A buddy of mine finally shot his first deer yesterday. It was just a 90 pound button head. He said it gave him the shakes bad when he was drawing down on it. This is my eleventh year hunting and I got it about a month ago trying to scope what would have been my first buck that I would have mounted but he just wouldn't come out of the thick stuff. Do you guys who've been hunting a long time still get it?

not gun hunting, some bow hunting, some turkey hunting.

If i ever see one in person this year I’ll let ya know!
I did go to mostly bow hunting just to up the challenge and reward and get the rush that had faded a little

A little gun hunting still do bow hunting.

I've hunted for 47 years now.Still get an elevated heartbeat and love every minute of it.If I didn't, I'd probably quit

i do.

Hell my heart starts to beat fast about 30 minutes before sunset.

Lol X2.

I do.

Depends on how long Im watching the deer. If it is a real quick decision and shot then i get heart pumping after. If im watching them get closer and closer over a long time then it gets bad close to pulling trigger or drawing. Most i gets the leg shakes.

I guess I’m lucky, I get it BAD but always after the shot. Never once have I had to deal with it while aiming. As soon as I shoot I get a good 10-20 secs of the shakes

I still get it with does and bucks both. I almost couldn’t draw my bow back when I had my mule deer this year at 35 yards. I tried and was shaking too bad. Had to stop and take a few deep breaths and go again. Once I was drawn back, it was like target practice.

X2 what PawPaw said.

Gun - not a bit; if I can get a shot, it's dead
Turkey - after the shot for me
Bowhunting - yes

When I see a big rack I lose all ability to function...so yea I get it real bad and always have.Really gets bad when I look through the scope and touch the trigger.I honestly don't know how I've ever even hit a deer.

Things will change over time.I can remember involuntary shakes,heartbeats pounding in my ears,and even blurred vision.Good times!

Been hunting since 1992, still get it.

If he doesn't give me the knee knocks when I first see him then he isn't a shooter.

Y'all seem to have a different definition of buck fever than what I was taught growing up. Buck fever is the total inability to fire your gun when a buck appears. I've known of people who had it, but never experienced it myself. I could always get a shot off; hitting him was a different story as I used to get as excited as anyone.

I still get excited at seeing a big gobbler, but not to the point that it affects my ability to shoot. When I was a kid, it definitely affected my shooting ability and I recorded the misses to prove it.

A deer doesn't have much effect on me in my old age. The exception might be if I spot a shooter chasing a doe in the woods and can't get a good shot. That can be nerve wracking.

Yep

Here's what often happens to me...

I'll shoot a big buck, then in the seconds once it's over my lower back will get to cramping!!!
I don't know if it's the adrenaline dump or what.