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Hypothetical question... round 2

muddy

muddy

Well-Known Member
Say you have a life changing event coming up (job relocation, kids being born, anything that turns your world upside down) and you're not able to hunt very much, if at all, during late October and most of November. You are able to hunt as hard as you want/can up until the event. Would you lower your standards just to throw your tag on a buck or do you stick to your convictions?

Most of you know why I'm posing the question, but I'm curious to know how others would look at it.

Beings I am asking I will answer first.

I'm sticking to my goal that I laid out after I was mildly disappointed with my buck last year. I've already had 2 opportunities at very nice 3.5 year old bucks (130ish 8 pointer & a very nice mid 140s 9 pointer) and am hoping to get a crack at something in the 150's and so I'll keep working at it. Hopefully my persistance/patience will pay off before the twins squirt out! If not, I'll still have a load of fun reading the harvests on iowawhitetail and bouncing my girls on my knee!

How about you guys/gals?
 
I wood stick to my goals even if the EVENT was in the best part of hunting season, u will feel better bout it in the long run i think.
 
this where i differ with most on the site!

i love shooting deer, and thrive on the whole event, BUT, i also like antlers..... im not interested in eating a tag.

but look at it this way, no matter how big the deer you shoot ends up being, it will ALWAYS hold a special place in your heart as the last buck you shot in your Pre-Daddy days, and the deer that you shot with your baby girls on your mind.

do what you want, Matt, but the trophy is what you make of it. last year my bow buck was one that i should have let go, but he was taken a week before TommyGun was born, and i will always look at that deer with him in mind. it is one of my greatest trophies so far.

personally, the size of the deer should be second to the experience/memory you make this year. make next season a pursuit for a giant. this year its a pursuit of a memory!

JMHO

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I think if you stick to your goals this year, you will be much happier you did next year.
 
Well Muddy, I'm in the same boat. I'm not lowering my standards at all. I'm still looking to harvest a bigger mature buck, what I have changed though is my strategy. Just be a little more aggressive earlier on.
An example, this weekend. The wind is totally @$$ backwards for the stand I'm hunting, however it's a cedar tree which helps cover my scent, and I'm thinking about a small scent wick just for kicks and hope it's a distraction.
 
I hate agreeing with him, but I am with THA$... I like to hunt, I enjoy the harvest. I love to shoot big deer too, but the truth is, in a lot of cases, the importance of a big deer is judged by others. DO what feels right for you! I personally, am happy whenever I pull the trigger, whether it is a 85 inch buck, a button, a doe or 150!
 
Stick to your goal Muddy! If you want more meat harvest another doe. I have two kids, some real special years are headed your way in the future. Shooting a buck that you don't really want just before they are born will not stick out in your memory at all. I have no clue what I shot the years that my kids were born, but I remember the track jobs that we had together afterwards. We are only a few days into the season it can definatly still happen.
Just think next year that 140" will probably be a 160" and the girls can help you track him. That will create a memory. /forum/images/%%GRAEMLIN_URL%%/cool.gif
 
Stick to your goal Muddy,
He will be even an even bigger buck next year.
Don't lower your standars to something you may regret.
I think you already have your mind made up. IMHO

Like Bakes said shoot another doe or two.
Good luck on the twins.

My wife is actually setting up birthday paties for my two youngest now and I will miss some hunting. Best missed time I will ever have.
 
I was in your shoes two years ago when my daughter was born. My wife was getting tired of me being in stand and leaving her at home with a newborn. Well, I finally just settled on a 120" that walked by. I know my wife was happy that I was done, but I really regretted it later, and still do.

I'm faced with the same situation this year with my son being only 4 weeks old. I'm not gonna make the same mistake twice. If I have to eat tag soup, then so be it.
 
Put me in the baby boat. Must have been that long cold winter.
I'd stuck to your goal also. Though 130-140's will be 150-160's next year. Plus you might be able to get out some in the late season. But when it's all said and done it's up to you.
Good luck and congrats on the twins you must have put in some overtime.
 
Having a baby will change everything. I've gone from taking off 2 weeks vacation during the rut, to one long weekend. /forum/images/%%GRAEMLIN_URL%%/eek.gif That being said, it's completely worth it... I can already picture her with her first bow in hand /forum/images/%%GRAEMLIN_URL%%/smile.gif

I'd still be satisfied with anything netting 135, given my time limitations.
 
Muddy, I would shoot the first fork horn that walks by and slap your tag on it. /forum/images/%%GRAEMLIN_URL%%/wink.gif
 
1. The thrill of shooting one that meets your standards is always quite a rush.

2. The thrill of the hunt is better than #1 above. Shooting the big buck is just a bonus to this.

3. Passing immature bucks is always fun if you ask me. You beat him at his best but he still survives to see another day and quite possibly another year.

4. Nothing but a bad case of ground shrinkage would ever get me to lower my standards.
 
I haven't raised my bow on a buck since 2004, shot alot of does though. Trust me dude, you will survive not shooting a buck for a year.
 
Why kill a deer just because it has horns on it's head, any kind of horns? If this is the only deer that offers you a shot and you want to harvest a deer, I have no problem with that and have done it myself. However to kill it just because it is a buck rather than a doe so that you can say you killed your buck this year, I think is wrong. If you set yourself moral and ethical standards do you change the standards because your situation changes some what? If you set standards for your daughters when they start school or go off to college do you expect to lower those standards of conduct just because you can't watch over them as closely? You set standards of any kind for a reason that is important to you so when is it ok to say that it is no longer important to you?
 
<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: JakeWym</div><div class="ubbcode-body">I'd stick to my goal. I would rather leave my tag unfilled. </div></div>

I would rather shoot a couple of does and not have to question if I should settle for a buck.
 
I would stick to your goal. Last year was the first buck I had shot in 5 years. My wife was due in mid November so I gave up my first season shotgun ( first time in 17 years and hopefully never again) and went early ML. I was lucky enough to get one with my bow in early November. Hunt hard till the time comes and have fun because its going to be a long winter sitting at home with momma and the kids. /forum/images/%%GRAEMLIN_URL%%/grin.gif
 
Stick to your standards, its only one year, with many more to come. I was blessed 3 yrs ago with a daughter on oct 21 that wasn't supposed to come till nov. 4. Lesson learned, KEEP THE SNAKE IN THE CAGE DURING MID WINTER. Children are priceless and nothing comes before them. But dont shoot a deer youd be ok with, when you may kill him next year as a whopper!!
 
<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: LIV4RUT</div><div class="ubbcode-body">Muddy, I would shoot the first fork horn that walks by and slap your tag on it. /forum/images/%%GRAEMLIN_URL%%/wink.gif </div></div>

I'm with Mike! Let em fly! /forum/images/%%GRAEMLIN_URL%%/grin.gif
 
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