Greetings from the blind, friends! As I sit here typing notes on my iPad waiting for a giant buck to walk out (ok not really, I type this as I should be working), I’m reminded of the quote “Hunters in the Know take a doe.” If your lease is like mine, you’ll have what seems like 100 does cruising around throughout the day. I literally have had over a dozen at my feeder at the same time. While we all are waiting for the Boone & Crockett club buck to appear, we need to be more cognizant of alleviating the overabundance of does.
As of the writing of this article, Garfield County sits at 1,073 deer checked in. Of that, 616 have been antlered deer. Think of all of the does you’ve seen, and then try to figure in your head the percentages of does/bucks you’ve seen and realize that over 60% of deer actually taken are antlered.
To me, being a hunter is also being a wildlife manager at the same time. Population control has its benefit in several different ways. Think of it this way: a shorter rut will help the bucks live through it and grow bigger antlers, so they don’t have so many does to breed. Ag depredation is another advantage as well as perhaps fewer auto/deer collisions. Speaking of, I typically hit 2 or 3 deer a year with my pickup. As such, I bought a grill guard 3 years ago and haven’t hit a deer since. Funny how that works.
If you weren’t aware, you can legally (with license, of course) kill 8 does a year. Six can be taken during the regular season, and then 2 more can be taken during the antlerless holiday season. Think about how much money you’ll save at the grocery store when you kill several does, and if you are like me, you’ll eat backstraps/sticks/sausage for days. I know of a fella that makes cranberry/jalapeno/cheddar sausage, and it’s perhaps the greatest sausage ever. If you are local, maybe you’ve tried it, and if not, maybe I’ll save you a slice.
Now go get that bow and take a doe!
