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Trophy Hunter, Meat Hunter or Just Hunter

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Poll Question: Do you consider your self a trophy hunter or a meat hunter?
Poll Choice Votes Poll Statistics
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6 [18.75%]
1 [3.13%]
24 [75.00%]
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Chris Farris View Drop Down
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    Posted: January/15/2008 at 12:08

You can't eat the antlers but then again is venison really that good?

Every state is a little different in regards to bag limits and season length.  Some states you can shoot a deer a day.  Some states it is just one buck for the entire season.  Some seasons last months, others less than two weeks.  So your answer just might depend on where you live.
 
Would you spend so much money and devote so much time to hunting if all game species had no antlers or no horns?
 
Would you hunt something that was very easy to hunt, just for the meat?
 
Is the answer really neither the antlers or the meat????
 
 
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote pyro6999 Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: January/15/2008 at 12:13
nothing better than whitetail meat, canned, cooked, however you look at it, its cheap and its tasty. if i shoot a nice buck then its an added bonus.
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Dale Clifford Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: January/15/2008 at 12:16
Would you spend so much money and devote so much time to hunting if all game species had no antlers or no horns?
 
The business aspect of the sport can't be overlooked, like it or not. Trophy hunters support some species that would be all but extinct, and the proliferation of some to levels in areas unheard of previously. (turkey and really big prarie dogs.)
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote tahqua Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: January/15/2008 at 12:22
I like big racks. When I hunt for meat it's upland and waterfowl. Even then, I'll still take a drake woodie for the wall.
I like venison, too. But, I don't shoot bucks with small racks and we don't have a doe season up on Lake Superior. I guess I have to make up for some of the other nimrods out there. It's their choice. If I was to shoot meat deer I would prefer a doe.
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote pyro6999 Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: January/15/2008 at 12:23
Originally posted by Dale Clifford Dale Clifford wrote:

Would you spend so much money and devote so much time to hunting if all game species had no antlers or no horns?
 
 
yes i would, i dont look at it as a sport, i look at it as a means of food and dont care if its got horns or not, im there for food, plus i have crappy luck when it comes to hunting, its either feast or famine for me which i why i dont ever pass up a deer. elk were the same way when i hunted them growing up in wyoming, i remember the first elk i ever killed, me and my bro in law met up on the side of the mountain in a small clearing and stopped to talk, and all of a sudden a heard of about 6-8 cows and calves came out of the woods and into the clearing, the shot was less than 100yds and i threw my 30-06 up and slammed the lead cow sending the rest of the heard to go into retard mode and my brother in law sat there and didnt shoot at all i kept shooting to keep them confused which was working beautifully i fired 5 out of the 6 shots that my rifle held before my bro in law even shouldered his rifle, after the 4th shot i finally looked over at him and asked are you going to shoot or what? he said no im waiting for the bull to come out, and i said he aint coming out now better shoot bam i fired another shot and they ran right back out where they came in, so you tell me, is an antlerless animal better meat than no meat at all?? i got elk meat for the winter he didnt.
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote cyborg Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: January/15/2008 at 12:29
I'm with Pyro here, I love the meat, the antlers are just a bonus to remind me of a great day in the woods. Tahqua is right as well, I'll gladly take a doe, but I'll eat that buck too.
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote RONK Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: January/15/2008 at 12:29
 
 It's always been kind of a toss-up for me. I'm always happy to kill a nice buck. (Another set of antlers on the wall, and another story to tell my grandkids someday.)  But they generally don't taste as good as a fat doe, and are sometimes just plain rank.  When I kill a nice doe, I can grin while dragging it out, thinking of the sweet tenderloins coming up soon. Plus 1 on Pyro's canned meat endosement, too.  That is always good.
 This past fall we built a small, temporary smokehouse and made homemade venison /pork sausage, smoking it lightly over an applewood fire.  That is fantastic eating!
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote pyro6999 Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: January/15/2008 at 12:33
mm that sounds good, i take canned venison to work some days and oh man everybody on the crew is in my hip pocket when they hear the pop of the jar lid, can i have some please please!!
They call me "Boots"
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Chris Farris II Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: January/15/2008 at 12:34
I like the meat don't get me wrong but the antlers are definately the reason I sit out in the wind rain snow or scorching heat. I guess I could see how the deer meat could be cheap if you lived on a ranch but us who don't are looking at gas to and fro the lease on top of our optics and guns and ammo. In the long run this would cost more to get on a good lease not to many within two or three hours of where we live. If I get hungry I usually just shoot a crow out of the backyard, no horns is cheap and don't have to drive anywhere. Lol Jk. I am a trophy Hunter not a meat hunter but, to each his own I guess. It is hard for me to shoot something smaller than is on the wall. If I want meat I usually go to the grocery store or shoot a DOE! That way the buck has a chance to grow and become a trophy. I would rather shoot one 6x6 mainframe 22" spread that scores 160-180 for the rest of my life, than shoot 100 differnt deer that all score 120. I mean that is just the passion I have. Kind of like fishing if it is to small you don't keep it for the meat you throw it back and let it grow! Same with deer if it is too small don't shoot it for meat! LET THE SUCKER GROW!

Edited by Chris Farris II - January/15/2008 at 12:44
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Bigdaddy0381 Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: January/15/2008 at 12:56

Talk about mixed emotions. I’m truly both. The deer season’s here in ga and AL are rather long. We have tons of doe days. First of the year a few big doe’s will fill the freezer. When the rut kicks in doe’s are off limits for the rest of the season and the bigger bucks are now hunted hot and heavy. I’m very lucky that the season’s work out like they do in the places I hunt. But I have also been known to take a trip just for a trophy whitetail.

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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote helo18 Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: January/15/2008 at 12:57
Nothing as good as elk meat in my opinion.  Deer I will trophy hunt for because I can go out the last day and shoot a doe if it comes down to it.  And where I hunt elk, you better shoot the first legal one you see or you might not see another elk the rest of the year.  The bigger the better, but I don't get picky because I want the meat.  Don't get me wrong here.  I want to shoot the biggest animals out there and get my name in the record books, but that isn't why I go out hunting all the time.  Even if I were not to get anthing (like this last year), just being out there and seeing the animals and being away from other people, is worth all the money and expense.  Not to mention the good times and memories with friends and family while out hunting.  Wouldn't trade that for anything.
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote ND2000 Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: January/15/2008 at 13:58
Trophy hunter here.  My personal policy is if I shoot it I mount it.  Although where I hunt in WI you need to shoot a doe first before you can shoot a buck.  The program is a joke and no hunter likes it, but the DNR goes ahead anyway.  I donate everthing to the local food pantries, which is a really good system sponsored by the DNR.
 
I never understand why someone would shoot a small buck for the meat, or to simply say they shot a buck.  What these people realize is an adult doe is much smarter than all but the most mature of bucks.  Take a doe or a doe fawn.
 
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote RONK Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: January/15/2008 at 14:47
Originally posted by ND2000 ND2000 wrote:

Trophy hunter here.  My personal policy is if I shoot it I mount it.  Although where I hunt in WI you need to shoot a doe first before you can shoot a buck.  The program is a joke and no hunter likes it, but the DNR goes ahead anyway.  I donate everthing to the local food pantries, which is a really good system sponsored by the DNR.
 
I never understand why someone would shoot a small buck for the meat, or to simply say they shot a buck.  What these people realize is an adult doe is much smarter than all but the most mature of bucks.  Take a doe or a doe fawn.
 
ND2000
 
 While I respect your opinion, ND2000, I think you are dead wrong on this one. I agree that many hunters don't like it, but some of us see no other practical alternative to earn-a-buck.
When I began to hunt in Wisconsin, in the early 70s, you generally shot whatever you encountered, at least in my part of the state.  We had a pretty good buck- to- doe ratio, and a fair number of trophy-sized bucks in the herd as well.  Everybody was pretty happy. If you didn't want to shoot a doe, nobody held a gun to your head. Then along came the "Trophy Mentality" that promoted the idea that anyone who shot a doe was some kind of deviant, and it spread like some kind of weird religious cult.
 We then ended up with a buck-doe ratio of about 3 million does for every buck and way too many deer for the carrying capacity of the winter range in a hard winter. Now we have CWD infecting large areas and spreading out of control. Yay for us! It never would have occurred if hunters would voluntarily kill a doe or two for every buck they kill. Equal numbers are born; equal numbers must die.  It's just common sense game management.
 BTW, I'm not defending the DNR per se; it is a typical government agency, ripe with waste and over-regulation. I just happen to believe they blindly stumbled onto the right course of action for where we are now. If anybody has a more workable solution, I'd sure like to hear it.
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote RifleDude Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: January/15/2008 at 14:54
Both for me.  On some places I hunt, like small parcels of family land, I'll shoot a deer for meat.  I also shoot does during archery season for meat.  I agree with Ronk in that even if you are holding out for a "nice" buck, you should also shoot some does to keep the herd in balance and ensure that you don't have too many does.  That way, the dominant bucks are doing more of the breeding and there aren't too many animals for the habitat to support. 
 
On my hunting lease, we are trying to cultivate some quality bucks, so we let the smaller bucks with potential walk.  We have lease rules that states any shooter buck must either be a cull buck like a spike with long tines, or it must have 8 points or better with antler spread past its ears, period.  Anyone who violates this rule will get kicked off the lease.  You can't kill a nice buck if you keep shooting the 1.5 - 2.5 year old bucks, as few bucks will then survive long enough to become mature deer.  Even though we only have 715 acres, our lease borders a fairly good sized refuge where hunting is prohibited, so we are able to control the quality of the deer herd somewhat.  We started doing this about 5 years ago, and it is starting to pay dividends, as during the past 3 seasons, we have killed several really nice bucks and are seeing more mature bucks overall.  I've killed enough deer in my life that I'm beyond the need to kill any legal deer I see, and I still have no problem keeping the freezer full of venison.  Plus, we have so many hogs on our lease that we have something to hunt year-round.


Edited by RifleDude - January/15/2008 at 15:22
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote ND2000 Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: January/15/2008 at 16:58
Originally posted by RONK RONK wrote:

Originally posted by ND2000 ND2000 wrote:

Trophy hunter here.  My personal policy is if I shoot it I mount it.  Although where I hunt in WI you need to shoot a doe first before you can shoot a buck.  The program is a joke and no hunter likes it, but the DNR goes ahead anyway.  I donate everthing to the local food pantries, which is a really good system sponsored by the DNR.
 
I never understand why someone would shoot a small buck for the meat, or to simply say they shot a buck.  What these people realize is an adult doe is much smarter than all but the most mature of bucks.  Take a doe or a doe fawn.
 
ND2000
 
 While I respect your opinion, ND2000, I think you are dead wrong on this one. I agree that many hunters don't like it, but some of us see no other practical alternative to earn-a-buck.
When I began to hunt in Wisconsin, in the early 70s, you generally shot whatever you encountered, at least in my part of the state.  We had a pretty good buck- to- doe ratio, and a fair number of trophy-sized bucks in the herd as well.  Everybody was pretty happy. If you didn't want to shoot a doe, nobody held a gun to your head. Then along came the "Trophy Mentality" that promoted the idea that anyone who shot a doe was some kind of deviant, and it spread like some kind of weird religious cult.
 We then ended up with a buck-doe ratio of about 3 million does for every buck and way too many deer for the carrying capacity of the winter range in a hard winter. Now we have CWD infecting large areas and spreading out of control. Yay for us! It never would have occurred if hunters would voluntarily kill a doe or two for every buck they kill. Equal numbers are born; equal numbers must die.  It's just common sense game management.
 BTW, I'm not defending the DNR per se; it is a typical government agency, ripe with waste and over-regulation. I just happen to believe they blindly stumbled onto the right course of action for where we are now. If anybody has a more workable solution, I'd sure like to hear it.
 
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I think you misinterpreted a little bit, or I wasn't clear in my original post.  I am a trophy hunter when it comes to bucks, as I see no point in shooting a small one.  However, I do believe in taking does...I am a big believer and big supporter of QDMA, a very important part of which is taking does.  However, I simply believe I know more about the local deer herd than the DNR, and I shouldn't be forced to take a doe.  There is hardly a state in the country that micro-manages their herd more than in WI...
 
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote tahqua Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: January/15/2008 at 17:06
 
 [/QUOTE]
 
Ronk -
 
I think you misinterpreted a little bit, or I wasn't clear in my original post.  I am a trophy hunter when it comes to bucks, as I see no point in shooting a small one.  However, I do believe in taking does...I am a big believer and big supporter of QDMA, a very important part of which is taking does.  However, I simply believe I know more about the local deer herd than the DNR, and I shouldn't be forced to take a doe.  There is hardly a state in the country that micro-manages their herd more than in WI...
 
ND2000
[/QUOTE]
 
 

......................or mismanages more than Michigan

 
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote pyro6999 Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: January/15/2008 at 17:10
i dont ronk mn cant be any better than wis, we could kill 7 deer this year, and if you hunted the bovine tb area it was way more than that!
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote RONK Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: January/15/2008 at 18:51
 LOL!  Three adjacent states vying for the title of Worst Deer Management Program!
 I really wasn't trying to thump your head on this, ND2000; as I said I really respect your opinion on most issues, but I find your stance a bit contradictory on this doe issue.
 Do you agree that in general the State's deer herd has a badly unbalanced buck/doe ratio? (Maybe not your property, but the state as a whole?) I don't think an accurate head count would be anything but depressing.
 Can you further agree with me that many, many hunters actively discourage the shooting of does? A great many landowners are dairy farmers who seem to think that we should model our deer herd after the typical dairy farm- 1 bull (buck) per100 cows(does).
 Do you want more deer in the state overall? I don't, my car insurance carrier doesn't and all the people in every other village in the state who have hungry deer eating the arborvitaes out of thier backyards don't either, especially when they have to hire sharpshooters to thin them out.
 If we as hunters had kept our herds lean and trim throughout the last thirty years instead of trying to raise Texas-style, grown-to-order trophies we wouldn't be in such a mess.
 BTW, while QDM espouses many good ideas, I think it has to a degree placed too much emphasis on antler size at any cost. This led to unethical baiting practices, deer farms with the resultant disease problems, not to mention an exponential inrease in poaching.
 I may be sentimental, but I really wish we could return to the days when a big rack was nothing more, a trophy for the man who aquired it by fair chase, instead of a holy grail to be attained at any price, including ones' honor.
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote pyro6999 Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: January/15/2008 at 19:15
well i will tell you this, in minnesota over the last 5 yrs they have broke every record for deer harvests in the last three years, and they still feel they need to kill more, over 200000 deer were killed in 2007 and that was the third highest total since they started keeping track. three years ago they broke the state record and killed over 210000 deer, pretty good for a state that has a two week rifle season. button bucks are tagged as bucks if the antlers are over one inch long. but yet year after year we continue to kill 200000 deer a year and people dont realize that all it takes is one bad winter and boom no hunting for a couple of years, wyoming's mule deer population got blitzed in the mid 80's the game and fish opened it up for 11 deer per hunter and many people took full advantage and that winter was terrible and the next thing you know the following season was 4x4 bucks only no does no fawns.
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