GMMAT

Not quite sure I follow you, here. I'm not asking to hunt with anyone else. With the number of does I need to take out his year.....I feel like i'd be letting myself down if I took time out of my woods to hunt somewhere else. I can't afford a missed opportunity (day afield somewhere else).

LebeauHunter

GMMAT,

The problem is enforcement. Most people will say they will play by someone's rules b/c it is your property. Most smart people who want to come back will follow the rules, but there will be mistakes either on purpose or accidental, and then you have to decide what to do.

We had a youth hunt and two forks were taken (sorry couldn't see with the ears and all). We didn't want to ruin the hunt for these young hunters by berating them (one was first deer). But this year we are probably not going to have the youth hunt b/c it is messing up our management plan.

Diesel77

Well first of all, if you have the rights to hunt the property, or own it and you are inviting them to hunt then whatever restrictions, rules, management guidelines, whatever you want to call it, should be not be a slap in the face to them. If they feel that way then shame on them.

I have a few properties I hunt, some is family owned, some we have rights to. 4 Years ago the larger 2000 acre property we have, we started trying to harvest 8 points or better with an 18 inside spread. Its hard to judge that sometimes but you certainly can count points while shooting and you can also get real close to width by looking at the ears and the rack. We also tried the 3.5 year old route but again, that can be difficult in some situations to make, so we stuck with the 8/18 and its worked out real well as weve seen from trail cam pics as well as harvested deer as Ive posted some pics from the last 2 years.

GMMAT

Caveat is......nobody hunts there without me physically with them.

I think that'll take the "unknown" out of the equation.

huntingson

Jeff,
I certainly hope it is not bad to do what you are doing. I am doing it to my buddy's youngest son this year. He can shoot a 1.5+ year old doe or a 3.5+ year old buck. That is it. No yearlings, no fawns (basically just to eliminate the possibility of shooting a button), and no immature bucks. If he doesn't like it then he can try to get his first deer somewhere else. That may sound bad, but it is just a matter of respect as far as I am concerned.

Now, this will also be my wife's first year hunting. She can shoot whatever she wants. It is her place too, so I can't tell her what she can or can't shoot. The hard part will be not complaining about it when she shoots one bigger than any I have evershot.

130woodman

GMMAT from my experiance with inviting people to hunt with me is to find people that already have the same standards that you do.Some people just don't get it and say they will follow your rules but when the the moment of truth comes they will most likely come up with some line of bs of why they took that 1 1/2 year old deer.

Last year I had 2 idiots do that and I kicked everybody off and they aren't welcome anymore.So know I hunt with people who think like me. I'am I right or wrong? I don't know but it is my land so what I say goes.

JNTURK

well either way if it was public or private land.....you are inviting me to hunt in an area that you have scouted and patterned these deer....i would have to say that i would 100% adhere to your request....

mobow

Yeah, when I read that I understood the confusion....I understood from your initial post that bucks needed to be 3 1/2 y/o to shoot, and those were the restrictions you placed on anyone hunting on your ground.....What I mean by loosing opportunities is those guys hunting w/ you may get po'd that you didn't follow your own rules and won't reciprocate the favor......If that makes sense.

I would GLADLY follow any rules a landowner sets forth in regards to management......Until said landowner breaks his own rules.

GR8atta2d

Put me on the bottom of that 6 mile list..I'll hunt with ya too!

Brknarrow1970

Jeff,

It is your land you have the permission you set the rules, if someone disagrees or doesn't like the rules then they don't hunt

Question though you stated in an earlier post that you were targeting specific does yourself -if someone was to come hunt with you now you want them to shoot the first doe they see- it was my understanding you will only shoot single does without yearlings - so If I was hunting with you and shot a doe that had a yearling with it (no spots) how are going to react - just checking cause it looks like you are less than an hour away and I would be more thanhappy to help thin some does -