poll on quality deer management
 

it's kind of a two part question
first, how many of you guys are trophy hunters??
how many of you guys hunt for the meat??

i would ask who just hunts for the passion of the sport but i know that 99.9% of you would say yes to that question.

in asking this question i asked myself what is quality deer management anyways?? does deer with bigger antlers really make a healthier herd?? don't get me wrong, i would love to see bigger bucks in the woods and be able to harvest a monster with a massive rack, but at the same time i feel that a deer is a deer and meat is meat. infact i heard that 1st year deer are "very good eatin'", i for one past on yearlings. i'm just wondering what you guys think on the subject.

RE: poll on quality deer management
 

I don't know everything there is to know about QDM and i will be the first to admit it. But i really don't see the reason to shoot a 1.5 - 2.5 year old bucks. If i am going out to fill the freezer i am going after the first mature doe i see. I agree with TLBS and will not shoot a yearling. I know the whole key to bigger deer and a healthier herd isn't letting the little deer go but i think it is a good start. The only time i try for one of those little guys is when i have the camera in my hand, I get more satisfaction just watching one of those immature bucks go buy then i would shooting at it, just knowing i probably could have shot that deer but instead just watched him go buy and gave him a chance to get another year on him is good enough for me. Good huntn'.

Tom

RE: poll on quality deer management
 

I TOTALLY AGREE, Tom...... AMEN!!!:D

RE: poll on quality deer management
 

I do both.. I hunt for meat and Trophies...

I know you can't eat the Antlers.. But i sure can sit back and look at them and reminice(sp) about the hunt with my son and my friends and someday grandkids..

RE: poll on quality deer management
 

I would consider myself both a trophy hunter and a meat hunter. First, I like to kill a doe or 2 and then I will start buck hunting. I let EVERY buck walk that scores less than 100 whether it be the first day or the last. Anything over 120 and I'm shooting, between 100 - 120..... I have to make the decision based on rack characteristics, etc.

RE: poll on quality deer management
 

don't get me wrong, i don't down anybody who passes up deer of any size. infact, i welcomed the 3-points on one side law that the game commision regulated this year. they are trying to produce high quality bucks as well. pennsylvania deer hunting is great, but around here an 8-point is a trophy for most. we do have some huge bucks running around here, but there is an awful lot of woods to roam.

RE: poll on quality deer management
 

As in the above posts, I'm with those guys (and gals?) who both meat hunt and trophy hunt. However, horn soup is awfully thin, and those yearling does are really tasty. After ~4 decades of bowhunting, I've gotten to where I let bucks walk that much of the crowd out there would whack, given the chance. I'll rationalize that he'll be bigger next year. I set my standards, but realize what works for me doesn't necessarily (or should) apply to the next guy. I only bowhunt, both on qdm land and "brown is down" land. I favor the qdm land, as the opportunity to see nice bucks is always there (last Saturday, I watched a mature buck bed down just 45 yards away...do not feel bad at all that he left the area without giving me an opportunity). So I pass on the young bucks, trying not to be judgemental with the guys who let the does pass, and pick out a forkie to prove their "prowness"... I was there at one time...
-fsh

RE: poll on quality deer management
 

My first 3 years of bowhunting I would shoot anything. I was just wanting to get my first deer with a bow. Well last year I harvested my first deer with a bow, a doe. This year after reading about QDM and figuring out that letting small deer go will only help out in the long run I decided to let small buck pass. Of course I only had 1 opportunity at a buch my first three years and after deciding to let them all pass this year I had the chance at 4 different bucks. One of them twice. I did manage to get a doe for some meat. So I guess I consider myself a trophy/meat hunter. Any deer is fun to kill for me. But if I'm gonna take a buck I want it to be a wall hanger!

RE: poll on quality deer management
 

I hunt both trophies and meat! Early or very late season I'll take does(small or large - only if I know its not a button). But I like hunting for the big boys and if you really want to hunt for them, you can't : 1 st - Shoot small bucks and 2 nd - You can't shoot does! You must let them pass because you never know what will comming down the trail behind them.

We've been letting our bucks pass for the last 3 years and the buck size has increased greatly. Its really amazing! I know some of them get shot by neighboring hunters, but it still makes a huge differance. Its also a good reason to establish a good repore with neighbors, let them know what your trying to accomplish, they may just join in. Sometimes it may take time but you have to start somewhere!

RE: poll on quality deer management
 

Hey Cloud, how many acres is your hunting area? Just curious...
Jim