RE: Antler Restrictions in Virginia
 

yano where are these statistics comming from? not calling you out it sounds like an informative website.

as for saying "hunt bigger deer" i do... by going all the way to my friends place in tennessee where its gotta be an 8 outside his ears and they harvest a few every season because they do follow ar's.

the pop is high because more bucks are killed than does due to the laws. its a fact that between 70-80% of deer harvested are year-and-a-half olds.

im not doubting there arent trophy bucks in va ive seen mammoths killed, i just dont see the harm in a conservative ar it seems like youd see the benifits after just a year maybe 2

RE: Antler Restrictions in Virginia
 

They are based on data taken directly from the PA Game Commision Website athttp://www.pgc.state.pa.us/


When did Tennessee implement their state-wide AR?


So folks that happennot to support AR orhappen to have their own land and don't support AR should have their freedoms and choices taken away?

I would much rather see increased freedoms for hunters here in Virginia, such as Sunday Hunting; likewiseany huntershould have the freedom to decide what exactly is a trophy in theirown eyes.People that believe in AR so badly, still have the option of buying or leasing and and managing it asthey see fit.

RE: Antler Restrictions in Virginia
 

Good topic, I'm for AR and have seen how they can improve the quality of the bucks harvested on some of the properties I hunt. Another side benefit is safety, it prevents some hunters from empting a clip a every deer running past them. I here lots of complaints about PA, but I don't know the whole issue. Is the AR in PA effecting the overall harvest or is it the past over harvest of does?
And there's a easy way to prevent shooting a button buck.
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RE: Antler Restrictions in Virginia
 

i haven't read every post so i dunno if this has been brought up or not. AR is a good thing to a certain point BUT can also be bad. if you have a buck(s) in the area or on your property with bad genes and they never exceed the legal antler restrictions so they can be harvested, then you will have them breeding does and spreading the bad genes. these bucks need to be identified and taken out of the herd to maximize QDM.

RE: Antler Restrictions in Virginia
 

a good example of this is a W.M.A. where i hunt. they have AR of 3 points on one side. there is a spike i see every year (for the past 3 years) that has to be approximately 4 years old and he has never been anything but a spike. this year his spikes were approximately 12 to 15 inches tall. this deer needs to be taken out of the herd to keep anymore of his genes from being passed on but due to the law, he will be continually breeding and spreading the bad genes.

RE: Antler Restrictions in Virginia
 

thats a good point camocop. maybee georgia is on the right track where they can shoot one buck of their choice size and the others have AR's.

tennessee does not. but with over 600 acres plus a lease that borders their land, and only about 5 people who hunt it, they have the means to effectively impose them.

and i dont really have the option of buying or leasing land large enough to mange. im a 22 year old recent college graduate!in fact im currenty employed as a realtor and land is through the roof right now.

im just tired of working on our property all year planting acres upon acres of foorage for all the neighboring hunters to shoot the young bucks.

RE: Antler Restrictions in Virginia
 

doe tags and doe seasons have been steadily on the increase in most of va. mostly because of pressure from insurance companies. to many deer being hit by cars. this year we went from 3 doe days in a 2 week rifle season to 6 days. in some counties you can take does all season long.
the vdgif has started to change seasons for certian areas ,but is making it hard to keep up with what you can kill when and where. the vdgif has brought in coyotes to help thin deer populations,but now are paying bounties on the yotes to thin them out . they have also brought in wolves to thin the yotes, but are unwilling to admit this fact. ofcourse they say
there are no mountian llions here either.

RE: Antler Restrictions in Virginia
 

now i like this approach to game management. the only trick would be to possibly put on some educational classes for voluntarily participants or evenmandate attendance for licenses. this way hunters can learn how to spot deer, primarily bucks, with bad to poor genetics. thiscould make hunters smarter at taking less desireable deer for their first tag and then concentrate on a wall hanger for their last tag.

RE: Antler Restrictions in Virginia
 

Woo-hoo!!! Thank you, thank you.... That right there is the quote of all quotes. :D[8D]

Butch A.

RE: Antler Restrictions in Virginia
 

Are they all sohiding UFO's? No offence shooter, but do you really think the DGIF couldintroduce Coyotes, Wolfs, or Mt. Lions into VA with out it being documented.
I agree with you on all the different regs for each counties, it does get confusing. But some of the regs such as firearms are determinded by the counties, not the DGIF.
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