To kill or not to kill

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  • Would you drop him?

    • Ya he's ded

      Votes: 49 83.1%
    • Let him go another year

      Votes: 10 16.9%

    • Total voters
      59
    • Poll closed .

    28Shooter

    Ultimate Member
    MDS Supporter
    Sep 19, 2010
    8,206
    Baltimore, Maryland
    Let him spread his genetics, there will be plenty more in the future.

    Make your property the place to be. Feed and good habitat.

    Feel the same way Aqua. That boy looks like a real plus to the gene pool.
     

    Virgil Co.C

    Active Member
    Aug 10, 2018
    615
    25/30 years ago I would have taken him in a heartbeat . But nowadays I would let him walk. Same with big fish , I throw em back . Getting older I just think different about things . Sounds like your hunting small area, been there . Someone else will harvest ,has happen. Watch em grow up and all it took was neighbors let someone hunt their farm next to the old place I had . Ever seen him again. Chance you take .
     

    Huuman

    Active Member
    Jul 20, 2019
    151
    So the phrase beggars can't be choosers come to mind. Same as if you ask most bow hunters how far they would shoot a deer. most would say 30-40 yards. But if you ask world class hunters like Levi Morgan, he would tell you as far as his slider pin go, which could be 100+ yards. So if you are at the stage in life where you have no worries of filling the freezer each year and have enough trophies hanging on the wall. I say wait for him.
     

    Don H

    Ultimate Member
    Jan 17, 2013
    1,845
    Hazzard County
    This guy is hanging out behind my house.
     

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    fabsroman

    Ultimate Member
    Mar 14, 2009
    35,852
    Winfield/Taylorsville in Carroll
    Once you got to the point where you have zero control over it, then it is time to shoot him if you get the chance. If you owned the property, the property was 200+ acres in size, you were running a feeder or some other type of bait pile, and you were scouting him and knew his routine to a degree, then I would say wait it out. An old hunting buddy of mine had the above setup on his farm/residence in Boonsboro/Keedeysville and he would kill a monster almost every year. Huge difference between having permission to hunt a spot and owning a large piece or property that you set up properly for hunting.

    Good luck!!!!!!!!!
     

    outrider58

    Eats Bacon Raw
    MDS Supporter
    Jul 29, 2014
    49,818
    I hunt on a 220 acre private farm in southwestern Garret Co. down near the WV line Rt. 50. Plus have more acreage to hunt on up there. In 2019 I let a nice six go in bow season. Again I let him go in rifle season. My 18 yr. old nephew and I were coming up for late muzzleloader season between Christmas and New Year. I'll put him up in my ladder stand and hopefully he'll get his first buck. The nice six never came by. I won't be doing that this year rifle season the first Saturday after Thanksgiving. I see a nice buck I'm harvesting him.

    That's always the risk you take when passing. I hunted a 200+ acre farm in MoCo. I was hunting the last day of deer season, looking for a deer for a friend who needed the meat. That evening I had a small parade of young bucks go by including a nice looking 2 yo 8 point. Letting the 8 point walk was an easy decision. I settled for a big(2 yo?) spike buck and took him.

    The next year, I had many encounters with that 8 point including having him an easy bow range as he made a scrape. He showed great potential. He was identical to the OP's buck. I wanted to see what he turned into the next year Seeing how this was his home range, I felt the odds would favor me. Well low and behold, I picture showed up on my phone a couple weeks after I let him walk of another hunter who hunted the same farm with his proud trophy.

    Moral of the story; when you let a buck walk, there's no guarantee you'll ever see it again. And something to ponder, that trophy buck you kill, in many cases, was let go by at least one other hunter. It's all part of the game.
     

    SavageShooter

    Active Member
    Jan 10, 2014
    644
    Arbutus, MD
    I would harvest him. I hunt on 220 acres of private farm land in southwestern Garrett Co. Plus other surrounding private land. Only three of us hunt all of the acreage. In 2019 I let a nice 8 pt. buck go in bow season. I let him go again in rifle season. My 16 yr. old nephew and I were coming up for late muzzleloader season. I said to myself I'll put him up in my ladder stand and maybe he'll get his first nice buck. He was up in the stand for five days and the nice 8 pt. did not come by. No one else on the farm took him. I won't be doing that this year when I go up for rifle season after Thanksgiving. If a nice one comes by I'm harvesting him.
     

    HeatSeeker

    Ultimate Member
    Jun 18, 2012
    3,058
    Maryland
    When people ask the pass or shoot question I tend to ask what type of area they are hunting. If it is public land, shoot him, shoot him now. If it is private you can always try that management stuff but unless you are on a substantial piece of land that is hit or miss. If you are trying to manage a 100 acre lease in the middle of other 100 acre leases you are wasting your time and when you let that buck walk so he can be a stud next year wait just a few minutes and you'll hear your neighbor shoot him.
     

    Archeryrob

    Undecided on a great many things
    Mar 7, 2013
    3,064
    Washington Co. - Fairplay
    Yup, We hunt a 100 acre farm and surrounded by other farms about the same size. We got guys that still look at the deer heard like it is 1990. It's better to shoot that fork horn than shoot a doe. I let a deer with some mass walk last week because he had a weird rack and only 4 front points. My buddy said "You know he is dead out here in the first week of rifle, right? If he'll walk in front of you with a bow at 15 yards, some guy is going to drop him from 150 yards on a neighbors farm."
     

    RRomig

    Ultimate Member
    Industry Partner
    MDS Supporter
    Aug 30, 2021
    1,924
    Burtonsville MD
    Your deer is your choice. Really doesn’t matter what anyone else thinks. Enjoy the hunt and the meals the deer provides. The reality is the deer you pass on so you can get the green light you very well may never get the chance again. Know what your looking for and will be satisfied with before you enter the woods. Many things dictate what I may shoot any given day. Location, time of year, bow or firearm etc. If you hunt and harvest enough you’ll have those deer you’ll wish you had of passed and deer you’ll wish you had of shot. All part of the game.
     

    gtodave

    Member
    MDS Supporter
    Aug 14, 2007
    14,176
    Mt Airy
    Oh goody gumdrops....a late Christmas gift!

    Hadn't seen him since the first week in November. Might be hunting the snow on Friday morning...
     

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    outrider58

    Eats Bacon Raw
    MDS Supporter
    Jul 29, 2014
    49,818
    Oh goody gumdrops....a late Christmas gift!

    Hadn't seen him since the first week in November. Might be hunting the snow on Friday morning...

    You'd be a fool not to. Looks like your boy has come home to his winter-summer range. Looks like his rack is still pretty well intact too. I hope you get him. Good luck!

    I'll be out snow Friday morning as well. Maybe catch a glimpse of the local "legend".
     

    gtodave

    Member
    MDS Supporter
    Aug 14, 2007
    14,176
    Mt Airy
    You'd be a fool not to. Looks like your boy has come home to his winter-summer range. Looks like his rack is still pretty well intact too. I hope you get him. Good luck!

    I'll be out snow Friday morning as well. Maybe catch a glimpse of the local "legend".

    Yup, got a couple more pics of him, and his rack is still 100%. I can't believe he made it through gun season, although I don't have one single picture of him in the daylight, so he's probably a pretty smart ol' boy. Good luck on your legend!
     

    Reptile

    Ultimate Member
    Sep 29, 2014
    7,282
    Columbia MD
    I’m not a hunter, but these guys are living on the edge.
     

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    lazarus

    Ultimate Member
    Jun 23, 2015
    13,678
    You'd be a fool not to. Looks like your boy has come home to his winter-summer range. Looks like his rack is still pretty well intact too. I hope you get him. Good luck!

    I'll be out snow Friday morning as well. Maybe catch a glimpse of the local "legend".

    Sorry. I’ll be eastern shore then, plus wearing clothes. No chance of glimpsing the local legend for you. :-D
     

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