Passing on Legal Bucks

New to deer hunting and where I hunt has the antler restriction. I've done a lot of research prior to hunting on how to age a deer on the hoof, good deer management skills, etc. However as I'm sitting in the blind watching awesome/legal (yet a little young) 8 pointers (and even a 10 point last weekend) walk by and me passing on them I got to thinking.....am I crazy? I'm hunting on a 50 acre tract with low fences (I'm the only hunter)......I'm torn between the logic of "well at least I'm doing my part" to "why should I pass on these bucks when chances are the guy next door will shoot them?"....

I'm leaning towards I still stand by my original decision to do "my part" but would like some feed back from the more experienced folks...am I crazy?

They'll never grow if they are all shot, with that said, you have to know what's out there before you let every deer pass. I'm assuming you have some trail cam pics. I know that some on here would say to let all young deer walk and in the right situation I would tend to agree, however, I've hunted places where I would shoot the first legal deer I see like on public land. I agree with your question, "why should I let it walk to grow up for the guy next door"? On a low fenced 50 ac parcel I would shoot the best legal buck I could shoot regardless of age. Of course, you can always shoot does for meat and not shoot any buck.

In the end, don't feel bad for shooting a deer that you might let walk on a 1000 ac ranch.

Chance you gota take if you want them to get older. If they don't fit what you want then that's that. The bucks will thank you

Agreed, On a 50 acre plot your selections will not be that great. Also as mentioned above you should get a trail cam and see what is there. If that's all that's there then you could be passing on the best buck in the area.

"Let them go and they will grow..."

If you plan on hunting the acreage several years from you will see the benefits greatly, espicially if the neighbors don't hunt or pratice game management. The ten will be a beast in several years...

What county if you don't mind me asking?

goliad

IMO, stick to your program, seems to be your choice and there is nothing wrong with that. You can "what if"
yourself to death for no reason, do what your gut tells you. It is a gamble no matter what you do.

I only hunt 15 acres now, talk about having to make concessions, if it's legal and I like it, I will take it, that simple. Fortunately I have had enough "lessor" bucks in the beginning to take 1 buck a year, like a 5 yo 6 point, so a few culls in there and I get plenty of action. Some years I don't take a buck just the way it is.

Your new to deer hunting, I wouldn't get all wrapped up in the management and "what is a trophy" just yet. If that is what you enjoy, then by all means, go for it. I know when I started hunting, a 95" eight pointer was a bonafide trophy and everyone else's opinion be damned.

Go out and enjoy it bud. Plenty of time to worry about management later. Your one deer is not going to make or break the herd, it is just going to stop that one deer from getting older. If you like it, take it

I'm in your exact same situation, however, my plot is right next to a state park. On Friday and Saturday I watched a really nice 8 for a solid hour each day. He's a nice buck and will be super next year. I'll let him live and hopefully he'll make it through the public hunts. If not, I really tried.

Plus, I have a really mature 6 with a really big rack that's a regular visitor. I hope to catch up to him before next month. I saw him last Saturday but he saw me before I saw him and decided he wasn't interested in hanging around.

I also have one picture of a big bruiser of an 8 that I really hope to find. But, most likely, I'll just take a few more does for the meat.

I truly hope it pays off in a couple of years. I'm 100% sure I'll lose some quality deer during the public hunts next door. But that's ok. At least I'm trying.

There's a regular poster here with the signature that says 'If you're worrying about your neighbor killing your deer then you are that neighbor' or something to that effect.

With all of that rambling - put forth an effort to manage your game. It might pay off. If it doesn't, well, you're still in the exact same spot. You have nothing to lose.

This is also true. I grew up hunting in Florida a long time ago. If it had horns, it got shot. You might've sat an entire year or two just to see absolutely nothing. A 1.5 y/o 5-point was an awesome buck.

Many areas of Texas got close to that, between poor, or no management and kill the hell out of them mentality, then add poaching.

Yup,
We hunted a 100 acre place a few years back. It was surrounded by 20-50 acre places. We let many deer go during archery. On youth weekend it sounded like the battle of the Alamo. It was actually almost scary. We never saw another buck until the next season when the nubbies grew up. And the same thing happened.
Sometimes what you shoot is going to depend on the area you hunt. I hope you have better neighbors than we had.

AR's to the rescue in that scenario LOL

If your the only hunter I don't see any harm in taking one buck that is legal and a trophy to you. The area I hunt is the same and seeing deer over 4yo or a 130" is very rare. I have a few trophies on the wall so I pass on anything less.

In theory it's best to not shoot the young bucks and let them get older then you'll be able to harvest one of those deer when they are mature. The problem is in certain areas those deer will never make it past 4.5 years old. We've hunted a small property between Brady and Llano for over 20 years and in that time there has never been a buck shot off of it that score over 110. I've seen two bucks on camera that would break 120. We have taken 2 bucks off the property in the last 10 years. We also let a relative's young boy shoot his first buck. I now just go down there to shoot a doe or let a friend shoot a doe.

If it was my only option still I would probably shoot a young buck off of it.

This may sound rude, but please understand that it is not meant to be. If you need to kill a buck to enjoy your hunting season, then by all means do so. If you don't need a kill to have fun out in the field then let them grow for one more year.
I also hunt on a small place, 54 acres and passed on this buck for the last two years. Everyday when he would jump the fence to my neighbor's place i would just say a little prayer that he would make it through the season. this year I took him. Now, it gave me something to brag about, but I had just as much fun being out there the previous two years when I did not harvest a buck at all. To be fair with you, I'm 65 and have killed a lot of bucks in my lifetime, so the killing is no longer the reason I go deer hunting.
place i would just say a little prayer that he would make it through the season. this year I took him. Now, it gave me something to brag about, but I had just as much fun being out there the previous two years when I did not harvest a buck at all.

As others have said, if its a buck you're going to happy with and proud of then take him. If not, then let him go and hopefully he'll make it to next year. I've been hunting for a while and have taken a few nice bucks, and I'm just not interesting in shooting a buck that is less than 4.5 years old. I'm ok not taking a buck every year, as long as I can get a doe for the freezer.

I wouldn't shoot a buck that you know you should pass just because you think your neighbor is going to shoot him. I think that quote from someone's signature line that was mentioned above sums up this situation very well, "If you shoot a young buck because you're afraid your neighbor will, then you are that neighbor."

Goliad County has some good genetics...I believe it was one of the original AR county's in Texas...to me deer hunting is about the experience...I recently purchased 55 acres and this is the first deer season on it. I had seen some legal bucks before this weekend but nothing I would shoot. Saturday morning I saw a 140 class buck running all out on a doe...I couldn't get him to stop but I think I will treasure the memory just as much as if I shot him. If he makes another mistake I will try to take him.

That being said, if the deer is legal and you have a clean shot harvest the animal. Enjoy the holiday season and keep us posted if you harvest a buck! Welcome to the Deer club!

I'm more comfortable letting 4yo deer walk than good looking 2yo bucks. The 2yos "legal" bucks are dumb by age, I have faith the older ones can be more crafty in eluding other hunters.

Stay the course. For me, dealing with the regret of letting something walk that maybe I should have shot is a lot easier than dealing with the regret of shooting something that I know I should have let walk.

I think there's another member on here that can tell you what happens when you use up your one and only buck tag in Goliad County

What he said.

One thing is for sure-if you harvest him now, you can't harvest him later when he's bigger.

+1. This "management" craze has got a lot of new hunters overthinking stuff and missing out on a lot of fun IMO.

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Unless you will have "fun" shooting the young bucks. If so,

Yep. I live by a pretty simple rule.

"If you like him, shoot him"

. Pay the money shoot the place out, move on. Think longer term,things seem to come into perspective. Do you want a 110" deer every year or a 140 plus every few years?

Could not add anything to this. Well stated both of you!

great buck, and I agree with this, I hunt small places with neighbors that are looking for horns and still have multiple bucks make it to 5yo+. like T said, if you want to kill a buck then by all means go ahead, but don't do it just because you think your neighbor will if you don't.

I always heard if you shoot a buck because your neighbor shoots anything that jumps the fence then you are that neighbor. Makes sense and glad you got a nice buck that you have watched for a couple years. I am lucky as all my neighbors are like minded and lots of bucks make it 5 years or more.

Good luck with your hunting!!!

you sound like the guys I hunt with when I passed a good buck a few weeks ago...it was fun watching him eat for 10 mins and it was fun watching him walk away, he was the biggest deer I've ever seen at 15 yards but I wanted to give him another year, you would have thought I passed on the hanson buck with some of the responses I got. I didn't have to kill him to have fun, I got a few pics of him, which was cool enough for me.

Once you've seen the deer, and in your case gotten pics, does it really matter if you put him in the back of your truck?

I agree with this 100%.

Already a lot of good stuff stated on here. The only thing i'll add is do not shoot a deer just because you think your neighbor is going to.
Dont over think it. If you like him, and he's legal...