Just wondering how many hunters on here practice Quality Deer Management on the land they hunt.

Oh boy...



Seriously though. Yes it works but you MUST HAVE REALISTIC EXPECTATIONS! We are in AL. There will not be 5.5 year old 145" deer behind every tree. You can achieve a relatively balanced sex ratio, a reasonably good age class structure and reasonably good recruitment rates while growing some larger than average B&C scoring bucks (125-150 B&C) with semi-regularity. In AL this is what your target should be. This also hinges on if you have enough property to manage...

To do this it takes quality habitat management, food plot management (spring and fall) and trigger restraint. Sprinkle in some predator control here and there if needed in certain locations of the state. I'm not high on feeding programs but they can have a place... (pretty much the QDM principles)

We have been doing QDM since 1989 and it works.

We may not be able to have 5.5 yr old bucks behind every tree , but we could have more than enough if people would let them live that long.

You realize what I posted is all you can really ask for anywhere... right? For the most part, just change the scores and semi-regularly wording a bit...

I've hunted all over the mid-west and you don't just see 5.5 year old bucks running all over the place there either. Beyond popular belief anyway. Yeah, there are more older age class bucks but I bet their age class structures state wide would surprise you.

Yes we use it, and yes it works.

The title of your post asks one question, and the text of your post asks another. QDMA and qdm are not at all the same.

QDMA don't work. Their members are always just one or two more government rules short of what they claim it would take to make their version of it work.

Qdm is possible but not very feasible in most cases. There are too many reasons/excuses to make exceptions to the voluntary rules that the original version of qdm needs to make it "work".

"Quality" is in the eye of the beholder. IMO, qdm as it is widely practiced does not result in the highest "quality" hunting experiences.

We do and it definitely works. If you can get your neighbors on the same page and form a co-operative, even better.

The fact of the matter is...it depends. It depends on the size tract of land you are managing. If it's small acreage, then no. If it's large acreage, then yes. Thinking anything else is setting yourself up for heartache. You might be able to take out some does and getting you numbers down, but you'll be hard pressed to keep your neighbor from shooting bucks you may be passing up. Large acreage, you just have to change YOUR objectives. Small acreage, you have to chance your NEIGHBOR'S objectives. With that in mind, if you pass on a young buck, he's got a chance at making it to maturity. If you don't pass that young buck, he doesn't have a chance at making it to maturity.

this is the problem most every one I know including myself has. My neighbors at 2 of my 3 properties think if it has horns it needs to be shot.

Tell me how a large rack helps a deer make it through a tough winter, help fight disease, avoid predators and sire more virulent offspring.
QDM is based simply on our perception of aesthetics and what WE THINK is a "quality deer". That "management buck" may be the baddest buck on the place, full of piss and vinegar, a straight up survivor that gets taken by Mr. Buckmaster because this 4yr.old 7pt. is obviously inferior.

I'm calling BS!!!!

I gladly approve this^^^ message.

True QDM and good hunting experiences is about more than antlers, at least it is where I hunt.

Best move in years has been a buck harvest reduction to only 3 bucks. I personally wish it was only 1, but what do I know. A family in our club this year killed 9 deer-the largest being a 4 point that was 1.5 years old. I can't stand crap like that and would love to see him removed, but we as a club go by state rules. None of our other members are like this family! I love the idea of 4 points on a side to be legal also. I let a lot of deer walk every year and I have no desire to eliminate the deer herd in AL. Every deer I harvest goes on the wall.

Oh no Teach, you've done it now,9er gonna cut and paste you into submission!

Why would your solution be to change him? Why not change to a club that is in line with the way you hunt or try to change the club rules?

I not only practice QDMA but swear by the results. Go look at the pics of the two bucks I shot last year and youll see why! A 140 and 170 right here in Alabama....only able to do it by them not getting killed when they were younger and immature.

You can grow big bucks right here...all it takes is a little trigger discipline and nutrition.

Let em go and let em grow!

2dogs..you are right on...its about harvesting MATURE bucks...the big antlers that they sometime get is just a BONUS!

I just like watching deer and only harvesting big bodied 4 year old or better deer...just to see what potential they make.

The year before last I went after a 6-7 year old 200 plus pound OLD mature buck...his rack wasnt the best but he had an 18 1/2 inside spread...even though he only scored around 115. But I shot OVER the back of a 130 inch 3 1/2 year old to kill him....

Its all about the age...and pitting yourself against those old smart bucks...what a challenge....and what a thrill when you get them!
VERY REWARDING to say the least!

This family is the only "shooter" in our club. They are the ones who need to change to a club that is in line with the way they hunt. Our members are on probation for their first year, and they did not kill a deer on the club during the probationary year. Once the year was over, his true colors shined through. BTW-Our club is over 50 years old and I have been a club officer and trustee for three years now. We killed 46 deer on the club this year. 23 bucks and 23 does. I have never killed a deer on the club and I haven't been bothered by it a bit. We have 45 members and as you can see, we do practice self imposed restrictions on what we shoot. I could have killed a hundred deer on it if I had wanted to, but numbers mean nothing to me. As for 49er having a field day with my ideas-We may disagree on a few things, but we have respect for each other and that goes a long way with me! I count him as a friend.

Sounds like it should be easy to change the rules then.