BrentH243

My dad and I hunt our private land in MI and have been letting the 1.5 year old bucks go for the past 6-7 years, hoping to allow them to get another year older and sport a decent set of antlers. We would pass up the 2.5 year olds, if there were more than a couple around every year, but we just don’t see that many. Over the last 3 seasons, my dad has had about 35 bucks in range, all being 1.5 years old, and has elected not to shoot them. He has seen a few bucks older than that, but they never offered a shot. If he doesn’t get a buck this year, that will be 4 straight seasons without a buck! Would you lower your standards and shoot a smaller buck, just to get something? He just doesn’t have the desire to do that but he is getting pretty frustrated. He has shot a number of does, but that’s just not the same. He has had ample time to hunt since he is on 3rd shift…he’s able to go out every evening if he wants and he also takes 3 full weeks off every year in November.

What would you do? He is really considering going out of state, he’s mentioned Ohio, Illinois, and possibly Minnesota. He really doesn’t want to do that because he owns about 200 acres of land and puts hours upon hours into creating habitat and a safe living environment for deer and other game.

I know there are guys that are able to pass on the 2.5 and 3.5 year old bucks, but that’s just not possible in my area. We can’t get any of our neighbors to join a QDM program or agree to start letting the small bucks go. That is fine, because they can legally shoot those spikes, 3 points, and 6 pointers, and they will continue to shoot them.

I know the old saying goes something like, “be patient and good things will come”, but this is the 4th year now! We do have some trail cam photos of a couple good bucks in the area, so we know they are out there. As for now, he’s staying patient but its getting harder and harder each day!

I have been lucky enough to get 1 shot at a decent buck over the past 4 seasons, so its not as bad as what my dad is going through. Maybe we just need some encouragement?

Any of you ever try to set up QDM in your area and have success? Most hunters around me will not shoot anything other than an antlered deer and they will shoot the first 2 legal bucks they can.

burniegoeasily

Thats why its called hunting. You will get all kinds of answers here. For me, i dont care about racks. Never ate one, so they mean little to me. Dont get me wrong, im like all hot blooded males, a nice rack is something to behold. But if my year is coming to an end, ill cull a scrub buck for the freezer.

sbooy42

Well I'm fellow Michigander and I know what you mean...But if your dad isn’t happy with a doe I don't think he will be happy lowering his standards on buck either.... Plus think about how you view those guys that shoot little bucks instead of does...I'm guessing that’s not how he wants to be viewed.
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Splitear_Leland

I'm fine with shooting does. It all comes down to, would shooting one of those smaller buck make him feel better or worse. If he were to shoot a smaller buck after showing such self-restraint, I would say that he would feel bad for taking it just so he could get a set of horns. QDM involves a lot of sacrafice, but it's worth it.

Steve F.in MD

I would not shoot a small buck "just to get something". I would proudly put does in the freezer and stick to the plan. There is no honor or glory in shooting a buck that is not good enough for the wall. There is no disgrace in shooting a doe. Just my 2 cents worth.

gplant

Im from Mich and all I can say is good luck. Around me if its brown its down. Seen 5 1.5year old bucks killed around me this year and 4 of them was shot walking off my land .They hunt right on the edges of my land and there is not a thing I can do about it.

Doughboy2

I think that if he wants to shoot a smaller buck, then I say go for it!!! In my opinion, there is nothing wrong with shooting a smaller buck. It is called deer hunting.....not big buck hunting!!!

BrentH243

He's shot enough little bucks from 1984-1996, so he's done with that. I just feel bad for him because he seriously spends almost as much time in the woods during the off season as he does at work (and he works 60 hour weeks)! His best friends (other than me of course) is his chainsaw, his shovel for planting hundreds of trees each year, and his tractor. Plants food plots, grows trees, destroys his woods to make it, thick, thick, thick...and he would be getting a backhoe to put a water source in, but we have naturally flowing creeks already on the property.

He definitely shoots his share of does and would not feel good about himself about shooting a fork horn or a small 8 point. We have so many gun hunters in our area that they pretty much wipe out all the young bucks during the first couple days of gun season.

One problem we do have though is there is a 4.5 or 5.5 year old buck running around, pretty much living on the property adjacent to us. A 2.5 year old buck is pretty rare in my area, but this buck is one smart deer. I actually saw him last year 3 times while bowhunting and got him on video twice. We are convinced that he is running all the 2.5 year old bucks out of the area and he doesn't feel threatened by the 1.5 year old bucks, so he lets them roam through. We would love to get this buck, not only due to the size or the fact that we have only shot 1 buck together in the last 4 seasons, but to take him out of the area to allow other deer to make our land their home.

eman1200

Doughboy, I sort of agree. This is my first year dear hunting and while my friend passed on this 6 pointer a week ago, I personally would have loved to take him down. But from what Brent is saying, his pop is looking for the big guy, so I think in HIS situation he'd be "settling".

In these situations I try to switch from the "what should I do" line of thinking to "how would I feel if I just shot the small buck". I actually try to visualize the shot and then see how I feel. Maybe he can try that. Oh, and no, I've never been in therapy.

RugerM77.270

The big bucks are in there they are just hiding. Try to hunt a little harder and Stay allitle more hidden and you will get them.