Antler Restrictions, thread number 989.

Normally I am a proponent of the AR rules, but certainly can see the downside. I have seen an old buck, last year estimated at 5.5 yo, and then saw him again last night. We don't have pics of him on cameras as he stays away from feeders. This year he is a very tall 6 (could be an 8 but his brow tines are a lot smaller than last year) with G2 at least 14". Problem is he is right at 13" wide. I saw him during the rut a few weeks back and last night again. He gave me a full head on look and I just couldn't pull the trigger, too close on AR. This is an old guy, who has lost a lot of weight since the rut. Oh well, he will live out his life in security I hope.

And no sidewinder, bushwhacking, hornswoggling cracker croaker, is going to ruin my biscuit-cutter!

I'm going to call TPW and start protesting that refugio county should be included as an AR county.

I don't understand Antler Restrictions, I get it that letting the deer grow big horns is great but I have a crap 5 point running around my lease and he has been there 3 years. Probably won't be a shooter for another 3 years or so, I would much rather shoot him than a doe. Only takes 1 buck to impregnate all the does but the does need to be alive to have fawns.

Im with you. AR seems to help most of the time. But running into a no win situation is notfun.

Never a silver bullet. No one can argue the current rules are not producing a lot of great, low-fence bucks.

The best and only legal way to avoid those antelope bucks is to get them early as spikes.

Not always true, there have been documented cases in which bucks like that grow to be boone & crockett class 150+ by 5 or 6 years old, I "think" tpwd put in the spike (cull) clause to appease the meat hunters, not allowing any young bucks to be shot especially in counties where does are off limits during guns season would have discouraged alot of hunters especially young hunters, and in turn discouraged license sales in the future. The AR's work because a percentage of the buck population is now protected to make it through to the next season, this helps the buck doe ratio to be more even, in the past all buck were on the hit list and if it had antlers it got shot especially in counties with no/limited doe days. I see more bucks since the rules have been in place, and the deer population has gone up bucks and does. Before the AR's our buck-doe ratio ranged anywhere from 1-10 to 1-20 in some years, now its 1-3. You have a more even buck-doe ratio = a more compact breeding season = a shorter fawning season = more deer, not saying it is like this in all counties under the AR's but this is what I have observed since 2009.

There isn't a rule that's going to work in 100% of cases.

Clearly there are going to be some bucks that need to be taken that ARs make illegal.

Still light years better than not having them, at least in the 2 counties I've owned land in.

I hated them the first few years, but starting to change my mind. Still don't have any monsters around me, but do have some mature bucks and more of them.

One thing Im starting to see is that my ratio is changing dramatically. I used to be way over populated on does, but it seems like it has switched. Based on my cameras I would guess I'm now around 1:1 if not slightly more bucks than does. Granted, most are young but it makes me optimistic for the future.

It is extremely rare for a spike to become a B&C in 6 years and the conditions have to be perfect. 1 year of drought will prolong that process significantly, and you can almost guarantee a drought year here in Texas. I don't know everything about deer, but I do know that does produce fawns and it takes a long time for bucks to become monsters. I just don't understand why one would wait roughly 6-10 years to shoots a spike and hammer does between that time. Can you imagine the offspring some of those does could have? They could be producing some great bucks after a couple years. I understand the ratio problems, but I always like to see more does than bucks because I know they will pull in different bucks during the rut. The land where I hunt we have 1 shooter buck, 1 buck we are letting grow 1-2 years, 1 spike, and a crap 5 point (that we know of). The rest are does and there are tons of them, thats just fine with me. I would much rather shoot the crap 5 point and the spike than a doe.

I am also more of a meat hunter I guess than a trophy hunter, that probably sways my opinion...

I'll give a very small young looking (spots still visible) a pass, but when I see a spike buck with a buck with forked antlers and they are the same size the spike gets a dirt nap.

I'm leaving both the younguns alone since I really don't care how wide they are/get.

Gone to Texas, I agree with you, and have just about the same deer your talking. I am a meat hunter also, but, if all I can take is a buck 13", heck might as well make a good ern. Cause I can take a doe, bow only, or a spike, like said.But it sure been a dry year, the deer not the weather. LOl!!!

My ratio has changed to about 13 to one in Lampasas county. Problem is the 13 are bucks that are not going to make 13" anytime soon. I have seen one doe this year on the ranch and she could not have been 60 lbs wet. I saw her early and should have shot her somebody must have cause she has not been back. I have been on this lease 3 years. The lease has 4 hunters on it and is 500 acres of typical hill country land. First year saw plenty of does few bucks. Second year less doe and more bucks. Third year tons off bucks and no does. AR's are working just not in our favor not one legal buck shot in three years, a bunch of small 8's and less and the does seem to be going extinct in our area. I know Lampasas county has been in AR program for longer than 5 years and the result in our area is the does have been overharvested in my opinion.