[marshallgrn]

on doe harvests on property you own/manage, my thoughts are i only want to kill 1 or 2 off my 100 acreas, i killed 1 with my bow already and between me and my boy we have killed 3 bucks( thank you ARs) to me im pretty much done killing off my land but i might take a buck if i have the oppurtunity bow hunting, my goal is i want more population of deer in general and now if i kill does im killing next years seed of deer, a neighbor came by yesterday and asked if his boy could come and kill a doe and i politely told him no, so what are your thoughts on doe harvests? i know this has been beat to death im sure but i still want to know what people think

 

[winger]

my thought is this, i am in the sw corner of the state. i have always taken the first slickhead that walked by off one property and then done. rifle season usually take a buck if i see a good one or a doe if someone i know wanted one and a wall hanger never presented itself to me. i don't buy into the the mass slaughter of does which is what this state has come to know. evidently i wasn't to far off balance either being the area i am in did not have kill all you want this year and offered a single bonus. good thing too as i noticed a big drop in deer around the area where i hunted.

 

[Old Towne Paddler]

I agree. I killed 1 doe with my bow on my 50 acres. I don't plan to kill any more does here. The neighbors kill alot of does, one guy who hunts across the road killed 3 does and a button before the regular gun season. I've only killed 1 doe or none at all for the last 4 or 5 years, and have noticed that I am seeing more does than I ever have before.

 

[DanF]

depends on current population, your management goals, so on...seing more dear isn't always a good thing if the land is over populated and can't produce quality deer...fewer deer might mean a healthier population...but, with only one doe taken so far, another doe or two in the freezer wouldn't hurt!

with only a 100 acres, it also depends on what is going on around you too...like was previously stated...

 

[winger]

true plus i have to admit, the land i own has an outfitter to the south, a poaching fool to the south west, and outfitter to the north. two guys that manage for bick bucks and one guy that whacks whatever. nothing makes me fell better than taking a good buck out of the heard and reaping the benefits from outfitters.

 

[beanpile]

I know this is flawed logic but here it goes . The wife & I dont hunt Bucks .cant afford the taxidermy bill and they don't eat as well as Bucks. That being said only 3 Does were taken on her dads 160, many button bucks were passed as well as were a fork, 6 (illegals )& small 8 pointer. no telling what the Doe harvest #'s were on the surrounding properties but all of them are bigger in size. Its noble to put a limit on your Doe harvest but if your Nbrs dont .. whats the use? Your freezer goes empty & their is full.. just another perspective.

Here's another point. The F.I.L & I went to go visit a friend who is a "outfitter", he was complaining about the lack of Does but has an Army of Louisiana hunters that just slaughter the does and take them back home. As much as I hate to say it I think the MDC should go back to a drawing for all areas but with the new way of thinking & the emphasis of thinning the deer herd but increasing the Buck sizes that'll never happen.. thas kinda talking out of both sides of your mouth like the "outfiter" dontcha think?

 

[Ghost Hunter]

I think more of a balanced harvest would be the way to go. If you are heavy on does the bucks dont have to search much to find em thus less rutting activity..


:thinking:

 

[Mailman]

I'm thinking like you Marshall. In the past two years I hadn't had nearly as many does seen or photographed on my property. The bucks out numbered the does on the game cameras 4 to 1 which are out 52 weeks of the year. Son of Mailman asked me this year if he could buy an antlerless tag. He had to get the out of state tag this year since he moved to Colorado. I told him it was OK. He ended up with a button buck and ate his high dollar tag for a buck. I myself took two bucks off my place so my doe population should be balancing out for next years herd. By me using my game cameras pics as a gauge for the balance between does and bucks on my place I can determine which needs to be thinned out for the coming hunting season. Like you said "if i kill does im killing next years seed of deer". If I find in the future that I have a lot of does on my place and a lot fewer bucks things will change. I think that is called "Quality Deer Management"....and that is a good thing in my opinion.

Good Post Marshall..:2thumbsup:

 

[CLIFFHANGER]

In my opinion its about the HABITAT? :blah:
They say that in my area we have about 33 deer per square mile? I no that get these numbers by counting at night in fields at one of our farms we have seen well over 25 deer in one 7 acre bean field on a evening hunt! So with that in thought, at any one time given the right place and the right food and cover I feel that You draw deer from all the area`s around You! I am, not saying to over harvest but get to know the way Your property changes to meet Your goals? Another words if deer sightings are of it doesn`t mean the worst it could just mean they are getting less pressure and more of what they need some where else? My neighbor is a great guy but has cows that eat all the under growth of his woods and he is much more concerned with his cows than he is deer? he only hunts rifle and does manage to kill a few bu they are always just passing thru? he said that in the last five years ninety percent of all deer killed on his place have been leaving my place or heading for my place? before I bought our place the owner here also ran cows in the areas he didn`t farm and he said he didn`t see neat the deer he see`s now days we have had many conversations about things I have done and things i have learned thanks to the Great information I have learned from talking to people on this Form and in readings from deer management people! there is a wealth of knowledge out there these days and I am, for sure no expert! but one thing I can say If YOU do the work give them safe areas and food and water is there THEY WILL COME!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Let me also say that when I first bought this place we maybe would see (30 to 50 deer) for the whole season? Now its hard to go to a stand without a deer encounter? the first 3 years We never found one shed on our place? But now look forward to shed hunting every Year!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Understand That our place like many others on this Form?

WILL ALWAYS BE WORK IN PROGRESS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

THANKS to All of the PEOPLE from MWT that has helped us in our quest to have a GREAT PLACe to HUNT and enjoy with our FRIENDS and FAMILY
:woot:Sorry to be so long winded but I am excited about Years to come:woot:

 

[SHEDHEAD]

We have not seen hardly any does in our area this year.So I told myself I'm not shootin any...
I will let the kiddos take one if they want.Buck's really wantin to kill a doe,so I'll be takin him.
Savannah still has her Managed hunt on Dec.12 so she can finish fillin the freezer then...I HOPE!

 

[beanpile]

MM one problem I find by using a trail cam as your population determiner ( if thats a word) is that we have seen in the past that if there is a reliable food source ( small Bean field/ feeder etc) the Bucks will pressure the Does away & to use a term BOGART the food source until it is depleted.

not saying that is always the case but have seen it happen that way.

We did not do it this year but in years past on the last day we would do a drive more to see what is running out of the "safe zones" than as a harvest tool.

I'm more inclined to agree with Cliffhanger .

 

[henry]

If you think your deer numbers are at a comfortable level to provide you with the hunting experience you want,,and are not seeing overly large numbers of doe's wiping out your foodplots,,perhaps a 1 buck 1 doe ratio would be the ticket. If deer sitings are down reduce doe harvest,,if they are up increase doe harvest. If it is just right go 1 to 1 until you see a fluctuation one way or the other. Its easier to increase doe harvest next year if numbers jump than it is to build numbers back up after an over harvest. Knowing what they neighbors are doing in the way of food sources and deer harvest can be valuable info when making these decisions.

:cheers::cheers:

 

[Mailman]

[rquote=1490787&tid=104148&author=beanpile]MM one problem I find by using a trail cam as your population determiner ( if thats a word) is that we have seen in the past that if there is a reliable food source ( small Bean field/ feeder etc) the Bucks will pressure the Does away & to use a term BOGART the food source until it is depleted.

not saying that is always the case but have seen it happen that way.[/rquote]

Point well taken but I have no food source close to my place except for the acorns and other browse they find on my place. Granted there is bottom farm land about mile west of my place but I'm guessing most of the deer that frequent that area stay in that area. They do herd up in late winter to pick the bean and corn fields clean but disperse back to their fawning areas in the spring. In my way of thinking if I provide a safe area for the does to raise their young they will hang around my place as their "Home Territory" and the bucks will roam far and wide for breeding purposes. That is when I will connect on a buck on my place. Keep the Momma Happy and Daddy will be happy too.......just like us humans.

 

[beanpile]

hard to argue with your logic MM

 

[Gamegetter]

As others have said, it depends on conditions and population at the time. Some years it may be better to kill 3 or 4 does or more on 100 acres and some years it may be better to kill one or none. I hadn't been seeing many deer on my farm this year. I hadn't hunted much early on, and thought I would see a lot when I had a chance to hunt in late Oct. since it was pre-rut. When I didn't see many deer, I thought I may need to limit the number of does on the property for this rifle season. But then I started seeing a lot of deer, I saw 7 one morning hunt (3 bucks, 4 does/fawns) and then saw 18 on a different stand in the afternoon and evening hunt ( 3 bucks, 15 different does and fawns).

Go with the best information you have, including what your neighbors are doing. Good luck.

 

[Bass Fishin]

Well its good to just do a simple ratio of deer you see. Early this season I saw 24 does and 2 bucks in one day. Thatll give you an idear. Plus using a trail cam helps too.

---ViperSniper---

 

[coyotehunter]

i wish i knew how many does were on my huntin spot this year.generally the first of bow season i can get a pretty good count.but with the loggin that has went on four years ago.our doe killin has went to pot due to thickness of the vegetation.before loggin it averaged 36 to 40 does and little ones.we would take 12 to 14 a year roughly one third of the herd and hold it pretty stable.but since the logging we have been fighting a losing battle.last year it was up to around 50 with four does taken all young of the year ,so we made no head way at all.this year with the corn STILL IN:whinging: no way to tell at all,but instead seeing five or six in a doe group it seems the the number has increased to eight so i am gonna say the group has prolly made it 60 this year.so if you throw in the neighbors property it one would be 640 acres or one square mile add in 15 deer to the count and were up to 75 pretty darn high since we are not including the bucks in the count.now what have we killed this year? in the youth weekend and three weekends of gun hunting.there still has not been one rifle shot on the 360 where i hunt and has been one little doe killed off the neighbors farm.i've shot one buck during bow so two deer in a sguare mile as hunters we suck this year nor have i seen one buck chasing a doe all season.so what i am saying if you give them right habitat they will flourish and get real smart at escaping people.to me the now the does have gotten equal hunting pressure we are seeing a lot smarter doe now a days:mad2:

 

[letemgrow]

I judge my doe harvests on 2 things, how many bucks we shoot and how many does overall I am seeing. We usually take 3-4 does and 3-4 bucks off my 140 acres and I still see 20+ on a good day during late season. It looks like that number works well for my place as the hunting quality has remained good for the past 5 seasons.