Back in August, my Dad and I got several pictures of this 7 point buck seen in the left of this shot. He was hanging around one of the feeders and was showing up regularly. All of a sudden, he was gone. We haven't seen him in almost two months. He is a nice looking 7 point and looks to have a fairly high rack. I wanted to get a better look at him from a tree stand, but his disappearing act made me think I may not have the chance. Well, he showed back up!
I pulled my card on my camera on Tuesday and there he was. This is a totally different stand location on the other side of the property that we hunt. Now this brings us to another kind of management issue. If you are lucky enough to hunt on your own property or have a lease that you know you can keep for a while, and you want to hunt for trophy bucks...What do you do with this guy?? He has a nice rack, but only 7 points. Is he going to get any bigger? Is this deer older than three years old? Do you want him passing on bad genes to the next generation if he is indeed a mature buck? This is definitely a buck that needs to be talked about among club members to get all perspectives on what others think before you pull the trigger. That is if you are on a Quality Deer Management kind of club. My first thought is to watch him grow this year and see what he brings to the table next year.
I'm curious to know what you would do with this buck. Would you take a wait and see approach? Would you take him out of your herd because of possible bad genetics? Would you be like the Downeast Duck Hunter and care less about the rack and fill your freezer? (not that there is anything wrong with that)
Let me know your thoughts on Quality Deer Management. I'm curious as to what different regions of our hunting country think.
8 comments:
As a Penna. meat hunter...I would send a .35 Rem right into the engine room of that buck.
I have to agree... I would fill my freezer. Unless you want to add some possible diversity to your group.
I'm all about filling the freezer..if doing that weeds out less than desirable genes so much the better.
You would be horrified to know my dogs get the antlers as chew toys! LOL
I would shoot. For two reasons:
Reason #1- Fillin' the freezer. At our house, 98% of the meat we consume has been taken from the woods and we love it (both for the taste/health benefits and the fact that it just feels darn good to get your own groceries, if you know what I'm sayin')
and, I won't lie, Reason #2- That's a super nice buck where we hunt! We are public land hunters and for our area it's a Blessing to just fill your buck tag. Just so you can put it in perspective, in the last 5 years of our deer camp (7 hunters) only 3 buck tags have been filled during both our archery and gun seasons. We just don't get to see many bucks as they move a night because of the hunting pressure. So shooting one like that would get the hunter many pats on the back, and in our house, that buck would likely get a spot on the Murray Wall of Fame.
What ever you do Trey. I'm sure you'll make the right choice for your situation. Best of luck to you and I can't wait to see what you tag!
Kari
The old proverb (also Guinness advertising slogan in the 90's) "good things come to those who wait" has never steered me wrong. I'd keep my safety on.
Thanks for weighing in guys!! Now I will tell you why I will choose to NOT shoot this buck. #1- Our Quality Deer Management program calls for 8 points or better. #2- The body type on this buck does not show that he is a mature deer. He is long legged and his back does not droop. #3- No mass. Yes he has a high rack, but he has no mass and his brow tines are fairly short. This guy will get a pass from me this year in hopes that he will grow into something special next year!
Ohhhh this is a good post. Currently, I would shoot and my reasons would be the same as both of Kari's.
BUT Rambob and I talk about management all the time. IF we ever get the oppurtunity where we have a little more control over our hunting area and surroundings then we would definitely practice managment like your club is currently doing.
I agree with you trey. I don't see anything wrong with waiting!
Post a Comment