What is your deer hunting philosphy when it comes down to it?

I am just curious what everyone's mindset/philosophy is when they enter the woods during the archery season. Do you holdout for a big buck? Do you only hunt for meat? Do you take does? What about small racked bucks? Do your standards for size decrease as the season gets closer to closing? Do you mind not filling your tag if it means passing on something small? I have been struggling with this for years. We hunt on private land in Dodge Co. and have been on the same tract of land for 43 years. It is just over 350 acres and it has everything...marsh, hardwoods, food plots, etc. My uncle shoots anything because he literally loves the meat and goes through about 3 deer a year. He eats it everyday. My dad isn't picky either. I have been holding out for a nice buck, but have come up empty the last 3 years with the bow. I usually get at least one with the gun. I got sick of always turning down easy shots so this year I took a small 6. I was happy I made a good shot (right through the heart), but honestly, the small racked buck really didn't do much for me. So, there is my conflicting situation that I ponder every year. How do you folks decide what to and what not to shoot?

I'm not trying to stir the pot either...but just wanted to point out: - Not everyone has a lot of deer to shoot a doe right away. If you do, consider yourself fortunate. - Not everyone cares about the antlers. I think many people find that hard to believe. I know trophy hunters who get it and understand their choice is not going to be the same as everyone else. But then there are the ones that don't get it, I think they are more ego driven. I've hunted spots where there were 20+ antlerless out in a field and I was holding a rifle. Then I've hunted spots where I went all season and only saw 1 doe. So many different scenarios in this state, you can't tell someone to do something based on your own situation. It varies greatly.

Drummer boy, you do mind eating a tag, if your standards drop during the rut, eating a tag is not in your mindset. Sorry to point that out, but it's true. shoot a doe for meat...let the little ones go. You can't kill a big one if you drop standards and shoot all your 2 year olds. Just pointing out the obvious. I'm not trying to start anything or telling you want to shoot, just that you are contradicting yourself in the post below. My philosophy is, if it's not going on the wall i don't kill it. I want meat, i shoot a doe. Shooting a basket rack 8pt does nothing for me. I get more thrill on letting a deer walk by me. a bigger thrill is having a more mature deer in a 3 year old get close enough for me to kill him. i'll draw back, put my pin on him and say "dead". That to me is a "passed" deer and it's great practice. My thought is you didn't pass a deer until you go through the act of pulling back and putting the pin on the deer. All too many people say I passed this or that. you don't pass a deer unless you know you would have had a shot opportunity. I don't want to hear, that's an elitist attitude, cause it's not. it's smart. Try drawing on deer and getting a good shot on doe or bucks you don't intend on shooting. You may just learn how "not easy" it can be. WHy wait for that deer you intend on shooting to "practice". And drummer boy, I'm not trying to stir the pot. I'm really not. if you will eat a tag but do like meat, why don't you rip the first doe you see in the early season? then you can concentrate on horns...

When I used to have access in Montello and Wisconsin Dells, I would take meat if I got a chance. Shot four in ten years. But now that I am relegated to hunting the Northwoods, I haven't seen an antler in four years and rarely see even a doe or fawn. I have become a conservationist, debating if a license is even worth it. So have fun this fall.

Fish that is the best post ever! While shooting big bucks is awesome it's far from the most important. My fondest hunting memories are the smoking,sausage making, veni chili while watching a packer game type stuff. Can't wait for this season get to take my nephew out he's never shot one and my wife while she is an experienced hunter she has never matched wits with a whitetail. She's been talking smack like how hard can it be. She's like I've shot bears,moose and caribou, all of these have almost zero fear of man the hardest part about hunting them is getting to where they are. She's about to get a lesson cuz she's gonna pick her stand site and blah blah blah she wants to do it all on her own. So I'm gonna let her. Guessing there's gonna be some good memories from this dabacel. As for size I used to care but not now. I know when it's the right time and right animal. Some big some small with horns and without they all have a time and place. Just enjoy your time in the woods people cuz none of us will know when it will be our last time.

for me when I am bow hunting I will always shoot a doe if I get a chance. When it comes to bucks I have a mental image in my head for a minimum. there is no scoring the rack for me. if I can live with my decision to shoot or not when the season is over that is how i make the choice. " am i going to regret this later?" don't let others influence you one way or the other. do what will make you happy. I have had people give me crap from both sides of the fence. everything from "Why did you let him pass? I would have shot that" to "Why did you shoot that little/young thing should have let him grow up" I hunt both public and private land in central and sw wisconsin so i have slightly different standards to what i will or will not shoot but at the end of the day its my tag and if i put it on a deer or in the stew pot is what i live with

First thing i try and do is enjoy my hunting season and have fun. I try and get an idea of the number of deer that are in the area. My brother and I hunt 60 acres of private land, we spend most of the bow season trying to put friends or family with less ideal places to hunt on deer. We enjoy helping them get a deer as much, if not more than harvesting one ourselves. So far it's been working out great, people we have invited to hunt with really enjoy the opportunity to even see deer. If its there first time hunting we let them decide what they shoot. Sometimes this leads to some taking a doe, which may mean that we will then be passing them up ourselves the rest of the season. My brother and I often sit where we can take a good inventory on what deer are on or passing through our property more than we are actually hunting to shoot something. We leave a lot of our property which is bedding area untouched each year and only hunt the edges of these places. The rut has been good for us and we try and focus more on hunting in November. Our philosphy when hunting is trying to make it as enjoyable as possible and watching others enjoy the hunt with us, first and foremost.

I try to get a nice buck early in the bow season but latter during the rut my standards do drop, unless I am seeing lots of bigger bucks. I have no problem eating a tag. I will shoot a smaller buck during the gun season though or a doe if in a T zone or not doing that I will shoot a doe or smaller buck with a bow during the late season.Its really just about being able to hunt as long as I can.

Mine has changed a lot over the years. I get my joy outta the act of going out. I remember the days when I had a very limited amount of free time and I shot whatever buck (or, most times doe) that came by because I wasn't sure I would get time off again. I shot a lot of deer early and didn't get to hunt again (those were the many years that we had only one tag per year). I hunted public land. I am retired now, I shoot a longbow, have for a long time. I like to kill a doe early on for the meat, and then I like to sit, to listen, to hear, to experience. I let a lot of bucks and all the does walk by. I don't need the meat (already got some freezer meat). I'm not into the numbers game so shooting ten deer is not gonna happen. I like to hunt the ground lately and I like to get them REAL close, like less than ten yards. I normally do not use a pop up blind, just make my own little trap. Face it, if a 190" and a 100" deer come by, guess which one I want. But I may also shoot one way smaller if something about the situation is auspicious or the buck's rack is special. I have also shot several deer that were wounded or had issues, just to put them down. I also may just count coup and let it walk. I have had deer in South Dakota and da UP walk by so close I coulda nearly pee'd on them. My buddy asks why I didn't shoot, and I'm not certain I could explain. I didn't need to kill that deer, but I needed to trick it into walking by very close and letting me absorb some of its aura I guess. Yup, many of us change over the years. Our goals change, our needs change. Not better, just different. CHuckC

Willfish 4food this carp aint going anywhere. I love to shoot a big buck too in witch I have I got 3 on the wall. But I love venison to so I make sure I get some meat. Good luck to everyone tomorrow.

I grew up hunting Kewaunee County private land and we practiced QDM. I saw what could happen when landowners get together and put a management practice into gear. I loved watching those young bucks grow year after year and getting chances at some big bucks. Around 2003 I started hunting up north with a mix of private/county/ and National Forest. Now I hunt mostly National Forest. I love the big woods and the freedom to hunt many different areas every year. Hunting mostly public land now and the big woods, letting the young bucks walk can be tough. I hunt maybe 15 times a year with the bow and then about 5 days with the muzzleloader. I have not harvested a doe in many years and refuse to with the lower deer numbers. I dont need the meat but enjoy eating venison. I have no problem shooting 1 1/2 year old bucks up north. A north woods deer, regardless of size, is a trophy in my book. Hunting has gotten too antler crazy. I love the hunt, just being in the big woods is a blessing regardless of the number of deer I see. I saw 4 deer this year on stand and one of them being the spike buck I shot with the bow last week. I also saw many other animals including some coyotes and a fisher. It was a great year for how little time I had to hunt. If I hunted southern areas of the state I would be passing the smaller bucks but if others choose to take a smaller deer it is their trophy. Have a safe rest of the season.

I feel that any hunter who has not harvested a deer for the first time regardless of age should shoot whatever they would like. Small, big, doe, buck...doesn't matter We all remember that 1st kill, and it is priceless. For the rest of us, we need to stop shooting so many does and fawns. Our deer herd population is as low as i can remember and we need to be responsible enough to help it out. Venison is awesome..but stop trying to live all year on it by pounding every little deer that trots by. Be selective and responsible. Our future generations will thank us. swamphunter

Your philosophy should be whatever you desire and it does change with experience and age. Personally for me it is more about working on my land all summer trying to create the "perfect" habitat... but that is a constant battle with mother nature. I love bow season and really just sitting in the woods enjoying nature. I target two to three bucks on my hit list (if they exist for that year)that are worth my attention and will only go after those bucks. I like the one on one challenge. I will only shoot a 130 plus animal but if there are bigger I will not settle until I shoot one of our biggest bucks on the property. I have been very successful with 5 book bucks over 140 in the past 11 year hunting and managing only a small piece of ground. As you manage the land the better results we are seeing with many more mature bucks. However, it is only going to be good as your neighbors will let it be, and you have no control over that. These days I get a huge kick out of my 2 kids hunting and get more excited for them when they are successful then I would be shooting a 160. They both are in their early teens and have shot their first deer and first bucks during the youth & rifle seasons and now they have started bow hunting. It is nice to see these young kids now pass on small bucks and their goal is to shoot a bigger buck then they have. When I was their age I would not of had that rationale. Personally this week will be sitting with my kids enjoying one on one time on stand, nature and enjoying time with my father and brother. I do not like rifle season and I will not even carry a gun but really looking forward to this week and hoping others in my party will have lots of success. Good luck to everyone out there and be safe.

Fish sandwich,I was thinking along the lines of your post as I was enjoying a bowl of venison stew yesterday at lunch.There is so much more to hunting than a taxidermy bill!

Anyone got a good way to cook them horns yet I aint found a way to make them taste good yet. Just wondering!

It's interesting to hear all of the different philosophies. I can really appreciate many of the different views because I have been there. I really feel for guys like Dude (I think your luck would change if you brought the JC Avatar back) because he is at a point where a lot of guys hang it up. At some point we all buy into the hype, we set our standards according to hunting professionals with unlimited time and funds, and eventually we start to see we've gone far past the point of diminishing returns, in terms of self-gratification. It is no longer fun, the family is no longer supportive or the funds are just not enough to support our goals. There is a great chance that if it us not fun for you, it certainly is not going to be fun for your children. I love my time alone, I love to shoot the biggest possible buck where I hunt. But most of the time this is unrealistic with a job and a family. I have come to realize that it is so much more fun, to get the kids and grandpa together, and go look for a deer. Any deer. The times that come afterwards have gotten much more rewarding to me lately, the times spent with family. From skinning and butchering in the garage, to making steak and potatoes in the kitchen. And everyone seems to want to stop over and have a beer when there's a deer hanging which is fine by me too. Venison is a staple to me because it brings my family together spontaneously. We eat, we celebrate. Yes the meat is nutritionally more healthy than others, but emotionally, every time I can make a venison meal, it brings back some great memories. My advice to anyone would be to stop looking at hunting as a sport, and start looking at it as a way of life. Best of Luck.