THE DEER SLAYER

I keep hearing people refer to PA as land of the "dink deer". I'll admit they may not be as big as the ones from IL but it might be because PA has one of the biggest deer herds and not enough food for all the deer. This year i harvested a 2 1/2 year old buck that scored 124" and had a perfect 8pt rack. I've seen bucks here in PA that would easily score well over 150". My grandpa has harvested bucks that weigh over 200 lbs field dressed. Im just wonder why the deer are called "dinks".

cardeer

I dont make fun of it really. I like it the way it is.I want to see healthy deer ,dont care if there wall hangers. Infact I'm happy with a fat doe. They do need to manage the herd in smaller units. Deer dont starve around my area. And I dont want more does shot.Maybe up north where there is no food plots or farms they hurt for food,so thats where they need to control the herd more.I like it the way it is, any more lowering of the herd in my area would make hunting boring.I want to see deer and have some action.

silentassassin

Yea but take the number of hunters and then compare that to the number of 150 class deer that come from PA. You have 1 million hunters and 100 150 class deer. You will find deer everywhere that get that grow to be 150 class animals. What defines the region is the number of trophys that come from the region compared to the number of hunters.

BarnesX.308

There's plenty of huge deer in PA. Most of them come from farms and private property near the rural areas. There are a couple of reasons why we see more small bucks than large ones, though. We have over one million deer hunters out there so there will be a lot of smaller bucks shot. Also, there aren't the vast areas of land with huge CRP tracts here and there aren't too many guided ranch hunts in PA. Much of the hunting in northern PA is on state game land which is more forest than farm. If you look at some of the bucks taken near Philadelphia and Pittsburgh, you'll see some big ones.

Scott Meier
White Oak Lodge

Edited by - BarnesX.308 on 01/09/2002 19:38:58

BarnesX.308

Also - growing up where spikes, Y-bucks and the like are a reality, it makes it that much more exciting when you do see a big boy. It would be boring if every deer was a big 10-point. When your day consists of passing up on the 8 and 10 pointers you field judge through your binoculars because they don't make the grade and finally having to shoot a "management" deer because he's only 158 B&C and should be 170 at this age, it takes all the fun and excitement out of deer hunting. I like our variety, from spikes and basket racks up to the occasional trophy.

Scott Meier
White Oak Lodge

silentassassin

Yea, passing up 150's all day would get old. But I think i could learn to live with it.<img src=icon_smile_big.gif border=0 align=middle>

Russ otten

PA may have its problems, but other areas are in the same boat. I live in the northern part of the state. Outside of a few exceptions. most of the &quot;big&quot; deer are in the delta section of the state. But I still hunt my homestead and hope.

deerwacker22

There is alot of deer here for one. Which means alot of small bucks, alot of big bucks. There are probably more hunters in one county in PA than there are in the whole state of KS as an example. In PA alot of the guys shoot the first buck they see. The big bucks aren't dumb enough to be out with 15 guys in a square mile. In KS I've seen very few small bucks killed but I have seen quite a few running around because most people say ah let them grow up. In the past 2 years the group that I hunt with have killed 7 bucks 135+ and thats 4 guys. AR and people wont think its the land of dinks.

BTBowhunter

I don't know that people look down on Pa but we do have a ton of hunters that have been raised to shoot the first legal buck they see cause if they don't the next guy most certainly will. We consequently kill most of our bucks wearing the first bone they ever grew on their head. Even in the suburban areas like Pgh and Philly , where our big bucks come from, the average age is still very low. If we could just get rid of that mentality that any buck is better than a doe, we could grow some real giants here. The good news is that after just a very short time with Gary Alt at the helm, that mentality is beginning to change a little!
I personally think Pa won't be called Dink land very long!! we can all do our part by letting 1 1/2 year old bucks walk and shootning a doe or two instead. If we all buy in it won't take long before Pa becomes another State to be envied for it's trophies AND for its' healthy deer herd.

Buck Magnet

The new Pennsylvania Game News has a section that talks about a game commisioner who saw a dead deer laying on the side of the road. He went to pick it up and he was amazed. It had about a 16 inch spread, if I recall correctly, and the deers live weight was 197 pounds on an official bear scale. The deer was 18 months old. That is a huge deer and huge antlers for a buck that young. Pennsylvania has a lot of big bucks. You have to work you a$$ off for them! Like people have said, their are so many hunters in Pennsylvania that kill small bucks that it makes it appear like their are only small bucks. People would be amazed if they saw half the deer that I have seen here in Indiana County.

Good Luck This Season: Buck Magnet
P.S. Only Chuck Adams can sit at home and see deer so get into the woods. =;^)