RE: new hunter taking first shot
 

My first deer was a button buck. I've shot a few more and just this year filled my first season tag with a button buck too. Good eat'in. Don't loose no sleep over it

RE: new hunter taking first shot
 

Here in Iowa, we don't have "doe" tags. We have "any deer" tags, good for, well ANY deer, and "antlerless only" tags. Anything less than a forked antler is considered "antlerless". It makes it a lot easier to hunt, because even at 100+ yds you can tell if the deer you are shooting at fits the tag you have. I took a 70# barely button last year, not long out of spots....good eats. It looked bigger on the nob of ground in the tall grass. I thought it was a big doe. I didn't lose a lick of sleep, there are plenty more where that one came from.

RE: new hunter taking first shot
 

wow dude you lost sleep over that uh i think thats a problem. look at it this way you helped a new hunter get his first deer ever and its good eatin. i hope you didnt blow up on him for shootin it. just teach him a lesson and make him a better hunter.

RE: new hunter taking first shot
 

I can guarantee that no one who is a member of this forum can tell the difference between a button buck and a doe at 215 yards......unless they were using the HUBBEL Telescope!
It's difficult enough at 50-60 yards and thats even with the deer making u turns in front of you to try to tell their sex from 'behind'....
There's always a 50\50 chance of being right or wrong and we've always been taught that on young deer, it's safer to pass than be completely wrong.
I wouldn't worry about his decision to shoot. I would be happy for his success and use the experience as a teaching\learning tool.........

RE: new hunter taking first shot
 

This is the important part. He thought it was a doe, mistakes happen, don't worry about it.

I know a certified wildlife biologist that once mistakenly shot two button bucks in the same day. If a wildlife professional can make a mistake, so can non-professional hunters.

RE: new hunter taking first shot
 

At 215 yards I doubt there are many people on this forum that could be 100% sure it was a doe. Don't worry about it being a young buck, that is just some thing that happens to everybody.