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Hard to Satisfy?

KSQ2

KSQ2

PMA Member
Watching the discussion on the non-res. thread got me to thinking. It seems every hunting video out there has the "stars" shooting multiple bucks every year. I realize this is how they make their living, but I think it puts thoughts into the heads of their viewers. How many hunters on this site would be satisfied with only being able to shoot one buck a year? I'm not attacking those who shoot more than one buck a year, more power to you; but it makes you wonder, is the world of hunting trips going to ruin our sport? I wish just once I'd see Bill Jordan say, as he holds the antlers of his latest trophy, "What a great hunt, I can't wait until next YEAR (not next week) to do it again."
What does it take to satisfy us hunters? Many of you have shot lots of bucks the past few years, others have only shot a couple, I think both parties would say they've had a ball. At what point does hunting our favorite big game animal cross over to bloodlust and respect for the animal disappear? If you knew me personally you'd know I'm the furthest thing from an animal rights fanatic, but I do believe the whitetail deer is a part of God's creation and deserves our respect.
So again I ask will the hunting public ever be satisfied as a whole? I sure hope so, or hunting as we know it will disappear.
 
I do not know about the general hunting public, but I shoot a buck about every 3+ years. I put in about 70-80 hrs. of actual seat time in a tree most seasons so it is not for lack of effort. I state this for no other reason than to say that like most of you, my hunting conditions are vastly different than most of the situations I watch on video. Quite frankly, I like it that way. The eventual harvest is extremely satisfying due to the hard work that goes into it and the reward one feels to finally get the job done.

Probably one of the main reasons I can't stand to watch "Give me a second folks" kill another 130" buck with an outfitter.
 
<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: KSQ2</div><div class="ubbcode-body"> At what point does hunting our favorite big game animal cross over to bloodlust and respect for the animal disappear? </div></div>

Maybe our beloved sport of whitetail hunting has its roots in bloodlust. When I started deer hunting, it was all about filling a tag with a legal deer. It didn't matter to most people the size of the deer, just that it was legal. Over the thirty years since then, some hunters have chosen to be more selective in their harvest. I don't think this selectivity makes them less "blood thirsty".

And I have struggled with the topic of "respect". This may sound a little peta-esque, but how can you shoot a deer if you truly respect it? Isn't killing it the ultimate disrespect? I'll concede that there are levels of respect.....

I guess I'm not into the anthropomorphic crap that allows animals to have human feelings and thus I reciprocate by not letting my human emotions (respect) enter into the hunt. It comes down to my (maybe over-) simplistic view that deer are another protein source, much like beef.

Not sure I've answered the question your post asks. Is it, "Will we be happy with harvesting one buck per season?". My view is no. As long as there are tags available, people will buy them, whether it be in state or out of state.
 
Just me, but if I did'nt respect the deer I was about to kill I dont think I would have the passion that I have. I thank GOD for each encounter even if I did'nt fill my tag. I dont know about any of you but golf just does'nt make my heart jump out of my chest, and the day hunting stops doing that then I'll hang up my bow.
 
I've always been happy with one buck tag. For a few yrs we could buy 2 and hunt the second one in adifferent zone than I live. I bought it once, never filled it. Guess I have always been satisfied with just one. I watching Ralph and Vicki on the tube last night, hunting Anticosti island im Quebec. Each of them shot 2 ...pretty small bucks with a rifle. I have to wonder how much pleasure this really brings when they've already dumped who knows how many deer in a year.
 
I think that without the respect aspect there can be no such thing as fair chase or even "hunting" for that matter. With out some level of respect then it becomes "anything goes" that is even close to legal as long as a kill is made. This includes all the hot points like for deer, salt or mineral blocks, baiting, food plots, high fences, recorded calls, automated decoys and the list just goes on. Respect of the animals make it hunting and not just killing. It is what makes most of us not want to flock shoot ducks on the water, or ground swat a covey of quail. It is also what makes us thrill at a hard tight point on a pheasant that flushes in a cackling riot, or a buck sneaking down a trail in the wood where you just hung a stand because you had a feeling. Without respect I would not hunt, I would just go out to the pasture and shoot a steer so I could gut it and drag it home and butcher it in my garage. Some how how that just doesn't seem as appealing as walking a half mile in the dark and cold so I can climb up in a tree and sit shivering while the world comes to life all around me. Then as the rising sun just starts to warm me the three deer walk into the edge of the meadow and I must decide if I can or will try to harvest one of them. As some one else already said "Thank You God".
 
Sorry, something else just popped into my mind. With all these celebrities killing all those bucks in all those states and all of Iowa resident hunters who kill multiple bucks here and in other states every year, what happens to all those horns? It would seem to me that there is no way all these people are paying to have 2, 3, or 10 heads mounted every year. Are these racks that everyone lusts after so strongly just being thrown in a corner pile some where or are they being auctioned off on E-Bay. I can certainly see the attraction of having a deer mounted and maybe several if they are a little better than last year or unique in some way, but for those of you who have killed 40 or 50 bucks over the years what have you done with the racks? That is another aspect of the respect issue for me. If I have killed and mounted a 150" deer a couple of years ago why, if I am truly a trophy hunter, would I shot a 130" buck this year just because it was the biggest one I saw? If I get a chance at a 170" or a 180" then fine and I would have it mounted but not a small deer. How big does that pile in the corner need to be for the mice to chew on any way.
 
<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Quote:</div><div class="ubbcode-body"> I wish just once I'd see Bill Jordan say, as he holds the antlers of his latest trophy, "What a great hunt, I can't wait until next YEAR (not next week) to do it again."
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<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Quote:</div><div class="ubbcode-body">Probably one of the main reasons I can't stand to watch "Give me a second folks" kill another 130" buck with an outfitter.

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With a few exceptions, it's turned into a business and a job for those folks. They have to get something on tape. It's all recycled material, just different deer. I would like to think some of those "pro's" would love to turn back the clock and just go hunting.
 
<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Quote:</div><div class="ubbcode-body">I would like to think some of those "pro's" would love to turn back the clock and just go hunting. </div></div>

I've wondered about that myself.
 
For me , I love having two buck tags for two different reasons. 1 I love bowhunting, and 2 I love late muzzleloader hunting for two totally different reasons that I am sure you can all understand. I don't need anymore than that, that is what doe tags are for.

As far as all the racks you don't mount go, we have probably 30-40 hanging in our barn from smallest to biggest. Ranging from 60 inchers to 160 inchers. It is great to sit out there with my ole man or friends and talk about each one of them on the wall and tell the story of that deer. It's just amazing that whether its a 60 incher or a 160 incher, the story of that deer is never forgotten. That is why we hunt. You can't mount them all, but you can sure display them all someway or another.

I am sure it might be different if you were just trying to get a buck on tape, but these are all deer that wouldn't have been shot if we didn't want them.
 
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