We usually shoot the largest one we can.

 

Kinda like buying meat at the store......dont want to pay big money for a little steak when I can have a huge steak for the same price.

Hoping to see one tonight when I head out about 3pm. Rich

 

Didn`t vote since there wasn`t an option for both. Does from my property this year have ranged from a 48#(field dressed) fawn to a 116#(field dressed) 3 1/2(aged by DNR) year old.

 

I'm not afraid to admit that I'd be a little embarassed to take a doe fawn to the processor. I understand the science behind it, but would probably hesitate for this very reason.

 

I'm 5'9" and almost spent the night in the ER after dragging this girl out by myself. Stupid me I didn't have anything to assist and I hunt a muddy farm field so the truck wouldn't make it. Stretched out she nearly spanned floor to ceiling.

When she came in I didn't realize how big she really was as I normally try to take a medium to small size doe--just to make it easy on myself.

 

Do you mean if you took a doe this year, or ever?
I didn't vote because of the ambiguity.

I never shoot a doe younger that 1.5 years of age. Generally I would target one of the largest available when I decide there are enough doe to harvest in any given year. <----<<<

 

I would always take a fawn doe over an adult. The fawns taste better. We butcher our own, so cost is not an issue. The only danger in shooting a little one is that you may accidentally shoot a button.

I killed one last weekend with my m-loader that dressed at 40lbs! That is the smallest I have ever taken...and it was in December!

I also killed two adult doe.

 

I think I took the matriarch off of our property this year. She dressed at 130 lbs. and was aged by the DNR at 6.5 years. Oldest Doe I've ever taken, but not the biggest.

________________________

Munsterlndr
Curmudgeon in Training

 

.5, 1.5, 1.5, 3.5, 6.5 and i will let you know after this weekend what the last one is.

 

I took 3 off my land. I'm pretty sure it was a family group, it consisted of a 4.5, 1.5 and 0.5 year old. I got the results back on line within a weeks time.

There is very little info available on this subject so I was not sure which does to shoot.

 

I shot an 8 1/2 year old doe with my bow in October that weighed 90 pounds. I was surprised how old she was, her teeth were ground right down to almost nothing. Hope to fill one more doe tag this weekend with the muzzleloader. The way our food plots were hammer this year, I know that there are plenty of deer to thin out.

 

We try to take the yearling does early in the season.

Chances are against their survival, the venison is better, and it leaves the experienced breeders to survive the rut.

Good binoculars, and observing other deer present all but eliminate killing button bucks. We won't pull the trigger on a yearling that comes in by itself unless you can clearly see that it is sans balls, which is pretty tough.

 

Here in Ottawa Co. I have been hunting this big gray matriarch. She is wary, clever and cautious. I have let her slip by on a couple of occassions but we are getting to the 11th hour and her time is short. I will take the biggest doe I can take. Check my pics for my second deer ever, a huge doe, I am 5'10" 230lbs in the pic. The processor guessed her to be 150-160. She was the leader in a group of about 20 a few years back and was heads and tails bigger than the rest.

 

Johns talking about the what should be harvested for much of the U.P. In areas managed for sustainment and promotion of the herd(severe winter/high snowfall zones), fawns does are much, much better than mature does. In fact, in those areas mature doe harvest can have negative effects. In areas managed for herd reduction and maintainance, mature does are often the most important. At the same time, in areas needing aggresive herd reduction...any doe is a good doe to shoot.

*Basically, if your deer are in short supply and you need to build your herd...shoot a fawn, or nothing at all.

*If you have many deer and need to keep your herd in check or reduce a little shoot a mature doe.

*If you are overrun with deer shoot any and all does you see

 

Both does I shot this season were yearlings, and both had 2 fawns with her. As far as the question about killing young does or old does I would have no problem shooting a doe fawn and I would have no problem shooting a matriarch. I think that both have their advantages.

 

I try to take the largest one I can level the sights on. This years was about a 125 lbs.

 

I took a 3 1/2 year old during bow season that dressed out at #110, and a 1 1/2 year old during firearm that dressed out at #95. Personally I don't shoot fawns-primarly because there isn't alot of meat on them.

 

These are field dressed weights.....and none of the heads were aged at this point...though two of them will be in about a week. All are bow kills.

95lbs.....110lbs.....112lbs....107lbs

A mini-goal of mine each season is to get a doe weighing 150lbs f.d.

Last year my best doe field dressed at 142lb. But this year, after about 49 sits, I haven't had a whopper doe close enough for a shot.

 

I would always take a fawn doe over an adult. The fawns taste better. We butcher our own, so cost is not an issue. The only danger in shooting a little one is that you may accidentally shoot a button.

I killed one last weekend with my m-loader that dressed at 40lbs! That is the smallest I have ever taken...and it was in December!

I also killed two adult doe.

Backstrap,
Per John Ozoga's article, you ought to be congratulated for your small doe harvest. The likelihood of this deer making it through the winter is probably 0%, but she would have eaten alot of forage that some other larger deer will depend on this year.

Congrats

 

Johns talking about the what should be harvested for much of the U.P. In areas managed for sustainment and promotion of the herd(severe winter/high snowfall zones), fawns does are much, much better than mature does. In fact, in those areas mature doe harvest can have negative effects. In areas managed for herd reduction and maintainance, mature does are often the most important. At the same time, in areas needing aggresive herd reduction...any doe is a good doe to shoot.

*Basically, if your deer are in short supply and you need to build your herd...shoot a fawn, or nothing at all.

*If you have many deer and need to keep your herd in check or reduce a little shoot a mature doe.

*If you are overrun with deer shoot any and all does you see

Thanks, NorhtJeff,

I'm always amazed at what I learn on this site. Our party typically takes 6-10 does from our 240 acres each year now. I'll use this little guideline to help us do a better job next year. Sort of wish I knew this last month.

 

...Remember when reading John's articles.....that his research was at the Cusino facility. The Upper Peninsula. That makes a difference when trying to make all of his observations fit, say, a southern Michigan herd.

Our herd, in the south central district of Michigan, has access to a quantity and quality of foodstuffs that few, if any, Upper Peninsula herds have. They go into winter with a body and metabolism that has benefitted from high protein alfalfa and soybeans. And then often have access to significant amounts of high carbohydrate corn during the winter.

One should have some knowledge of their local herd's prospects before applying his suggestions about increased killing of female fawns because of the greater risk of winter loss to that cohort.

John O.'s got great stuff. But, you can't cookie-cutter all of his suggestions.

 

Shot a 2.5 year old doe that dressed @ 110.


I shot an absolute cow last year dressed @ 155! Very old matriarch (7.5 yrs. aged by Rose Lake) had 2 buttons with her, those buttons stayed around all winter, by spring they were indestinguishible from the other deer. Wow! that got of topic quick

 

I didnt shot any doe because strange as it sounds i didnt see any doe in the field, and I had a doe permit. I saw 30+ while i was driving to and from though. :sad:

 

I try to tell other guys I know. Shoot the imature doe thats not giving you fawns if you want some venison. Shooting the mature doe that gives you twin fawns every year is like shooting yourself in the foot......Why hurt yourself ? At least thats my opinion anyway.

 

Yo, man, waytogoattaboy!

I want what you got.

Which county......or at least the DMU?

We'll kill close to 25 does within the two properties I hunt.....and, so far, nothing has come close to your 155# of last year. Our heaviest this year, thru December 16th, is 119# f.d. One of the gunners got her on November 16th. And, she outweighed most of the 18-month old bucks shot on the 15th.