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Re: MLD Program [Re: BenBob] #8789292 01/27/23 04:16 PM
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Herbie Hancock Offline
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Originally Posted by BenBob
I agree that the program is good and it is geared to remove more deer/fewer deer depending on numbers. Why doesn't the state just set up all ranches over a certain number of acres in the MLD program? Looks like the program would be the ultimate management tool for the entire state. Landowners would still have the options within the program,


Then landowners would need to do surveys and the paperwork that comes along with the program.


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Re: MLD Program [Re: BenBob] #8789295 01/27/23 04:17 PM
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The Harvest Option doesn't require surveys.


...and have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over every living thing that moveth upon the earth. Gen. 1:28
Re: MLD Program [Re: huntwest] #8789343 01/27/23 05:42 PM
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Originally Posted by huntwest
And most of those small properties shouldn’t be using all of their tags anyway. 500 acres doesn’t need 2 leasees taking 5 dear each in a 2 buck county. But they do.

I agree with you when you say most but there are plenty of exceptions to the rules, especially with high-fenced places.

To give you a good example the place that my boy and I are hunting and taking care of is a section. We had 30 tags this year split even between bucks and does. We've taken less than half and I'll assure you we need to take more. The problem has been seeing the right ones to harvest and just seeing overall low numbers this year while hunting. Though we know the place has a very, very heavy deer density with a great buck to doe ratio and a very good age structure, they just have not come to feed like in years past and now that we had the hard freeze at Christmas time we just have not been able to hunt much at all. The count from the air this weekend should tell us some about overall numbers but we sure are going to try and kill at least 75% of the tags that were issued if not more. We are being very selective on the does being taken this year and trying to leave the 3.5 and younger ones alone this year.


High fence, low fence, no fence, it really doesn't matter as long as you're hunting!
Re: MLD Program [Re: BenBob] #8789402 01/27/23 07:22 PM
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freerange Offline
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Originally Posted by BenBob
I agree that the program is good and it is geared to remove more deer/fewer deer depending on numbers. Why doesn't the state just set up all ranches over a certain number of acres in the MLD program? Looks like the program would be the ultimate management tool for the entire state. Landowners would still have the options within the program,

Because everyone would not want to do it. It’s a voluntary program.


At some point in life its time to quit chasing the pot of gold and just enjoy the rainbow. FR
Keep your gratitude higher than your expectations. RWH
Re: MLD Program [Re: freerange] #8789403 01/27/23 07:25 PM
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Originally Posted by freerange
One consideration if you go MLD and have the extended season you need to be careful cause some bucks can drop their horns before seasons up. This can happen during a regular season as well, but rare.


We were on doe patrol for a large ranch last year in February and it certainly adds to the scenario. You have to really study the animals before you shoot, you can't just say mature no horns bam.

BTW I have been taking the older teenage boys from our church the last two years, many of them their first opportunity to hunt and their first deer. We had a big hunters safety class and got them all certified. The ranch manager we worked with retired last year so if anyone still needs a few does gone, I have some boys that would be more than happy to help. We processed all the meat we got and shared it with the families of the kids and other needy church members.

Re: MLD Program [Re: Herbie Hancock] #8789420 01/27/23 07:54 PM
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Originally Posted by Herbie Hancock
Can't you put a group of small ranches together in a CoOp and file together to get on the MLD program? Of course there will be pro's and con's to doing so if you could.


You can and we have done so albeit we lease those neighboring places from our neighbors, but the paper work is ultimately the same as separate land owners have to sign off. It helps that we have very close personal relationships with our neighbors, imagine it would be a nightmare otherwise

Re: MLD Program [Re: BenBob] #8789421 01/27/23 07:54 PM
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I have been thinking about this, only a small low fence property (160 acres) but have neighbors on 2.5 sides that are very management conscious only taking 3 older bucks over the last several years and feeding protein year round. Another side has an owner that doesn't hunt his property but feeds and hunts out of state and country. The remaining is across and down the road and has family that sometimes hunts and takes doe and legal bucks but usually only 2 to three a year. Plenty of deer here but I'd say too many doe, probably 70b/30d ratio. Have some really good bucks showing up the last couple years but only 3.5 to 4.5 years old. Just learned that several good south Tx bucks were released nearby several years ago. The problem is there are a lot of smaller, older bucks that are not AR legal and a strain of bucks with no brow tines that need to be culled. Not looking to do MLD to take more deer so much but to cull the inferior deer that AR is protecting. We passed on several very nice 3.5 to 4.5 yo bucks this year and only took one doe. Planned to take more doe during muzzle loader season but did not get back out there. We have a couple older spikes on cam but never put crosshairs on them.

Re: MLD Program [Re: BenBob] #8789448 01/27/23 08:26 PM
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Originally Posted by BenBob
I agree that the program is good and it is geared to remove more deer/fewer deer depending on numbers. Why doesn't the state just set up all ranches over a certain number of acres in the MLD program? Looks like the program would be the ultimate management tool for the entire state. Landowners would still have the options within the program,


Because the landowner plays a big role in the program. He has to commit to certain land/water/animal improvement programs each and every year. It takes some work on his part, and you can't force a landowner to impact his land without his consent.

Re: MLD Program [Re: BenBob] #8805389 02/21/23 03:38 AM
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I love hunting on MLD. I'm a freezer filler, so it is nice to help manage the populations. I'm very grateful for any MLD that I can get on and would appreciate any direction to a few good hunts. Thanks
Andrew

Re: MLD Program [Re: BenBob] #8807621 02/24/23 07:01 PM
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After looking at their tag calculator online it won't work for me being a small acreage in the county that I am in. Most of the county has much lower deer density with open pasture land, we are near the river with a lot of good cover. They only allow 3 doe tags roflmao can't manage it like that. At least my nephew and I can take several doe, a couple spikes and a couple barely legal older bucks to help manage the herd...

Re: MLD Program [Re: BenBob] #8807634 02/24/23 07:27 PM
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Virgin poster here….. be forewarned. MLD has been a godsend for me, bought 250 acre high fenced ranch that had about 170 WT (which was about 30 more than I was led to believe). By the time I got my arms around what I had fawns were dropping everywhere, so I got up over 200. Had my biologist out, long story short, hot 50 doe tags and 50 buck tags. Now I’m not required to take that many, but got right around fifty this year. The extra month up front and back was huge. Also I didn’t have any issues with meeting requirements of the conservation option.

Re: MLD Program [Re: BenBob] #8808004 02/25/23 01:05 PM
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fishbait Offline
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What is your target density for your 250 acres? I bet your feed bill is high.. After taking 50 bucks and 50 does will sure help but still more work to be done. I'm glad you have that and not me..lol

Re: MLD Program [Re: BenBob] #8809167 02/27/23 01:09 PM
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MLD participant reminder, your reports. are due April 1st.

TPWD LMA Site

Re: MLD Program [Re: BenBob] #8811774 03/03/23 11:42 AM
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My ideal #’s are 1:1 and get close to 100 total white tail. Right now I’ve got 20 trophies that will be 4.5 and 5.5 years old next hunting season so all but two of those can go next year. Very few cull bucks available to take so the remaining takes will be mostly does, trying to keep some in each age group. I’ll see what the fawn crop looks like and come up with a plan on which/how many does to take starting in October.
Yes, the feed bill is a gagger and the drought has been brutal on my ‘food plots’. Praying for a wet spring and hoping for less calls to LEckel to come fill my 6 feeders!

Re: MLD Program [Re: BenBob] #8812116 03/03/23 11:10 PM
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MLD just gives you more control over your herd.

I cant do what I need done with just license tags, there arent enough days in the season and rooms at the ranch.

I manage on deer/acre and buck/doe ratio.


BY Ranch, Crystal City TX. South Texas Whitetail
https://huntbyranch.com
Re: MLD Program [Re: BenBob] #8823899 03/26/23 04:44 PM
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roadkill54 Offline
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Lots of interesting comments and different perspectives. Looking at it from a 33 year lease perspective and a 13 year land owner perspective I have the following thoughts....
>I manage for quality and found that very difficult to achieve initially in a 7 week season
>MLD has been a God send
>We manage for 1 to 1.2 (We lose to many top end bucks at 1 to 1 due to fighting) When we conduct our doe patrol we donate to the needy families in town.
>We have ranches in STX and Central Texas
>We feed LE/cottonseed and now experimenting with DD/cottonseed (too dry to grow anything green in a typical year)
>Age structure is critical. No trophies till 6/7, thinking of pushing that out to 7/8
>Predator control is a must
>Water enhancement is a must.(Available every 200 acres or more)
>Notice I left CULLING to last. Until you get your herd established go light on the so called 'lesser' bucks. Typically they need to be 4 however due to our program we start removing weaker traited bucks at 3. (Short points, missing eye guards, lack of points, etc)

These are the simple basics that work for us written in a few lines. I left out the point that these ranches are all high fence and large in nature.

If your low fenced hunting a small property with trigger happy neighbors good luck however if you can put together several thousand acres or have a large ranch the same results can be achieved. Remember [Age, Nutrition, Genetics]

Good Luck!

Re: MLD Program [Re: BenBob] #8823922 03/26/23 05:46 PM
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Looks like you are running your lease like a fine wound clock. I would think it could be very hard work taking all the deer needed to keep the herd in control with leases in a high fence.

Re: MLD Program [Re: BenBob] #8824653 03/28/23 12:22 AM
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Fishbait, we use our surveys as moving targets going into the fall and adjust along the way. As an example this year on one of our ranches we shut down the doe harvest early due to the lack of seeing many does. Doe numbers were already low so we shut the harvest down early and focused on the bucks to get the ratio more in line and get the mouths off the pasture since we are still in drought conditions.

The key is you have to have committed hunters who are willing to get on board with a program to grow big deer. Sometimes that means they might not harvest a trophy every year BUT they will have fun shooting does and management deer along the way and learn a lot in the process.

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