What do you think happen to this old boy!|General Taxidermy Discussion|Forum|Taxidermy Talk

Last night I got a deer in from Mecklenburg County that was also killed last night. It appeared to be a healthy old deer with a very nice rack.(150 3/8) It was obvious the deer was a old warrior because he had split ears, scars and what you usually expect from a deer this age. When I started caping him out and ran my thumb in the mouth to detach the upper lip I discovered he had no palette at the front of his mouth. The palette was completely gone about the first 2 1/2 inches. Then I found his browse teeth were gone except for 2 that were hanging by a small flap of skin. It was obvious the deer had been like this for some time because there was no fresh damage and where his browse teeth were was just a callous. Just curious to see what you guys thoughts are as to how this old brute did this. Wish I had taken more pictures but this one will give you an idea of what I am talking about. Sorry about pictures sideways. Can’t figure out how to get them rotated.