What would be the repercussions of adding doe tags to an antler-restricted, buck-only county? I've hunted Briscoe county for a while now and it seems like there are SO MANY does...like herds of 60-100+ at times on the wheat fields.

I'm always interested in a big buck, but also just enjoy keeping the fridge stocked, so I wouldn't mind taking only a doe some years unless I saw a mature buck I couldn't pass on. Do you think allowing 1 doe per season would take the pressure off the bucks in any way? It appears they've been making somewhat of a comeback with the new antler restrictions, I just wonder if opening up the season to limited amounts of does would help or hurt the cause? Maybe instead of 1 buck and 1 antlerless, they could 1 buck or 1 antlerless?

This could just be the specific area(s) that I hunt, but just driving around it seems like there is no shortage of does. It seems that people always want to thin out the whitetail doe population on their leases, is it a different situation for mule deer?

The TPWD biologists take a very hands on approached to controlling muley does. A ranch owner simply needs to reach out to his local biologist and ask for them. My ranch get's 2-6 per year based on their annual survey for my area. If you don't know who your biologist is, here's the website:https://tpwd.texas.gov/landwater/land/habitats/county/

In Briscoe county I'd suggest talking to Todd.

x2

I "apply" for one every year for my small place and never failed to receive one (about 10 years running). Essentially, if after you apply the first time, receive a permit, and report your harvest results by the deadline, you're automatically considered for a permit the following year. But whether I drew a doe permit or not... wouldn't have any influence on whether I shot a buck in a given year. Some years I shoot a doe, some I don't. Haven't shot a buck yet, but that's just because it's pretty difficult to see one of the big boys during our short season that isn't concurrent with the rut.

We get 4-8 doe tags a year depending on the year always see more
Does than bucks where we are

Where dkershen place is we hunted before Foster sold it and if we had a good wheat on app. 100 acres you could see at least 50 doe on north and 50 doe on south end of the field with canyon on three sides and looked like 10 doe to 2 bucks and most young bucks. Big boys moved in 2-3 weeks after season. Beautiful place.

Awesome. I'm definitely going to reach out. Thanks for the advice!

So the place I hunt is 1000 acres, mostly in the canyon. I'm not an expert management hunter by any stretch of the imagination. What would be the potential affects of harvesting a doe or two off of the ranch?

I hunt Briscoe as well, it’s seems like the doe are always more willing to show out. The buck numbers are there they just stay in the canyons and don’t show the way the does do.

Mule Deer management is not the same as whitetail in that they are more of a herding animal..one buck will herd up a group of does and breed most of them. So, seeking a 1 to 1 buck to doe ratio is not common. Some counties have archery only season for one doe, while many do not have a doe season. Mule Deer are a bit more fragile than whitetails also due to habitat and range. With the majority of Texas mule deer living in drier to desert like areas there is more need for doe numbers to build up the herd than vs. whitetails. Fawn crops can be very low for many years then rebound in a single year. Mule Deer home range is greater than a whitetail and they will move based on rainfall or crop rotations. I have personally seen a 4x4 mule deer buck with a group of does move south for 5.75 miles straight-line(via Google Earth) in 14 days in hunting season. Every few days they were moving a little bit farther south.

Good info. Thank you

They definitely don't seem to feel threatened, that's for sure (the does I mean).