Tenley Gahagan with the 225-pound 10-point she killed in Natchitoches Parish on Nov. 22, 2024.
“Tenley Gahagan was hunting a 8-point that had been daylighting in the morning recently at her stand. The 8-point did not show. Although, the old warrior 10-point Tenley’s dad had been hunting for three years surprisingly walked out following a doe. He had not been seen during shooting light since 2022. When she pulled up her rifle to identify the bucks maturity through her scope, a sneaky doe 20 yards to her left spotted her and began the stomping, blowing routine that occurs before your hunt is ruined. Tenley went into panic mode knowing she only had a few seconds, but had not had time to confirm if the buck was a shooter. Fortunately, her dad was monitoring the camera at her stand from where he was hunting a few miles away. Right as Tenley found the buck through her scope, she received an audio text from her dad through the ear phones she was wearing as hearing protection. Tenley heard, “Text from daddy, Shoooooooot, Shoooooooot, Shooooooooot!” That’s all Tenley needed to hear, flicked off the safety, and fired. The buck was a unique 225-pound 10-point that appeared to be on the decline from the previous years. Other than her first deer with a bow, this was the highlight of her hunting career to this point. To make things right, the very next day Tenley’s dad harvested the mature 8-point she was originally hunting. Tenley told him it was ok.”