ORIGINAL: SwampCollie
ORIGINAL: GMMAT
The Hanson buck (if I'm not mistaken) was 3.5 yrs old.
If you'd pass him.....I'd say stick to your guns.
I'll shoot ANY 3.5yr old or older buck. I "might" shoot a younger buck if he gets my attention.
Good luck with your choice.
Thats kinda how I roll. Only I prefer to only take mature deer (4.5+)... but I may shoot a 3.5 year old buck if he gets my attention.... couldn't have said it better!
In general.... hunt for you.... if you are happy of the buck you take.... then shoot that joker! From a biology standpoint, yes I think a 3.5 year old deer has a better chance of surviving a rut/winter than a 4.5 year old.... but from a hunting standpoint you stand a better chance harvesting a 3.5 year old deer than a 4.5 year old.... they don't get old by being dumb, and they don't get any dumber as they get older. I haven't shot a buck in over a decade now because I'm just too damn picky, and thats fine, but I've never shot anything that I've had to make an excuse for either.
I guess that's pretty much the same way I think. If he's big enough you would shoot him even if the Birth Certificate said 3.5
Does that mean you shoot a 4.5 even if he's a Dink? That's where I might differ but then I do have trouble reading the Birth certificate
I rarely see Bucks aged anything but 1.5, 2.5, & 3.5 at the Slug check in station. I couldn't agree with all the ages even though some are pretty evident.
Dan