Thread: do you shoot hinds???

If it's brown it's down.

Originally Posted by kiwijames

If it's brown it's down.

Don't forget "they are still making them"

Originally Posted by Tahr

Something that always makes me smile is people shooting what they thinkare poor quality stags and say they have taken it out of te "gene pool". What a hoot - you would need to shoot a zillion to make any difference. And mostly I suspect they are young animals.

Far better to shoot hinds so that there is competition amongst the stags so the biggest, bravest and fittest stags get to serve the hinds while the inferior ones sulk in the corner. I sulked a lot like that when I was a teenager.

I shoot about 50 deer a year. I try to shoot hinds and does if they present themselves but am guilty of shooting stags for meat. I don't (mostly) shoot stags with obvious potential. But I'm an imperfect person, and really do like killing shit so make the odd indiscretion

Completely agree especially the part about being imperfect (I mean we all are not saying you are the only imperfect one hahahha) but trying is all we can do really.

If there's 10 hinds to one stag every shitter is going to get to breed.

As for shitters culled for the gene pool I agree a lot are young stags (my biggest cringe is scrubby 12) and thats why I dont cull unless its super obvious like deformitys or they are clearly mature shitters. The other one is culling for not having bezs which down south wouldnt leave you many deer in many places.

However I do think selective harvest of stags can have an effect (your not going to change the entire potential of the herd but you can improve it somewhat) but more so in that shooting young potential rippers before they reach maturity where they can be the dominant stag means those genes dont continue. I think realistically the best chance for making a difference is leaving stags unless old or obvious culls and killing hinds so the stags have to fight it out for females. Then maybe one day when there enough 6 plus year old stags we can actually make reasonable judgement calls on stags as by that age potential is alot more obvious.

As they said in Vietnam. Shoot everything that moves...... Once I've identified it as a deer tho

I shoot all the above , don't usually have the option to choose but if I can I will take a hind rather than a half grown velvet stag. Last weekend I shot a hind and its yearling nice looking meat.

I think the real question is will a 308 actually kill a hind? We should be told.

No & then

Originally Posted by Tahr

Don't forget "they are still making them"

Flat out like a lizard drinking

I have been known to let velvet stags walk away.....very seldom has any other deer been given that option....my hind to stag ratio would be close to 6;1 if not higher...I just dont see many stags and because I hunt for freezer,the first deer seen gets shot and carried out.

I tend to harvest 'em as I see 'em. But I dont shoot that many any more. Im lucky enough to have some good hunting on private property and not really interested in trying to cook up antler, so its usually a hind or a yearling. But if a stag steps up in front when theyre big and fat, then they get the drop. But I dont shoot any stag that has potential, theres a heap of guys that would appreciate a nice head. However, I live in an area that is renowned for a lack of bey tines, so if its short on beys, and within range, and fully recoverable, then its bang flop.

Saw a really nice stag last night, out feeding on the grass in the matagouri. Big head, lots of mass, nice long tines, classic shape, looked to be of some age. But it only had 8 of those nice long tines! Didn't put the drop on him, too much like hard work.

Originally Posted by veitnamcam

January? Reds drop in November..what species are you hunting?

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I hear you but in the Urewera, I have a regular school trip in there. Ive been going there about 9 years now always in the end of November, beginning of December. All the hinds I have shot have still been pregnant, not far off dropping though. Usually shoot yearlings in there though.

Only shoot for meat, so if I have a choice yearlings or fat hinds

As a meat hunter, hunting DOC Blocks that always dont hold high numbers i shoot generally the first deer i see(quite possible the only deer i see that day).
I dont mind if its a velvet stag, a hind or whatever.
Seem to shoot a equal number over time between stags, hinds, spikers, yearlings etc. If i see a couple, i normally shoot the best eating one. Ie hind and yearling i take the yearling.

If its a stag and a spiker i take the spiker. During the roar i generally will just hunt stags.
When the hinds have dropped there young i tend to avoid hunting and then avoid the hinds where possible. Of cause if i was hunting a area with high deer numbers i take more hinds
as they better eating .
Still, i combat areas around here that have low numbers (due 1080, hunting pressure etc) in hunting those areas only 2-3 times a year.
Hence have 15 different spots i go on a rotation basis and always willing to look at new spots etc.
I dont mine if some spots are crap or try a spot i have no idea about, getting a animalisnt always the main reason to get out.

Just being out there doing it is what counts and i nearly always just shot one (if option to shot more come up) as thats all i can carry and leave for next time or
the next hunter

I take satisfaction in shooting hinds knowing the good I am doing and given the choice I do my best to choose females over males. This is because I understand the benefits that come from this in both trophy potential and meat quality of the herd. I hunt for trophies, meat and everything else that comes with it. In saying that Im not always a conservation saint and have my times of "if its brown its down" depending on the situation at the time.

I read some really good quotes in an article in a hunting magazine the other day. The first went along the lines of "shoot more hinds then stags and let young stags grow to meet their potential, this is the mark of a hunter with respect". The next quote then went "If you are a young or newer hunter, do not feel pressured to not shoot that younger or smaller stag. Shoot it and enjoy the reward and satisfaction that comes with it". This is a rough translation but I read it and thought what an excellent way of portraying the respect and correlation between the two situations.

An area I hunt has a lot of "legends" who love smashing stags. All they look for is stags and think they are mighty hunters for shooting heaps of them. All I see is a lack of respect, both for the herd and for their fellow hunters. The funny thing is they love stags so much but their own doings are to the detriment of what they love. Summer summer for "pure meat hunters" who shoot only for meat and bowl over every trophy stag. We all understand you don't care and that's all good but to me its about respect for your mate or another hunter who may have valued that stag more than you.

Obviously as others have mentioned, this is always subjective to the opportunities you are given and the type of hunts you do. Every situation for every hunter is different. If you apply the principles of respect for yourself, the herd/environment and other hunters then you cant go wrong IMO.

Yes I do as mainly a filthy meat hunter. It’s always going to depend on the area and season and the animal population as to what the equation is, in low population areas maybe something like: spiker >yearling>stag>mature hind and in high population area yearling>hind>spiker>stag
But we don’t always get to choose from a mob on public land eh.

The equation flips around during the roar or late summer early autumn: stag>spiker>Yearling>hind