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Jekyll and Hydes

I have a neighbor that has a property similar to mine (25 acres) and we often talk about what we do for the local herd (plots, minerals, etc.). We both haven’t taken any does for quite a few years due to our local population, in fact he’s against taking any does on his property. But when the guy hunts other properties in the area and in southern Ohio, he puts the wood to anything that walks. I’m just wondering how prevalent this mindset is: I’m going to protect/manage MY deer, but will rape, pillage, and plunder those deer not in their area. Interested in your thoughts.
 
I think it depends vastly on where he's hunting otherwise, the population there and how the property owners want their property hunted when he's down there. I know for my case. I have an 175 acre farm in Northeast Medina county. I manage it heavily from doe harvest limits, plots, blah blah blah. Anyways. There are some years when I'll put a quota on number of does killed and others where the population needs to be conserved. I know in my area, we have a very high deer population and I still limit the harvest on my property including a minimum buck age and size Seeing as I can't control my neighbors, they still may get killed, but I've done my part. BUT, when I hunt Allegheny National Forest in PA during gun season, it's different hunting altogether and I may shoot the first legal buck I see. Same with going down south to my buddy's place in Noble county, I'm not picky about smoking any good doe I see. Just depends on how the owner wants it managed. Sometimes it's just more fun for people to grow deer at their place and be able to kill deer other spots. Just my two cents
 
Also, I think you reap what you sow. I don't like the mindset of blaming the DNR, weather, predators blah blah blah on lack of deer herd. We the hunter have the ability to control (by most part excluding any major disease out real) the number of deer we see and kill. So if someone does want to go wild and shoot anything they see on a property, they should know, that when less and less deer are seen, they are part of the issue. Okay. I'm done now.
 

Sgt Fury

Sgt. Spellchecker
Me and my neighbor don’t shoot does. The other neighbor will shoot them. I agree that you can only do your part, but if someone wants to shoot a doe and it’s legal to do so, you can’t judge them. If I was hunting on someone’s farm or property and they wanted me to shoot a doe, I’d have no problem doing it, I just don’t do it on my property because I’d like to build up the population or at least keep it stable.
 

giles

Cull buck specialist
Supporting Member
Invite him to your campfire. Test the waters over some cold beverages. Who knows, he might be an idiot or doesn’t realize what he’s doing. All he knows is he shows up and always goes home with meat. In the end, you can only control what you do. Can’t worry about others.
 
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5Cent

Dignitary Member
Supporting Member
12,291
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North Central Ohio
I feel like this is common place in Ohio hunting today and I believe that the ODNR is the one in control. I will never fault a hunter for taking any kind of animal to fill a tag if it's legal and they don't waste it. In the end, my tax $ is paying the ODNR to regulate the herd. While I feel the deer herd has fluctuated no doubt, it was never anything to write home about in Erie county where I grew up so it's been a blast for the last 21yrs and I am thankful for what the ODNR does.

I was brought into the hunting world as a meat hunter, it's why I primarily hunt and is the reason I fill every tag that I need to to keep fresh venison in my freezer to feed a family of 5. I am not a fan of hypocrites, so it's tough for me to listen to guys "protecting their home herd", blame the ODNR, but then go another county and do as you say above. As I age, my limited amount of fucks is dwindling. Go for it bubba, whatever floats your boat!
 

jagermeister

Dignitary Member
Supporting Member
18,060
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Ohio
I don't think this is a very common issue. Average hunters have a hard enough time finding ONE property to hunt for deer. I'd bet on average there are very few that have access to multiple properties, let alone multiple properties of which one they have extensive harvest control power. In my opinion this isn't an issue that's prevalent enough to make any significant impact on the state as a whole. I mean, the vast majority of successful hunters only harvest 1 deer in Ohio in a given year.
 

jimk

Member
I can speak for myself that hunted public land hard this fall and spent many hours doing so with no luck was disappointing. When I got permission late in the season to hunt some private land, I was so happy. But i found out that the land was also given to other hunters along with lease rights to the Amish( need to pay property taxes). During the extra weekend, the land owner next to the property hunted with a large group ( 12+ hunters) on his land they probably got a few that travel from property to property. Add the large amount of coyotes tracks that I saw, I am sure the herd is under pressure. I don't few guility for taking a late season doe last Sat but I too wonder how a herd can survive. I have been in commincation with the other hunters that hunt the land and we agree to work the land but with the lease to amish and the locals its tough to have mature bucks year in and year out.

I am happy with a Doe and it provides the meat that I enjoy ( lunch today was fresh loins not frozen), while a mature Buck is everyone's ideal deer sometimes just having enough is good enough. Just my 2 cents.
 

Jackalope

Dignitary Member
Staff member
38,841
260
Really it boils down to the core human nature of greed. No different than a person who has a package of cookies in their desk getting the email about cookies in the breakroom and going to get a couple. The cookies in their desk, like their home managed deer, are secure and managed. The cookies in the breakroom are up for grabs and free, depletion of that cookie supply has no bearing on their stash so they better get them now before someone else does. Even if every cookie in the breakroom is immediately destroyed they are not impacted because they have their own private stash. Basically they hoard what they believe to be theirs, or within their control, and anything outside that is of no real concern and free. And there's nothing wrong with either of those things, its an ingrained human instinct. Hunter's are just doing what they do. This is why hunters as a body are completely incapable of managing a statewide deer population on their own, and why population reduction issues lay 100% at the feet of the DNR despite "greedy" hunters.
 

giles

Cull buck specialist
Supporting Member
That’s a very good explanation joe. I am guilty of these tactics, as I haven’t killed a deer off my property in years. I want another for my freezer this year and my back yard hasn’t even crossed my mind....until now😂
 

"J"

Git Off My Lawn
Supporting Member
56,743
274
North Carolina
That’s a very good explanation joe. I am guilty of these tactics, as I haven’t killed a deer off my property in years. I want another for my freezer this year and my back yard hasn’t even crossed my mind....until now😂
Just kill the damn deer Dave....