No Big Game Tags Drawn, is this normal?

Joined
Jul 20, 2014
Messages
1,318
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Kirtland, NM
Don’t count on drawing a tag every year in the west to put red meat in the freezer every year. If you want that then buy a beef. 🤣 It’s pretty common to not draw a tag every year. I haven’t drawn a mule deer tag in my own state for 24 years now.
 

manitou1

WKR
Joined
Mar 29, 2017
Messages
1,943
Location
Wyoming
Both of those states require a knowledge of how preference/bonus points work. If you applied for units that typically need more points than you had (I’m guessing were 0 or 1), your chance of drawing a tag were almost nil, especially if they were sought after hunts. Read up on the point systems and be ready next year.


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Look up the draw odds.

Also:
If all the first choice applicants in a draw area exceed the quota that means there are no tags left for the second choice applicants, which is the norm in most areas nowadays.

And no, it is entirely possible not to draw with zero or just a few points... and it likely won't get any better in the future.

Again, look up the draw odds.
 

IDVortex

WKR
Joined
Jan 16, 2024
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1,356
Location
CDA Idaho
I think the CIA is behind people not drawing tags. I guarantee that's why I didn't draw my MT goat tag. Only logical thing.
 
Joined
Mar 27, 2019
Messages
982
Location
Lyon County, NV
Hello, I am somewhat of an "adult-onset" hunter and last year was the first year I hunted any big game.

For this year, I applied for a lot of tags (Deer, antelope, bear, and turkey) in my home state of Nevada, both any legal weapon and where possible, muzzleloader, and I also applied for antelope tags in Wyoming, both buck and doe.

I put hours of research into which units to apply for, since both states allow more than just a 1st choice, I picked a highly desirable unit as my first choice (in terms of average number of points people who drew tags for that unit last year had), but was careful to pick some units that seemed more realistic as my alternate choices.

I knew my chances of drawing a tag in any one unit for any particular species were obviously below 100%, but with the numerous units and species I applied for, I had been optimistic I would get at least one tag for something somewhere.

But Wyoming antelope draw results came out today..... and I was totally unsuccessful in both state's draws.

Is this normal these days to be unable to hunt a deer or any other big game animal annually?

Of course there is fishing and some small game that doesn't require tags, but before I started to get into hunting, I was under the impression a big game hunter would be able to get a deer or other big game animal at least once a year, and keep red meat in the freezer that way.

Is that notion totally outdated now the human population has grown a lot and wildlife habitat decreased?

Or did I just get really unlucky this year?


We're lucky to live in the place we do, and with luck you can nail a premium unit no points at all - this just isn't possible in a lot of the West, where point-creep has a lot more impact. Our system gives more room for luck, without shortchanging those with lots of points either. I personally think it's extremely fair.

That said...

Plan on it taking 5 years to draw most tags.

Not joking.

Plan on 5, so...3-4 if you're lucky or are prioritizing hunting absolutely anywhere, but 5-7 if you're trying for any of the more desirable hunts, which generally includes anywhere within driving distances of most population centers of note.

This is not a state where you're going to hunt enough to really learn how to do it well, unless you're jumping in with friends and family regularly who get drawn and essentially hunt with them, minus the gun. If you have some cash, you can get some landowner tags for several thousand dollars in less desirable units. Otherwise, plan on hunting out of state if you want annual.

Someone above mentioned hunting CA over the counter - you can do that, just know that it's Blacktail, in some extremely tough geography, and is not like mule deer. More like whitetail hunting. CA's X zones have muleys, and it's anywhere from 4-7 years there too.
 
Joined
Apr 26, 2019
Messages
1,263
Location
Pacific North West
Hello, I am somewhat of an "adult-onset" hunter and last year was the first year I hunted any big game.

For this year, I applied for a lot of tags (Deer, antelope, bear, and turkey) in my home state of Nevada, both any legal weapon and where possible, muzzleloader, and I also applied for antelope tags in Wyoming, both buck and doe.

I put hours of research into which units to apply for, since both states allow more than just a 1st choice, I picked a highly desirable unit as my first choice (in terms of average number of points people who drew tags for that unit last year had), but was careful to pick some units that seemed more realistic as my alternate choices.

I knew my chances of drawing a tag in any one unit for any particular species were obviously below 100%, but with the numerous units and species I applied for, I had been optimistic I would get at least one tag for something somewhere.

But Wyoming antelope draw results came out today..... and I was totally unsuccessful in both state's draws.

Is this normal these days to be unable to hunt a deer or any other big game animal annually?

Of course there is fishing and some small game that doesn't require tags, but before I started to get into hunting, I was under the impression a big game hunter would be able to get a deer or other big game animal at least once a year, and keep red meat in the freezer that way.

Is that notion totally outdated now the human population has grown a lot and wildlife habitat decreased?

Or did I just get really unlucky this year?
In a lot of states they check everyone’s first choice first the 2nd and so on. So after your 1st choice your odds decrease dramatically. Not the case in every state but a lot of them are done this way and may be one of the reasons you didn’t draw any tags.
 

Tom-D

FNG
Joined
Sep 11, 2023
Messages
89
obviously sounds like the system over there can be frustrating but the whole tag system set up does sound like it would add a bit of extra fun into hunting . Like winning the lottery to find out what you get to go after that year
 
Joined
Apr 14, 2019
Messages
1,254
Location
Fort Myers , FL
All this is much different from my world of OTC , liberal bag limits and very long southeastern whitetail seasons. Very interesting for me to read and listen to western hunters and their challenges and strategies for getting tags. I hope everyone that wants to hunt can find a way.
 

FLS

WKR
Joined
May 11, 2019
Messages
836
All this is much different from my world of OTC , liberal bag limits and very long southeastern whitetail seasons. Very interesting for me to read and listen to western hunters and their challenges and strategies for getting tags. I hope everyone that wants to hunt can find a way.
I can’t image being a western resident not being able to at least get an antlerless tag.
We are definitely spoiled. I can hunt deer from August 15 to Jan 1st. Throw in a month long bear season and pigs year round.
 

Traveler

WKR
Joined
Dec 20, 2020
Messages
389
Bad luck can happen. There was one year where I applied for two tags. For those with my points the odds of success were 80% for the first and 98% for the second. I didn’t draw either…
 
Joined
Jun 13, 2018
Messages
23
You need to cast a much wider net. Read up on each states draw process. Hunting is a year round endeavor, take application season just as serious as shooting, gear, exercise, and scouting. 2nd draws are coming up, get yourself ready and good luck.
 
Joined
Jun 17, 2016
Messages
1,316
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ID
I drew antelope 3 years in a row. Random luck. I put in for myself and my 2 kids. Since my 3 in a row, we have all been 0/14. I drew an elk tag my 2nd year of hunting, first time applying, which was unfortunate b/c I didn't know what I was doing and it's a really good unit. Since, 0/7 between my son and I.
 

WCB

WKR
Joined
Jun 12, 2019
Messages
3,642
Nope. There's almost literally every state, east of the Mississippi to fill your freezer with Whitetail.

I don't know why hunting only seems to be a one way migration from east to west. There is a BUTT load of fantastic public land, OTC options in the Midwest, South & Southeast. Almost all of it is OTC for non residents & chances are, it's barely more expensive than most westerners are paying for resident tags. You may not be able to put 400lb of elk in the freezer, but in a decent week of TN whitetail, I can still get 400lb of venison.
Why would a guy in the West want to come to the Midwest or especially the east to hunt whitetails unless they are looking for a trophy whitetail. Think about the "upper west/western midwest" parts of ID, MT,ND,SD,WY,NE,CO,KS...I'm sorry but the overall whitetail hunting is better imo and easier than coming further east into the central midwest or east where it is more heavily timbered with less and less public land essentially as you move east. And in many of those states guys aren't getting denied tags if they just want to hunt. Now go back to wanting a Trophy. In reality, (I know big bucks get killed "everywhere", Your list of states gets limited pretty quick, basically IA, IL, MO are known to the masses because of media.

I think the OPs problem and many peoples' (especially new hunters) is YES the "norm" is changing AND they don't understand draws and still essentially complain about not drawing "desired" tags and also not realize 2nd choices are now "desired".
Also, in general if a guy is just looking to get some meat the states around the ones listed have plenty of opportunity to just get a tag when you add in cow or doe tags.
 
Joined
Jun 17, 2016
Messages
1,316
Location
ID
All this is much different from my world of OTC , liberal bag limits and very long southeastern whitetail seasons. Very interesting for me to read and listen to western hunters and their challenges and strategies for getting tags. I hope everyone that wants to hunt can find a way.
I hunt Western. I don't have the same struggles as most. I put in for tags but more than happy to hunt general OTC. General OTC, if you really learn the unit year after year, can be as productive as a controlled tag in which you don't know the unit or rarely hunt the unit. Controlled tags are great but most of the time you are going into a unit that you don't know. The main benefit of controlled tags for me, at least the one I put in for, is reduced hunters in the field. I love my hunting brothers/sister but I don't like to see them in the field. LOL

The OTC until I'm learning for the past few years, I get into elk every single year, my onX map is tagged with lots of waypoints where have found elk and mule deer. At this point, it's starting to feel like a controlled hunt.
 
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