BINGO! We are not referring to folks on this site. The general public.... You could change the thread title to: "Getting people to care". Most don't, they just don't and it's all about them, blasting, no skin in the game, etc, etc. This topic is really like arguing Conservatism VS Liberalism.... Data, facts, tax payers VS Emotions, folks who don't pay taxes but are on the take, do what feels good, etc.
Thinkin Rut
PMA Member
Without a doubt Skip, If you look to the DNR (government) to tell you how many does to harvest every year, Liberalism has wormed its way into your life.
BDAHMS
Be here Now
Is there a problem- absolutely- this is the worst year I can remember
Is it going to be fixed by next year - No, not even close- BUT we have to start somewhere.
I know a lot of people, some on this site- who have expressed their opinion quite often, about how people need to stop shooting multiple deer every season, especially Doe- and then kill multiple deer and many doe-
If you want things to change- start by looking in a mirror. lead by example- the youth generation learns somewhere, mainly by watching us as they mature into hunters themselves. Obviously there will still be people killing everything that walks - But if you want a change-it starts with us first hand and HOPEFULLY we can rub off on those paying attention
Is it going to be fixed by next year - No, not even close- BUT we have to start somewhere.
I know a lot of people, some on this site- who have expressed their opinion quite often, about how people need to stop shooting multiple deer every season, especially Doe- and then kill multiple deer and many doe-
If you want things to change- start by looking in a mirror. lead by example- the youth generation learns somewhere, mainly by watching us as they mature into hunters themselves. Obviously there will still be people killing everything that walks - But if you want a change-it starts with us first hand and HOPEFULLY we can rub off on those paying attention
Bowtech84
Well-Known Member
Just odd to me that not to long ago everyone was preaching about shooting does to keep the buck/doe ratio close. Now all the sudden the doe numbers are way down and the preaching not to shoot does has begun. Coincidence? I think we as hunters are our own worst enemy and not just in this case.
Daver
PMA Member
I agree, it is peculiar to be discussing harvest reduction so soon after the DNR and many hunters were emphasizing shooting more does. But we have had some pretty big swings in just the last 2 years with massive EHD outbreaks in two consecutive years and continued heavy antlerless harvest.
While I did, and still do, support a managed doe harvest myself, I think "we" swung the pendulum far too far in taking out way too many antlerless deer in the past 3-5 years.
JUNIOR
Active Member
Agreed!!!! I support this 100%, You get your any sex for bow and gun then one doe tag for each season per county!!
In Kansas there is the same talk,but another thing to think about is that I think does are getting smarter also.I can go by some fields that no one hunts and there is 25 does out there every evening so that tells me they go to areas that have less pressure.If the state doesn't have check stations and do multiple studies they have no idea how many deer there are and you cannot go by what numbers you see during the day as the only source.
The main cause of the lower deer numbers is the late rifle season. Ehd is a smaller player in the grand scheme except on a few farms. There is also a correlation of this season and the overall decline in buck quality due to these does being shot after being bred. In a perfect world all doe harvest should be done before the rut ensuring does bred by the dominant bucks survive to carry on the best genetics . When thelate rifle season started I thought we could do no wrong, the guys I hunted with on the farms we owned and managed ,carefully shot does avoiding any possible shed or button bucks the number harvested was in the hundreds . Last year we didn't shoot any on farms where any ehd was found this year we probably won't take 5 or 6 total for our own use. I have come full circle on this and I now think the late rifle needs to end now .
Lets make this easy .........Every deer hunter can kill two deer! One buck with some kind of a way to limit the killing of young bucks and a antlerless deer. I don't care what season or how you chose to hunt ....two deer period ....bow, gun, muzzleloader, in town, out of town....whatever! I'm guessing for most of the state that would make for some awesome hunting in a couple of years! And for the areas with population issues two antlerless tags? Why couldn't it be that easy? I know why ....some people are still going to want to kill 5 or 10 deer!
Bowtech84
Well-Known Member
Seems to me numbers are down across the state. My county has no late rifle season and only allows 300 antlerless tags yet the numbers are not even close to what they used to be.