90A Controlled Hunt

13 hunters.

Drive 1: I had 3 bust out 10 yards beside me in some brush and went west. No shot. Walked by another deer before he busted out about 15 yards through the brush and went west. No shot. End of drive another busts out of some brush beside me about 30 yards and went west. Again no shot. One doe came out to a blocker and he missed.

Drive 2: 3 deer went west between me and another guy. He got one shot but missed. I only heard them. Same guy had 2 more deer go between him and another guy and no shots. I heard one go between me and another guy. Blockers had 3 deer come from behind them. Must have really surprised them. 2 guys had shots at them and they missed. Turns out my 2 brothers were doing a little circle and they had one shot as well. Doe fawn came by itself to a blocker and he got it. Shot through the heart and it went 25 yards.


Drive 3: Spiker 3 pointer came to a blocker and he got it. Doe and fawn came out to one blocker, he shoots at doe and then ran to another blocker and he gets the doe. One driver had shooting at a doe and he missed. I saw one go ahead of me and heard some crashing ahead of me in the brush, but they at least kept going east. Switched positions with a guy so I could dog out the heavier brush. Deer busts out ahead of him goes between us and we both get shooting. He found blood, flagged it and we carried on. Only went 30 yards at the most and another busts out ahead of him and goes between us and we both got shooting. I was pretty sure I hit it, it almost went down when I shot. He found hair and we continued the drive. A small buck busts out ahead of him again. Didn't go another 30 yards and goes between us. His glove got caught in the safety of his gun and he can't shoot. I get one shot and he drops. I got the one horned buck that was sighted 2 weeks earlier. One side is only a broken one inch stub, the other is also broken and only 2 points remain. So he probably would have been a 6. I push 2 deer out ahead of me close, about 10 yards. 1 went north and 1 went south. I shot at the south bound deer and missed and the guy next to me also missed and it turned west. North deer was also missed. I pushed out 2 more deer. One went back between me and the guy to the south and was not shot at. I almost stepped on these deer, how could I miss, but I did with the one that went east. It eventually came out to a blocker and he also missed. Guy to the south of me had a $5 Winchester sabot misfire. It dented the primer but did not go off. Driver to the north of me and I, went back to my buck and gutted it. Went to where I hit the 2nd deer and followed the hair trail to where the blood trail of the first deer was. Followed that blood trail and not 20 yards, there was the other guys milking doe. Gutted it and started looking for my deer again. Walked another 25 yards and found my milking doe. It hit the gut before it hit the lungs and never bled.

So I saw 13 deer today and as a group I think we saw 27.

sounds like it was a good day

Wow.... sounds like a lot of shots being taken...
Glad you guys got a few...but wow..... best of luck the rest of the week

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by fratri

Wow.... sounds like a lot of shots being taken...
Glad you guys got a few...but wow..... best of luck the rest of the week

---

I'm sure we're not the only ones shaking our heads.

At least 9 misses. How many of those misses were really hits that left no blood trail at first? I doubt with all that action anyone took the time to track each animal that was shot at for at least 50-75 yards to see if there was blood.

I'm not trying to insult or attack anyone here, but this group needs to get thing's in order. Maybe instead of hunting tomorrow the group could spend the day discussing ethics, what a clean shot is, and practicing shooting?

Wow. That's a lot of shootin. Congrats

Sounds like more time at the range is required.

Sounds like little range time and trigger fingers. Play safe so everyone gets to go home. By day 2 or 3 most of those deer will be out of there.

Sounds like a crazy amount of action for one day! Fawns, does and yearlings all taste great so pay no heed to the elitist remarks. Maybe a few more misses than you want to see but deer always have this pesky habit of running when pushed. I'm sure all who criticize can hit moving targets with precision all day long. Funny how they don't just stand broadside and wait to be shot like on TV isn't it?

Congrats on the success and thanks for the honest post!

Holy, lots of action. Sounds like your area still has a healthy deer population. 7 deer for 13 guys, keep at it and you''ll be done by Wednesday! Congrats on your success. Not too sure how big or thick your bush lots are, but try having 1 or two guys hang back to get the sneaky deer that double back behind the pushers

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by GW11

I'm sure all who criticize can hit moving targets with precision all day long.

---

Sometimes the best shot on a moving target is the one you don't take. JMO

Wow that' crazy action.

We hunt the 92B controlled hunt but don't push. We hunt archery style and do very well but we still manage to miss a few :). To each his own but I would rather shoot a deer that is relaxed & walking slowly than to shoot one running full tilt.

I actually like the group that pushes around us. All the deer run to our side & we end up getting them... LOL

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by LowbanksArcher

Sometimes the best shot on a moving target is the one you don't take. JMO

---

my thoughts exactly. But ....... there are some great shooters that can consistently take running deer. Im not one. haha

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by LowbanksArcher

Wow. That's a lot of shootin. Congrats on the milking does, fawns, and yearlings.

---

I wonder why the deer population keeps declining. I just can't figure it out.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Ravenhunter

I wonder why the deer population keeps declining. I just can't figure it out.

---

They saw 27 deer in one day. That's more than my camp of 6 has seen in 3 gun seasons. I'd say the population needed a little thinning out.

As to the comments on running deer, not everyone agrees with it but that's how it's done in a lot of camps. It's the norm in the hound camp I grew up hunting in. I got tired of every deer I saw running full tilt so a few of us started our own little camp and mainly now just hunt relaxed deer from stands. I miss the action of the hound chases, but I prefer shooting at relaxed deer now. If camps that push/dog deer only shot at relaxed deer, there wouldn't be much shooting. Don't knock it, some folks are very good at shooting running deer and the only way to get good at it is through experience. Unfortunately, that experience usually involves a few misses.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by GW11

If camps that push/dog deer only shot at relaxed deer, there wouldn't be much shooting. Don't knock it, some folks are very good at shooting running deer and the only way to get good at it is through experience. Unfortunately, that experience usually involves a few misses.

---

How many do I have to wound before I get good at it? ;)

Have fun.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by LowbanksArcher

How many do I have to wound before I get good at it? ;)

---

There are probably more deer wounded and lost by "archers" than by experienced gangs. You would likely be surprised by how few deer are lost if things are done right. If one is wounded, they are usually picked off by the next guy in the line or sometimes the next camp over. Dogs make a big difference in recovery or finding a wounded deer and finishing it. I would think that if the proper effort is put in by the groups down your way, losing deer in the smaller bush lots is not all that common either.

Look, I understand your views and although they're not the same as mine in many ways I can respect your opinion. You sound like a dedicated guy and you obviously have a passion for they way you envision deer hunting in the province, but you really are in the minority. I definitely wouldn't lump you in with the "archers" I spoke of above, but you know as well as I there are quite a few hunters out there that have no business flinging arrows at live animals. Maybe what you've seen of the orange army and organized group hunts has turned you off but they (we) don't all operate the same way. Just as not all archers are the same.

For the record, so you know where I'm coming from, for every hour I spend in orange with a gun and the gang, I double that amount of time solo or with my Dad or a buddy out with the crossbow. I just don't care about what a buck "scores" when he steps out. If it's even a buck.

Well said GW11. If it can be done ethically and safely, all good. Cheers

Many different points of few on this, actually I'm kind of glad this post came up. I was talking to a good friend and hunter of over 50 years experience today about a large doe that I took yesterday with a muzzleloader. I hit her through both lungs at 50 yards and there was no blood trail for about 60 yards after and she piled up not far from there. We were talking about the difference between muzzleloader and rifle hunting -I do both. But feel that a muzzle loader makes you a better hunter because you only have one shot, there is no room for mistakes. I personally will not shot at a running deer with a muzzle loader or any single shot firearm. There is too much of a chance of wounding an animal. But that is just my opinion. If you have two or three rounds to fire that certainly increases your odds of hitting a vital spot on a running animal compared to one. But to each his own.

we found three deer Monday and Tuesday that had been killed by arrows and left to rot .we hunt small woods with shotgun and doggers .and it is pretty hard to losse a deer that has been hit .also hitting a deer on the run is not that hard with a shotgun if you have any shooting ability .if we only shoot at deer that were standing still broad side we would never have a deer ,if one off the guys makes a hit on a deer with a slug thy do not have very many places thy can go to get away .we loses very few over the years ,most years we donot losses any that have been hit .we hunt to control the deer numbers so yes we shoot does and fawns lots of them .DUTCH

That's alot of action! We saw 14 deer on Monday, we got 4, and one was a 8 pointer i was lucky enough to drop with one shot (but he was standing still). We saw 8 Tuesday in a different area, and got 1. 4 tags left for our group and should be able to fill them before the weekend. Talked to some buddies that have been hunting this week too and they have been seeing the same numbers. Defiantly alot of deer in 90b this year!

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by stilchen67

Many different points of few on this, actually I'm kind of glad this post came up. I was talking to a good friend and hunter of over 50 years experience today about a large doe that I took yesterday with a muzzleloader. I hit her through both lungs at 50 yards and there was no blood trail for about 60 yards after and she piled up not far from there. We were talking about the difference between muzzleloader and rifle hunting -I do both. But feel that a muzzle loader makes you a better hunter because you only have one shot, there is no room for mistakes. I personally will not shot at a running deer with a muzzle loader or any single shot firearm. There is too much of a chance of wounding an animal. But that is just my opinion. If you have two or three rounds to fire that certainly increases your odds of hitting a vital spot on a running animal compared to one. But to each his own.

---

I agree. To me hunting with a muzzle loader is more like hunting with a bow than a gun. A little more reach but not a lot, especially if you're not using a scope.

I hunt the second black powder week. Normally we have a group of 8 to 10 guys and typically we are dogging bushes which usually means shooting at running or at least moving deer. This year the majority of our group couldn't make it for various reasons so we hunted mainly out of tree stands. I was mostly in a stand in the woods where 50 yards would be about the maximum shot I could take. I hunted exactly the same as I would with my crossbow and loved it. It was nice to know that if I had a deer walk into an open lane with a little bit longer shot I would have that extra reach over the crossbow to take it.

Anyway this post isn't really about black powder vs. shotgun vs. archery. I think people started to get a little off topic when the OP talked about shooting does and fawns. Clearly there is a large deer population in his area, possibly too many. If anyone was really concerned about preserving the deer population then start a campaign to have 10 foot fences built all along the roadways to keep them in the fields and bushes. Just as many or more deer get killed by vehicles on a daily basis then by hunters....Trust me I know.

Good going on the hunt, to each there own, sometimes people have no option on how they hunt. I personally do not prefer to hunt that way, but have in the past. I find that deer shot with guns do not bleed right away , but that bow shot deer almost always bleed right on the spot they were shot. Just my observation.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by fishing1

Good going on the hunt, to each there own, sometimes people have no option on how they hunt. I personally do not prefer to hunt that way, but have in the past. I find that deer shot with guns do not bleed right away , but that bow shot deer almost always bleed right on the spot they were shot. Just my observation.

---

that is just funny I have gutted 7 deer this week aready and thy are all shot with slugs you can not get anymore blood outside the animal on the ground and inside when you open them up the chest is always full of blood ,how can thy not bleed when thy have a slug hole in them haha .Dutch

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by dutchhunter

that is just funny I have gutted 7 deer this week aready and thy are all shot with slugs you can not get anymore blood outside the animal on the ground and inside when you open them up the chest is always full of blood ,how can thy not bleed when thy have a slug hole in them haha .Dutch

---

I have seen seen deer with slugs pass through the boiler room and no blood at all.. Bow shot deer as well with the same results. Each occurrence is different. Why does everyone think they are right. Furthermore, the hunt was legal. Either way, congrats on the hunt.

what size are most of you guys hunting gangs and bushes seems like an awful lot of guys in small areas i prefer still hunting

we hunt with 6 to 10 guys and gals and the wood lots are small 5 to 100 acres but the problem is the farm country deer like to bust out across the open fields and not run fence lines so it takes a lot of guys to cut them off .if you have two or three guys dogging that leaves 5 or 6 guys to get around the whole wood lot and try and cut the deer of in shotgun range 100 yards or a lot less if we can help it ,that leaves a lot of room for the deer to escape Dutch

Good hunt, very honest, but you can see why I did not post any details.

We have one guy who commented on how many deer the big gang gets (they tag out with 18-22 guys every year). He stated that they are the reason that deer populations go down. I really beg to differ, this guy averages 1.5 deer a year, for the past 5 years at least. He has a larger impact per person than the large gang in the area. He hunts from Oct 1st through Dec 31st and has 2 additional tags on top of his original. These guys in the gang hunt less than 6 days a year, they shoot their deer and that is that, less pressure in the bush before and after they are done and the deer are left alone to feed more due to a lower population after that week, there is less competition for food when there is less food.

Good on you for your hunt and your honesty.

This is NOT hunting. Enjoy the girls and babies.

^^^^^^^^ nice

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by fisherking

This is NOT hunting. Enjoy the girls and babies.

---

Nothing wrong with shooting does or fawns...Wildlife Management Unit.... all game needs to be managed according to numbers etc....
If you don't like what your buddies in the MNR are doing, go bother them not the tag holders...

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by fisherking

This is NOT hunting. Enjoy the girls and babies.

---

Unbelievable...

You might find more suitable company at http://www.peta.org/

This type of hunting is accepted and is an effective way of putting meat in the freezer. Ive done it many times and enjoy it to a point. Its all good, planning the push, setting up shooters, planning safe shooting lanes and knowing deer habits. All good until a deer bolts out at full speed at 100 yards,.............. now what????? I don't like my chances of a clean kill, or even hit at this distance. So, i pass on the shot, but many will take the shot, not drop the deer, reload and wait for another without tracking or checking for blood. I know lots of you out there will say you can make that shot. If thats true you are the guys that should hunt this way. Its not for everybody.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by ysyg

This type of hunting is accepted and is an effective way of putting meat in the freezer. Ive done it many times and enjoy it to a point. Its all good, planning the push, setting up shooters, planning safe shooting lanes and knowing deer habits. All good until a deer bolts out at full speed at 100 yards,.............. now what????? I don't like my chances of a clean kill, or even hit at this distance. So, i pass on the shot, but many will take the shot, not drop the deer, reload and wait for another without tracking or checking for blood. I know lots of you out there will say you can make that shot. If thats true you are the guys that should hunt this way. Its not for everybody.

---

Lots of guys can hit a deer running full speed at 100 yards, lots of guys cannot.

Well, everyone knows my take on this. We all have a different opinion on what ethical hunting is. I feel that the amount of respect you have for the animal will dictate how you hunt it. If you respect a whitetail as much as a duck, you'll shoot at it like a duck. I'm not saying that's wrong for you, but to me it is. Props to the OP for sharing his story.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by fisherking

This is NOT hunting. Enjoy the girls and babies.

---

I had meat from a fawn tonight. You bet I enjoyed it. Was absolutely fantastic.

Funny, when I tried to eat antlers from the buck we got, I chipped a tooth.

Man oh man don't listen to the haters. Great story, great numbers and a great time. They all taste the same. Bet any guy whining about shooting fawns won't pass up a nice veal cutlet. Nonsense.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Fox

Lots of guys can hit a deer running full speed at 100 yards, lots of guys cannot.

---

If a deer is standing in range and you don't rush the shot the majority of the time, a clean humane kill you have your venison. Shooting at a running deer sometimes you hit, sometimes you miss, may hit him through the lungs or through the ham little blood and a dead deer for the yotes. I am not judging anyone, only saying from a statistics point of view that more deer hit when running will be lost compared to one standing offering a perfect double lung shot.

Tuesday, 12 hunters. East wind. Drives west to east.
Drive 1: Heard crashing ahead of me near the start of the drive. Near the end of the drive a single deer flagging busted out to my right and went west. 2 deer went where a blocker had been on Monday. 3 deer came across the field and were missed. A single doe came out last and was knocked down. The drivers to the south came upon a guy in camo. He waved at them and took of on his 4 wheeler.
Drive 2: We were standing on the side of the road chatting and a deer came from the bush behind us, but out in the field, crossed the road and took the field edge. Drivers never had any hunting sightings except for me. I heard something crash out, ran over to see if it took a field to the south, but it didn't. I found a single track going through some ice, east bound. I also saw a doe flagging to the south at the end of the drive and the blocker saw it also.
Buck fawn came to the most southern blocker and he got it. He also had some turkeys go by him. 2 deer got through the blockers. 3 came to a blocker standing by a pond and he gets a milking doe and a 1.5 year old doe. The 3rd deer escapes. That blocker had 3 - $3 Winchester sabots misfire, or he would have had more deer likely. While he was shooting at those 3, 4 deer were in front of the blocker to his south, just inside the bush. They likely winded him, turned north and took the field edge. That guy couldn't shoot and should have hollered to the guy at the pond. The last 2 deer were bucks! So they escaped.
Drive 3: Nothing was seen.
My truck was parked out on a side road and it was dark when we went home. I got dropped off and started driving and I had to jam on my brakes. A doe and 2 fawns came out of a bush on the west side of the road. That night my wife saw 4 deer in a field where we hunt, when she was turning a corner.
4 deer down and 3 tags left.
Wednesday. Started with 12 but ended with 8 hunters at the end of the day.
Drive 1: When we walked in to start the drive we heard a shot. Wasn't any of us and we never came across the guy. We did however hear a boat take off and a guy went by us wearing no orange. Driver put up 2 deer and they went east, but the blockers never saw them come through.
Drive 2: The northern most blocker on the west side of the bush saw a wall hanger buck and a doe sneak out the north end of the bush. Apparently we didn't put the blocker on the north side in the right position. He didn't see it and neither did I, the northern most driver. The two southern most blockers saw a deer ahead of them and it came out to a blocker and he got it. It was a buck fawn. We finished up with the deer and got it loaded on the quad and looked to the north. At the north west corner of that bush a big deer was standing looking at us. We watched it for awhile and it eventually took off and flagged across the field to the west.
Drive 3: We didn't see anything, but I heard something crash in front of me right when I stepped off the road. It was there in the brush listening to me and another guy talk. The southern most blocker saw a small grey coyote go to his south out of range.
Drive 4: Nothing was seen. We were hoping the wall hanger was hanging around the crick he went into.
1 deer down today and 2 tags left.
Thursday. 8 hunters and the 9th came at lunch.
We did 4 drives including 1 that only we hunt and hadn't done yet and nobody saw anything at all.
Friday. 9 hunters. East wind.
Drive 1: Driver sees a deer and goes south. Driver next to me sees one and said it was heading my direction, but I don't see it. Then we hear the blockers open up. 6 deer come across the field. the first 2 deer they aim at go down and we're tagged out by 8:30. They got a milking doe and a buck fawn. While we were walking out to the blockers, I put up the deer the driver beside me likely saw. Saw it briefly as it was heading west and heard it struggle through some fence wire and it heard it crash through some ice. Another driver could have had shooting at 2 deer. So there were 10 deer sighted on that drive. A big black coyote came out first, but well to the north of the blockers.
We got the deer loaded and I had my truck on the side road again. Almost get 2 my truck and a doe and fawn come walking out of a little bush on the west side of the road, into the one we just did. Got into my truck and a deer came out of another little bush to the south that is no hunting and it went into the bush we just did. My kids were standing out for the bus that morning and saw 4 deer come from the bush across the road from us, cross the field and into the bush behind us.
So we had a great hunt. Not often we tag out and there's plenty of seed for next year.

sounds like a great week of deer hunting ,congrats to you and the gang ,enjoy the harvest all winter ,Dutch

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by werner.reiche

Unbelievable...

You might find more suitable company at http://www.peta.org/

---

I find my company in the outdoors although my tags are long filled - using the same number of shots as the number of alotted tags (which isn't bragging rather it's embarrassing to listen to those who think doing so deserves a medal).
Read the OP's post and enjoy the 'milking doe' and number of doe and buck fawn kills. The only people that preach management as the excuse for shooting 'AT' whatever happens to run out of a pushed bush seem to be those who cry the next season about wildlife numbers in decline. I'm well aware how deer management works and actually practice it as opposed to those who type it on forums.

jf

Lots of opinions here, I hunt both with a shotgun and a bow and what I find in regards to blood trails. When I shoot a deer out of a tree stand with either a bow or a gun I get blood almost right away as there is a hole in the bottom and blood runs out quickly. When I shoot them level from the ground with either a bow or a gun there can be some distance before I find blood as the holes are on the side and it takes a little bit for blood to pool in the chest cavity before it starts to run out. The single most important thing in respect to the animal is being sure to adequatly pursue it if you think you made a hit, not just a quick look then on you go. As long as people are following the law while hunting who cares how they hunt, to each there own. Just becasue I may find something unethical to me and may choose not to do it does not make me right, it makes me different (we are all different).

mayby if the poster had just called them does instead of milking does it would not sound so bad .we shot deer to control the numbers it does n ot matter if it is a doe or a fawn or buck .are tags are for any deer .we shoot lots of does every year and there is always more next year .D