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Posted on 12/27/23 at 8:52 pm to Icansee4miles
Not sure what to expect, I had this same dilemma with how many does to harvest. I keep track of how many deer are killed each year at our lease. The total deer sighting was going up , but we were seeing more does and less bucks. We changed the rules for this year to encourage shooting more does. We changed the rules from shooting whatever you want , to 3.5 age class or older only. This led to more members having to rely on shooting does instead of 1.5-2.5 yr old bucks to fill the freezer.
Previous seasons the most doe we have killed was 12. And we have always killed more bucks than doe in previous seasons. This year we killed 17 does and 9 bucks, so it really flipped the script from previous years. I’m hoping that results in more bucks next season.
Previous seasons the most doe we have killed was 12. And we have always killed more bucks than doe in previous seasons. This year we killed 17 does and 9 bucks, so it really flipped the script from previous years. I’m hoping that results in more bucks next season.
Posted on 12/27/23 at 9:28 pm to 257WBY
On some of the game preserves (high fences)I have been involved in, they try to take doe’s out before rut.. try not to shoot bred doe’s. Could be a doe your best buck
Bred..
Management / culls die as soon as possible…
Bred..
Management / culls die as soon as possible…
Posted on 12/27/23 at 9:33 pm to TheDrunkenTigah
Honest question : Is he like me and only looking for one then a nap?? I always assumed they were running around nailing everything that slowed down for half a beat.
Posted on 12/28/23 at 9:24 am to latech15
No, he’s going to find the first receptive doe then will tend her for up to two days, laid up in the thickest stuff they can find. Think weekend at the cheap motel. Odds are you aren’t gonna see either of them in that timeframe. Once she’s done, he will move on to the next one. Those periods in between he will do laps around the property looking for a doe in standing estrous, the longer that takes the more time he is going to be on his feet and killable. The more does there are, the shorter those windows get, and the longer it takes for them all to be bred. Once they quit coming into estrous, which could take up to two months if the ratio is really bad, he has to gain back all the weight he lost from basically only eating motel vending machine chips inbetween shack ups before he can prioritize antler growth.
Posted on 12/28/23 at 9:30 am to TheDrunkenTigah
Very informative post told with easy to relate to analogies. Love it!
After reading all these posts from what I consider a group of pretty experienced hunters, I feel better about our own inability to reach a consensus. One thing that is clear, is we need to take more does.
After reading all these posts from what I consider a group of pretty experienced hunters, I feel better about our own inability to reach a consensus. One thing that is clear, is we need to take more does.
Posted on 12/28/23 at 9:39 am to Icansee4miles
I actually watched something the other day regarding this. They recommended shooting the young does or yearlings while leaving your mature does. You know the mature does will consistently go into heat and produce young ones. Plus less risk of the mature ones getting taken down by predators.
Posted on 12/28/23 at 9:46 am to Icansee4miles
1. The ones that blow at you.
2. That biggest oldest queen with a neck like a giraffe that’s going to blow at you
3. Ones without nursing fawns you can tell are does
In that order.
2. That biggest oldest queen with a neck like a giraffe that’s going to blow at you
3. Ones without nursing fawns you can tell are does
In that order.
Posted on 12/28/23 at 10:22 am to Icansee4miles
Posted on 12/29/23 at 12:14 am to Yukon7
Yukon7
This is a good "start", but IMO you will have to do the same next year and maybe a 3 third year, before you start to see more Bucks.
How many acreas are ya'll huntng on?
quote:
This year we killed 17 does and 9 bucks, so it really flipped the script from previous years. I’m hoping that results in more bucks next season.
This is a good "start", but IMO you will have to do the same next year and maybe a 3 third year, before you start to see more Bucks.
How many acreas are ya'll huntng on?
Posted on 12/29/23 at 1:04 am to Icansee4miles
We used to work with the state biologist and he said shoot every doe you see. Shoot the early and often. But, if you have to be selective shoot them old and young.
We had 6k acres and only 25ish members. So that may change depending on your setup
We had 6k acres and only 25ish members. So that may change depending on your setup
This post was edited on 12/29/23 at 1:04 am
Posted on 12/29/23 at 9:40 am to Farmtiger
quote:that’s pretty much the same quote I remember hearing “Shoot every doe that stands still long enough to know it’s a doe”. I don’t know if that’s an over statement knowing you’ll probably meet in the middle, but as a 12-16yo I took it to heart. After the freezer filled up it would annoy my dad so much and he made me stop unless someone at the camp was taking it with them
We used to work with the state biologist and he said shoot every doe you see.
Posted on 12/29/23 at 10:06 am to gerald65
We are on 2900 acres with 12-15 members depending on the year. This year was the first year we implemented rules on bucks. None of us are professional biologists but just doing what we think is best.
Here is our harvest information for the past 4 years, i took the members names out. If it’s blacked out it means they weren’t members for that year. I welcome any input.
Here is our harvest information for the past 4 years, i took the members names out. If it’s blacked out it means they weren’t members for that year. I welcome any input.
Posted on 12/29/23 at 10:18 am to Yukon7
It’s hard to say anything definitive about those numbers without knowing a little more about the property and what kind of bucks were getting killed prior to your rule. 2023 looks good, I would see where you’re at with a couple exclusion cages this January. If the plots are staying clipped down, shoot a few more does before the season closes. Acres/doe is highly dependent on the habitat/region but killing a doe per 150 acres will help you see if that’s adding or removing deer and where to go from there. Our recs are closer to doe/75 acres but with young kids we got behind (east central MS). In the delta that can be the standing order.
Posted on 12/29/23 at 10:36 am to TheDrunkenTigah
I would actually consider our habitat to be medium/medium poor. Food plots are no. Existence with the exception of 3 kill plots. It’s a pine plantation leased from a timber company. I think our saving grace is we have a good mix of cutover. Right around 40% cutover, 30% mature pines ready to harvest in the next 5 years and 20% being thinned pines with good undergrowth. And your usual 10% hardwood bottoms.
It’s tough to get foodplots to grow, soil is rocky so I’ve been limited to no till method. This year was the best i have done , will keep working at it.
It’s tough to get foodplots to grow, soil is rocky so I’ve been limited to no till method. This year was the best i have done , will keep working at it.
Posted on 12/29/23 at 11:52 am to Yukon7
That sounds like a pretty common breakdown for timber lease, but a lot depends on the dirt underneath it. You have a better feel than anyone for if those harvest numbers are putting a dent in things. We kill a few more than that on about the same acreage and are still seeing more does than we should, it’s a multi-year process.
Posted on 12/29/23 at 2:06 pm to TheDrunkenTigah
We shot the most does off our 600 acres last year. This year we have had way more bucks on camera. 3-4 legit shooters and a bunch of 1.5-3.5 year old 6-8 points.
Posted on 12/29/23 at 2:59 pm to tke_swamprat
I need to kill 4-5 here on our 90 acres. The neighbors don’t really hunt other than Christmas week. I had 12 does in a field one afternoon a few weeks ago. Seeing a few bucks but they are moving at night .
Posted on 12/29/23 at 4:50 pm to Yukon7
quote:
This year was the first year we implemented rules on bucks
We did that too. If I remember right it was either 1 or 2 with 3 on one side and 1 or 2 4 or better on one side.
The problem we ran into was there were some great 1.5 and 2.5 8 points getting killed every year.
It’s hard to balance in an average club where people still want to shoot but most other want to shoot big deer. Then you get into adding more and more restrictions and then the “oh if he had another year” stuff happens.
I got out of the club but, we were starting to see the benefits of letting deer get older after 3-5 years.
I now hunt about 75 acres that I own and I hold bucks from yearlings to 5.5 plus early into the season. After the velvet comes off they tend to like the dark and then start wandering off by muzzle loader season.
When it comes to bucks, the rule on my place is my now 18 year old son gets 1 buck of choice, and anything he wants to put on the wall. I only shoot bucks that go on my wall, and the old man (78 year old father in law) shoots what ever the hell he wants to!
Do what works for you and try to enjoy the people you hunt with more than you actually enjoy the harvest and you will never have a bad season!
Posted on 12/29/23 at 5:00 pm to Icansee4miles
We have 2000 acres with 25 members. Hardly anyone shoots does. We might get 5 killed a year. We'll kill 10 bucks or more. We're 6pt or better but the majority of bucks we see are 2.5yr old 8pt.
I've seen 20 different does cross a power line and not a single buck came across. This was probably at least 5 years ago but I know we have to many does.
Everyone wants the horns. Now we do get bucks from all around our lease that come to breed does. The few mature bucks taken had one side fricked up.
One from fighting and the others just grew fricked up. Probably lack of nutrition.
I've seen 20 different does cross a power line and not a single buck came across. This was probably at least 5 years ago but I know we have to many does.
Everyone wants the horns. Now we do get bucks from all around our lease that come to breed does. The few mature bucks taken had one side fricked up.
One from fighting and the others just grew fricked up. Probably lack of nutrition.
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