HORNS OR MEAT FOR THE FREEZER

[MXB 400]

What's your take on this ? I hunt both and try to tag out every year and what I don't eat myself I donate to Hunters for the Hungry. :?:

 

[ZachMarkus]

I mostly buck hunt but will kill a few does for the freezer and if I know someone wanting one I'll shoot one for them. I also try to donate 1 or 2 does to hunters for the hungry. I don't shoot a buck unless it meets my standards.

 

[larry ipock]

Whatever comes under the red dot or scope.

 

[Grill-n-man]

Meat, horns are simply a bonus and a conversation piece while the grill/skillet warms up.

 

[rem270]

I hunt for antlers over meat. Although i usually have one deer made in summer sausage every year. Having a deer processed from the juvi hunt last week that knightrider's son killed.

I usually kill one or 2 does a yr and hunt big bucks. Keyword is hunt them, didn't say i killed them :D

 

[PickettSFHunter]

I'll shoot a doe or two for meat and then mature buck hunt.


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[Mike Belt]

I'd be lying saying I didn't want to fill my yearly buck tags but I seldom kill a single buck any more. That's by choice though. I'm certainly not going to kill one I really don't want to kill just to fill all my tags. I generally put doe meat in the freezer every year and hunt for a buck that suits me. To each his own but I'd never shoot a buck I didn't want just to donate it. You can hunt freezer meat and a buck at the same time.

 

[Boone 58]

In unit L...........3 does per day................never will I kill a buck for meat. I don't get it. 3 does per day. Why would anyone in unit l take a buck for meat ? To each his own. I eat does, I give my trophy meat away. :super:

 

[Mr. Chitlin]

We eat 4 to 6 deer a year. I hunt to kill deer.

 

[megalomaniac]

I no longer eat much vension... since we've started raising our own beef for slaughter, my freezer stays full with 100% pure Angus beef. I kill does at a number to keep the population stable (which varies from year to year), and shoot whatever one buck a year that makes me happy. I'm not much of a killer any longer, so I have no desire to kill more than 1 buck. I have several families/ friends that want the venison, so I care for the meat the same way I would as if I were eating it myself, and those families are happy to get it. Now that the kids are hunting, we do have to keep more venison than I would prefer, just because the kids want to eat the deer they killed themselves :)

 

[Realtree]

I hunt for big bucks all season! And during bow and muzzle loader I also feed my family by killing does, but as far as processing I do it my self bc I enjoy it for one and enjoy getting 100% of the deer in my freezer and it's free!

 

[fairchaser]

I only eat one deer annually but I kill a few for family and friends. I shoot does and mature bucks only. Club rules. My goal is to kill three does for the club and at least one 4.5 or older buck.

 

[MXB 400]

We eat 4 to 6 deer a year. I hunt to kill deer.

I hear ya nothing like dropping a deer. I get just as excited over a doe as I do a buck and when I quit getting getting excited I'll quit hunting

 

[TX300mag]

I shoot several does each year. If I do shoot a buck it will normally be one that goes on the wall, but more years than not I don't fill a buck tag. I guess my answer would be both.


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[TheLBLman]

Absolutely BOTH.

I'd be lying saying I didn't want to fill my yearly buck tags but I seldom kill a single buck any more. That's by choice though. I'm certainly not going to kill one I really don't want to kill just to fill all my tags. I generally put doe meat in the freezer every year and hunt for a buck that suits me. To each his own but I'd never shoot a buck I didn't want just to donate it. You can hunt freezer meat and a buck at the same time.

My sentiments are much like Mike's.
I enjoy eating venison and give a lot away, but I'm not trying to prove anything to anyone, and have had no desire to "limit out" since I was a teenager.

Last year, I passed up a lot of bucks, simply never saw one I wanted to kill, but still greatly enjoyed the hunting.
I'm basically happy just with a good, quality hunting "opportunity", and killing a deer is just extra icing on that cake.

I prefer to eat doe meat, but really don't need to personally take any more than none, one or two a year to have enough, since have friends/family also regularly putting some in the freezer. We do give away a lot to non-hunters, but I also need a balance between enjoying my hunting and not losing precious hunting time to dragging out/processing deer. Speaking of which, seems I always have several friends requesting my tracking and dragging skills for the deer they kill, so I stay busy with some aspect of "hunting" whether I choose to personally kill anything or not.

 

[MR Yote]

We eat 4 to 6 deer a year. I hunt to kill deer.

I hear ya nothing like dropping a deer. I get just as excited over a doe as I do a buck and when I quit getting getting excited I'll quit hunting

I'm with yall. We eat bout the same5-6 deer a year. Those backstraps sure are good soaked in allegro. We don't buy ground beef so we use a lot of ground deer. Me & my wife now prefer it over ground beef.

 

[WRbowhunter]

First of all I don't hunt for either. I hunt for Fun and what makes me happy first. Then I would say I hunt for meat primary and Horns secondary. The buck does not have to be a wall hanger but should be one I would at least cut the horns off and stick them on the wall and not just throw in the shed. I have enough of those already and actually started cutting those up for kids to find at the archery club as sheds. I would like a wall hanger now and then but it does not make a break if I have a successful season.

 

[DaveB]

Meat. We go through at least 5 deer every year and the last 15 pounds are defrosting now.

In general, we do not contribute to HFH. We have opportunities to deal direct with families who need some help.

 

[Winchester]

Myself and family (2 sons and Dad) definitely kill a bunch of deer every year. I personally kill a couple with a bow just because I love to bow hunt, I try to only shoot older bucks that meet my standards (which ive been blessed to be able to do for many many years now) and we give a LOT of deer to friends and local families as well as HFH.

 

[MXB 400]

Meat. We go through at least 5 deer every year and the last 15 pounds are defrosting now.

In general, we do not contribute to HFH. We have opportunities to deal direct with families who need some help.

I also give to a family that last year said that if it weren't for me giving them 3 deer that they wouldn't have had meat for winter. I've already gave them 1 this season

 

[Hunter 257W]

I am always hoping for a "big" buck, whatever that is, but what I shoot can change in a moments notice. I have no set pattern for when I try to shoot a doe. MAy be early one season or late another. Typically I only shoot one deer a year, maybe two. It seems as if we eat venison all the time but since I grind all mine and eat it mostly in chili, one deer goes a long way. In the past I've watched a young buck thinking there's no way I'd shoot it, then an hour later see the same buck and shoot it without hesitation. I've only shot multiple bucks per year one time so have ZERO interest in limiting out. There is hardly any cover to hold deer around my place and too many hunters. To me, it's selfish to want to limit out under those circumstances.

 

[ROUGH COUNTRY HUNTER]

I'll shoot a doe or two for meat and then mature buck hunt.


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same here

 

[tree_ghost]

In unit L...........3 does per day................never will I kill a buck for meat. I don't get it. 3 does per day. Why would anyone in unit l take a buck for meat ? To each his own. I eat does, I give my trophy meat away. :super:

That's me as well


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[MXB 400]

Whatever comes under the red dot or scope.

Hear ya

 

[cowhunter71]

Although I try to kill one buck here around the house, most of my deer hunting is done on public ground(South Cherokee), here in Tn., as well as back home in Fl. I am a buck hunter. Size of horns means nothing to me. We don't kill doe's. Something we have just never done. I eat venison a lot and 3 bucks is plenty to get me through the year. Never been able to tell the difference between buck and doe meat, myself ;)

 

[Bone Collector]

I hunt for meat, but when it comes to bucks I want to shoot a bigger buck, so i will pass the little guys. I try to take 3-5 does a year for meat. I have friends that don't hunt that i give meat, and if I decide to shoot an extra doe just because i donate it to HFTH.

 

[FLTENNHUNTER1]

Although I try to kill one buck here around the house, most of my deer hunting is done on public ground(South Cherokee), here in Tn., as well as back home in Fl. I am a buck hunter. Size of horns means nothing to me. We don't kill doe's. Something we have just never done. I eat venison a lot and 3 bucks is plenty to get me through the year. Never been able to tell the difference between buck and doe meat, myself ;)

You do realize we can only kill 2 bucks per year now, right?

 

[catman529]

Depends on time of year. Mostly skewering does but during November I wait for a good buck


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[AT Hiker]

Both, I live in reality. I CHOOSE to feed my family and friends with wild meats. If the freezer is near empty then I will focus on meat (preferably a large mature buck but depending on the desperation I will hunt for whatever happens by).
A yearling doe or a mature buck, they all provide excellent table fare,imo. When the freezer is plentiful I take advantage of my luxurious modern American lifestyle and focus on other aspects of the hunt, those include antlers/horns and the adventures like backpack hunting and traveling to new places.
Regardless of what anyone hunts for I believe the most important aspect is the connection to our consumption of animal protein. It is hard for me to grasp the reality that many people have several generational gaps in their lineage that is disconnected from hunting/fishing/gathering and modern agriculture. I sometimes take it for granted that I was exposed to the reality cliche of "where our food comes from". My goal in life is to make sure my daughter knows and experiences it first hand as well.


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[Shooter33]

:super:

I'll shoot a doe or two for meat and then mature buck hunt.


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