Spikes
#11
Banned
Join Date: Sep 2010
Posts: 220
A friend of mine shot a legal buck last year that had one antler with 4 points on the one side and two on the other. It had 28 inches of spread. he was all proud of it until we showed him the deer that we had shot.
I would guess that his deer had started out life as a spike.
I have seen year and one half old deer that had a spike and nothing more. Most times - as soon as a person saw a antler - they shot it, regardless of how many points it had. Especially when it was the last day of the season.
One year when the antlers were falling off the week of Thanksgiving and rifle season doesn't start here until the following Monday, nobody in camp saw a legal buck and I won the buck pool with a one antlered buck. The antler fell off after I shot it and I had the deer and the antler and my dad was mad that I hung it in the tree at the camp. Then the bolt cover broke on my Gamemaster Rifle when I shot the deer - couldn't get the empty out. Then the gun shop refused to repair it for free - because the gun was 6 weeks and 3 days old. Then I tore out the transmission when I peeled tires out of the gun shop. Later I got in trouble for changing the transmission in a car wash during a thunder storm.
$200 fine for trespassing at the car wash..
So all in all - that one little deer cost me almost a thousand bucks.
I would guess that his deer had started out life as a spike.
I have seen year and one half old deer that had a spike and nothing more. Most times - as soon as a person saw a antler - they shot it, regardless of how many points it had. Especially when it was the last day of the season.
One year when the antlers were falling off the week of Thanksgiving and rifle season doesn't start here until the following Monday, nobody in camp saw a legal buck and I won the buck pool with a one antlered buck. The antler fell off after I shot it and I had the deer and the antler and my dad was mad that I hung it in the tree at the camp. Then the bolt cover broke on my Gamemaster Rifle when I shot the deer - couldn't get the empty out. Then the gun shop refused to repair it for free - because the gun was 6 weeks and 3 days old. Then I tore out the transmission when I peeled tires out of the gun shop. Later I got in trouble for changing the transmission in a car wash during a thunder storm.
$200 fine for trespassing at the car wash..
So all in all - that one little deer cost me almost a thousand bucks.
#12
Fork Horn
Join Date: Dec 2008
Location: Wisconsin
Posts: 320
Why did he stop being proud of it? IMO, if you're not proud of the deer you bag, you shouldn't kill it in the first place. Always take pride in the animals you harvest...someone with a bad attitude shouldn't take away from the experience of another because his rack doesn't measure up in someone else's eyes.
Just my two cents...
#14
Spike
Join Date: Jul 2007
Posts: 33
The next time someone says this to you, just ask them when the last time they saw a 4 or 5 yr. old spike was. To think that a spike buck will only ever be a spike is one of the dumbest general hunting statements I've heard.
But it's your call. If you don't want bigger bucks then go ahead and shoot the spikes. Otherwise I'm guessing there are plenty of does for the freezer in your area.
#15
Fork Horn
Join Date: Jul 2010
Location: Nebraska
Posts: 186
The next time someone says this to you, just ask them when the last time they saw a 4 or 5 yr. old spike was. To think that a spike buck will only ever be a spike is one of the dumbest general hunting statements I've heard.
But it's your call. If you don't want bigger bucks then go ahead and shoot the spikes. Otherwise I'm guessing there are plenty of does for the freezer in your area.
But it's your call. If you don't want bigger bucks then go ahead and shoot the spikes. Otherwise I'm guessing there are plenty of does for the freezer in your area.
#16
Fork Horn
Join Date: Jul 2010
Location: Nebraska
Posts: 186
The next time someone says this to you, just ask them when the last time they saw a 4 or 5 yr. old spike was. To think that a spike buck will only ever be a spike is one of the dumbest general hunting statements I've heard.
But it's your call. If you don't want bigger bucks then go ahead and shoot the spikes. Otherwise I'm guessing there are plenty of does for the freezer in your area.
But it's your call. If you don't want bigger bucks then go ahead and shoot the spikes. Otherwise I'm guessing there are plenty of does for the freezer in your area.
#18
Typical Buck
Join Date: Feb 2003
Posts: 575
Just saw an interesting segment on a hunting show by some guy from the QDMA(i think his name was Brian Murphy) about culling in general. In a nut shell, he said it is a waste of time to "cull" for antler genetics in a free ranging whitetail herd because; a whitetail buck gets 50% of his genetics from his Mother, a substantial portion of the does are bred by the most aggressive bucks, not necessarily the biggest antlered bucks and very few deer herds are anywhere close to a 1:1 Buck/Doe ratio, so most of the adult bucks in a given area are doing at least some breeding regardless of antler size. Like someone already said, when was the last time you saw a mature spike? If you want to shoot spikes, shoot them. Just don't kid yourself into thinking you are some how manipulating genetics in your deer herd.
#19
I happy i came accross this thread.. its good to read that not every hunter has conformed to trophy hunters. Which just shoot deer for there racks. I have only been hunting for 7 years but every year it seems to get worst about people being negative towards others because of what they shoot. I think a lot of people just shoot bucks so they compare antler size, and forget what the sport is really about. Its pretty much saying "I have a bigger one than you so i must be better. In cases of a spike i've seen many examples were they grow racks the next year.
#20
Fork Horn
Join Date: Oct 2007
Location: Tuscaloosa, Al
Posts: 313
The next time someone says this to you, just ask them when the last time they saw a 4 or 5 yr. old spike was. To think that a spike buck will only ever be a spike is one of the dumbest general hunting statements I've heard.
But it's your call. If you don't want bigger bucks then go ahead and shoot the spikes. Otherwise I'm guessing there are plenty of does for the freezer in your area.
But it's your call. If you don't want bigger bucks then go ahead and shoot the spikes. Otherwise I'm guessing there are plenty of does for the freezer in your area.