Shooting Does with button bucks and 8points

[smithhunter1975]

I read Don Higgins post on Facebook suggesting that you should shoot all the does you can that have button bucks (and leave does with doe fawns). His logic is that the does will push their button buck fawns off the farm to never come back. I assume this is a natural instinct to prevent inbreeding. He says if you shoot the doe that buck fawn will call your area home the rest of its life.

He also says to shoot all 8point bucks as they will never be big antler genetics.

Do you agree or disagree with this and why?

I have never shot a doe off my farm because I think the population should be higher. Maybe I have been making a mistake?

 

[Sligh1]

Button bucks…. That one has been around for 20 years. Let me make this one really simple - IMO & experience….. you have few coyotes…. No problem. U in high coyote density area- u r giving those button bucks death sentence. Maybe by late season they ok or later the better. The amount of times I’ve seen mom shot & fawns don’t leave & then get killed …. I stopped it immediately. They were killed by coyotes super fast. Made me sick.

8 points….. I’d only shoot an 8 at maybe 4.5. & he’d have to be like 125” or something. Agree 100% if it’s cases like that. I won’t shoot giant 8’s. I’ve had 8’s that were 160-175” ….. no way is that a cull. I’ve also had 160” 8’s at 4 or 5 that turned into 180-200” bucks with 10-15+ points. Once an 8 doesn’t mean always an 8.
Yes- low scoring 8’s- roast em. I’ve seen a handful id dare shoot at 3.5 but pretty rare. Would have to be really bad. But yes, low scoring 8’s, say 4.5 & up that are like <140”…. In areas where deer reach maturity & u have plenty of bucks… yep- I’d roast every last one of em. I get kids, buddies, etc - ecstatic to shoot them.
Stuff like this…. & they are thrilled!!! So am I!!!
*id do same thing for 10 pointers though too…. Like a 125” 4.5 year old 10….. he’s getting roasted too.
Like these bucks…. Know every one of em…. 4.5 is youngest. A few that are “oh my he’s little” were OLD!!!!!

 

[Sligh1]

I love giant 8’s!!! One of these has screen tilt on how pic was taken but hard horned was a mammoth. This was like 10 years ago. Buddies farm.

 

[Trapshooter1]

Yall can shoot every young 8 pointer around.......I like my 8 pointers a little bit older.......this is a monster 8 pointer biggest 8 I've ever seen. #ITSALLABOUTTHEFRAME

 

[Muskrat24]

I read Don Higgins post on Facebook suggesting that you should shoot all the does you can that have button bucks (and leave does with doe fawns). His logic is that the does will push their button buck fawns off the farm to never come back. I assume this is a natural instinct to prevent inbreeding. He says if you shoot the doe that buck fawn will call your area home the rest of its life.

He also says to shoot all 8point bucks as they will never be big antler genetics.

Do you agree or disagree with this and why?

I have never shot a doe off my farm because I think the population should be higher. Maybe I have been making a mistake?

I think if I remember correctly Don says similar to what Skip stated. I believe Don starts the culling of 8 points and poor quality 10 points at 3 and above. So it gets risky when people don’t get the entire message because I’m sure he does not shoot every 2.5 year old 8 with nubs started as g4s. Don spoke about this at the deer classic and on his podcast. I love big 8s as well but in this case Don is looking for the best of the best deer from a score perspective and an 8 point at 3+ is less likely (not impossible, as Skip mentioned) to get 200”+ at maturity. I read into this as a management tool for Don which is fairly difficult for most people’s situation. Most biologists agree it is difficult to impact the genetics of an area in a positive way (Don thinks he maybe has on his farm some over SEVERAL years). IMO most farms have a few deer that MAY have what it takes and by taking out the bucks that are less likely to have the antler characteristics to eventually be high scoring you are allowing the bucks with the most potential to get AGE and reducing competition. If you have short tined 8/10 points with small mass and narrow at age 3/4/5 those deer will LIKELY never be 200 class deer and I think that is what Don is getting at.

 

[Hardwood11]

I did see two button bucks stick around my 52 acres in MN. Mom died and these twins hung around to age 3 and then got picked off by the neighbors .

However they did actually stay on my small property except during the rut the moved enough to get shot . I wouldn’t recommend it as a strategy, this was a rare instance.

Note the bucks looked almost identical . It was fun to watch .

 

[Bucksnbears]

Quite a few years ago, had a doe with a button buck. He had an extremely red colored forehead patch and oversized buttons.
I shot the doe late season to fill my doe tag.
He stuck around for 8 years untill I killed him. He grew into one of the biggest bucks I've had here
He was really recognizable with that red forehead.

That's him in my avatar pic.