What size buck do you shoot???

[shae1986]

What i ment by the question is that some people would either shoot a big buck or no deer at all, thats what the question is suppose to mean.

[chucker34]

Some good dialogue and BlackJack makes a lot of good points. And I would agree with his theory on QDM. Yes, I've been reading reports on how people in Pennsylvania have been seeing bigger deer, but I've also read reports how they've been seeing fewer deer overall. In some cases, guys said they would enjoy watching two dozen deer stream by in a day and now they're seeing two, two deer total in a day.

I don't want that. I like the taste of venison - no matter if its a doe, a little yearling, or a huge buck. I'd rather get at least one deer a year (hopefully more) rather than one big buck every five years or so. I think most hunters would and that's why they've consistently voted against antler point restrictions when surveyed by the DNR.

I'll get a big boy some year and decent ones others. It's bound to happen considering the effort I put into scouting and hunting - though maybe somewhat minimal compared to true trophy hunters.

Not everyone is a trophy hunter. Most people - even trophy hunters enjoy tagging a doe, expecially with a bow.

I hope the DNR continues to practice responsible managment practices for the sake of the overall herd and for the opportunities it presents to hunters. But I don't want them to go against the will of the people in terms of what deer they want to take every season.

There is a place for antler point restrictions and other QDM practices and its with each individual and on their own private land and leases, etc.

[Ray Mysterio]

Shae,

I agree with you about some hunters shooting a big buck but passing on all does.

I tend to think this way about shooting does.......

If I want more bucks on my property, I shoot does. Here is why, if I shoot a doe that has a buck fawn, that buck fawn will stay on my property. If I don't shoot the doe, she will kick the living dump out of that buck fawn as the season progresses so he will leave. (Natures way of preventing in-breeding) So if I shoot a doe, I keep that buck fawn on my property. Another plus of this is that the closer the buck to doe ratio gets to 1-1, the more affective calling, rattling, and scent use will be. Which equals more fun hunting.

I realize that if I shoot all does every year that might bring the population down. But I am a buck hunter, so I won't be shooting only does. My family owns 160 acres and we try and harvest about 2-3 does per year and 1 or two good bucks if we are lucky.

To answer the post question...

I would shoot any buck that has antlers out to the ears. I only have a few decent bucks under my belt and I intend to keep progressing in size as I shoot more bucks.

Mysterio

[subzero]

It looks like there are many different views to this topic. No doubt by the authors they are all right. I have read both sides and totally believe that if every buck in the woods was a BC buck that measurement wouldn't mean much. years back we had less hunters and we had less deer. Those hunters shot it if it was brown. Yet BC bucks have been recorded from the 60's and 70's when the unthinkable happened. The DNR closed the season. The doe permit showed up and the public was taught that shooting does was bad for the herd. I beleive that was a correct statement for the time. Now the deer herd has grow to much because of a string of easy winters and shooting bucks now is bad for the herd according to some individuals. ( Unless it is a trophy measured by them) When we have the next bad winter ( and we will have one ) we will once again be to the point where shooting doe's are bad for the herd. I do beleive bothsides of this discussion are correct to a point but I also would not want the job of telling the future to decide which side was right for the up coming year, every year. We wanted more deer, the DNR created a plan to get more deer. Job done. We want bigger bucks or at least some people do, if this is the bad winter and rules are made so we can't shoot small bucks and because there was a huge winter kill we can't shoot doe's it seems to me we are right back to 1970. Without a deer season only this time it will be our own doing, not because of over harvest though. Babbled enough this has no completly right answer.

[Rotwieler]

with a bow i wait for a good eight or better but im hunting a four intensive harvest tag area this year and im going to shoot all four does before the rut comes full swing to get the buck to doe ratio closer. with a rifle i look for the same but at the end of the season if i have a choice between a small buck or a doe, i "let the buck go so he can grow."