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Matriarchal Does

T

Trapshooter1

Well-Known Member
Do you shoot the Matriarchal does on your farm? I have 1 living on my farm, that runs other does and fawns off of food plots, and is a downright nuisance. Late season this year, she d be the first one out of the bedding area. And she d trot right up to my deer blinds, trotting down wind of 2 different deer blinds, before heading to the food source. I've been glassing my food sources in the evenings and she runs other doe groups off my food sources.
She is as big as a 4 year old buck, and had 1 fawn this year.

I'm trying to attract as many deer, to my farm and the neighboring farm, he has tremendous bedding and thermal cover, and I have the food,(I have cover as well just not as much)

So in conclusion do you guys shoot the Matriarchal does? Why? And Why Not?
 
I make a point of shooting adult does, ideally with 2 buck fawns, but as the cookie crumbles, it isn't always possible to be so precise. So some 1-1/2 year old does get shot too.

If I could take out a wise old, hunt wrecking mama, you bet, she's getting it. Even if we shoot 5-8 such does off our place each year there are plenty to take their place. Now then, if I was in an area where does/deer weren't plentiful...I would probably do the reverse. Let the wise ones live to build up numbers...
 
Bucksnbears said:
An OLD doe is a formidable beast.
They can ruin any good hunting property.
She doesn't forget!!
Other does will key in on her body language.
Seen it many times.
I'd rather have 20 younger does around than one OLD SMART Hag.
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A property I used to hunt had one of these does. She was leery of everything. I swear she had ESP. We named her Knothead. She was very old with a bony head...but extremely smart, and definitly in charge of those woods.
 
In a way I think those does should be passed up. I thought the big dominant bucks would breed those older does first. I don't know if that is true. Yes those smart ones are a pain in the butt. If not for the breeding thing, whack em.
 
mswaldo said:
In a way I think those does should be passed up. I thought the big dominant bucks would breed those older does first. I don't know if that is true. Yes those smart ones are a pain in the butt. If not for the breeding thing, whack em.
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That's an interesting point you brought up. While I don't have enough knowledge about deer breeding behavior, I have watched enough cattle during breeding (also have done a lot of Artificial Insemination) to have observed a few things:
When the dominant female comes into estrous everyone wants to get involved. That really fires up the bulls if it's a multiple sire pasture, they'll actually leave a timid female to chase her. The other observation is that she won't stand for just any male, but prefers the boss male. So just maybe that matriarchal doe is the one attracting the dominant buck to your hunt property .
 
Buckscrape said:
That's an interesting point you brought up. While I don't have enough knowledge about deer breeding behavior, I have watched enough cattle during breeding (also have done a lot of Artificial Insemination) to have observed a few things:
When the dominant female comes into estrous everyone wants to get involved. That really fires up the bulls if it's a multiple sire pasture, they'll actually leave a timid female to chase her. The other observation is that she won't stand for just any male, but prefers the boss male. So just maybe that matriarchal doe is the one attracting the dominant buck to your hunt property .
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I/we don't have enough first hand observations to say anything for sure here, but...my son watched a SPIKE breed an adult doe last fall. So much for the idea that the dominant bucks get all the ladies, :)

He was a little miffed, but I told him that we really cannot be sure that the spike wasn't passing on the best genes on the farm. Who knows...that randy spike may be a future Booner. :)
 
Daver said:
I/we don't have enough first hand observations to say anything for sure here, but...my son watched a SPIKE breed an adult doe last fall. So much for the idea that the dominant bucks get all the ladies, :)

He was a little miffed, but I told him that we really cannot be sure that the spike wasn't passing on the best genes on the farm. Who knows...that randy spike may be a future Booner. :)
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