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What would you do....

Crimson Arrows

Crimson Arrows

Well-Known Member
This has been asked to me and I thought it was a goood question.

Your hunting in your tree and hear alot of noise in the creek bottom. Finally climb down and find two bucks locked up...GIANT bucks.

One has his neck broken dead. The other is full of life.

Do you shoot the deer and tag him, then call warden. Or, call warden, dart the buck, saw off the antlers and let him live?

I would call and saw but can see how others wouldn't as that would be quite the story and without "intervention" that buck is gone to a must worse fate. Thoughts?
 
For me, it would have to depend if the warden would be able to dart him...if not, then obviously shoot... The only downfall with darting would be you hope he wasnt pushed past his "breaking point", and then you would hate to find him exhausted and dead a few days later
 
The guy that shot the one dragging the buck in cedar rapids a couple years ago made the news and those were 2 monster bucks.
 
That's a tough one. I think, as with a lot of things, it would depend on the exact situation and how "alive" the buck was. I would most likely call my CO and let him know the situation and see how fast he could be present to assist. If he was not available immediately I would shoot it. Wouldnt want to see it suffer any longer than it had to.
 
LYON said:
That's a tough one. I think, as with a lot of things, it would depend on the exact situation and how "alive" the buck was. I would most likely call my CO and let him know the situation and see how fast he could be present to assist. If he was not available immediately I would shoot it. Wouldnt want to see it suffer any longer than it had to.
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I have similar feelings on this subject too. If the living buck was sure to make it, I would tend to work it so he could get away. If he was far spent and likely to die from exhaustion anyway, then I would probably shoot him and tag it.
 
Personally, for me alone, I couldn't kill him. PART of why I go out is for the challenge of the chase and "outsmarting" an old mature buck and PERSONALLY, I don't find that to be a challenge, nor outsmarting him, nor hunting. But, that's me. Great question!

In a "WAY", I kinda see that as some folks I know that have came up on some big bucks that got hit by cars- they were still alive, I "think" it was legal that they put them out of their misery BUT they essentially shot a "crippled" buck that had been hit by a car- which if one was hit by a car- I would shoot that one in that case (to put out of misery) but I sure wouldn't be looking at that like a buck I met in the timber out of my treestand.
 
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Tough call...one that would not easily be made. Too many variables. Are they injured, ect. Interesting food for thought though.
 
Sligh1 said:
Personally, for me alone, I couldn't kill him. PART of why I go out is for the challenge of the chase and "outsmarting" an old mature buck and PERSONALLY, I don't find that to be a challenge, nor outsmarting him, nor hunting. But, that's me. Great question!

In a "WAY", I kinda see that as some folks I know that have came up on some big bucks that got hit by cars- they were still alive, I "think" it was legal that they put them out of their misery BUT they essentially shot a "crippled" buck that had been hit by a car- which if one was hit by a car- I would shoot that one in that case (to put out of misery) but I sure wouldn't be looking at that like a buck I met in the timber out of my treestand.
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Completely agree with everything you said Sligh. :way: Couldn't have said it better.
 
loneranger said:
Might as well ask me what I would do if I confronted a Martian,,,Never gonna happen! Not on my palce anyway...
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Your just full of optimisim;) some day someone on here is going to feel bad enough for you they may let you hunt some land where theres actually deer!:grin:
 
I would definitly shoot it. I'm suprised most said they would try to seperate them first. I don't agree Sligh with comparing it to a buck getting hit by a car, I agree that shooting a buck hit by a car is not like shooting one while hunting at all, but two bucks locked up from fighting is from Mother Nature. That is a natural thing, while getting hit by a car I do not consider natural.
 
Here goes......I shoot that buck and then do this.

Speak to our conservation officers and describe the scenario after I have tagged the animal I have shot. Either they would do
a. issue me a tag for the already dead buck
b. allow my wife to purcahse a tag for the dead buck
c. come to the scene and seperate the dead buck from the one I killed.
C is worst case scenario in my books.

Was it sporting? NO
Would it be a hell of a cool story and scene to remember when looking at the locked mounts? Yes
If I let it play out would it suffer a worse fate than me killing it quickly? For sure.
Would I consider is an accomlishment at all? Nope
If I attempted to free it do I believe it would survive even unlocked? Not a chance, realistically in my home turf, the other one has already likely been partly or completely devoured by predators already and they will be on the scene as well right now.

So, yes, it wouldn't be any sort of accomplishment or even sporting but I'd still feel better having him in my man cave for others to see than the alternative, drug off into the wilderness by wolves, coyotes, lynx, eagles, ravens, etc ...never to be seen again.
 
DOR said:
Nothing sporting about shooting a locked up buck.
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:thrwrck::confused:

So your telling me if there is a 100.00 dollar bill on the side walk your going to leave it their because its not yours, not sporting to pick up a piddy 100.00 bill right?

If your not their at that point in time both of them bucks die so its either shoot the live one, and have a rare trophy that was still killed legally or call the game warden and he'll issue you a tag for the dead buck and then attempt to cut off the other bucks rack to free him. I understand the ethical question that some may ask themselves but to say its not sporting? Thats just ignorance IMO. Whats sporting about running around in a group of 20 guys in orange shooting 50 bullets at deer running 150 yards away. Whats sporting about seeing a pheasant in a ditch jumping out of your vehicle and shooting it all legal but sporting?
 
SaskGuy said:
Here goes......I shoot that buck and then do this.

Speak to our conservation officers and describe the scenario after I have tagged the animal I have shot. Either they would do
a. issue me a tag for the already dead buck
b. allow my wife to purcahse a tag for the dead buck
c. come to the scene and seperate the dead buck from the one I killed.
C is worst case scenario in my books.

Was it sporting? NO
Would it be a hell of a cool story and scene to remember when looking at the locked mounts? Yes
If I let it play out would it suffer a worse fate than me killing it quickly? For sure.
Would I consider is an accomlishment at all? Nope
If I attempted to free it do I believe it would survive even unlocked? Not a chance, realistically in my home turf, the other one has already likely been partly or completely devoured by predators already and they will be on the scene as well right now.

So, yes, it wouldn't be any sort of accomplishment or even sporting but I'd still feel better having him in my man cave for others to see than the alternative, drug off into the wilderness by wolves, coyotes, lynx, eagles, ravens, etc ...never to be seen again.
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Yep same here.

Sent from the iPad using IW
 
Somewhat suprised at some of the responses, but then again, kinda not. For a lot of guys, sad to say it, but it would depend on how big they are. Everybody wants to keep the sporting aspect in their deer hunt and I can see that as, its definitely easier than putting all the time into the stand to kill their buck the "sporting" way. In todays age, with all the new technology and gadgets (ozonics comes to mind, faster than light bows, utility vehicles, food plots not that its new technology, etc... just to name a few) and believe me its hard to say as being a gadget guy myself, its tough to draw that imaginary "sporting" line. That's everyones own decision to make.

As far as mother nature is concerned, as hunters and humans, we are all agents of mother nature either way you want to look at it. Everybody has seen that humans can certainly do things much worse to others than what animals do to other animals. Certainly I know that all of you don't get all of your meat in the freezer from the store.

I have no reason to try and sway others opinions on this but just had to say what I feel about the matter. If it makes you feel better, shoot the buck. "Mother nature" will deal with it in either choice.

Blast away.

Sent from my DROID3 using IW
 
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