hodags

Read the research guys. Dr. John Ozaga and others have done some research over the years and the long an short of it is this:

Shoot Small does and Big bucks. If you don't have a choice, go for it.

Big does breed best (larger fawns and twins), And big bucks...well you know.

hodags

I had to Earn-A-Buck here in West Wisconsin...had 5 deer near my stand. I waited for the smallest to come in and THWACK.

Incidentally, the one I shot will be the tastiest and she was getting kicked around by the others, this confirms the research that she will just eat the food, not breed, and is much more likely to die off in the winter.

younggun308

Hey, we should name you "Dead Eye Kenman"!

No offense.

Deer Slayin Fool

Let the spikes walk. They will eventually become a trophy in a few years. That's just my opinion though. It really makes no sense killing the deer that have the potential to become great deer. The only time it does is when someone is trying to kill their first deer or something.

Deer Slayin Fool

My first deer looked like that. exept it it was a four point. ANd it's antler were a lil bit thicker.

Deer Slayin Fool

its antlerS...haha

californiabill

Catus Magnus

I shot a spike the other night... he'll be right tasty. I'll be a little more selective next time. I'd like to learn about this business of shooting small does... if I'm shootin' for meat and does are there and I have a choice, I shoot the biggest one I see.

Phil from Maine

Could you do some more research please? Here in Maine some fawns even get bread! So to say a small doe does not breed is ludacris. Not far from here there is a yearling doe with 2 fawns, and if your research was right this couldn't happen right? So fill us in on this one please.

I here alot of folks would not shoot a spike? But, would shoot a four pointer, here a spike and a four pointer are in fact the same age at 1.5 years old. Some spikes are smaller and some spikes are bigger then some four pointers. There is no food plots for them for the most part. If you travel through the Maine woods on the dirt roads you will see only woods, and swamps. Not much in big fields of clover and corn for them to eat. I also feel with our deer population in this area most folks that have never hunted here would be hard pressed to even see 1 deer here. Unless you saw it in someones field with no tresspassing/no huntingsigns every where around them.

You see here the coyotes and the snow makes a big change in our deer numbers and the bigger ones has the best chance to make it. Also here it is not uncommon to get bucks over the 200lb field dressed mark. And even some of them carry a small rack as it is more to do with the food they are eating.

So again could you do some more research for us please and explain what we see in our deer herd here. Good Luck hunting folks!

Tigerfan

If you are a meat hunter then why not shoot does?

I have never understood this logic. I personally don't go hunting for monster bucks, and the only meat eaten at my house comes from the deer that I harvest but, I don't understand why someone would say "I shoot spikes and small bucks because I am a meat hunter. I'm not saying there is anything wrong with this logic, I just don't personally understand it. I could understand it if you shot every deer that walked out in front of you, because you would then be a total meat hunter. But, if you see a doe and don't shoot it and then the next day a spike or a small buck walks out and you shoot it, then you are not a meat hunter, you are a buck hunter. (When i say you, I don't mean YOU. I mean in general). To me a buck hunter is worse than a trophy hunter. They want the benifit without doing anything to grow the bucks. If I need meat I shoot a doe, I see on avg probly 20 does a year, and I normally take 2 or 3. I haven't shot a buck in 5 years and I have seen several that in some people's eyes are shooters (6pt's and less) but, they are not shooters to me. If I am going to take a buck out of the herd it will be a 8pt or better and at least 2 1/2 years old.

This is just my opinion, for what it's worth