Not having a ' trophy' mounted- Is it Disrespect?
 

I have a question that is likely rather premature, but after reading Bowhunter' s post about being proud of what you harvest, it got me wondering about a decision I hopefully will have to make this year.

I have two large bucks running around in the area I' m going to hunt starting the 15th of this month, and my estimate, although I' m no expert at this, is that they may score in the area of 140-150.

The problem is, I have never been one that wants to decorate with animal heads or antlers, I don' t have a hunting camp to hang it in, and personally (please don' t take offense) I can think of a lot of other things I would rather do with a couple of hundred bucks (or more?) than to have a deer' s head stuffed.

Is this showing disrespect to the animal? I likely will cut the antlers off and hang them on the wood shed like I have done with all the rest, although I will always cherish the photos and memory of taking a ' trophy' , something I have never done before. Who knows, if I' m lucky enough to bag one of these guys, my opinion may change, although my wife' s may not...;)

RE: Not having a ' trophy' mounted- Is it Disrespect?
 

I say absolutely not! Only you can make that kind of choice. Whether you shoulder mount it, mount the rack only, or throw the rack away, it' s up to you. I look at it as, if you use the meat and not waste it, then you' ve shown respect to the animal. You can' t eat antlers anyway.

But, if you truly have no desire to do anything with the rack, let it go so someone else can shoot it that may want to have it mounted, and take a doe or smaller deer instead.

I take it your wife doesn' t want a head on her walls in the living room or den? Do like I did. I told mine that if I couldn' t hang it in the living room, I' d hang it over the bed. It sits proudly on a living room wall as we speak.

RE: Not having a ' trophy' mounted- Is it Disrespect?
 

Interesting....I am perplexed. I personally think mounted animals in honorable and beautiful....course I live in a log home and the setting is perfect but on any wall, they are beautiful. I' ll have to give this one some thought. I don' t think it' s disrespectful, but at the same time, your taking an animal away from someone who wants to see the mount on thier wall....hmmmm I' ll have to give this one some thought.

I do however admire your thinking towards the memory, the photos and at least hanging the antlers along with your others, even if it is on a shed. Hmmmm I' m perplexed.......I guess I can' t tell you what' s right and what' s wrong as long as you hold the animal in respect when you take them....you seem sound enough as a sportsman and hunter....what you do with the animals you harvest is up to you....who am I to say differently. I haven' t mounted all my animals as head mounts but I do plaque them, use them as decor and waste not. Good luck this season.

RE: Not having a ' trophy' mounted- Is it Disrespect?
 

[:' (] That' s just not fair!!! :(

RE: Not having a ' trophy' mounted- Is it Disrespect?
 

I don' t think not mounting the ' trophy' is disprespectful, but throwing the antlers away IS. They are a very useful part of the animal that should not be discarded. If you can' t use them, find someone that can.

RE: Not having a ' trophy' mounted- Is it Disrespect?
 

I don' t think you will be showing the deer any disrespect. Hanging them on the shed is 1 way many thousands of people choose to display their racks.

Please, do not throw them on the ground in the back of the barn or on the " pile" behind the shed. I see this much to frequently on the farms I hunt in PA and NY. They live with and around deer constantly all year round and see them as eating machines of good crops. Many of these guys love to hunt as well and it is a very strong tradition with them, but once they are in the freezer and a photo or 2 has been snapped many racks end up thrown behind the barn. No matter how hard I try and explain that just nailing that rack to the wall instead of letting it rot on the ground would be more respectful they don' t get it. I' ve even offered to do it myself.

Nothing wrong with hanging them on the shed. A good mount is expensive for some people, around here it' s about $400.

RE: Not having a ' trophy' mounted- Is it Disrespect?
 

No, thats not disrespectful. Now if you shot the deer and cutout the backstrap and threw the rest of the animal away, THAT would be disrespectful.
The fact that you take pictures of the animal and adorn the antlers on your barn shows respect.

RE: Not having a ' trophy' mounted- Is it Disrespect?
 

Not trying to defend myself, but another situation I find myself in is the exact opposite of PA/ Bowhunter' s. I live in a relatively small home with 8' ceilings and a small living room. Hanging a full head mount would put me eye to eye with the deer, especially the one which is a very large (tall) 10 point basket rack, I' m estimating an antler height of 2' and a few inches. The base of his neck, in a typical head mount post, would be down near my belt buckle, I would imagine.

Two things I' m thinking about since posting is either getting it european mounted, which I think is approx. $100, or talking to Cabella' s. I have two Cabella' s somewhat close to me- one in Sydney, NE, and another in Kansas City. Would they possibly pay to have it head mounted and hang it in their store? I know that' s a long shot, since they probably have many people donating mounts to them, but it' s a thought.

Also, it' s not just the wife that doesn' t like deer heads hanging in the house- I' m not fond of them either, at least in the home I' m in now. If I lived in a log house or lodge styled home with tall ceilings, it would be a different story, for both me and my wife.

BTW, thanks for all the responses, I really appreciate it.

RE: Not having a ' trophy' mounted- Is it Disrespect?
 

It' s not disrespectful not to mount a trophy, but as far as I' m concerned nailing a 150" rack to a shed is somewhat disrespectful. If the problem is with the wife not wanting in the house.....well, it' s your house too. Marriage is a two sided deal! Ultimately the decision is yours on whether or not to mount it, but if it were me and I wasn' t going to mount it I' d let him walk.

RE: Not having a ' trophy' mounted- Is it Disrespect?
 

There' s NO WAY that I would ever let an animal lie and go to waste. I' ll either eat it or donate it to a needy family or to Hunter' s Feeding the Hungry. I also send the hide away to get it tanned (I don' t have time to do it myself) to later be made into a garment of some sort, when I collect enough. In fact, I cherish the hide now much more than I do the antler' s. I' m having a fundamental shift in my thinking where I' m thinking about shooting the largest bodied deer that I see, if I should have a couple of bucks (or does) pass by at the same time, over the size of the antlers.

When I got my hide back last year, the feel of that soft leather in my hands felt as good as any antlers I' ve ever held.

RE: Not having a ' trophy' mounted- Is it Disrespect?
 

To be honest I never did understand this “honor” thing that is thrown around. I never could see how blowing a hole through a perfectly healthy – in its prime animal – was in any way honoring it. I never did understand how eating it or mounting it would also further “honor” that animal.

From the animals perspective:

That buck doesn’t want to be honored or shot by you – and it holds hundreds of thousands of years of evolution to do just that – not get killed by a predator. And if the predator kills it and eats it – that buck has doubly failed. It died and feed its enemy, so it can hunt again. Probably the biggest slap in the face for a deer. Then go and mount it – so you can remember its kill…………

I think if deer could talk – we would get an earful about honoring the animal.

If I was murdered, I sure wouldn’t want to be eating also, And I sure wouldn’t want my mug hung on some cereal killers wall.

Now, I fully believe in honoring the tradition, act, history, responsibility, and obligation of hunting and what we as hunters do.

I see “honoring” and “respect” as having different meanings – and showing respect to ones kill is a very important part of being a hunter. If you guys are using honor and respect interchangeably - then I understand why you “honor” your game.

I just never felt I was doing any deer I shot a favor – no matter what I did after the kill.

So do what you want with the horns – that buck won’t care a bit.

RE: Not having a ' trophy' mounted- Is it Disrespect?
 

So if you are not going to mount the deer you should' nt shoot it?.Outsmarting a mature buck is the challenge of hunting.What you do with the antlers is your own business.One of the best deer hunters I know has a shed full of antlers that would make anyone proud.He has a couple of nice mounts but you can' t mount every deer you shoot.He certainly means no disrespect to the animal.He just does' nt see the need to impress anyone else with a deer mount.


CB

RE: Not having a ' trophy' mounted- Is it Disrespect?
 

I believe if I was a deer, I' d rather be shot and killed quickly by a hunter rather than grow old and crippled to the point I' d be easy for a pack of coyotes to catch and start eating on me before I was dead; or get to the point I' m not able to feed and then slowly starve to death. In that way, I do think we' re doing the deer we kill a big favor.

I don' t know about others, but I' ve always considered ' honor' and ' respect' interchangeable when talking about animals. Completely different story when it comes to humans though.

RE: Not having a ' trophy' mounted- Is it Disrespect?
 

I can understand that 100%:)

Again I understand what you are saying. But in a way thats like killing someone when they are 35 yrs old because he has health issues and will probably die in a bad way 10 yrs from now. I would choose to live another day.

RE: Not having a ' trophy' mounted- Is it Disrespect?
 

Again, completely different story when we' re talking about humans. I' ve got health issues, but anybody coming around with the idea to put me out of my misery is going to wind up with worse health issues than I' ve got. ;)

RE: Not having a ' trophy' mounted- Is it Disrespect?
 

O.K. then - I won' t take that flight out to Texas to do you a favor:D;)

RE: Not having a ' trophy' mounted- Is it Disrespect?
 

Hey Rack, wait a minute now.[:@] I Honor deer every bow season when I MISS them.[:o]
I purposely do this to increase their survival instincts so I can honor them again next year.[:-][:-];)

RE: Not having a ' trophy' mounted- Is it Disrespect?
 

Not in one minute. You mount the animal if you feel so inclined. I have a pet dog mounted and would mount he wife if it was legal.

RE: Not having a ' trophy' mounted- Is it Disrespect?
 

Benhuntin practices catch and release hunting. I' m not sure what cardeer is practicing if it' s illegal to mount the wife. Ahem... :D

RE: Not having a ' trophy' mounted- Is it Disrespect?
 

:Dthe last few post gave me a real good laugh, thanks guys!:D

RE: Not having a ' trophy' mounted- Is it Disrespect?
 

Absolutely up to the individual. Obviously the response to wasting the meat is a given!!

I think WAY too many people get caught up on " inches" of bone and b/c scoring etc. If you want the rack hanging on your shed, go for it. I know a few old timers that have some incredible deer, that would score extremely well, and they could care less about the books and shoulder mounts. There are many awesome hunters (and fisherman) who harvest (or catch) true trophies and could care less about all of the hype and glamour. My Dad was one of those......

RE: Not having a ' trophy' mounted- Is it Disrespect?
 

" Rack" always seems to speak my language. Maybe we are related. :D He could not have said it better than he did.

I guess I am totally satisfied with personal satisfaction. I have killed bucks with very good sets, but I have never had any mounted to hang on the wall, but they are mounted in my memory. In fact, I do not have pics of all the deer I have killed. I hunt to " munch," not to " mount."

I hope the intent of some is (intent) not as conveyed. When it is suggested that a buck be passed if you are not going to mount the head, the message comes across that the primary purpose is just to kill a buck for its set, and nothing more. Also, if mounting is your bag, is mounting a nice doe out of vogue these days?

RE: Not having a ' trophy' mounted- Is it Disrespect?
 

:D:Dlol. What? You have more than one.[:o][:o]:D:D;)

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RE: Not having a ' trophy' mounted- Is it Disrespect?
 

If you' re going to nail it to a " shed" and not even a barn, let someone else shoot it or let it die of old age.

RE: Not having a ' trophy' mounted- Is it Disrespect?
 

OH PLEASE.... give me a break. You' re going to eat the dang thing I hope. If your worries are founded I guess I should have brought home some ears from Southeast Asia and mounted them.... or maybe some of those cute little rubber sandles.[:' (]:eek:

OH PLEASE.... give me another break. I feed them to the squirrels in my back yard.

If hunting is all about respect we' d shoot them all with a camera. You kill the things and eat them.

No way am I taking the bait on that line.:eek:

RE: Not having a ' trophy' mounted- Is it Disrespect?
 

Against the rules : nope
Wrong : nope

Does it upset me. Yep because I' m jelous!!! ;) I apreciate the beauty of these animals and the memory alone just doesn' t cut it for me. I want the rack. I want it on the wall. To discard it just gives me the willies. How someone can hunt for the big deer, pass up others (key factor here), and then toss the rack aside once they harvested it baffles me.

Just Jelous in WI-

RE: Not having a ' trophy' mounted- Is it Disrespect?
 

At least you' re using them for squirrel food. [:' (]

You sound like I did that last robin hood I shot. I was moaning and complaining under my breath - the dang it, not AGAIN kind of thing - till one of the new guys said, ' I wish I could do that.' What' s old hat to you or me seems like the impossible dream to someone else.

Does ARE better eating, ya know. Maybe you really should leave the horns for someone that would appreciate them. Or at the very least use them for knife handles, bow overlays, antler buttons, knapping tools, rattling horns....

RE: Not having a ' trophy' mounted- Is it Disrespect?
 

Pal, did you not read the entire thread?

RE: Not having a ' trophy' mounted- Is it Disrespect?
 

I feel like many others here. You do what you want:) If you don' t want to mount it then so be it.

Let it walk for someone who wants a mount:eek:[&:]:DYeah right. The trophy is in taking the animal regardless of what you do with the rack.

Mounting the wife:eek: Don' t even want to go there:D[8D]

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RE: Not having a ' trophy' mounted- Is it Disrespect?
 

Now making money off them might be the worst disrespect for the hunt. Just a thought.[:-]

RE: Not having a ' trophy' mounted- Is it Disrespect?
 

I can' t believe someone here truely thinks that a deer mount honors an animal any more than eating it and disposing of the carcass. Antlers are bone right? Just like a leg or back bone but no one is asking you to mount those just throw them away. Seems kind of disrespectful to me. I have some nice sets of antlers I have kept and some I have thrown out to go back into the earth and hopefully grow feed for the next buck. Don' t kid yourself those deer don' t care what you do with the horns after you kill them. I am not opposed to a deer mount, in fact think they are very neat, but I also do not think they are in any way required to respect or honor the animal.

RE: Not having a ' trophy' mounted- Is it Disrespect?
 

Personally to me, Respecting the animal is NOT taking the shot just out of range, following the rules, being ethical, and when you do finally get a shot presented, you do your absolute best to put him down quickly and humanly.

However, Honoring the animal, is well, honoring the fact that he lived to grow those antlers, lived to raise those fawns (as in a doe). To me, honoring it, is getting the large and unsual ones stuffed, and putting the smaller antlers on a $10 plaque. Both sexes of deer get honored by having every bit of meat possible put in the freezer, and the pictures and the memories. Also, I dont really think you honor the animal before you shoot it. How many heros get honored before they do something heroic? ;)

RE: Not having a ' trophy' mounted- Is it Disrespect?
 

I don' t see a problem with not mounting a big one. It' s up to the individual. It has nothing to do with honor and respect.

RE: Not having a ' trophy' mounted- Is it Disrespect?
 

And how many have doe head mounts of all the does they shot?? Honor an respect should be the same as it is a deer just different gender. Come on now, let' s be real.

I like racks just as much as the next guy but getting one mounted to put on the wall isn' t so much for respect to the deer as it has to do more with one' s accomplishments and desires.

Wasting meat is one thing and I do pass on young bucks, but telling someone they don' t deserve to shoot a buck or shouldn' t shoot a buck unless they do something with the antlers is getting a bit extreme and sounds more selfish then respectful.

Tim

RE: Not having a ' trophy' mounted- Is it Disrespect?
 

It' s called QDM[:-]:eek:[&:]

RE: Not having a ' trophy' mounted- Is it Disrespect?
 

Even MORE disrespectful is someone who shoots a deer and then ONLY takes the antlers and cape, leaving the rest to spoil.

I think you should use whatever parts of the deer you can--not waste anything.. However, you don' t need to mount antlers to do that. I' ve got lots of racks nailed to my garage wall and only 2 mounted heads--one of those a trophy taken by my son.

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