Okay I gotta respond. You guys crack me up. Bunch of preachers on soap boxes bashing each others' beliefs. lol
If your deer herd couldn't handle a few any deer youth hunts, maybe noone should be hunting any deer for a year or two. In my area we still have more deer winter killed than killed by hunters. Those who have actually gone out on the winter range for mortality counts will substantiate that G&F is on the up and up on the biggest problem we face.
Our hunting heritage was founded on sustinence hunting not trophy hunting. Nothing wrong with seeking and holding out for the animal of a lifetime, but there is also nothing wrong with legally putting meat in the freezer. If the real problem is the general viability of the herd, it is a management problem. I've not been impressed that the arm chair biologist necessarily really do know more than the G&F folks, though concede that sometimes they may and G&F would do well to listen more to those who spend considerable time in the field.
I can only form an opinion on this area, but beleive decreasing or increasing tags will do little to affect the overall mortality in this area because the wintering conditions are still the primary problem. Forage is poor at best and development is taking chunks out of what good ground there is. Hundreds of deer will die between now and next spring in this area. They will die by arrows, bullets, by auto collisions, by predators, and by the harshness of winter. A few of those would not make it through the winter would be better served in someone's freezer.
When the kids and I go antelope hunting in a couple of weeks, they will take what ever animal they are satisfied to take. If a buck is available they will probably take it, but also indicate that they will be glad for does. To them them it is all about the enjoyment of hunting as a family, the time in beautiful country and the privilage of contributing by helping put meat on the table. Sorry guys, you'll never convince me any of you are any better hunters than they are. You might be more skillful and you might get bigger animals, but maybe some of these kids are more in touch with the big picture of hunting than some of you old hands.
The original post wasn't that everyone should kills does, everywhere, when ever possible. It was to the effect: If legal, and you are hunting for meat, why not a doe instead of a small buck? If your deer herd won't support it, don't do it. The blanket position that doe shooting is bad is pure ignorance. In some areas (not mine!) your going to have alot of winter and/or disease killed deer if you don't kill some does off to keep the herd to a reasonable size. We don't all live in Utah, we don't all live in Wyoming, we don't all live in Idaho, and circumstances are unique to different areas.
