Originally Posted by
Handles
Isn't less deer shot what many of you were hoping for after last season? Many people were on here saying that they won't hunt or won't shoot does until the population increases. It looks like that has happend. So rather than complain, you should be happy right? Fewer deer shot this year = more deer next year.
It's not that simple. If the doe harvest is restricted, then the herd will grow. To the extent that people can continue to shoot does at will, the population will continue to decline. In my area, despite a 45% drop from just two years ago, the DNR is still saying there are too many deer and want to see more does harvested!
Hunters that complain that the herd is too small want to see fewer does harvested because they're let go, not because they can't be found.
And for the record, going into this season, I was on the fence on the DNRs evaluation of the herd size. I've not been a vocal anti-DNR voice.