Thought provoking Ritny,I' ll bet you' ll be a most welcome member to the board. I' m not at the trophy stage;I' ve never had a shot at a big one,so i don' t know how it would affect me. The young ones do taste better,however, I recently shot what appeared to be a doe, but turned out to be a button buck,and I did feel badly about it. At the same time. I' d rather have two does or two spikes than one big old buck with lots of points. I enjoy the butchering and food prep part along with the harvesting, so I guess i' m at the meat eating stage,more than the trophy stage, and there is always the thrill of the successful shot with any harvest.