Quality Deer Management Does Work

[horntagger]

First photo he is a 6 in 2007 and don't forget the 2009 photo was July 17 still have few days of growth left. Here is information, would you shoot or let walk, what about the others?

Also this is on 80 acres with public land down the road

2007 - all timber hard woods, one Mineral lick, summer time supplemental feeding, water source

2008 - six acres of food plots - High Forage Plants to numerous to mention, two mineral licks, summer time supplemental feeding, remote quite watering hole, water source, designated sanctuary.

2009 - six acres of food plots - High Forage Plants to numerous to mention, two mineral licks, summer time supplemental feeding, remote quite watering hole, water source, open canopy designated sanctuary.

2010 - Goal - Edge Feathering and TSI

4 adults this year hunting and two kids bow and gun.

Either way the main goal is to shoot Four Bully Girls on the place that run together and run off any other deer at the mineral sites.

What I have come up with this year is with 4 cameras on 81 acres.

9 Point - Buck

Freak Nasty - Buck

Pronghorn - Buck

Two Does

Four Does

Doe and Fawn

Spike

Doe and Twins

Doe and Twins

Notch Ear Deer

19 Different Deer that I can say with 100% confidence I have seen July and August

This is my theory on my big 9 point, which was an 8 last year and I watched twice while bow.

I believe this to be first photo this buck in 2007

I believe this to be him again but now in 2008

Him again in 2008

Now to 2009

Now let me introduce you to the Mr. Freak Nasty

This I believe is Freak Nasty in 2008 - Maybe

Now for Freak Nasty 2009

Now for Pronghorn - Not sure how to manage him.

2008 Pronghorn

Now 2009 Pronghorn

Little weird the other photo show him typical with these two other does.

[Texan_Til_I_Die]

I'm not sure what your goals are, but the 9 point is probably 4.5 years old. He will get bigger if he survives another year or two, but you certainly couldn't be faulted if you decided to take him out this year.

That "pronghorn" spike looks dubious to me. Where I hunt he'd get whacked immediately, but then again I hunt a large ranch with plenty of bucks. I'm also not 100% sure those are the same deer in the different pics, but if it is and you've got a buck that's 2.5 years old or older and he's still wearing spikes, there's probably something wrong with him.

Looks like you're doing a really good job with your deer management. Good luck this season!

[Ethan Givan]

Yeah that 9 pointer would be a borderline shooter for me, but he has some potential to grow alot bigger. IMO that spike buck needs to be taken out of the gene pool. You are definitely on the right track to some good deer hunting.

[backwoods07]

Yeah that 9 pointer would be a borderline shooter for me...

Borderline? Really? Are we talking about the same deer?

:hammer1:

[Ethan Givan]

Borderline? Really? Are we talking about the same deer?

:hammer1:

Only one 9 pointer in the post so Im guessing so.

[Gator]

Nice pics, but this really does belong in another room, and not in the lounge

[wtnhunt]

Your spike named "pronghorn" needs whacked, so does the "freaknasty". The bigger buck looks like it could be the same deer, hard to say for sure.

No doubt passing up deer and utilizing food plots and minerals to help nutrition helps your herd and also helps with antler growth. Wish we could get some of the folks on the properties around us on board with this concept and get them away from the brown its down mentality, but the reality is that we can only hope the deer we pass don't get seen on the properties around us. That is tough when you only own 60 of your own and have a little more land(30 acres of sole rights to neighbors land) to manage.

Through July we were getting pics of a couple of bucks that I passed on last year, 3 with at least 8 points and with antlers past their ears, one of those is a pretty nice mature deer. Nice to see some make it through. Buck activity around our cams has slowed the past few weeks, hoping they come around a little more before season opens.