Trophy or cull

each lease has different standards I am sure because of location and population. What are the standards on your lease(s)? Also what is you policy on does? I know this has probably been brought up before but I am lazy and don't want to try and look it up.

If it's brown it's down!

Trophy in the eye of the beholder. In my case, at least 5.5 years old. Kids shoot anything less than 8 at 2.5 and all spikes. 1:1 ratio so does removed accordingly. 8 does and 2 culls this year. Just my opinion.

This topic requires way too much time for me to address during hunting season. Ill check back after the season.

IMO trophy = mature buck, minimum 5.5 years of age. While I'd always shoot the biggest buck in a same-age group, score means less to me any more than finding an older deer and hunting for him.

Does? Don't get me started. Balancing the ratio and getting numbers down to carrying capacity are extremely important. Buck mortality will insure that you rarely have to shoot high numbers of bucks in order to do either one.

My preferred doe harvest order:

Dry doe, although I try not to shoot yearling (1.5yr old) does
Doe with large single fawn
Doe with large twins
Doe with small single fawn
Doe with small twins

5 years old minimum, unless its a cull type deer then I will shoot them at 4. We have some 7 points that are rachety that I don't mind letting go at 3 either.


Does I figure on a per year basis but I try and shoot at least 4 off the place every year because all my neighbors refused to do any doe harvest.

Would like to say bucks at 4.5 but reality is 3.5 years. Doe some don't care to shoot.

Trophy 7.5+ and 160”+
“Management” 7.5+ and generally 140”-150+” that doesn’t make anyone’s trophy pick
“Cull” 7.5+ and noticeably inferior to the two above. Some exceptions can be made to include 5.5+ for 6-7 points

For does we shoot as many as we do bucks at a minimum and will hit them hard if the numbers are too high depending on the year.

bphillips, in your case would you knock a year off that 7.5 if you weren’t feeding protein?

Not on trophies but we probably wouldn’t chance many at all up to 9-10 without the feed. That’s on Mexico lease. Our family property around San Angelo doesn’t have the same mineral rich soil and browse so there you can’t push the age as far. All areas are different for sure

Depends, lots of factors

I just know my situation

To me high 140’s, 4.5

Does - we have a 2-1 ratio we are trying to bring down to 1.5/1-1 so shoot on sight unless with a clearly young fawn or if hot in which case roll the dice and wait on the buck.

Bucks - start shooting at 5yrs. Last six bucks ages have gone 7, 8, 5, 6, 5, 7. Our one neighbor who actively hunts will shoot 3 and 4yr olds but we’ve shown him the jumps our deer have made from 4-5 and we might have convinced him this year to let the middle aged bucks go which would be great for both of us.

For us, a "trophy" is a mature deer (4.5+) with a rack bigger than a main-frame 8. small junk and kickers don't count, but an extra tine takes it over a main-frame 8 so he becomes a "trophy" that counts against quota. Very large or particularly wide mainframe 8s also count towards trophy quota.

Culls are mature bucks (4.5+) that are mainframe 7 or below, or are still spikes (we don't shoot the young spikes), or maybe some deformity that's carried over the years or a particularly narrow "basket", and all hunters have to agree that it's a cull. We usually reserve those for youth hunters or guests.

I'm migrating into the "trophy equals old" camp. Nature is tough and anything over 5 years has put in the work.

That said, I'll also cull on a selective basis. Last year, I was watching a young but promising 8 and similar 9 hang out at the feeder. Then a slightly larger, and older 7 point came in and acted like he owned the place. I'm in a 1 buck county but it was late in the season so shooting the 7 was a no brainer for me.

A trophy is in the eye of the beholder, and I'll never question the judgment of a happy hunter. But, for me, if you don't let them get old, how will you ever know what they could be?