state antler-pt restrictions

[the force]

West Virginia needs a restriction, were i hunt the people around our property kill everything they see. It makes me made when i see a deer ive been watchin all summer go over there and get shot.  :mad:

[vtmtnman]

Here in VT we have a two on one side rule.One antler with one point one inch or longer.It's been in affect for a few years and even those that were against the rule at first are loving the bigger deer they're seeing now.

I'm seriously hoping they make it into a 3 pt on one side rule so we can have PA size bucks up here.I saw some MONSTERS when I hunted there last year.

IMO our state needs a restriction.The past rifle seasons I hunted I saw does and yearlings.At least with the restrictions in place I got to see bucks during it,albiet spikehorns.I'd rather shoot a 140# forkhorn than a 110# spikehorn anyday.I'd love to be more selective when deer hunting,but guys here mow down anything legal during seasons,so what is the point of letting the four point walk by to the neighbor's and they down it.Most say it's a poor way to go about it,but it's truth.Antler restrictions will atleast help the survival of the spikes anyways.

Yes the restrictions sould also be inplace for ALL seasons.

[TSHOOTER]

Here in KY we have a 13" inside spread on some public lands.  I like this as it helps increase age class in bucks on public hunting areas that previously had very young deer age class structure.  Not everyone has a lot of private ground to voluntarily implement antler restrictions.  I don't believe # of points coincide with deer maturity.  Statistics show that inside spread restrictions will protect 100% of 1 1/2 yr deer and half or more of 2 1/2  year olds in KY.  Private land should be managed by the landowner not the state.  JMO

[Michael Arnette]

I quit worrying about antlers last year and it was the best season of my life. I really enjoyed it. Where I hunt, dreaming only of big antlers only makes you depressed. That being said Oklahoma has had a terrible management system prior to about 4-5 years ago but things are really shaping up in the last few years since they have done some very simple things like doe days and limiting the quota on bucks. Just north,east and west of our land there are some dandy bucks. And I see more simi mature bucks every year(haven't seen a mature buck ever). Just to give you an idea of the situation, I have found one scrape in the last 7 years of intense scouting our 200 acre farm and it was about the size of a basketball, the biggest rub I have found was on a 1-1/2 inch tree, and the oldest buck I have seen ever was probably 3.5 yrs, maybe 4.5 and I missed him to boot at 30 yards. I When scouting last year I found 1 pair of sheds and 6 carcasses, all young bucks 2.5 yrs and younger. A couple of these bucks I had passed up during bow season. Spotlighting and road hunting may have a lot to do with that.

Just playing the worlds smallest violin.HEHE

[Michael Arnette]

I think an inside spread restriction would be best.

[Arraflinger]

Ditto what James Wrenn said!! Seems as if every one wants to get in your head these days. There are many times when i'll let a lesser buck walk , but it should be the hunters choice----Too much legislation in our lives already!!

[John3]

My honeyhole is in Gasconade County, MO not far from Hermann. My ground has been in the point restrictions since the beginning. I have let 9 bucks walk including two really nice 6pts. I have no issues with the restrictions. They will all be bigger next year.

John III

[onewhohasfun]

Some observations from Michigan. 750,000 firearms hunters,gun season during rut. Liberal anterless seasons where many button bucks are killed. 2 buck limit,2nd buck 4 pt. or better one side. Now lets run some numbers. Out of  100 bucks born, 90% are killed by age 1.5. that leaves 10 that live to age 2.5. Half the 2.5 yr. old bucks are killed. That leaves 5 out of 100 live to be 3.5  If 30% or 40% of the 3.5 yr. olds get killed you are left with 2 or 3 bucks out of 100 that live to be 4.5 yrs. old. Is this a balanced herd? In 35 yrs of hunting in MI I have only seen 3 or 4, 4.5 yr. or older bucks. To just sight one of these brutes here is a special thrill as they are as rare as a comet. I have hunted Illinois and Ohio and have seen more mature bucks there in a few weeks as I have in a lifetime hunting in Michigan!

[2-BIG]

Voluntary management is awesome but the government mandating point restrictions is just plain wrong. That and many other things have turned hunting into something that is un natural.
The management part that the game commission plays should be on harvest numbers, sex ratios, habitat and the rest should be governed by each individual hunter and what makes him or her happy with their hunting.

[pitbull]

I totally agree with Buckeye trad hunter, here in Ohio we have no restrictions, but only allow 1 antlered deer per year, plus a liberal doe harvest and we have some of the best quality deer in the U.S. I used to hunt out of state a lot but have quit hunting any state that has antler restrictions.

[Schafer]

Originally posted by Steel:
I have no issue with any type of point restrictions but feel kids under 16 years of age should be free to shoot whatever they choose.If I would have have had to sit and pass buck after buck at 12 years of age I may have lost interest in hunting at that time and be playing video games right now instead of hanging out in the woods.

[J-dog]

Wow, never seen a 50/50 split!

Voted no as one there is a overpopulation prob anyway - second I want to shoot what comes by. I do let some walk, will shoot a doe over a spike any day of the week but want the option of shooting the spike should I not see a doe.

J

[L82HUNT]

Originally posted by J-dog:

 I do let some walk, will shoot a doe over a spike any day of the week but want the option of shooting the spike should I not see a doe.

J

That whats nice about the state in question, there is a ton of deer.  Unlimited doe tags in most of the state, and the population keeps growing.  A few years back work was slow so I ate alot of deer, 7 does, one big buck and a turkey in one year all with a bow for near $80.

[James Wrenn]

I do let some walk, will shoot a doe over a spike any day of the week but want the option of shooting the spike should I not see a doe.
 

I let many more deer walk each year than I shoot because I just don't need as many in the freezer now days.Still I don't need someone else telling me which ones walk and which one is "OK" for me to shoot.I am a grown man and able to make up my own mind.  

[jcar315]

Self imposed "limits" and letting smaller bucks walk is fine and this is the way I lean. Love shooting does as there are lots of them. Some very good points being made here. Truly, what is the "motivation" of the State to mandate antler restrictions? Does this somehow "improve" the herd in a real sense or just "change" the herd? I would not mind the Ohio system of 1 buck period but lots of does. That would aid in the recruitment of more bucks alot more than antler restrictions.

[Don Stokes]

Antler restrictions are not a substitute for other methods of herd management, but simply an added feature to help increase the number of older bucks in the herd. That's a good thing. When the pressure on the bucks is so great that practically none of them make it to maturity, what are the options? Voluntary passing of smaller bucks is a personal option, but not a management tool.

Hunting conditions vary immensely from state to state. What is good for (insert the name of your state here) might not be good for another state. When the majority of the land is in large acreages, and the average landowner manages for big deer, no restrictions are needed. When the average property size is a few acres and there is much competition for the animals, they make more sense.

We are already being told what to do, when and where, so what's the difference in being told not to shoot certain bucks? I'm as libertarian as anyone, but I know that without management we would be back to zero. When MS started allowing the shooting of does a few decades ago, you wouldn't believe the outcry from the "experts" (including local game wardens) who said that we were ruining the herd by shooting the mama deer. And that was with one doe day a year, limit of one. Now, after the doe harvest has been liberalized, overpopulation is less of a problem, and we can shoot three bucks and at least 5 does a year, more if the land is in a state-managed management program. That's progress, based on good management decisions. Antler restrictions might be the next step in getting a better age balance for a healthier herd.

There's no one-size-fits-all answer to the question. If your state won't allow you to shoot smaller bucks, shoot does. Simple as that. Relax and let the professional wildlife managers do their jobs. If the antler restrictions don't help after a few years, they will change things again. There's really no other choice, short of anarchy.

My soapbox for the day.

[Jason R. Wesbrock]

Personally, I'm not in favor of state mandated trophy hunting.

[Talondale]

I vote for FREEDOM!  Let each man(woman) walk his own path and make his own rules as to why and how he hunts.  I thought I lived in America.  Each year we allow the government to make more and more choices for us.  That's not FREEDOM, that's  soft tyranny.

[Curtis Haden]

NO[/b]!  It is NOT wildlife management, it is MONEY management.

[Don Stokes]

Talondale, which century do you live in? That might work in VA (doubt it), but in MS there wouldn't be any game left. Or hunters, when the outlaws were through. It happened after the great depression- would you prefer to go back to those days??

Curtis, it's not necessarily about money, it's about satisfying the majority. The majority who PAY for our hunting privileges by buying licenses. Regardless of the poll numbers here, the average deer hunter wants to see big bucks. Don't you? The wildlife managers are trying to satisfy the demand.

I remember when the sighting of a deer track was the subject of conversation for days. It wasn't until the wildlife managers began stocking programs, and educational programs, that our deer and turkey population grew to huntable levels. This is a tremendous success story! Some of you younger folks may not be aware of how bad hunting was, before game populations were restored, THROUGH SOUND WILDLIFE MANAGEMENT!! Without their efforts, we would all be hunting squirrels instead of deer and turkeys. Give them a chance to improve the age structure, for the good of us all.

On the other hand, convince everyone to quit hunting big bucks, and the antler restrictions will go away. Good luck with that!