....on trigger restraint! Take a look at AON's truck buck contest. There's a bunch of real good deer on there. Seems to be more showing up on here too. I think more folks are holding off on 2-3 year olds and reaping some benefits!
Just for the record........I don't "horn the fun out of hunting", but I do like to see big deer and don't shoot unless I believe a deer is 4.

I hope you're right!

Hopefully so

It would be about time. Never understood why a grown man would want to shoot a young/small buck. Don't give me that "To feed my family" stuff either cause I never saw a starving Alabama hunter🙂

I've never understood why a grown man cares what another grown man does that's legal.

Ain't that the damn truth....

The longer I am on this forum and the more I read from the so-called trophy hunters......the more turned off I become to them.

And, I gotta add, I do find it amusing that most of them have never posted any pics of any trophy deer! LOL

Half our laws are stupid , I'd like to punch some people in the face but that's illegal, just giving you another angle to look at.

I'll never understand it myself. I've only killed one racked buck in my LIFE! It was a small 8point that I hunted my ass off to kill about 3 or so years ago. Some folks just don't have the opportunity or land to see a lot of deer and they take advantage of what they do get to see.

Fast forward to this year and I'm in a really good club in TN. I've had the best season I've ever had as far as deer hunting and seeing tons of deer (bucks and does) in the woods. I haven't pulled the trigger on one yet, but then again I'm seeing TONS of deer and simply having the opportunity to kill deer makes you a different hunter. Looking down on others that may not have that same opportunity is selfish and quite frankly those folks that do that looking down can go phuck themselves.

This

Amen

Hardest thing for people to do is lose the attitude of, "If I don't kill him the neighbors will."

I can tell you that my neighbors would shoot one 5 minutes after birth if they could.

I try to forget about them when I am deciding to release an arrow or let a deer walk though.

I did get a 146" buck last year.

X2

I aint a Trophy hunter and shot over the back of a 6 last night that I normally would have let walk but my little girl was with me and I am trying to let her experience the thrill.

Having said all that I try to shoot a few does and 8 or better on the bucks.

Personally, and again, I say PERSONALLY, because I don't speak for every hunter nor do I understand every little thing that goes into this.


I started hunting last year. No one in my family hunts. None of my friends hunt. But it is a skill and hobby that I wanted to pick up and learn. So I got on the internet, and out in the woods, and I started learning. I don't have access to private land. I don't have access to hunt with friends on clubs.

I do have access to other land, where I occasionally see deer, but nothing "big" or "acceptable to shoot". But you know what. The first time I see a deer, of any legal size, walk out, its getting a dirt nap. I enjoy hunting, and enjoy being in the woods, and enjoy the thrill of learning their movements and tracking them down and killing them.

It is legal. The meat is tasty. I enjoy it.

I understand wanting to do deer management on your own private land or club. I'm sure my view will change as I get more and more deer. But I am a grown man, and I shot my first deer Saturday.

Again, I'm not saying this about you. But everyone I talk to that makes comments like these, has access to awesome hunting land where there are tons of shootable options. For me, I just want to shoot a deer.

Didn't mean to get y'all wound up. What I was trying to say is if your a grown man that has killed a lot of deer then it doesn't seam to make sense to shoot everything that moves. If you have never killed a deer or have killed a limited amount then shoot what makes you feel good. I miss the days of the joy of killing any deer, it takes a good one to get the adrenaline going now though.

I figured thats what you were getting at. Again, if I get to the point where I've killed plenty, I'd love to get to the stage of managing bucks and growing up so real shooters!

This seems contradictory.

If you miss the days of what you describe as "joy" in killing a deer, why not shoot a couple and re-spark that joy? It sounds like you've trapped yourself in a "gotta shoot a big buck" box instead of just enjoying hunting.

This is something I don't understand, similar to how you don't understand someone shooting small bucks. Several years ago I pretty much quit deer hunting, didn't worry about not going, and got more into small game and fishing. I needed a break. When I got back into it, despite frustrations of a tough place I hunt now, I enjoy going, sitting, the anticipation and doing some things on the property.

To each his own, within the legal regulations. But if you're not enjoying hunting then what's the point?

I enjoy watching more than killing, lazier than I was 20 years ago. If I'm gonna kill one it will be worth the drag out. I still love to hunt but like I said I'm just lazier now.