Is 25 acres enough?

dennishoddy · Dec 6, 2009

257wby said:
+1 I hunt up by Cherokee and it really trips my trigger when I see button buck and little basket bucks being checked in. In order to manage the population, a doe should be harvested for every buck. If every hunter would choose the mature doe instead of the basket 8 next to her, they would have just as much meat, and a chance at a wall hanger next year. Some people say "well if I didn't shoot him, someone across the fence will." Maybe, maybe not, hopefully it will be the latter, but if you do shoot him, we all know that is as big as that 2 1/2 year old deer will become. Oklahoma has the potential to produce just as big of deer as Kansas and Illinois, but we have to let the little bucks walk, and the big does drop. Sorry for stealing the thread

You didn't steal the thread. You just posted my entire hunting philosophy.

If its a first time hunter, or maybe a second year hunter, I don't have any problem with them taking any thing they can get. If they REALLY NEED THE MEAT, get it on and get your meat, I've been in that position. But most of us after the initial harvest might need to think about taking up some conservation practices. It really makes me happy when I read a thread where some body's youn'un passes on a small deer because their parent has instilled that mind set into them.

The deer herd is ours to manage.

ENC · Dec 6, 2009

The bottom line is that 25 acres is probably enough. I have 17, my wife and I each took a good meat doe (90-100 # range) off of it this year.

Evan

dennishoddy · Dec 6, 2009

ENC said:
The bottom line is that 25 acres is probably enough. I have 17, my wife and I each took a good meat doe (90-100 # range) off of it this year.

Evan

Congratulations to you and your wife!!

Wish I could get my wife to hunt. :cry3:

iriediver · Dec 6, 2009

Peace_Maker said:
I just can't figure out why people spend so much money, just to kill a deer. The meat is not that good. For the price of a lease I can buy a fat 1200 lb steer, tape some sheds to his head. Shoot him, take a few pictures, and have 700 lbs of prime beef. To me the only difference between that and putting a stand by a feeder is the meat is better. Then again I pheasant hunt when I can buy chicken titties for $1.50 a pound at the store, but there's a ton of action in bird hunting.

Don't get me wrong, I'm glad people hunt deer (especially when I drive at night). I just don't understand why people pay so much to do it and buy land just for that purpose. What am I missing?

chicken titties.....too funny mate, too funny

bettingpython · Dec 7, 2009

As much as I would like to buy land this year I can't, need to get a few things squared away in the next couple of years.
I don't need the meat I like the meat. Only reason I even bother with hunting is because I enjoy venison and I don't have people giving me a freezer full of it so I have to go kill it myself.

300WSM · Dec 8, 2009

If i wanted a place to hunt, i'd buy it and put a food plot or some feeders on it. This will get crossing deer to come back and stay. I hear alot about deer management and how in the past people just shot whatever and didnt worry about deer size or quality. I dont believe this crap as there are more deer in this state now than ever before. ODWC is managing the deer population. Big bucks dont get big by being seen alot. They are hard to hunt. If you've seen and shot alot of deer maybe you will hold out for a bigger buck, but if you havent shot many or seen many i'd say kill the first one you see because you might not see another. Thats the way i've hunted for a while, now i've got a good place to hunt, where i see alot of deer, and i may start getting selective.

lameduck · Dec 8, 2009

getsum said:
Sorry, but wah wah wah.......
I have 55 and am surrounded by large thick areas on 3 sides where the Leases shoot the crap out of stuff.........
One side I have a guy that put a feeder up next to my property and shot an 11 pointer that came off of a really thick area of my property....

I don't care , because they are not MY DEER !!!!
I would have explained to him what we have done , and ask if he would help out instead of just wipe them out...

That is what we get when we have neighbors.......
I had a ton of deer all over my place.
A 13, 11, 9, 8, 7, and tons of does.
Once NOV came around - I hear tons of shooting all around me - like W.W III but I see NOTHING.....

Oh well........

Putting up a High Fence -
I would not be too worried about you.
I would just say - oh well - lots of $$$$$$
Do what you want with it.

For the wah wah opinions I believe you would think a little differently about it if you were the one busting your butt managing a herd only to have some idiot come out and shoot 6 young bucks with potential.

It was more that the man knew all we did to manage deer, set his stand up on our fence line, then after he took a deer invited his buddies out to take deer. No they are not MY deer but the guy was enjoying the fruits of our labor.

About the $$$ comment, the 1,200 acres has been in our family for over 100 years. When my Grand Dad died he made a rule that all money made on the ranch must go back into the ranch. We have oil, and cattle, so yes we do have money to spend on the ranch, but it is also money that can ONLY be spent on the ranch.

Some more history about the man that set up his feeder on our fence line:

Now that he discovered the high fence he has moved his blind to a fence line on the other side of the property. It borders a 70,000 acre ranch, and the owner of the ranch called us and let us know he was going to be building a high game fence on his side also. Defend him if you must, but this guy knows what he is doing is wrong, and continues to do it.

Hunter61 · Dec 8, 2009

It depends on if there are deer on it or crossing it. It does not take alot of land just the right land. If there are deer in the area you could put in a feeder or food plot.

lameduck · Dec 8, 2009

What I would do is set up a small hand plot, this would give the deer a consistent food source. If hogs are a problem you might put some hog panels up around the plot because hogs can ruin a small plot in one night. If you want to hunt the hogs, you can fence half and leave the rest for the hogs.

I do not know if you have a pond, or anything on the land, if not you might set up some watering stations. This way you can keep the deer on your property and they will not have to travel for water.

Most important is to get the neighbors to work with you, and if they are hunters set up a management plan. If you can get a few neighbors on board feeding protein, corn, a few plots, and a water source you will find yourself in the deer quickly.

Just remember if there is a neighbor that is not on board, and is going to shoot anything that walks, and invite friends to do the same it can ruin 25 acres fast.

ENC · Dec 8, 2009

dennishoddy said:
Congratulations to you and your wife!!

Wish I could get my wife to hunt.

Yeah only now I am gonna have to hear it all year about hers was the bigger of the two. :chop:

Evan

Is 25 acres enough?

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