what i meant by "leaving potential bucks"
are 2 1/2 year old ... Small Rack .. 8 point bucks.
yes, a buck can be 8 points at 2 yrs old.
if you see an 8pt buck.. thats very young and small.
with a rack that only scores 90 b/c ...
WHY SHOOT HIM??
this isnt the 1800's where we die, if we dont killour food.
sure, you might never see him again...
but on the other hand.. you Might see him again.. at age 3 or 4 or 5yrs old.
99.9 % of the time, a Small 8 point rack.. and 2 yrs old.. will be a NICE TROPHY at 4 yrs old.
and defintly the type of buck that SHOULD live to be at least3 or 4 yrs old.
as i said, one of the places i hunt is only 35 acres.
and i pass up on Small and/or Average, young 8 pointers all the time.
Sure, i do worry about never seeing them again.
i worry that some other hunter in the area will shoot these young deer.
By Not shooting him, there is a Chance you will never see him alive again.
By Shooting him... you are GUARANTEED to never see him alive again.
I am More DISAPPOINTED w/ MYSELF .. when i shoot an 8 point that i thought was older.. then when you walk up to it in the grass... I find that it is younger than i thought. well, then im just not too proud of the kill because it was a deer i should have never killed in the 1st place.
this happened last year with the buck below...
he had the sunlight on him, and i thought he was an older deer.
was not happy w/ my choice to shoot at all... but i learned my lesson and Know to be more carefull next time.
sometimes a mistake is what it takes to learn. as w/ any situation.
IN MY OPINION.. i dont think ANYONE should ever shoot a Deer LESS than 3 years old.. for any reason.
unless it obviously has a Deformation to the antler growth.
