Bambi Whacking 2023-2024

[fogman]

Shot a nice doe this morning with a CVA .54 Hawken. Had a lame leg and was hobbling thru the woods. Shot her straight on from the front. Surprised that the ball blew the heart apart and stopped. Was fully expecting to have to clean out a gut shot deer. That make 3 deer in the freezer this year.

 

[remrug]

Shot a nice doe this morning with a CVA .54 Hawken. Had a lame leg and was hobbling thru the woods. Shot her straight on from the front. Surprised that the ball blew the heart apart and stopped. Was fully expecting to have to clean out a gut shot deer. That make 3 deer in the freezer this year.

I have never taken a frontal shot on a deer. Not sure why. Maybe because of the chance of guts being hit???. Glad it worked out ok for you and congrats on the doe. What was wrong with the leg ?

 

[fogman]

Curled up and unusable, almost looked like a birth defect.
She spooked when I clicked the rifle to full cock. Managed to wait her out until she calmed down. Had a slight hangfire between the pop of the cap and the boom of the powder charge which gave her time to turn.

 

[remrug]

About 15 yrs ago, I shot a buck with a leg like you described. It was limping and thought it may have been wounded , so I decided to shoot. Once I got it skinned out, I saw that it had 3 ribs that had been broken and healed up. It's spine was crooked also. I'm sure it was hit by a car sometime in the past.

 

[Clovis]

Maryland Deer Hunting Harvest Down from Last Year

The Maryland Department of Natural Resources (DNR) has reported a drop in the total number of deer harvested in the 2023-2024 hunting season compared to the previous year.

www.wboc.com

We must be getting lazy.

 

[remrug]

Maryland Deer Hunting Harvest Down from Last Year

The Maryland Department of Natural Resources (DNR) has reported a drop in the total number of deer harvested in the 2023-2024 hunting season compared to the previous year.

www.wboc.com

We must getting lazy.

The moon phase was totally wrong for morning hunts for the firearms season opener. I wonder if that made a difference?

 

[BigCountry14]

Clearly the season is over..

 

[Hibs]

Maryland Deer Hunting Harvest Down from Last Year

The Maryland Department of Natural Resources (DNR) has reported a drop in the total number of deer harvested in the 2023-2024 hunting season compared to the previous year.

www.wboc.com

We must be getting lazy.

If I were to guess, I would say it aligns with the continued reduction in number of hunters every year.

 

[outrider58]

If I were to guess, I would say it aligns with the continued reduction in number of hunters every year.

Add to that, the reduction in huntable land. Another problem that has cropped up more in recent years, EHD.

 

[ThirtyOught Six]

A couple of heads that I did from this past season.

 

[Archeryrob]

How do you clean them? I have two sitting in the compost pile right now. I don't dig them up until right about bow season. Seems the nose thin bones always need to be glued back on and I sit them on the roof to whiten, but not like that!! Still got a little dirt on them.

 

[RRomig]

A couple of heads that I did from this past season.
View attachment 455549 View attachment 455550

Nice job
Couple years ago I changed over euro.

 

[Brickman301]

If I were to guess, I would say it aligns with the continued reduction in number of hunters every year.

Add to that, the reduction in huntable land. Another problem that has cropped up more in recent years, EHD.

I believe you both have valid points, but there are many more theories on why as well.

One that I’ve been seeing is that a lot new hunters are only after mature bucks. Can’t get a bunch of likes on social media with pictures of doe. And it’s not just new hunters, a lot of the guys I’ve know for years that used to take a few doe every season don’t anymore for one reason or another.

One guy I know swears that feeding the deer makes them even more nocturnal. He says they don’t need to travel as far for food, and they know it will be there when it’s dark and safe. Not sure I really believe this theory but I guess it could have some merit.

 

[outrider58]

I believe you both have valid points, but there are many more theories on why as well.

One that I’ve been seeing is that a lot new hunters are only after mature bucks. Can’t get a bunch of likes on social media with pictures of doe. And it’s not just new hunters, a lot of the guys I’ve know for years that used to take a few doe every season don’t anymore for one reason or another.

One guy I know swears that feeding the deer makes them even more nocturnal. He says they don’t need to travel as far for food, and they know it will be there when it’s dark and safe. Not sure I really believe this theory but I guess it could have some merit.

I'm guilty of you first point, coupled with the fact that my consumption of venison is a lot lower than it used to be. Also, the property I hunt now is smaller and in order to keep deer there throughout the season, we take fewer deer.

On your second point, I agree with your friend. I quit feeding them years ago, beginning with not shooting deer under feeders and eventually not feeding at all. That did seem to make a difference in daylight encounters.

I also agree with what Hibs said. The moon phase sucked for gun season mornings, though I never got skunked(seeing deer). On the other hand, the moon phase was perfect for mornings at the beginning of the rut at the 1st of November. Strong overhead moon in the mornings.

 

[outrider58]

How do you clean them? I have two sitting in the compost pile right now. I don't dig them up until right about bow season. Seems the nose thin bones always need to be glued back on and I sit them on the roof to whiten, but not like that!! Still got a little dirt on them.

The skull parts are repros.

 

[ThirtyOught Six]

How do you clean them? I have two sitting in the compost pile right now. I don't dig them up until right about bow season. Seems the nose thin bones always need to be glued back on and I sit them on the roof to whiten, but not like that!! Still got a little dirt on them.

Yes, the skulls are repos from a taxidermy supply off the web. I think they cost me about $50 each. I prefer them to the natural ones that are messy and sometimes fall apart.

 

[ThirtyOught Six]

Nice job
Couple years ago I changed over euro.

Yea, I’ve done these for the last few years, it sure beats $600 or whatever a mount is going for nowadays.

 

[Brickman301]

I'm guilty of you first point, coupled with the fact that my consumption of venison is a lot lower than it used to be. Also, the property I hunt now is smaller and in order to keep deer there throughout the season, we take fewer deer.

On your second point, I agree with your friend. I quit feeding them years ago, beginning with not shooting deer under feeders and eventually not feeding at all. That did seem to make a difference in daylight encounters.

I also agree with what Hibs said. The moon phase sucked for gun season mornings, though I never got skunked(seeing deer). On the other hand, the moon phase was perfect for mornings at the beginning of the rut at the 1st of November. Strong overhead moon in the mornings.

I totally get not shooting as many as you used too. Not speaking for you, but the older I get the harder the work is. I love the fact that I hunt with my son and/or my nephews. Their ages are 17, 19, and 20, oh to be that young again!
I hunt 3 different properties. One is a big farm with open fields, we don’t feed there. Another is in PA, where feeding is against the law. One property is my FIL’s, he does feed there, but it hasn’t really been that productive for the last couple years.

 

[ToBeFree]

I'm finishing up one from last fall. Been in the freezer. Skin.boil.pressure wash. Pick clean. Soak h2o & detergent. Tape antlers. Hydrogen peroxide till as white as you like.

 

[h2u]

I'm finishing up one from last fall. Been in the freezer. Skin.boil.pressure wash. Pick clean. Soak h2o & detergent. Tape antlers. Hydrogen peroxide till as white as you like.

This.
I’ve been doing Euro only for the last six to seven years. It’s best if you cut off as much skin/meat/eyes/brains/lower jaw as soon as possible. Preferably, same day as kill. It makes it SO much easier when ever you finally get around to working on the skull - even if it’s weeks later.
Long forceps work best to pull brain and membrane from inside the skull. You can get them cheap on Amazon. I’ve also found the gel hydrogen peroxide from the beauty salon distributors works best.
I’ve never had any issues with broken nasal bones…yet.
Below are two bucks from this year - pre hydrogen peroxide. I’ll eventually finish them this Spring/Summer. Maybe…