basserman

Right on tsoc.....I hunt big racks these days. I look down at those that ridicule choices that others make. Those are the ones corrupting our passionate sport. Personal choice IMO

Fieldmouse

I get disappointed if I hunt with someone and they shoot any buck under huge unless it's a specific area where deer just need to be killed. If I'm hunting from Sept through Dec then it's in a good area where big deer are common. I always encourage anyone to shoot huge. It's what the dream is all about. If I can share in their excitement, all the better. If it's at the end of the season, then it doesn't matter that much to me.

Bow_hunter15

I dont know about you but when i got my first deer it was a little forky and i was tickled pink just to get a deer with a bow and i would gladly take another one and not be ashamed. It all depends in the person if he wants to shoot a small deer thats ok as long as you eat it

RDHunter

The way I look at it.
Theres a big diffrence between a Hunter and Trophy Hunter and that diffrence is one puts meat on the table while the other will go hungry.
The Hunter will keep his family fed, the Trophy Hunter willseek fame and fortune by doing so he will only corrupt himself.
Everyone is guilty of trying to get a bigger buck than he got last seasonThats not corupttion it is an obsession.

tsoc

RD, what if you shoot two or three doe's and fill your freezer but pass on small bucks?I don't like the insinuation that if you are a mature buck hunter that you are not taking care of your family,and that a trophy hunter is not a hunter.Any body who consistently kills big bucks on public land is the best of the best!

Fieldmouse

Yes and with Does being a dime a dozen in a lot of states why not wait for a trophy? If you want meat drop a couple of Does one morning.

RDHunter

No offense intended tsoc, its just my opinion ok let me reprase what I said in my last post.
All I meant was that some hunters will shoot any deer that walks by while other hunters go after a big wall hanger.
In my last sentence I said EVERYONE is guilty for wanting a bigger deer than they shot last season.
I didn't mean to stereotype anyone I was giving my opinion to this post like everyone else did.
Personely I will let a young buck live another year but when it comes to the end of season, hey you can't eat the antlers anyway.

buttonbuckmaster

But its not ok to shoot a small buck and give it to a friend or a food bank? Explain that to me. I eat a couple of deer a year, but, I'll be honest with ya, if i wanted food, Walmart has meat a heck of alot cheaper than what I spend on venison. One thing in my mind has corrupted (your word, not mine) deer hunting. Greed. Plain and simple. I shoot whatever I want, I hunt to have a good time, not for fame and fortune, or anything else.Here's a question thatno one ever answers....is a 140 class deer still going to be a trophy when they are everywhere in a few years? Thats what its coming to...shoot 3 1/2 or 4 1/2 year old deer or let them walk. I'm not a "its brown its down " guy, but I also don't get up at 3 am to let 99% of the deer walk by everyday. Last time I checked, hunting does involve a little killing once in a while.

RattleSnake1

I AM IMPRESSED! My hat is off to all of yougentlemen..AND ladies if there were any that posted to this thread, and not once did I see any feathers flying. In the past this subject or the general genre of it has always sparked somewhat heated debates.
Just the fact that this time everyone stated their own opinions without anyone else bashing them has shown that we've all started to respect how others hunt. I'm not trying to ramble (though it happens a lot when talking about hunting), but there were several excellent points made in this thread, and it's evident by how many times people quoted each other. Orion skirted the edges on the previous page about what the our group likes to call PERSONAL DEER MANAGEMENT (PDM) as opposed to the inherit rules that come with some ofthe QDM thoughts.
YES; I hunt for larger bucks, but if I see a buck I like the LOOKS of based on rack shape or CHARACTER; I will NOT hesitate to kill him. Our group is also happy to keep our doe population in check by taking enough to keep the ratio in check to the bucks. We do have large bucks on the properties we hunt, but there are a lot more smaller bucks on the properties that we choose to let go.
One thing that ALWAYS has to be remembered when getting into this type of discussion is that ALL of us as humans have something called FREE WILL and we will make up our own minds regardless of what other people say or do.
To get back to the original question.....I say NO....every one of us has the intelligence to make up our own minds about how and for what we want to hunt. I say TO EACH THEIR OWN and have a HOOOOOHAAAA of a time doing it! Good luck to all this year and STAY SAFE!

dochendrix

I actually believe that the craze for QDM ( which I have always called QAM- quality antler management) is the problem. I feel about it like I feel about baseball's modern era- their should be an asteric by it. In my, and I know it is only my, opinion whenever you manage deer, they become livestock. The true TROPHIES from years gone buy were shot because of hard hunting- not just hard work in management. I just don't feel that a 125 scored buck from a managed farm can compared to a 125 from public land or land where dear were not inticed to remain or come to. Now, if what you want is to manage your own land- more power to you and I know you get great satisfaction from it- but I just do not fee, in my on humble opinion, that it is the same as hunting for a trophy. I have never shot a buck- came close to a monster on a public land in MO, but I still feel every doe I arrowed- especially the small one I stalked-(great hunt!!!!!!!!!!!!) was a trophy to me!