Who is dropping their standards?

[MallardSX2]

I'm always surprised some of y'all have higher trophy standards than you do women!!!

I know one guy who has standards for deer so high that they are almost unachievable. He kills a deer every few years.

His wife looks like a camel. Literally.

I always wondered where his deer fetish came from based on his taste in women. Lol

 

[TN2shot07]

You’re right, Those damn southerners take alot of forkies with them back home too lol.

 

[Rich M]

Yesh, a bit harsh. Apologies.
It is easy to get hardened when folks from other states have a feeling of "you owe us this" and then complain about our states rules/game laws and then go on to bad mouth residents of the state.

Too many hunters, too little game. It won't get better.

Thanks.

Agreed. Not a pretty situation on either side.

 

[PantherCity]

Says the guy not from montana.


Its one thing to go hunting one day and shoot the first deer you see to fill the freezer. As a resident.

Its entirely different to come to montana with high hopes, hunt for a few days, not find what you want, and then shoot a dink on the last day just because you "deserve" a deer since you paid for a nonresident tag and so you dont have to go home and tell your friends that you spent all that money and didnt get one.

Can you explain the difference to me?

Why do you deride the non resident who put much more time, effort and money into his hunt than the resident who killed the 1st deer he saw when they both result in a dead forky?

Why does the resident “deserve” his fork more? I’d argue he’s lazy and putting in minimal effort, not to mention less $$$ to F&G via tag fees.


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[squirrel]

The ones here TASTE SO BAD it is hard to imagine shooting anything other than a mature deer with some character to boot, yet they fill up trucks with 2-1/2 yr olds and head home thumping themselves in the chest. I'm going the opposite direction, until I see something worth shooting I dont even apply except every now and then for a pt. Pretty sad what the DOW has done in just 10 years of printing money.

 

[MuleyFever]

You all need people out there filling tags on 2-3 points. It's all part of the equation. Everyone holding out for a big buck will result in even less big bucks. It's why antler point restrictions don't work. Everyone eating tag soup because they are holding out leads to lower success rates. Lower success rates will lead to more tags issued and more pressure on the deer and less big bucks. There is a balance where some people take deer across the age structure.

 

[Hnthrdr]

You all need people out there filling tags on 2-3 points. It's all part of the equation. Everyone holding out for a big buck will result in even less big bucks. It's why antler point restrictions don't work. Everyone eating tag soup because they are holding out leads to lower success rates. Lower success rates will lead to more tags issued and more pressure on the deer and less big bucks. There is a balance where some people take deer across the age structure.

There is a lot of logic in this… ideal way to get more big bucks is for F&G to severely limit Nov, tags. Realistically big bucks are very hard to hunt in October, after Nov 15th ish… not so much

 

[Stalker69]

Times have changed drastically over the years. When I could first hunt big game, it was for meat, nothing else. 90% of the times we would shoot does. Even if we had the option of a buck. If you got a buck, great, antlers got hung on the shed, or thrown on the pile. Didn’t matter how big or small. Now it’s totally the opposite, antlers are every thing, meat is secondary, if even considered at all. It’s Even given away or donated. And you ain’t cool if it don’t score high enough. Antlers are like money, people will do “ anything “ legal or not to obtain them, just to be in the cool club. It’s really kinda sad. But it’s a sign of the times.

 

[Hnttillmt]

I’ll fully acknowledge that plenty of residents road hunt and piss pound does and muleys. I’ll also acknowledge that after reading every response in this thread I could guess whether or not you live in a state that actually has mule deer with 90% accuracy on my guess.
Well it was legal….blame fish and game. Or you could think for yourself and try to help an extremely depleted resource, that us westerners cherish deeply, from becoming as rare as bighorn sheep.
Unfortunately not enough people will do that and the people trusted to manage OUR wildlife see too many $$$$ signs on every living game animal to do the right thing until it is too late.
Back to the original question tho, I grew up eating Utah mule deer. I had never eaten whitetail until I moved to Montana in 2005. My standard for a shooter muley immediately became much higher

 

[jimh406]

I'm sure other people have passed on deer were shot by someone else. I know I have. Last year, another instance, I saw the other guy shoot it. In other words, just because you raise your standard doesn't mean the next person will. Unless you only want big antlers or a slightly larger body, I don't think there is a big advantage to the deer herd of only shooting ones with big antlers.

I think most people enjoy shooting animals with large antlers, but that's only part of the hunt. If antlers are the most important thing to you, I think you'd be better off looking for areas with bigger scoring animals instead of passing up small ones. I don't think you will increase the antlers by any noticeable amount by passing up smaller bucks. YMMV.

 

[Mish-pop]

I have had the same thing happen. Spotted a buck and judged him to be smaller than what I wanted to pursue so I let him be. I watched him go about half a mile and then some guys drove by on a road. They saw him and one guy jumped out, ran a ways off the road to be plenty legal and harvested the buck. Kind of made me a little upset as he would've been nice in a year or two. However, that may have been a trophy to that guy so I tried not to hold much of a grudge. But I'm human so it still did bug me.

 

[McCrapper]

Like someone else said… it’s about what gets your blood pumping.

I ate a tag this year on a buck that would’ve “outscored” last years deer but it wasn’t appealing to me, looked like a 160” whitetail. I see enough whitetail in Texas… when I go west I want to shoot something that resembles a mule deer.


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[Hnthrdr]

Like someone else said… it’s about what gets your blood pumping.

I ate a tag this year on a buck that would’ve “outscored” last years deer but it wasn’t appealing to me, looked like a 160” whitetail. I see enough whitetail in Texas… when I go west I want to shoot something that resembles a mule deer.


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And as a guy who lives and hunts out west and has never killed a whitetail. I think some of the mule deer with “whitetail frame and points coming off it are pretty damn cool!

 

[Tourguide]

I'm a Michigan resident that travels to hunt because my home state gets boring. I ate tags for Montana, Michigan, Iowa and Illinois last season, doesn't bother me at all. I'm patient and will hold out til I find a critter that gets my blood pumping or ill leave empty handed. Fortunately for all of us here we aren't hunting to survive like people did in the pioneer days and depression eras. The guys I hunt with get super jacked up about killing any legal buck, I don't. To each their own, do what makes ya happy. In the big scheme of things getting to see the sunrise in Montana for instance is what keeps me coming back. Plus all the other cool stuff I see that I don't get to at home. So no, I won't drop my personal standards. Life is short, and it can change for the worse in seconds, I'm just grateful for the experience.

 

[dirtytough]

I’ve got fairly high standards. So far they haven’t lowered. Sometimes I think it would be a lot more fun to just kill whatever and not worry about size. In fact the actual hunts I’ve been thinking about for the future are more group hunt whack and stacks.

And then I read stuff like this thread where hunters are trying to tell other hunters what to shoot because they are “foreigners” or non res. Makes me want to grab as many tags as I can and go fill them.

 

[Ralphie]

With the shape mule deer are in I wish hunters would be pretty picky. I don’t care if you are a R or NR. Shooting does especially is pathetic. Saying well I only saw this forky so I shot it. C’mon man! How about letting them live. Maybe there will be a few more. Had to fill the freezer? I know we like wild game, I doubt there are many families that are truly dependent on the fairly small amount of meat from a small mule deer. Especially given what the costs were to put it in the freezer.

If you need low standards go shoot elk or WT or turkeys.

 

[Stalker69]

With the shape mule deer are in I wish hunters would be pretty picky. I don’t care if you are a R or NR. Shooting does especially is pathetic. Saying well I only saw this forky so I shot it. C’mon man! How about letting them live. Maybe there will be a few more. Had to fill the freezer? I know we like wild game, I doubt there are many families that are truly dependent on the fairly small amount of meat from a small mule deer. Especially given what the costs were to put it in the freezer.

If you need low standards go shoot elk or WT or turkeys.

Would it not make more sense to cut the lic’s. sales. Seems that would have far better control then trying to convince some not to shoot small bucks, not to shoot does. There are so many different ways to look at it. If every body is after the largest bucks, ( every bodies opinion of largest is different) then those bucks along with their gene pool are gone. If some shoot smaller bucks, some of those larger deer will make it to next season and possibly beyond. Then take into account some shooting does, then that takes a lot of pressure off both the smaller bucks and the largest ones( of which are always going to be the fewest of). If they only allowed 65 hunters instead of 365 hunters.( example) Seems like a much better way to allow the bucks to grow, but then those same people will bitch because they can’t draw a lic. YOU WILL NEVER MAKE EVERY BODY HAPPY. If you don’t like the way things are, buy your own “ ranch” high fence it and manage it the way you want. Some want only to brag about antlers, some want meat, some just want to enjoy the hunt and are happy with any and all opportunities they have. Who’s to say one is right and the others are wrong. It’s going to get worse in the future, big bucks are going to cost big bucks. Buy the land, lease the land or pay to hunt the private.And you don’t think these “ standards “ are the same with white tail, elk and even turkey, your kidding yourself. Look how much a whitetail “ trophy “( a guy was paying 20,000.00 to hunt a whitetail on one of the ranches we were on in Texas) will cost you in Texas, or elk on a reservation ( probably your best chance if your after antlers. Even turkey in places are costing way more then I am willing to pay.

 

[10E]

I’ve found when I lower my standards and shoot a buck just to shoot a buck. Regret is the overwhelming feeling I get when I walk up to him. I don’t like that feeling so I stick too my standards and what I know will make me happy.

I honestly like the feeling of hiking back to the truck in the dark with an unpunched tag on the last day. knowing that there was nothing left undone. I gave it my all. I ground the hunt out to the last minute of the last day and it didn’t happen.

I will add That unpunched tag is a heck of a lot lighter than a buck I’m not happy with .

 

[Banded_spooney]

I’ve seen way too many people shoot sub mature bucks 3.5 days into a 7 day hunt after things got tuff to believe all this ‘my standards never drop’ nonsense. I’m sure a few of you are mule deer pursuits so if that’s actually you don’t get all defensive and slash my tires. but I have a hard time believing you are looking for a 170” on opener but when you realize the winter was bad or the weather or moon sucks you aren’t shooting a 155” on day 4.

My last 4 mulies were literally last day bucks. Three small 4pts and a small 3. In all but one of those hunts I had passed bigger multiple times. I got to hunt the whole season and still got to pull the trigger. Looking for a 160 for 3 days lowering to a 150 for 3 days and shooting a 135 on the last morning? Guess I’m just a shitty non resident

As far as the only shoot what gets me excited crowd, any 4x4 after 6.5 days of busting my ass gets me very excited. I spent 14 days in Wyoming during archery passed cows and a few dink mulies then in Colorado during 3rd rifle A buck I didn’t look at twice on day 3 got me jacked up like a kid on day 7.

 

[Ralphie]

Would it not make more sense to cut the lic’s. sales. Seems that would have far better control then trying to convince some not to shoot small bucks, not to shoot does. There are so many different ways to look at it. If every body is after the largest bucks, ( every bodies opinion of largest is different) then those bucks along with their gene pool are gone. If some shoot smaller bucks, some of those larger deer will make it to next season and possibly beyond. Then take into account some shooting does, then that takes a lot of pressure off both the smaller bucks and the largest ones( of which are always going to be the fewest of). If they only allowed 65 hunters instead of 365 hunters.( example) Seems like a much better way to allow the bucks to grow, but then those same people will bitch because they can’t draw a lic. YOU WILL NEVER MAKE EVERY BODY HAPPY. If you don’t like the way things are, buy your own “ ranch” high fence it and manage it the way you want. Some want only to brag about antlers, some want meat, some just want to enjoy the hunt and are happy with any and all opportunities they have. Who’s to say one is right and the others are wrong. It’s going to get worse in the future, big bucks are going to cost big bucks. Buy the land, lease the land or pay to hunt the private.And you don’t think these “ standards “ are the same with white tail, elk and even turkey, your kidding yourself. Look how much a whitetail “ trophy “( a guy was paying 20,000.00 to hunt a whitetail on one of the ranches we were on in Texas) will cost you in Texas, or elk on a reservation ( probably your best chance if your after antlers. Even turkey in places are costing way more then I am willing to pay.

I’d be happy for the licenses to be reduced. Unfortunately I don’t think those decisions are always made strictly for biological reasons.

My point about shooting elk, wt, and turkeys is those species are doing pretty well. Killing females and young males isn’t that big of deal. I’m sure there are localized populations where that may not be true.