Our Muzzleloader season opens on Saturday
12-17-2012, 09:13 AM
#11
Fork Horn
Join Date: Dec 2012
Location: Upstate, NY
Posts: 153
good for you I commend you . I could have taken a shot during bow season for a doe with a 1 year old and chose not too. I also would not feel good about leaving a 1 year old fawn on without a mother even if the fawn may be adopted by another doe in the family unit .
12-17-2012, 09:45 AM
#12
Boone & Crockett
Join Date: Apr 2007
Location: River Ridge, LA (Suburb of New Orleans)
Posts: 10,917
I applaud your decision GM54-120, given that your meat needs are met.
But you should never feel bad about taking a doe accompanied by young so long as the fawns are beyond the spot stage. Many detailed studies have confirmed that the survival and growth rates of fawns whose mother is killed is no different than that of those whose mother is not killed. They do just fine. And there's the added advantage that a button buck whose mother is killed will remain in the area beyond his first year rather than dispersing a few miles away as would otherwise be the case.
Actually, excepting that the meat yield is less and depending on the carrying capacity of the land, it's not a bad idea to take those six month old doe fawns rather than their mother. The adult deer will likely have twins the following spring. When she is shot there will be three fewer deer in the woods. That's good if the herd is at carrying capacity. But taking the fawn sometimes makes more sense.
But you should never feel bad about taking a doe accompanied by young so long as the fawns are beyond the spot stage. Many detailed studies have confirmed that the survival and growth rates of fawns whose mother is killed is no different than that of those whose mother is not killed. They do just fine. And there's the added advantage that a button buck whose mother is killed will remain in the area beyond his first year rather than dispersing a few miles away as would otherwise be the case.
Actually, excepting that the meat yield is less and depending on the carrying capacity of the land, it's not a bad idea to take those six month old doe fawns rather than their mother. The adult deer will likely have twins the following spring. When she is shot there will be three fewer deer in the woods. That's good if the herd is at carrying capacity. But taking the fawn sometimes makes more sense.
Last edited by Semisane; 12-17-2012 at 09:50 AM.
12-17-2012, 10:18 AM
#13
Giant Nontypical
Join Date: Mar 2010
Posts: 5,605
Semisane
We always try to harvest what we feel is abundant each year. This year we saw very few doe prior to the season and almost no "family units" of does with juveniles. The year i took the doe and a button, we saw many "groups".
I would have been very tempted if i had 2 tags and needed meat but in this case i felt heard management was better served by letting them go. I could have taken the bigger doe easily but it was cool to watch her though the scope and know she was mine if i wanted her.
The NULA laid down the hammer of Thor earlier with the Parker BE further than ive ever shot a deer with a ML. My desire to test out that load had been satisfied during the rifle season, so i really didn't have any other reason to take another.
We always try to harvest what we feel is abundant each year. This year we saw very few doe prior to the season and almost no "family units" of does with juveniles. The year i took the doe and a button, we saw many "groups".
I would have been very tempted if i had 2 tags and needed meat but in this case i felt heard management was better served by letting them go. I could have taken the bigger doe easily but it was cool to watch her though the scope and know she was mine if i wanted her.
The NULA laid down the hammer of Thor earlier with the Parker BE further than ive ever shot a deer with a ML. My desire to test out that load had been satisfied during the rifle season, so i really didn't have any other reason to take another.
12-17-2012, 11:39 AM
#15
Typical Buck
Thread Starter
Join Date: Dec 2008
Location:
Posts: 818
I applaud your decision GM54-120, given that your meat needs are met.
But you should never feel bad about taking a doe accompanied by young so long as the fawns are beyond the spot stage. Many detailed studies have confirmed that the survival and growth rates of fawns whose mother is killed is no different than that of those whose mother is not killed. They do just fine. And there's the added advantage that a button buck whose mother is killed will remain in the area beyond his first year rather than dispersing a few miles away as would otherwise be the case.
Actually, excepting that the meat yield is less and depending on the carrying capacity of the land, it's not a bad idea to take those six month old doe fawns rather than their mother. The adult deer will likely have twins the following spring. When she is shot there will be three fewer deer in the woods. That's good if the herd is at carrying capacity. But taking the fawn sometimes makes more sense.
But you should never feel bad about taking a doe accompanied by young so long as the fawns are beyond the spot stage. Many detailed studies have confirmed that the survival and growth rates of fawns whose mother is killed is no different than that of those whose mother is not killed. They do just fine. And there's the added advantage that a button buck whose mother is killed will remain in the area beyond his first year rather than dispersing a few miles away as would otherwise be the case.
Actually, excepting that the meat yield is less and depending on the carrying capacity of the land, it's not a bad idea to take those six month old doe fawns rather than their mother. The adult deer will likely have twins the following spring. When she is shot there will be three fewer deer in the woods. That's good if the herd is at carrying capacity. But taking the fawn sometimes makes more sense.
I did not kill my buck this weekend but did shoot a good mature doe. I shot her with my Knight Mountaineer and a TMZ 290 grain bullet in front of 115 grains of BH 209. I did not get much of a blood trail for about 10-15 yards but the last 25 yards a blind man could have followed. The bullet went in just behind the front should and came out just behind the 2 rib on the opposite side. She was slightly quartering to me. It was about the size of a silver dollar on the entry and the exit. It was unreal.
