Ranch confiscating your deer

[Roamer]

I believe in shooting mature deer. 5 yrs or older.
But now a days all these people want these bucks basically on the down hill slide coming to the feeder on a walker.

Some of this management stuff has gotten out of hand.
When it's all said and done you are hunting to eat the dang thing.

[Artos]

They threatened to take the deer in my avatar, but didn't. Still got my lease. Just gets old hearing it year after year. Your exactly right....just do your thing and worry about it later.

Sorry if I missed it but was that last year's deer & did they threaten to take it while on the ground or after it was mounted??

Again, you have way more patience than I would under the circumstances...sounds like you are dealing with ding-dongs from your side of the events.

If I was the land owner & wanted 7yr old deer to be the trophies taken, I certainly would not be upset with a group trying their best to follow the rules if the occasional 6yr hit the ground anyway?? I can only assume they are eccentric & trying to keep you on your toes since they don't follow through.

Getting old would be an understatement...don't see how beating the dead horse would gain them anything by the empty threats?? Your whole situation is sorta mind boggling.

I have to ask...how does ownership deal with you in regards to the taking of culls?? Are they just as goofy with micro managed rules or do you have more lenient discretion on this side??

[webb09]

If killed that avatar deer and someone tried to take it, there would be a fight to the death.

Thank the Lord it didn't get that far. It got close.

[webb09]

Sorry if I missed it but was that last year's deer & did they threaten to take it while on the ground or after it was mounted??

Again, you have way more patience than I would under the circumstances...sounds like you are dealing with ding-dongs from your side of the events.

If I was the land owner & wanted 7yr old deer to be the trophies taken, I certainly would not be upset with a group trying their best to follow the rules if the occasional 6yr hit the ground anyway?? I can only assume they are eccentric & trying to keep you on your toes since they don't follow through.

Getting old would be an understatement...don't see how beating the dead horse would gain them anything by the empty threats?? Your whole situation is sorta mind boggling.

I have to ask...how does ownership deal with you in regards to the taking of culls?? Are they just as goofy with micro managed rules or do you have more lenient discretion on this side??

Never deal w owners. Just mgr. As far as culls, they have age and score criteria, but zero micro managing.

[Artos]

Never deal w owners. Just mgr. As far as culls, they have age and score criteria, but zero micro managing.

Weird...sounds like mgr trusts you to cull but wants all trophies to walk?? Would be interesting to get owners take if at all possible. Watch out, he may have an agenda.

Just keep on doin what you are doin & keep us posted...I hope it's all talk. I would try not to sweat it best you could & keep getting those wall hangers coming. If you want the source to where our guy sends in the front teeth for verification, send me a PM & I'll reach out.

Good luck the rest of the season!!!

[Shinesintx]

Most books and mag articles on deer aging and showing pictures are of deer from the midwest or deep South Texas and have no correlation to the looks and genetics of deer in other parts of the State of Texas. From the panhandle to the hill country there are half dozen different sizes and genetics of whitetail deer. It takes a while to know the deer in your area. Deer herds are constantly evolving due to good management. When I was a kid in early 60's living in Menard if someone killed a buck that field dressed 125lbs it made headlines in the paper, was brought to town for everybody to look at.

Good points. Last weekend, a buddy that I let hunt my 55 acres, shot a young spike with a decent 4 point on the other side He thought it was older because he said northeast Texas deer have bigger bodies than the deer he's used to hunting around Coleman. He wasn't lying to get out of anything because I have not set any rules about age. Both of us have some nice target bucks we are after and have been letting the young (legal antler restricted) 8 points go.

It just kind of surprised me that he thought the deer in my area of Texas were bigger.

[Capt.Brown]

I would prob look for another lease.

[kyle1974]

Ranch confiscating your deer

I believe in shooting mature deer. 5 yrs or older.

But now a days all these people want these bucks basically on the down hill slide coming to the feeder on a walker.



Some of this management stuff has gotten out of hand.

When it's all said and done you are hunting to eat the dang thing.

Because people are seeing what bucks are doing at 8,9, and even older. 5 is no where near prime for most bucks. People aren't paying 15,000 a year for meat leases. When you're putting that kind of money out, you want big deer. It costs lots of time and money.

Nothing wrong with meat hunting at all. It's the backbone of hunting. but if you're trophy hunting, you play the game. And sometimes that game is shooting deer on a group decision. And sometimes you let 170" deer walk to get them to 190", or 200". Or bigger.

[SapperTitan]

Im assuming this was on an MLD property? If so then the tagging process is a little different possibly. I have heard of large fees for shooting the wrong deer or young deer but never heard of the animal being confiscated

[rtp]

If I was the land owner & wanted 7yr old deer to be the trophies taken, I certainly would not be upset with a group trying their best to follow the rules if the occasional 6yr hit the ground anyway??

This is my thoughts as well. Hard to be sure of deer's exact age. You shoot for a certain age knowing that occasionally one a year younger will hit the ground. Just goes with the territory. We all do the best we can and let the chips fall where they may.

[tradtiger]

Interesting questions; probably won't get settled here. Control of wildlife was one of the issues addressed in the Magna Carta, which was sealed (not signed) in 1215 by King John at Runnymede. BTW, an exhibition featuring one of four existing copies of the 799-year-old document just opened at the Library of Congress in Washington, D.C.

[Uncle Saggy]

Thanks for all the replies. The GS is the college of knowledge. Headed to Home Depot to buy a cordless Dremel tool.

Cool. Let me know how the battery life is. I burned up my old dremel a few weeks ago and considering replacing it with a cordless

[tef]

I don't know very many people that can tell the difference in a 6 and 7 year old deer on the hoof.

For sure on that. A lot of guys "think" they can but virtually impossible,.I took a video test for aging bucks for the King ranch several yrs ago. Once you got over 5 yo it was tough unless super old. Even the 3-5 was tough in some cases.