Which deer would you shoot?

[hammer4reel]

If the goal is to help the herd rebound then shooting the spike is actually beneficial.  Removing bucks from the herd leaves more food for the females over winter, which results in higher fawn recruitment next year.

 

That's not automatically a given . What if the doe doesnt make it through the winter or only has a single fawn ?

 

Is lack of deer there due to browse ?

The spike is more than likely heartier and stronger to make it through the winter .

The right call is to leave them all and buy groceries

[ratherbhunting]

pass on all don't shoot your fawn factory and let them both grow

[Hunter115522]

Shoot whatever gives you the cleanest shot. If it's about meat, and not a rack, shoot any of the 3. 

[Shootemandmountem]

Been seeing that all season....they all get a pass

[Lunatic]

One of the bucks.

[not on the rug]

You think you have "which deer to shoot"  decision problems?   

 

I am struggling between these two - one is a typical 10 very symmetrical, the other is a split G3 11pt...  I can't decide which one will score higher, as that split G3 will be penalized as a deduction if I kill it and enter it as a typical buck.   Still - I think it would make a great shoulder mount and both will overflow the freezer with meat... 

 

I am really struggling here...  What would you do?  I still have a few bow hunts left in me on this permit bow tag.

 

Hey mods, we need a "Fu*k You " emoji to click for A-holes like Jack

[buckhound]

You think you have "which deer to shoot"  decision problems?   

 

I am struggling between these two - one is a typical 10 very symmetrical, the other is a split G3 11pt...  I can't decide which one will score higher, as that split G3 will be penalized as a deduction if I kill it and enter it as a typical buck.   Still - I think it would make a great shoulder mount and both will overflow the freezer with meat... 

 

I am really struggling here...  What would you do?  I still have a few bow hunts left in me on this permit bow tag.

 

just shoot both of them and give rusty the one you don't want   there you go you got your mount and rusty can put meat in his freezer problem solved and everyone is happy except for the guy who's deer you shot......  

[Buck154]

i seen a study suggesting that by shooting only the bigger racks you may in fact be leaving bucks with bad genes to breed...

I'll take my chances 

[buckhound]

you may laugh  but living in an area that has both 3 point rule and 3" rule we are noticing that the the area with the 3" rule has been producing nicer bucks last couple years the area with three point rule has been producing some real freaks as evident by all the pics i have been posting so to me that shows that there is something to it...

Edited December 13, 2017 by buckhound

[Rusty]

pass on all don't shoot your fawn factory and let them both grow

 

I don't care about horns, I want meat, and a yearling buck (the spike) has a lot of good meat.  Why would I want to "let him grow"?

[hemlock]

I don't care about horns, I want meat, and a yearling buck (the spike) has a lot of good meat.  Why would I want to "let him grow"?

 

You could always wait until he is old droopy balls with the dingle berry hanging from his tail and two big swords on his head to take him lol 

[Bad64chevelle]

Rusty normally I'd say come down and take a doe or two .... but with the pressure we've had due to some night "hunters" doing some real damage, the movement I've had is way way down and all in the early morning hours . I haven't had a doe infront of me in shooting light at all this year . And only one buck I regret not releasing an arrow on now . Its been a shame , and I more than likely won't be hunting on my property next year because of this ordeal. If things change I will let you know.

[DV1]

 Why would I want to "let him grow"?

I get the impression you would rather let him shrink...in the dehydrator. 

 

In all seriousness, I read this, right after reading an email regarding concerns of the Farm Lobby about the exploding deer population. They say farmers are complaining about record levels of deer damage, more deer than ever, and hunting not being a good enough method to manage the numbers, in summary.

 

I think a few things are going on there; 1) these farmers have conveniently forgotten what real deer damage is from the 1980's and 1990's. The farms round Salem, Cumberland and Gloucester County are not experiencing even 1/5 the amount of deer damage they did back then, and if farmers are saying they are they are either fibbing, or never noticed it before. Or more likely, many never thought of reporting to the State back then because old farmers didn't complain about such things, and there were no remedies available anyhow. 

 

And 2), maybe next time someone asks for permission to hunt, they should say yes instead of no. Many, if not most do hunt and keep it for themselves, or a family member...which is perfectly fine, I understand that but don't complain about too many deer if that's what you are doing.

 

I did plenty of driving around this year and in a few spots, I saw good numbers of deer in the fields, a FEW spots. In the late 1970's, most of the 1980's and early 1990's, fields of deer like I saw in a few places this year, were everywhere. 

 

But the point is, what hunters are trying to do by cutting back to let the herd rebuild, is exactly opposite of what the Ag lobby wants. This exact same post on a website called, say...njfarmsandgardens...would say kill them all, and all their family members. 

Edited December 13, 2017 by DV1

[Rusty]

I get the impression you would rather let him shrink...in the dehydrator. 

 

 

[Lunatic]

I don't care about horns, I want meat, and a yearling buck (the spike) has a lot of good meat.  Why would I want to "let him grow"?

 

 

Take the spike and enjoy the meat.

I