[410-er]

Your out muzzy hunting and a big doe and small button buck comes up 25 yds from you and never know you are there.Do you shoot the doe and preserve the button buck in hopes he's a shooter next year,OR do you shoot the button buck with the thought of the doe having twins or tripplets next spring?
(Shooting the squirrel that has agitated you all day is not an option.)

 

[Big Redneck]

Around here I would shoot the button buck, we need all the fawns we can get. If we don't have those big old does in the future we will not have any bucks, big or little.

 

[longfellow]

Let them both walk, let the herd grow and see what the button buck turns into.

 

[B292]

shoot the button buck if I had to make a decision between the two????

 

[SpiritNugent]

Both get the pass...

 

[Muab Dib]

Shoot the big one regardless of gender. Rational: I've passed up shots at the few doe I've seen over the two week season. I'm outa venison and it's January. No more guilt trip for me shoot'n any legal deer of size 'cause try as I might I just can't save PA's deer herd.

Muab Dib

 

[brewyak]

I think that it would depend on how many deer thatI have seen in the area. I am not out to kill any deer that I see, but if I know that there are a lot of deer in a certain area I would take the button buck. You can't eat horns

 

[Loggy]

I think that it would depend on how many deer thatI have seen in the area. I am not out to kill any deer that I see, but if I know that there are a lot of deer in a certain area I would take the button buck. You can't eat horns

 

[wampire]

Your out muzzy hunting and a big doe and small button buck comes up 25 yds from you and never know you are there.Do you shoot the doe and preserve the button buck in hopes he's a shooter next year,OR do you shoot the button buck with the thought of the doe having twins or tripplets next spring?
(Shooting the squirrel that has agitated you all day is not an option.)

Shoot the button buck, save 2 fetus fawns, mount the skull and laugh at AR while you grill the backstraps.

 

[Bunky]

I think that it would depend on how many deer thatI have seen in the area. I am not out to kill any deer that I see, but if I know that there are a lot of deer in a certain area I would take the button buck. You can't eat horns

If there are a good many deer---Ill shot the doe for the extra meat and hope the buck grows big over the next 2 years! If the deer population is down I let the doe pass and shot the buck!

 

[mossie]

I agree; If your going to shoot doe then shoot the smaller ones not the big doe. The big doe are the teachers in the herd and the smaller ones depend on them a great deal. Save the big doe and harvest the 2 year and under. Pay attention to the nose on bald deer and you can tell if it's a male or female.

 

[TrapBob]

After slipping on ice and falling with the Deerstalker yesterday, neither. Now if they were in bayonet range...

Here in 5A and 4B, the herd is down, so I'd probably take the BB. Although I might let them both walk and shoot that danged squirrel!!!

 

[Talonracer]

I honestly dont know what I'd do, its so rare to see a live deer around here I might just call the paper!

 

[Flint Lock]

shoot the button buck. its just going to grow up to be someone else's trophy so why not take it now? let the doe reproduce.

 

[bowhunterjac]

I read before that if you shoot the doe, a yearling buck will most likely stay in that area. However if it stays with it's mother she will eventually chase it off and it will have to find a new hangout. I don't know....

 

[Guest]

If you shoot the doe, and she was carrying twins, one of them will probably be next years button buck, so, you just killed a button buck by killing her.

If you kill the button buck, it generally would have dispersed 2-5 miles away when it was 1.5 years old, so, you lose the chance at it ever becoming a legal buck in your area.

Either way, whatever your choice, you lose.

If the area you hunt had enough does anyway, I'd take the doe.