The antler, which is one of the chief distinctive marks between buck and dough, is a bone that obtrudes the top of the head. During the period of time the buck grows his antlers, he consumes a large amount of calcium from the vegetation they eat. The growth of these antlers is controlled by the sex hormone and are normally completed within about 2 or 3 months. After which circulation is cut off from the fine-haired skin, called velvet, at the base of the antler. Their powerful legs beneath a compact and slim body are well suited for rugged woodland terrain.
Deer are excellent swimmers as well as jumpers.
The lower cheek teeth have crescent ridges of enamel, which enable them to grind a wide variety of the vegetation available to them. Most species of deer have a liver without a gallbladder with the exception of the Mush Deer. They are well known for their beauty, the sport of hunting them, and their satisfying meat. The previously mentioned musk deer, as well as the Chinese water deer, are distinctive in that they have no antlers, and bear upper canines that have, to this day, evolved into tusks. They move in families of many dough with generally one buck, who is the leader.