Dawg Posted July 1, 2011 Report Share Posted July 1, 2011 Strut- Doesn't that absolutely boggle your mind though? 25 bucks yet he continues to whack and stack. That's my point. What's so special about that. Why doesn't he just shoot the does then? That's my whole point is why not just shoot the does? To some a deer is just that.....a deer, regardless if it sports head gear or not. To some, as mentioned before, it's not about antlers it's about harvesting a deer, regardless of sex. Sometimes we further confuse ourselves by thinking too much. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Strut10 Posted July 1, 2011 Report Share Posted July 1, 2011 Strut- Doesn't that absolutely boggle your mind though? 25 bucks yet he continues to whack and stack. That's my point. What's so special about that. Why doesn't he just shoot the does then? That's my whole point is why not just shoot the does? He does shoot does. But he also enjoys the hunt for a racked buck (and now one with "X" number of points on one side as per the A.R. law). A doe hunt is a meat gathering mission, usually. Just shoot the first lon-headed baldy that presents a shot and done. Completely different from shooting a buck, whether it be 1.5 or 5.5 y.o. especially if antler size is immaterial to you as it is to my bro. Do I subscribe to the same philosophy in deer hunting as my brother?? No. But his way is every bit legal and it makes him happy to be in the woods. So I may scratch my head. But it's no skin off my rear what he does and what it takes to make his own personal hunting time enjoyable to him. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Strut10 Posted July 1, 2011 Report Share Posted July 1, 2011 To some a deer is just that.....a deer, regardless if it sports head gear or not. To some, as mentioned before, it's not about antlers it's about harvesting a deer, regardless of sex. Sometimes we further confuse ourselves by thinking too much. A lot of simple truth here. Well said. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tominator Posted July 1, 2011 Report Share Posted July 1, 2011 Still though saying that size doesn't matter is not answering the question. If it didn't matter then you would shoot a doe instead is my theory.......... In my case of the puny 2009 buck it was a matter of, I just bought a new piece of land, and had just moved into my new home when Ohio's gun season rolled around. As I loaded my ML I can remember thinking "Wouldn't it be nice to shoot a deer on this new land and have fresh steaks on the grill tonight..." Didn't have anything to do with ego or management thoughts. I just wanted to shoot a deer on my new land. It was that simple. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Strut10 Posted July 1, 2011 Report Share Posted July 1, 2011 Very similar to a situation this spring where, had the opportunity arisen for me & Lil to double on gobblers, I would have shot a jake. I haven't shot a jake in 15 years or more. But if it makes me happy.........if it makes my hunt complete or memorable or whatever the reason.......... it's legal and I'd retain no shame in doing it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kidd Posted July 1, 2011 Report Share Posted July 1, 2011 i have always felt that if a hunter shoots young bucks they should not complain about not seeing any big deer...for me i would rather shoot a nice doe...but thats me...i have not killed a buck for 2 years but have made a dent in our local doe population...i do alot of camera scouting...this gives me a good grasp of what the population of does/bucks are on my private hunting grounds......with that said our city is zoned urban and allows hunting within city limits....we have to qualify to hunt these areas and to be able to hunt the next year the hunter must harvest at least one deer....so with this type of hunting it is more reduction then quality.....i will harvest bb, doe, or young buck just to help out with bringing the shear number of deer down....JMHO....great thread!!! Nate Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rhino Posted July 1, 2011 Report Share Posted July 1, 2011 It's about time we had some fun in here... YEP...SURE IS!!! so why is it that a hunter that fills his tag on a smaller buck is considered egotistical, but a person that only hunts "old wise" bucks or for antlers isn't doing it for ego?? :D Aren't they the ones that are considered so much better than the "average" hunter? Sure sounds like ego to me :D I didn't mean a hunter killing young bucks is egotistical. Some doing it simply to brag they killed their buck or filled their limit sure appear to be. Some hunters (not all by any means) hunt to stroke their own egos no matter how much bone is on a bucks head. Some of those hunters are into numbers, others are into lots of bone for ego reasons. No doubt about that! I don't have a clue how many bucks and does I've killed over the years. Gobblers either! If you asked me how many bucks I had on the wall, I'd have to go count them. I hunt because it's just part of who I am and something I truly love. I enjoy the total outdoor experience no matter what game I pursue. I choose to hunt for mature bucks because it's a lot more of a challenge to take one than younger bucks. I don't get that kind of rush killing young bucks. Haven't for years. Besides letting bucks grow to achieve their potential, if I killed young bucks I'd cheat myself out of a lot of quality time spent in the woods because I limited out too quick. The vast majority of my deer seasons end with less than a limit of bucks but that's not important to me. I have many memorable deer hunts when I didn't kill squat. I enjoy watching all of of god's creations while hunting. That's just me! I don't push my kill standards on other hunters I know either. I don't mind helping other hunters accomplish their goals regarding killing a wall hanger. Some have accomplished that goal hunting my stands. Personally, I get a thrill out of being a part of helping a buddy, young or old, take a mature wall hanger. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dbHunterNY Posted July 1, 2011 Report Share Posted July 1, 2011 In my case of the puny 2009 buck it was a matter of, I just bought a new piece of land, and had just moved into my new home when Ohio's gun season rolled around. As I loaded my ML I can remember thinking "Wouldn't it be nice to shoot a deer on this new land and have fresh steaks on the grill tonight..." Didn't have anything to do with ego or management thoughts. I just wanted to shoot a deer on my new land. It was that simple. ....oh boy! can i relate to this chris! i got my new house (my first) and it's not a ton of land, but still more than others. i really really want to kill a buck on MY land behind MY new house. i've got a 1st cousin that loves to hunt deer and has a 3000 sq ft newly built home. only problem is he wishes more land came with it so he could hunt there. being an exception to my rule i may hammer the crap out of the first legal buck i see at my new house. it's a possibility, but only the moment of truth will tell. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
toddyboman Posted July 1, 2011 Report Share Posted July 1, 2011 I didn't mean a hunter killing young bucks is egotistical. Some doing it simply to brag they killed their buck or filled their limit sure appear to be. Some hunters (not all by any means) hunt to stroke their own egos no matter how much bone is on a bucks head. Some of those hunters are into numbers, others are into lots of bone for ego reasons. No doubt about that! I hunt because it's just part of who I am and something I truly love. I enjoy the total outdoor experience no matter what game I pursue. I choose to hunt for mature bucks because it's a lot more of a challenge to take one than younger bucks. I don't get that kind of rush killing young bucks. Haven't for years. Besides letting bucks grow to achieve their potential, if I killed young bucks I'd cheat myself out of a lot of quality time spent in the woods because I limited out too quick. The vast majority of my deer seasons end with less than a limit of bucks but that's not important to me. I have many memorable deer hunts when I didn't kill squat. I enjoy watching all of of god's creations while hunting. That's just me! I don't push my kill standards on other hunters I know either. I agree completely!! I always take my video camera with me.....I enjoy filming wildlife then taking those videos home to show my kids and other hunting buddies. Watching certain bucks grow and mature is something else I find very enjoying. However I would not be able to enjoy that if I shot every 1.5 buck I had a shot at. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
92xj Posted July 1, 2011 Report Share Posted July 1, 2011 I would shoot any 1.5 year old buck, as long as he met my antler requirements given to me by the state, that walks in front of me and pass on the doe that he's with. Seriously. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
need2hunt Posted July 1, 2011 Report Share Posted July 1, 2011 The "it just felt right" is not a bad idea, but I would interject why not use self discipline at that point and pass and shoot a doe later....... Well in my instance I could have shot the same spike about 15 other times during the season and those 15 times it would have just been shooting a dumb young buck. So first question is why pass the first 15 times? Simple he wasn't the buck I was after, I was after a 140-150 class 8 pointer. I could tell you where this particular 8 was pretty much every morning and every evening, with the one problem being he was on the wrong side of the fence. Next question, what made the 16th time different that would make me "lose my self discipline"? The property is one of two that I was able to keep permission on after 4 years of hunting/filming elsewhere. Over that 4 years the area that I liked to hunt had become overgrown with honeysuckle and early in the season I would watch the deer come to the two different fence crossings and chose not to cross because of how thick it was. So the work began, I cleared around 600 yards of paths through the honeysuckle (I'm usually against doing that during season but there wasn't much choice) connecting 3 different crossings and strategically connecting them past my stand sites. My hope was that he would be chasing a doe in the bean field across the fence and she would bring him over. Well so as I'm driving into the driveway of the property and I see this spike chasing this doe, he's across the road running her around a cornfield but she's heading northwest which means they will end up in the bean field. I pull up to the shed, park, get geared up, walk to the stand and get settled and within the first five minutes I see them running up into the beanfield. I get to watch them chase around for 15 minutes or so and then watch as they head north to the thicket at the end of the field. Half hour later I see her running full bore out of the thicket heading back toward me and he's right behind her. She jumps the next crossing down on to my property and they circle through and end up taking my path to the next fence jump which is in my shooting lane. It was everything that I had planned and worked for other than not the buck I was after, and that fact didn't matter to me, it was a completion and a closure to the work that I had done and the knowledge I had of how the deer use the property and what needed to be done to be successful. Next, Why not the doe? Everyone hunts by there own set of personal rules, mine is I shoot does early in the season before they are bred, I prefer to have 2-3 in the freezer and then I start hunting for bucks during prerut and rut. She was definitely in heat and was more useful as bait than table fair at that time. The other part that you will probably laugh at is she made a deal with me... from the moment I saw her to the time she was standing in a shooting pocket she had run about 1.5 - 2 miles. Earlier in the season she had spotted me and backed out, she knew where my stand was. And standing there in my shooting pocket broadside she looked up at me, tired and aggravated at this buck that wouldn't leave her alone. I moved my left arm and pointed at one of my shooting lanes and inside my head said you have to take him through that lane if you want me to shoot him. She didn't run at my movement, just stood still and watched me, she had 5 different routes she could have taken but when she heard that buck start up the hill toward her she turned almost 180 degrees and walked up the lane I had pointed to, stepped into my shooting lane stopped and looked at me one more time and then walked off. He followed and I kept my end of the bargain and laced him up with a spitfire maxx. Now many guys that hunt IL will say that I just shot a young buck because i know I have two buck tags to fill so I can just use my second tag on the buck I was after. But what they don't know is that the property owner let's several people hunt there, he tries to be fair and restricts everyone to one deer only. So I shot that deer knowing that it would basically end my season, I would not have another chance at the deer i was after and I left a hot doe to hopefully benefit the other people still hunting there. I guess that equals EGO lol. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ethan Givan Posted July 1, 2011 Report Share Posted July 1, 2011 I will not shoot a buck unless its big, which where I hunt usually means the buck will be mature. I know some guys wont shoot a deer unless its 4.5 or 5.5 years old, but in the heat of the moment the last thing Im doing is trying to age a buck. I see antlers and if they are big, thats all I need to know, regardless of whether the buck is 5.5 or 3.5. I had several small 1.5 and 2.5 year old bucks inside bow range this past season and I never really even thought about shooting one. That being said, if my dad or one of my brothers had decided to shoot one of those little bucks, I would have been extremely happy for them. Even though I hold my personal goals higher, Im not gonna let a young buck being taken by someone else ruin my day. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Michiganbowhunter_SQ2 Posted July 1, 2011 Report Share Posted July 1, 2011 I think you're thinking about it too much. Who cares what other hunters decide to shoot and why? If it's legal, I don't care. I will raze friends though, much like they would raze me, but that is part of the fun of hunting with friends. Completely agree with Tom. If it is legal, why does it matter to anyone what someone else decides to shoot?? No one needs to make an excuse for the reasons they hunt the way they do, and kill what they kill, as long as the laws are followed. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mikebohio Posted July 2, 2011 Report Share Posted July 2, 2011 kill what makes you happy. period. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NBomb500 Posted July 2, 2011 Report Share Posted July 2, 2011 Genetics. If you know your area and deer population a buck with poor genetics might be worth harvesting! Some may say a 1.5 year old buck may be a little young to determine that by which I could see their point, but on the other hand it really just depends on your area and what state you hunt in. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pruts Posted July 2, 2011 Report Share Posted July 2, 2011 Strut- Doesn't that absolutely boggle your mind though? 25 bucks yet he continues to whack and stack. That's my point. What's so special about that. Why doesn't he just shoot the does then? That's my whole point is why not just shoot the does? Around here when you buy your deer licence you get a Buck tag for the open season, which in this area is bow only . To get a antlerless tag to shoot a deer with antlers less than 3 inches or a doe you have to enter a draw and buy another tag. So I know guys who don't get a doe tag for whatever reason so shooting a doe isn't an option for them. We also have controlled hunts that are only a week long and are muzzleloader or shotgun only. so for that week you take what you can. Being picky is fairly hard. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
swohiodave Posted July 3, 2011 Report Share Posted July 3, 2011 Some guys i know have hunted the east fork area here in ohio and told me they have not SEEN a deer for weeks on end on the public land. They would shoot any legal deer that walked in front of them. While we are being honest I have sat and watched a spike under me before and let him go and then turned around and shot a button buck 2 hours later. Why did i do it? I dont know! My buddy razzed me for it and then shot one last season claiming he thought it was a doe. I know the truth!!!! Now I know the farm I hunt has some monster bucks on it now so I will not be shooting any small bucks this year. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
loner Posted July 3, 2011 Report Share Posted July 3, 2011 the bottomline to this kind of dicussion is that everyone is not a trophy hunter or has the opportunity to hunt them.private landowners or wealthy hunters that can afford to manage for trophy deer or guided hunts are entitled to do what they want withinin the laws.the average hunter should not worry about who thinks what about how you hunt or what you do within the law.this country is founded on individual rights and those that try to control everyone by their selfish standards need to just do their thing and keep quiet.just an old man's view of the changing times who has been there and back but never killed anything over 150 because they don't exist where i hunt. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HUNTINGMAN Posted July 3, 2011 Report Share Posted July 3, 2011 I pass up smaller bucks to wait for a bigger one unless there is something special about the buck or my freezer is low and it's late in the season. I'm not to ashamed to shoot a spike or small buck,whatever it takes to get the meat in the freezer. I have shot alot of small bucks when I was younger,now I just shoot them for the above reasons. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rhino Posted July 4, 2011 Report Share Posted July 4, 2011 Genetics. If you know your area and deer population a buck with poor genetics might be worth harvesting! Some may say a 1.5 year old buck may be a little young to determine that by which I could see their point, but on the other hand it really just depends on your area and what state you hunt in. Ya know...that's a good point. I know of some clubs here that shoot spikes for management purposes and let 1 1/2 year old bucks with branched antlers walk. They get special spike tags from the MDWF&P. It's a controversial issue...even wildlife biologist can't agree on it. I just happen to agree with those that support the arguement that you can't tell what a buck's potential is until he's at least 3 1/2. Their facts make a lot more sense to me. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ohiobucks Posted July 5, 2011 Report Share Posted July 5, 2011 So we all have our own reason as to why we do / don't shoot 1.5 year old bucks, all points brought up have been pretty well made. The real question is, "Why should I care what someone else decides to shoot?" Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Strut10 Posted July 5, 2011 Report Share Posted July 5, 2011 The real question is, "Why should I care what someone else decides to shoot?" Unless it's on property that you manage, own or control.................... you shouldn't. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dawg Posted July 5, 2011 Report Share Posted July 5, 2011 The real question is, "Why should I care what someone else decides to shoot?" I don't. After all, we all know there's no big deer in Ohio, just dinks..... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rhino Posted July 5, 2011 Report Share Posted July 5, 2011 So we all have our own reason as to why we do / don't shoot 1.5 year old bucks, all points brought up have been pretty well made. The real question is, "Why should I care what someone else decides to shoot?" Unless it's on property that you manage, own or control.................... you shouldn't. Exactly!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
redkneck Posted July 5, 2011 Report Share Posted July 5, 2011 Yall are missing the biggest reason, they are easiest to drag. Hard to get a grip on a fat nanny! :chair: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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