
Don Riviere is serious about his deer hunting. The 46-year-old manager of an electrical transformer company lives on his 140-acre property in Big Bend near Marksville in Avoyelles Parish and he not only tends his summertime food plots, he also feeds protein all year long. As a result, the deer on his property benefit in both body weight and antler development. His neighbors have the same philosophy. Like Riviere, they manage for trophy deer and allow younger deer to reach trophy class.
“I had been watching several mature bucks on my trail cameras and there was one that stood out from the rest,” Riviere said. “It was my goal to try and take him with my bow this deer season.”
He shoots a Mathews Triax bow with Muzzy-One broadhead.
The big 10
Late on the afternoon of Oct. 8, Riviere climbed aboard his lock on stand around 6 p.m. (prior to Daylight Savings Time ending). It is situated next to his food plot.

“At around 6:45, I was videoing a doe on the food plot, then at 6:55, I looked up and a big buck, one of my target bucks but not the big one I was after, stepped out,” Riviere said. “In addition to the food plot, I had a pile of feed on the ground around the range for a bow shot, and this buck circled the feed pile. I reached for my bow and the buck began walking away. When he was at 23 yards, I took the shot. The buck bolted and headed for the woods.”
Getting down from the stand and walking to where the deer was standing, Riviere found no blood nor his arrow. He decided to go home and wait to give the buck time to expire.
“Around 9:30, I headed back with my light to try and find him and stepped up on a fallen log for a better look and the buck was lying next to the log,” he said.
The buck sported a massive 10-point rack with 5 ½ inch bases and a 19-inch inside spread. The buck was 5 ½ years old and weighed 255 pounds. His rack was measured at 161 1/8 inches.
Good management
Two weeks later, on Oct. 23, Riviere had patterned what he believed to be the big one he was after. He realized he had to be on stand early because he determined the buck would move early if at all.
“I hunted another stand about 200 yards from where I got the first deer for a better view of the area the big one had been hanging out in,” he said. “I got on my stand two hours before daylight and at 6:58 he stepped from the woods, and just as the first buck had done, he circled the food on the ground. Just before I drew my bow, some pigs came on the plot and began squealing, alarming the buck. As he began walking away, I got on him and took the shot and the buck took off.”
Going to the spot where he shot, Riviere found blood and followed the trail some 80 yards where he found the buck had expired.
This buck sported an impressive rack of 11 points, had an inside spread of 17 ½ inches with bases a whopping 6 ½ inches each. The buck, determined to be at least 6 ½ years old, tipped the scales at 265 pounds. The tale of the tape revealed a rack of 175 6/8 inches.
“The key for us in raising big bucks,” Riviere said, “is having neighbors who cooperate in management and in providing food and year-around protein. My dad killed a 140-plus inch buck in the same area in December.”