Possible changes to deer hunting in 2011

[C-Money]

Pennsylvania has had great success with a 4 point min. They are in year 8 or 9 now and they have some real giants back there! I would like to see the doe tags cut down and maybe a shorter season first here. Not sure if I am in support od a 4 point min in NE WA.

[coachcw]

the only problem I see with point restictions is that we allready have a problem with guys shoot a ton of two points every year , If we limited the tags then a guy could harvest what ever buck he wanted and the qaulity of deer could onlyu goe up. Game management is for more than point restriction , theres poaching , habitat, preditors and hunting , we need to manage  full circle or whats the point . If we go to a draw only areas I think that those who apply for them should not be able to hunt a general area , that would limit the number of hunters applying and those who meat hunt could do that aswell. maybe that would satisfy most.

[high country]

perhaps we should make all blacktail 4 point minimum, it would ease the pressure on the NE and afterall the coast crowd does not "need" the meat. I wuld like to shoot a big blacktail, but I have not even seen many pics of big ones from here.

[bullcanyon]

Very few of us hunt to "feed" the family.  We enjoy it.  Love it.  Very seldom does it cost less than beef in the long run.  Ya ya, there are a few that harvest an animal off the porch and spend pennies on the dollar to fill the tag.  That is not the norm.  Just like fishing.  You could save money going to winco or whatever.  So those that claim they hunt to survive.  They are full of crap. Take the money you put into one tank of fuel and go shopping for the family.  And we all know that it won't be just one tank of fuel.  Heck, I can probably feed the family just on my scouting money.  Don't tell the wife I said that. 

[PolarBear]

Very few of us hunt to "feed" the family.  We enjoy it.  Love it.  Very seldom does it cost less than beef in the long run.  Ya ya, there are a few that harvest an animal off the porch and spend pennies on the dollar to fill the tag.  That is not the norm.  Just like fishing.  You could save money going to winco or whatever.  So those that claim they hunt to survive.  They are full of crap. Take the money you put into one tank of fuel and go shopping for the family.  And we all know that it won't be just one tank of fuel.  Heck, I can probably feed the family just on my scouting money.  Don't tell the wife I said that. 

[high country]

I hunt because I love to and because I have a motto to uphold...."beef free since 1993". 

[Tman]

If your out hunting to feed your familly maybe you should be working harder to provide for them , but I guess work is for beer and smokes . The idea of hunting to feed your familly is crap if you really need one deer to survive the winter your a dead beat .

wow I had no idea people on here were so cruel...and so elitist ....

making me sadder and sadder ..... just like my last favorite forum it just became a nasty place and lost all the fun....oh well guess hunting is meant only for the rich elitists who have perfect lives and the rest of us should just stay home.....

[bigpaw 77]

If your out hunting to feed your familly maybe you should be working harder to provide for them , but I guess work is for beer and smokes . The idea of hunting to feed your familly is crap if you really need one deer to survive the winter your a dead beat .

Wow. who the hell are you to judge and generalize everyone that needs a deer to help there family get through the winter. Not everyone can afford to buy meat and how exactally does that make them a dead beat. There are tons of unemployed hard workers out there right now that cant get a job.

[Birdguy]

There are some real issues in this thread IMO. The folks that truly are hunting to feed the family genereally are not buying tags to begin with, and are not looking for antlers at all. There are a large number of folks who will certainly use the meat, but mostly just want to get out in the field and have the chance. Most hunters I know in our state do it a cheap as they can, though it may not be a cheap as we tell our family.
The deer survival rate is dropping, partly to habitat loss, partly to winter conditions, and partly to predators. Perhaps I am wrong but I do not think that hunting by legal sportsman really effect game numbers. Yes, deer numbers are affected by hunting but not enough to turn the tide. If that is the case then lets close all deer hunting on the east side for a year and the problem will be fixed providing we have a good winter. We need to look at the coyote, cougar, bear, and wolf issue. If the WDFW said they were going to make the area a 4 point or better area and then REMOVE the predators I would be all for it. Last I checked Pennsylvania did not have many cougars or wolves eating their deer. We have owned property in 204 for 30 years, it amazes me the amount of development over there. I spent the whole season over there this fall and came home empty handed. I logged the hours in the field and in the stand, it just was not my year. I passed on some smaller bucks this year as I was thinking I would get a better shot, I was really hoping my Nephew (first year hunter) or my Dad (disabled guy who can not leave the cabin) would get the chance at those bucks. I will be bummed if when my kids are ready to hunt I can not get them a deer because it lacks the number of points to be able to shoot. Each year there are more houses and more predators. We have hunted in Colville and Chewelah for 6 years and I see the same things over there.

The WDFW will continue to put band aids on our game management issues until we all have so many issues that we all lose. I hope my kids get the chance to take a spike, and they decide if it is their trophy or not.

[Hangfire]

This subject made the rounds a few months ago. For those not aware, several stakeholders meetings were held with region 1 DFW personnel at the Clayton fair grounds last summer. The stakeholders consisted of several N.E. Washington hunting clubs, one from western Washington and 2 or 3 county commissioners and a guide or two. The reasons given for wanting to increase the minimum size to 4 point were: larger bucks, increased reproduction, more money for the counties involved by tourists, increased guide business etc.

After the stake holder meetings a series of public meetings were held in Colville, Spokane and other locations. I attended the Spokane meeting. Most attending at the Spokane meeting were opposed. I heard most attending at the Colville meeting were in favor. Neither place had total people feeling one way or the other.

I ask the stakeholder members at the Spokane meeting where the information came from that said there would be increased reproduction. They couldn't directly answer and finally said they think they had seen some thing from New York. I talked to a biologist about deer harvest. He told me the total deer harvest would ultimately be composed of larger bucks but the total buck harvest would be lower, much lower even after things had stabilized.He also said there is not normally a problem with does being bred.

A certain percent of deer would not be taken the first 1.5 years of there life. Most 3 points, 2 points and spikes are 1.5 years old. That does not mean they will be there to harvest as 2.5 year old's or older. A number of these deer will die from assorted reasons between 1.5 years and the next one or two years. There will be car kills, winter kills, poaching, predator loss and those shot and left in the woods by honest hunters who miss identified the deer.

The two regions proposed are two of the most productive units for whitetail, so this has a big impact. WDFW people that I talked to said they could maybe agree with two smaller units like 105, 111 or 108 as a trial. It is the commissioners that will make the decision.

I am against it but, do see the need for a number a changes to the white tail management. I also feel the stakeholders need to be applauded for getting involved and not just setting around complaining. I just do not agree with this proposal, unless some one has some proof of deer herd benefit.

[huntnnw]

"Really! Some of use hunt for the challenge and for the meat you a$$hat  If all you hunt for is the trophy maybe you should go find a fence to hunt behind"
 
wtf does this even mean?? learn to type and read dude and WTF does a fence and challenge even doing int he same fence, your ignorant

[huntnnw]

"The size of the buck has little to do with the challenge of the hunt..  and by the way, who the hell do you think you are to judge someone who wants some meat in the freezer? " 

tman do you read?,  "the guys who bitch about it" and where did I judge anyone?,u take this personal? I cannot stand to hear hunters bitch year in and year out about never getting big bucks, but they shoot the first buck they see. so I take it your one of them   ah yeah it does, hunting 1 1/2 and 2 1/2 yr old deer is whole different game than hunting 4 1/2 yr and older deer, whole different ball game, get a doe tag if ya want meat in the freezer.

[Tman]

Huntnw, good job, another great case of opening your mouth before checking your brain.. Your doing great.  It sounds like your patting yourself on the back pretty good IMO.   Whats next, telling kids there not hunters because they shot a doe.. You win #1 *censored* on the site in my book, congrats.

The bucks i've shot are well worth shooting, however, in the late season, I would be glad to shoot a smaller buck to fill my tag..   Your welcome to look through my posts.  But I am not to prideful to shoot a smaller buck to fill my freezer, and even a doe if I had a tag.  I don't necessarily need the meat, but there are many who do.  Also, good deer management involves quite a bit more than just shooting what you would consider a "trophy". 

[coachcw]

good thing that spelling isn't a sign of brains , no doubt I suck at it . you apparently take things out of context . sure it's tough times for many of us out there . But that being said if your out hunting to feed the family because your out of work and broke thats BS. you still gotta buy a tag inless you poach ( thats a whole new issue ). the time you spend in the field , the cost of the tags and fuel your line just dosn't add up to me , maybe I suck at math aswell ? . the percentage of hunters that shoot a deer with in walking distance from there home is very low , they would be the excepetion . BTW huntnw your fulla bs mr I'm gonna kill the state record moose (not throphy hunting huh) you must have been broke and hungery huh. I truelly believe that if your a hard worker and willing to do what it takes . even if that means giving up some luxurys , You can get work . Way to many people in this country are and were over empolyed and get over paid for a job most anyone could do , now they think it's there right to make that much. Every day I get calls from people so called looking for work , that bs they are just making the calls for unemployment , they never send me a resume . when we keep extending unemployment  benifits this is what we get . Maybe  the state could give the unemployed hunters free tags too, and just raise the fees for everyone else . Why not it seems to be how we do everything else here.

[Eildydar]

"Really! Some of use hunt for the challenge and for the meat you a$$hat  If all you hunt for is the trophy maybe you should go find a fence to hunt behind"
 
wtf does this even mean?? learn to type and read dude and WTF does a fence and challenge even doing int he same fence, your ignorant

Please, for YOUR own sake, do not call people ignorant about their spelling/grammar when YOURS is horrible! YOU'RE ignorant if you think the only way to have an enjoyable and challenging hunt is to bag a 150" deer.