The print of a deer’s cloven hoof is a split heart shape. The pointed end is forward. Size varies greatly from region to region and from one subspecies to another. Most tracks are between 2 and 3 inches long on relatively hard ground. If they are much smaller, a fawn probably made them. (See illustrations below.) 

BUCK TRACK A mature buck's tracks range from 2-3/4" to 3-1/2" in length.	DOE TRACK A mature doe track ranges from 2-1/4" to 2-3/4" in length.	LARGE-BODIED BUCK Rear tracks of a mature buck fall slightly behind their front tracks with no overlap.
BUCK & DOE TRACKS Rear tracks of young bucks and does slightly overlap their front tracks.	OLD DEER Toes of older deer hooves are often worn and more rounded than those of younger deer.	YOUNG DEER The young deer typically have sharp, pointed hooves.

Many experienced whitetail hunters believe they can tell a buck’s track from a doe’s. They say a buck’s hoof lobes splay, sometimes so much that the front of the track is wider than the rear. But a heavy old doe often has splayed hooves.

Both bucks and does run with a rocking horse motion, causing the hind prints sometimes to register ahead of the foreprints and forming a slightly zigzag line. Tracks don’t bunch up in the manner of a bounding mule deer—except in deep snow, which forces high leaps. The trail will likely be 5 or 6 inches wide and the walking stride a foot or so long. Running strides may be stride 6 feet or more. (See illustration below.)

BUCK WALKING ON LIGHT SNOW Up to 6 inches deep, a buck will drag his front toes leaving drag marks on the snow similar to those of a cross-country skier. A large-bodied buck's front hoof prints will be from 6 to 8 inches apart, while those of a young buck may be only an inch or two apart.	DOE WALKING ON LIGHT SNOW Does walking in the same amount of snow will leave individual hoof prints but no drag marks.
DEER RUNNING IN SOFT SOIL A running deer, or a deer walking in very soft woil or mud will leave a splayed track with dew claw marks visible behind the hoof print. A bouncing deer will leave splayed hoof prints from 2-1/2 to 6 feet apart, and sometimes farther.	MATURE LARGE-BODIED BUCK His tracks will be several inches apart in width, well to the right and left of a centerline. An old buck's front tracks may point slightly outward.