jhalfhill

You know, I can never figure this one out. After looking at alot of posts on here and talking with fellow local hunters, everyone is SOO upset about the massive doe tag inflation and how we are killing too many does yada yada yada. Well, guess what?? The game commission is not the one pulling the trigger and filling all those tags. The HUNTER kills the deer. If everyone is so concerned about doe slaughter like they say they are, then the answer is simple. Don't shoot does. Every hunter out there has the option to shoot what they want within the current laws and regulations. That does not mean that you HAVE to kill a doe because you bought a doe tag. Heck, if you buy three of them and don't use them, that's three tags that somebody else didn't get.

I don't like shooting does on my hunting grounds strickly because the deer population is smaller than the land can support. I save my doe tags for residential areas where deer are over-populated. Also, I wish we didn't even have a rifle season at all. I admire Ohio's shotgun only season. Slug guns can be very accurate to a fair distance without worrying about the bullet travelling for 3 miles and killing somebody. Too many times have I had a "close call" with a bullet whizzing over my head or blasting into a nearby tree. Shotguns also reduce the probability that hunters will start blaring at running deer.

How many does you shoot, and where you shoot them, is entirely up to the hunter. How can we blame the PGC for all of this when we are the ones shooting all the deer?

DougE

There's alot more to it than that.I know of many remote areas that recieve very little hunting pressure that have far less deer than they did just 10 years ago.Hunters aren't killing the deer in these areas so what is?The answer is easy.The habitat has degraded to the point where these areas will support much less deer and fawn recruitment has taken a nosedive.Habiat is the key and without good habitat,we'll never have alot of deer.

rybohunter

I try to shoot 5 does a year. The places I hunt have solid populations.

The reason habitat is brought up so often by many people is that when you have very good habitat, you can generally shoot more deer each season because its easier for them to rebound back. The does are MUCH more likely to raise 2 healthy fawns rather than 1 or none.

jhalfhill

Whoa Bailey.......chill pill man.

Anyways, basically what I'm saying is that I don't see a need for changing the amount of tags that are passed out. I really like the current herd management plan and think it is working in many parts of the state. I'm just proposing a solution to those hunters who whine about not seeing any deer, then blast the first button buck they see.

I think the only thing thats and needs changed, is rifle season like I stated before. I believe that in due time, as the world gets more populated, we will see an end to rifle deer hunting. It is just a matter of when. I believe this will cut down on the amount of deer taken, but not by a significantly large amount. We will be able to sustain the exact herd management plan we have now, with a few more deer around. In WMU's where the habitat is obviously severeley damaged, then only those select few WMU's can use rifles to slaughter them off. All I know is that around my property, they don't need slaughtered off and got slaughtered off by the rifle hunters this past deer season. This land can hold four times the amount of deer that it has now.

MeatHunter2

jhalfhill - Some people like to talk out of both sides of their mouth. They don't want you shooting the deer..... so they can shot them!

rybohunter

You poor misguided soul.

DougE

Nothing about you bugs me Baily.I'm sure you're a nice guy even if your opinions are misguided.This is America and we all have the right to our opinions,even if they're wrong.I want a healthy habitat andI want healthy deer.I also want enough to for deer hunting to still be fun but I'm willing to sacrice a little for the sins of our past.Besides,I live and hunt mostly on public land in 2G where there's supposedlyno deer and I do fine every year.in fact,the last two years were the best years I ever had in Pa.

jhalfhill

It's really quite simple Bailey. Which arises another problem. I live in western Fayette county which in conjunction with southern Washington and all of Greene county form WMU 2A. It is a known fact that Greene and Washington counties are LOADED with deer. Thus the reason for many 2A tags that are passed out. However, the problem is that Fayette county is not known for their deer herd. There are at least half the deer here that there are in the other 2 counties. But because we are in the same WMU, tags issued that were meant to be used in those areas, get used here in my neck of the woods. When forming WMU's, the PGC chose easy boundaries instead of splitting up areas with similar herds. Our already hurting herd, now just gets pounded worse. I don't mind killing does, but I kill all mine in Greene and Washington.

BTBowhunter

Dont worry, you're not buggin us. The reason is that you are wrong about who is in the majority here and your rants are being taken for exactly what theyre worth. BTW You are most welcome to your opinion but you came on here accusing folks of being PGC "shills". Sounds like you're the one who's "bugged"

To get back on to the intended topic: guys whining while they continue to shoot deer in areas where they claim there are none.

One member here just said in another thread that he shot the ONLY deer he saw in two weeks and claims he was out every day. If thats true, he is either very unlucky, a bad hunter or a selfish one. Another post made a refernce that 3 of 10 speakers at a PGC meeting that spoke out against the "massive doe kill" had been cited in the past for illegal deer kills.

I know personally that some of the locals I hear cryin are the ones that used to get a tag for their wife, mother brother sister etc and fill them all.

Luckily, this crowd is NOT in the majority. They just make the majority of the noise.

Windwalker7

Hold the phone! Now wait a minute Mr. Halfhill. Don't be telling everyone to go to Greene Co. I hunt there and there are already too many guys coming from Dunbar and Connellsville.

Tell them that there are tons of deer in Bedford Co and send them that way


Actually the deer in Greene Co have taken a hit too. We see lots of sublegal bucks there. Lately we see more bucks than does.

When hunting to fill a doe tag, you have to really check the deer for spikes. Lots of spikes and small bucks. Been seeing these small bucks for the last few years and keep expecting the next year to see a bunch of nice bucks but it doesn't happen. We see a few but there are just more small bucks than the previous year.

I can't figure it out. I saw a whopper 4pt this year. Nice big "Y"s on both sides with no brow points. Just don't know if the big guys are getting poached or what.

We do see a couple big bucks but not like I expected after a few years of AR's

I see as many big bucks now as I did before AR's. Well, maybe a few more. I just thought I'd see way more.

There's just an aweful lot of small bucks.