into mainstream medical practices.

The medicinal use of antlers as a health supplement is what most people are familiar with, but in laboratories around the world, researchers are using the antler growing cycle as a model to try to advance many exciting medical discoveries.

For example, a 2019 study demonstrated that certain growing antler cells accelerate wound healing in rats, suggesting a potential to develop therapies for encouraging scar-free healing after injury. The healing properties of antler cells are not likely a random finding. We know that when antlers are cast off, a bloody spot then scabs over and heals directly into healthy, velvet skin that then shields and nourishes the next growing antler. Perhaps that process of a scab omitting the scar tissue phase and transitioning directly into healthy skin can be harnessed to heal human wounds quicker.

Amphibians, like salamanders, can completely regenerate a whole arm or leg from a healed stump. Researchers were astounded to learn that one salamander, the Axolotl, is capable of re-growing a spinal cord, heart, and limbs. Mammals cannot regenerate limbs, but antlers represent the only mammalian structure that can completely regenerate, making them a good model for medical research. If researchers can learn how antlers regrow themselves in the same shape, maybe we can duplicate the process with human appendages.

Recent research shows antlers regenerate using a completely different process (stem cells) than amphibian limbs. Antlers are initiated from a pad of tissue under the forehead skin of fawns called the “antlerogenic periosteum” (AP), which sit on top of two bony protuberances that eventually grow into the antler pedicles (bases).

Unlike skin or bone cells, this AP tissue contains stem cells, which are general cells capable of developing into any type of tissue. Since antlers are made of a variety of tissues—skin, bones, nerves, blood vessels, connective tissue, and cartilage— this AP tissue has been the focus of research to unlock the clues to regenerating limbs.

Recently (2023), scientists identified a type of antler cell that can regenerate bone, cartilage, nerves, and blood vessels. When transplanted into mice, they produced antler-like bone and cartilage structures. This highlights the possibility of applying antler-derived mechanisms to bone repair or limb regeneration in other mammals. It is not so crazy to think that deer will help us in the future to regenerate limbs of human amputees!

Because antlers involve cycles of intense mineralization, deer provide a natural model for studying bone density regulation. A bull elk can grow 65 pounds of antlers in three months! Bucks and bulls cannot eat enough calcium and phosphorus while growing antlers to supply these fast-growing structures, so they mobilize calcium from their skeleton to supplement dietary intake. After the antlers are fully mineralized in the fall, the buck’s body then replenishes the bone density loss in the skeleton through their diet.

The seasonal loss in bone density and replacement serves as a model for investigating osteoporosis. Interestingly, the bones that lose density to help build the antlers are mostly bones that are not weight-bearing. Ribs, for example, were found to contribute more calcium than leg bones that the buck would need to stay strong. It makes a lot of sense to borrow calcium from areas that will not jeopardize skeletal strength or the safety of the animal. This skeleton-antler cycle might someday teach us how to replenish bone density loss.

Antlers grow faster than any other mammalian tissue. In fact, antlers grow even faster than cancer cell growth—up to one inch per day in some species. Despite this rapid growth, the cells remain under control and are regulated so they do not become unwanted or dangerous tumors. This makes antlers a useful system for studying how fast-growing tissues avoid turning into cancer.

Allowing such rapid antler growth and then slowing it down and stopping it takes some regulation, so it was not surprising when researchers found the deer family has more active tumor-suppressing genes. Surveys of cancer in captive mammals found that members of the deer family are five times less likely to get cancer, which supports the idea that the deer family has some genetic ability to suppress tumor growth. Here again, if we can unlock the secrets to suppressing the incredible summer growth of bone, skin, nerves, and blood vessels of antlers, we might be able to apply that to stop or slow cancer cell growth.

Because antlers repeatedly generate large volumes of bone, researchers study them to understand the growth and repair of bone and cartilage. Antler material has shown promise as a material to use in bone grafts. When a bone is severely damaged by trauma or disease, it needs a structural bridge to heal. Because of their chemical, structural, and biological similarities, antler material has been shown to be readily accepted and integrated into healing bone. Some medical studies are zeroing in on antler-derived growth compounds that may guide future treatments for fractures or degenerative bone diseases.

When stem cells were discovered in the antlerogenic periosteum, researchers hatched a plan to regenerate more than just a limb. Using antler stem cells, they cloned two genetically identical red deer in New Zealand, along with nine more deer clones using stem cells from other tissues.

This may not have a direct human medicinal connection, but cloning could be used one day in saving endangered deer species. Also, when researching antler development, identical deer clones would be useful to eliminate individual variation (twin studies), allowing researchers to better identify the effects of the factors they are studying. While this shows that certain cells from antlers can be used for cloning under controlled laboratory conditions, it does not mean that antler stem cells are being used broadly to clone deer for conservation or restoration of wild herds.

Although the red deer cloning effort proved it can be done, it is not a way to “grow deer” in any routine way, and is certainly not something that can be scaled up for conservation purposes. If cloning were widespread, just think how boring your collection of shoulder mounts would be.

From the earliest cave paintings to modern wildlife conservation, humans have long been captivated by the beauty and symbolism of antlers. We have collected them as objects of admiration and reverence while also conserving and restoring the animals that grow them. Antlers have inspired art, culture, and stewardship, helping drive efforts to protect and manage deer wherever they occur.

Today, however, scientific interest in antlers is moving beyond aesthetics and tradition. Recent medical and biological research is revealing that because of the unique ability of antlers to regenerate rapidly and repeatedly, they hold remarkable promise for improving human health, longevity, and overall quality of life. Future research will undoubtedly uncover life-saving therapies and innovative medical techniques rooted in antler science, offering exciting possibilities for advancing human medicine. Our interest and stewardship of antlers, and those that grow them, will continue to provide the foundation that encourages future research of antlers.

On this episode of the Bear Grease Render, host Clay Newcomb is joined by Dr. Misty Newcomb, Josh "Landbridge" Spielmaker, along with Backwoods University Podcast's Lake Pickle in the Tecovas Hot Seat.  Fresh off the release of the CBS Sunday Morning feature with legendary journalist Ted Koppel at Arkansas bear camp, the crew gives context and details of what happened behind-the-scenes. It was an unscripted weekend of uncertain expectations, tough hunting, and a turn-the-table conversation around the campfire leading to a tense moment where a missed shot at a black bear puts the spotlight squarely one particular hunter. The crew shares what the cameras didn’t show and their thoughts and impressions of their time with iconic news man Ted Koppel. Plus, Clay reflects on the black bear that helped inspire his upcoming book American Bear and the deeper history of bear reverence across cultures.

Thank you to our sponsor, Tecovas.

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Spencer Neuharth hosts MeatEater Trivia with Doug Duren, Janis Putelis, Randall Williams, Seth Morris, Hanzi Deschermeier, and Reva Hansen.

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A concerning bill is moving through the Florida legislature that would make it legally and financially jeopardizing to publicly criticize agricultural products and practices. While it may seem, on the surface, like an attempt to protect farmers from defamation, this provision could serve more as a tool to silence the public from speaking out about environmental concerns.

Hunters, anglers, and conservationists have relied on raising their unified voices for years to protect public lands, wildlife, and waterways. This legislation threatens our ability to do so.

Buried deep inside a farm bill omnibus package in SB 290/HB 433 is a provision that expands on Florida’s existing food libel law to cover non-perishable foods, along with agricultural practices, and adds on one-way attorney fees.

Food libel laws exist in 13 states and vary by state, but they essentially allow a food producer, processor, manufacturer, or distributor to sue individuals or groups who make disparaging statements about their food products. They are similar to general defamation laws, but these statutes tend to require a lower burden of proof for the food producer, making it typically easier for them to win a lawsuit against the person or entity making statements about their products.

These libel laws have been criticized as unconstitutional for infringing on free speech. Libel law cases are often considered strategic lawsuits against public participation, or SLAPPs. In other words, the intent of said lawsuits is to silence those speaking out and intimidate others from engaging in similar rhetoric.

So while Florida has had a food libel law in place since 1994, it only encompassed perishable foods. This new provision adds non-perishables as well as agricultural practices.

This means that if you were to make an Instagram post criticizing the use of glyphosate on crops in Florida, you could be hit with a lawsuit where you (the defendant in this scenario) could be on the hook for hundreds of thousands to even millions of dollars in legal fees, depending on the size of the lawsuit.

This is because the provision also changes the law to award one-way attorney’s fees to a winning plaintiff (e.g., a food producer) but not to a successful defendant. This is a departure from the standard “American Rule,” under which each party bears its own fees unless a statute or contract states otherwise.

This leaves the public with two poor choices: stay quiet with your concerns or risk advocacy for legal battles and financial stress.

Captains for Clean Water (CFCW) is a nonprofit organization started in 2016 by fishing guides who had had enough with Florida’s poor water management practices. They’re no strangers to raising their voices and sounding the alarm when Florida’s waters are at risk. CFCW co-founders Capt. Daniel Andrews and Capt. Chris Wittman took some time (on their way to Tallahassee to speak out against this provision) to talk with MeatEater about the vast implications its passage could have.

Because this provision includes “agricultural practices,” fertilizer, pesticide, and herbicide use could not be publicly criticized, along with water management and other production practices. These practices can directly impact Florida water quality, fuel harmful algal blooms, and endanger the well-being of fisheries and coastal communities.

CFCW has been standing toe to toe with “big sugar,” one of the state’s largest and most powerful lobbying forces in the Florida Capitol, for years. The sugar industry has been tied to deadly red tide algal blooms in Florida’s waters due to discharges from Lake Okeechobee. But the first study to confirm this connection was released in 2022, four years after a deadly bloom occurred in 2018.

“When you have a status quo, these canary-in-the-coalmine voices are critical. Their jobs in society are to make a big, major shifts, not to be precisely accurate on small things. This bill is designed to protect the status quo,” Capt. Andrews said. “It’s designed to make it impossible, or legally threatening, to simply state an observation when something is wrong and needs addressing. This bill would force individuals and organizations to always speak with laboratory-grade precision, which is simply not possible.”

“The broader nationwide implications of this bill are chilling. Could something like this be used to muzzle conservation advocacy in other places? Count me as concerned and watching closely," said MeatEater’s Director of Conservation, Mark Kenyon.

This provision sets a legal precedent that could very easily be copied and pasted across various industries to deter the public from speaking out against issues such as pollution, land use, habitat loss, and water mismanagement affecting public lands and waters. Hunters, anglers, and other outdoor recreationists are often the first folks to witness unchecked environmental harm. And sounding the alarm about an issue early often means that not much information has been collected (i.e., you wouldn’t have a strong case in court).

“If you look at the Pebble Mine, for example. You don’t need to cite a scientific study to understand that if you introduce large-scale mining to Bristol Bay, it’s going to have crippling, damaging effects on that ecosystem,” Capt. Wittman pointed out. If a provision like this were in place protecting mining practices, all the sportsmen who spoke out against it would be on the hook for a lawsuit.

Studies take time to be conducted. Data slowly trickles in. But those initial boots-on-the-ground discoveries or voices of concern are often the catalyst to set investigations in motion. This provision prevents the public from raising valid concerns. It punishes public input rather than welcoming open conversation.

“Watching what happened on the national stage last year with the potential proposed sell off of public lands—you had the entire outdoor community, every angler and hunter in America was just completely outraged by this proposal to sell our public lands, and they used one tool in the toolbox to successfully get that removed—that was their voice,” Capt. Andrews said on a recent episode of the Captains for Clean Water Podcast.

While this issue is currently local to Florida, it could easily become a legal playbook for other industries, such as mining or data centers. “If this happens in the Free State of Florida, and that first domino falls, you can bet that same model is going to ripple across the country,” Capt. Wittman said. “This should be concerning, not just to people in Florida who this would impact immediately, but every single American who leverages their voice against powerful corporations.”

Capt. Andrews explained conservation issues as a constant tug-of-war between outdoorsmen and special-interest groups that have lobbyists, lawyers, and endless means at their disposal to succeed. They pull, but we have to pull harder. “View this fight and every conservation fight as a unifying opportunity,” he said. “Regardless of whether the issue is of interest or local to you, when it has national implications like this, you’ve got to saddle up and pull.”

“Look at the Constitution and respect the foresight of our Founding Fathers,” Capt. Andrews said. “When you start challenging any of the amendments, there are some dangerous things that can start to happen. The First Amendment is so important to our organization and to the outdoor community as a whole. Without our voice, we have nothing.”

This bill is being heard in a House subcommittee on Wednesday, Feb 4 at 1:30 EST, but the bill and specifically this provision could be up for debate until the end of the legislative session on March 13. Click here to take action now.

This week, Tony explains how easy it is for us to set unrealistic expectations around our deer hunting, and how a little off-season reflection can point us in a more productive direction.

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Steven Rinella talks with Donella Miller and Doug Hatch of the Columbia River Inter-Tribal Fish Commission (CRITFC), Brody Henderson, Janis Putelis, Seth Morris, Phil Taylor, and Corinne Schneider.  

Topics discussed: The Six Sovereigns restoration initiative of the Columbia River basin; having a holistic philosophy and viewing fish as a forever fixture; salmon runs; steelhead reconditioning; chinook recovery; sockeye and coho reintroduction; lamprey restoration; the sea lion crisis; and more. 

Feel free to donate to the recovery effort here: https://critfc.org/donate/

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It's officially February. During this month I know a lot of outdoors folks that find themselves wondering what to do. We're here to help! In this episode of Backwoods University, we're going back through some of the fascinating guests we've met along the way so far! From Grizzly specialists to marine biologist- from botanists to beekeepers, we've met a wide spectrum! On this episode we'll here about a bison charging a man, a man charging a grizzly, an age old debate about what kinds of ducks are edible, and here a great conversation story that will set us up for the next episode!

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