Quality Deer Management Association

QDM has goals like a more balanced male:female population.
With less females per male-- the more a buck must roam to breed--so hunters see more.
Sounds good, maybe.

QDM's main goal of seeing more bucks is to see bigger bucks and restrict themselves to shooting only big old bucks.
Same as the Boone and Crockett mentality.

To do it you need to shoot a lot of does especially in the first few years of a large management area. Eventually male:female ratio comes closer to 1:1 and for sure breeding behaviour will change and hunters might see more big bucks.

Sounds good, sort of, except--who shoots the does?
Well every QDMA article tries to put a positive spin on it.
But I always feel personally offended or offended on behalf of another hunter.
"Good for a kids first deer"
"Builds confidence to shoot a doe"
"Good for the wife to shoot" "Good for your daughter"
"Good if you just want to get some meat"
"Help the management plan so give the meat to charity"
It all adds up to---someone has to shoot the does----but it is less worthy----less of a hunt, than shooting Mr. Basket Head with his Boone eligible antlers.


No thanks.
I am happy to bring home any deer for eating in winter.
Big antlers do not make a hunt more worthy than a spiker or a doe.

Amazing the misinformation provided in this thread by some. For those that haven't already visited their site please do so before making any judgement on their "goals". If you want to shoot a spike buck instead of a doe in an area where the population is robust and the doe / buck ratio is 4:1 go ahead. However don't put down those people and organizations that are concerned about herd health, balanced sustainable populations & quality hunting opportunities. QDMA has been a great resource for me personally. It's provided lots of info not only on food plots, but on habitat improvement, doing a camera census, balancing herd age & sex ratios thru selective hunting and much more.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by benjhind

I'm a member and involved with my local chapter.

It is primarily an education organization and the magazine is a great resource for articles based on peer-reviewed research.

There is a good deal of misinformation out there about QDMA. I usually describe the organization as helping hunters and land managers accomplish herd management goals. If your goal is to shoot a deer every year to fill the freezer, and the property you hunt provides that without a problem, you likely don't need much information to help with that. My goals are to see more deer on my property, and see mature bucks. To do that I do habitat work that helps improve forage and fawning habitat, and shoot fewer small bucks on my property. I'm not into food plots and prefer native vegetation management.

My local chapter does educational events and fundraises to support outdoor youth education and events. We give most of the money to Camp Trilium (a camp that kids with cancer can attend for free, which also has an archery program), and I think we've given them over $15000 to date but I'd have to check the numbers. We have also helped at many youth events including the Delta Waterfowl youth courses and holding many of our own educational events with guest speakers from MNR and other organizations. I see a few people like to paint the organization with a bad brush, but I think we are doing a fair bit of good in the community.

I was lucky enough to attend the first Deer Steward course held in Canada, which as Nosey indicated was in Quebec. The organization is relatively new in Canada, but hopefully more courses in more locations will be offered in the future.

If you are interested, membership is cheap. The magazine is fantastic and well worth the price. Like I said, there is lots of information on primary research about response to hunting pressure, effects of scents, predator managment, etc. etc. etc. and is a refreshing break from many other magazines that have "I shot this buck" articles.

Just my two cents!

---

Good to hear from someone who is a member.
Thanks.

If you want to practice herd management get yourself some sheep.

You have to keep in mind that the QDMA program originated down south, in fenced 'farms' with captive deer that where groomed nutritionally to produce huge trophy racks. The problem is, with the QDMA program catching on here, they are trying to manipulate 'wild' animals that are free to room by using 'living' bait programs and dictating how you should hunt to achieve 'their' goals of herd management.

Nature has a funny way of balancing herd ratio's with the randomness of birth....Doe/Buck is 50/50 at birth. There is no reason, in nature, for that number to get out of whack unless man gets involved.

The MNR has the mandate to control herd sizes and they use hunters (Antlerless tag program) to manipulate the ratios when they feel that the population is growing beyond sustainability.

If your property doesn't naturally support a healthy population of deer, there is a reason and trying to 'bait' them to live there is self serving and not in the best interest of the herd.

I have a neighbour that practices a Q'T'MA program. He has a property that natural supports Wild Turkey and thru a program of winter feeding in his back yard he has developed a sizeable flock with some the biggest Strutting Tom's in the whole county. Truly magnificent Trophy Fans worthy of mounting.

He has offered me the opportunity to take home one of the priced Tom's in the spring. He says I should show up at around 7:00 am, get take a seat on his porch so when he does the early feeding, they will be in the yard by 7:15. He says the Tom named 'Virgil' is the oldest and has the biggest Fan.

A great Flock management program...LOL...

http://i125.photobucket.com/albums/p...psi94gmcpv.jpg

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by MikePal

I have a neighbour that practices a Q'T'MA program. He has a property that natural supports Wild Turkey and thru a program of winter feeding in his back yard he has developed a sizeable flock with some the biggest Strutting Tom's in the whole county. Truly magnificent Trophy Fans worthy of mounting.

He has offered me the opportunity to take home one of the priced Tom's in the spring. He says I should show up at around 7:00 am, get take a seat on his porch so when he does the early feeding, they will be in the yard by 7:15. He says the Tom named 'Virgil' is the oldest and has the biggest Fan.

A great Flock management program...LOL...

http://i125.photobucket.com/albums/p...psi94gmcpv.jpg

---

Wow.
So, he puts feed out and these wild turkeys come strutting over?
Those are some beautiful birds.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by MikePal

If you want to practice herd management get yourself some sheep.

You have to keep in mind that the QDMA program originated down south, in fenced 'farms' with captive deer that where groomed nutritionally to produce huge trophy racks. The problem is, with the QDMA program catching on here, they are trying to manipulate 'wild' animals that are free to room by using 'living' bait programs and dictating how you should hunt to achieve 'their' goals of herd management.

Nature has a funny way of balancing herd ratio's with the randomness of birth....Doe/Buck is 50/50 at birth. There is no reason, in nature, for that number to get out of whack unless man gets involved.

The MNR has the mandate to control herd sizes and they use hunters (Antlerless tag program) to manipulate the ratios when they feel that the population is growing beyond sustainability.

If your property doesn't naturally support a healthy population of deer, there is a reason and trying to 'bait' them to live there is self serving and not in the best interest of the herd.

---

I do have some deer here. 3 does that are always together and then another pair of does as well. I did some reading on here about how baiting can make deer sick if you use the wrong stuff. Then some guys talked about food plots. I found the QDMA website and that opened up more possibities. I thought it would be nice to have a food plot for the deer as a way of sort of giving back. There's just so much information and it is difficult to figure out what practice is not totally self serving. Maybe you are correct and I should just let nature take its course. I would feel really bad if I did something that messed up the deer.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by MikePal

You have to keep in mind that the QDMA program originated down south, in fenced 'farms' with captive deer that where groomed nutritionally to produce huge trophy racks.

---

Wow Mike. This is incredibly misinformed. The QDMA has fought long and hard against the captive cervid industry.

http://www.realtree.com/brow-tines-a...-deer-breeding

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by MikePal

If your property doesn't naturally support a healthy population of deer, there is a reason and trying to 'bait' them to live there is self serving and not in the best interest of the herd.

---

Deer don't care about property lines. They care about quality habitat that provides them food and cover from the elements and to hide from predators. Please explain how providing quality habitat is not in the best interest of the herd.

I would encourage anyone interested in the organization to do some reading and inform themselves.

https://www.qdma.com/

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by MikePal

I have a neighbour that practices a Q'T'MA program. He has a property that natural supports Wild Turkey and thru a program of winter feeding in his back yard he has developed a sizeable flock with some the biggest Strutting Tom's in the whole county. Truly magnificent Trophy Fans worthy of mounting.

He has offered me the opportunity to take home one of the priced Tom's in the spring. He says I should show up at around 7:00 am, get take a seat on his porch so when he does the early feeding, they will be in the yard by 7:15. He says the Tom named 'Virgil' is the oldest and has the biggest Fan.

A great Flock management program...LOL...

http://i125.photobucket.com/albums/p...psi94gmcpv.jpg

---

Im pretty sure it's illegal to bait turkeys. Best pass on his invitation.

The oft perpetuated myth that deer herds have a whacked out 2:1, 3:1, or 4:1 ratio of does to bucks is one BIG reason I don't buy into anything qdma spouts.

No natural herd of any animal survives gender ratios like rhat. Throughout ON the whitetail ratio is almost always 1:1.