Laguna Atascosa 2013/14

[pkee]

if thay give out 800 permits , than that means 1,600 deer need to be killed . or thay should not give out 800 . and thats not counting the gun hunts . its there job to managing the deer population .
the land around the L.A.W.R. is where all the big bucks are being killed . the ranchers bring in alot and i mean alot of day hunters and kill everything that walks out .
i am a meat hunter , i pass on the big bucks because the meat sucks . a 3 years old doe is what i am after .
i dont have a deer lease , this is the only deer hunting i do . unless i get invited to someones place to hunt on ..

[mr.quick]

I was talking to tje refuge workers sometime last week about this , on putting an age limit because they were telling me that a lot of hunters there , would take out bucks that barely had a knob on their head , and that is why , big bucks are scarses there. Hunters just don't pass anything , of they would put an age limit , it would help tremendously with bigger and better bucks. But that would be a little hard for the huntets to understand.

[onthetake]

"if thay give out 800 permits , than that means 1,600 deer need to be killed . or thay should not give out 800"

The success rate of the bow hunters is not 100 percent. It is in the single digits most years. Lol. There are plenty of deer at the refuge. 600 permits have been issued for the bow hunts since before I started hunting there. The deer have remained plentiful. Its a rare day that I don't have the opportunity to harvest a deer. The high number of permits available ensures that my family and I can always count on being able to participate in the refuge hunt. The refuge is vast and we never have a problem getting away from the road hunting crowd and enjoying hunting in solitude. I sure hope that the number of permits available stays high.

[pkee]

is there a Mathews dealer in the valley ?

[mr.quick]

is there a Mathews dealer in the valley ?

Yes, point blank

[hogdaddy]

having a hard time seeing how an age restriction would work, seen too many experts not agreeing on how old a buck is.

antler restrictions? i can get behind that idea.

[pkee]

Yes, point blank

i was given a phone number but it was a disconected recording . look on-line but could not find a web site .

[mr.quick]

i was given a phone number but it was a disconected recording . look on-line but could not find a web site .

Let me pm you in a bit with the number

[pkee]

Let me pm you in a bit with the number

thanks

[Bloodhound]

"if thay give out 800 permits , than that means 1,600 deer need to be killed . or thay should not give out 800"

The success rate of the bow hunters is not 100 percent. It is in the single digits most years. Lol. There are plenty of deer at the refuge. 600 permits have been issued for the bow hunts since before I started hunting there. The deer have remained plentiful. Its a rare day that I don't have the opportunity to harvest a deer. The high number of permits available ensures that my family and I can always count on being able to participate in the refuge hunt. The refuge is vast and we never have a problem getting away from the road hunting crowd and enjoying hunting in solitude. I sure hope that the number of permits available stays high.

Agree 100% except that most days I do not have a shot opportunity. I'm considering using a tripod this year. I normally hunt from the ground.

[Rhino427]

The average amount of hunters that harvest anything at the refuge is about 25%, y'all have to keep in mind that the refuge is under no obligation to have these hunts they are trying to make the best decision to maintain the nature of the refuge it's like if you get invited by a friend to there lease and are told you can only shoot a doe this is there property "lease" we should be glad they allow us to hunt there at all and for $75 they could easily just say this is getting to much of a hassle and shut the whole thing down, they had that meeting to hear what we had to say tells me they care about our concerns and want to work with us .... Just a thought !!!

[Mikege1174]

Last year more young bucks were taken than mature bucks some nubbing bucks , some weren't even breaking skin,I saw does brought in weighing 20 lbs I myself find that a bit disturbing there are to many doe's compared to bucks the reasoning is to thin out the doe populatin and give the bucks a better chance of maturing the alternative is to not allow ANY bucks to be harvested for several Years and let them mature that way ...

So if there are way more does than bucks at the refuge where are they hiding. I saw one doe and one buck on stand last year. I shot the buck (which was at least 5 yrs old) and couldn't get a shot at the doe. Do you honestly believe that people are letting does walk so that they can shoot nubbin bucks? I think young deer are shot because they are not as smart as mature deer. I am sure any of those hunters would have shot a mature doe instead of a nubbin buck. I think that if the refuge implements a no buck or no young buck policy then there will be even less deer shot, and the doe harvest will not increase. I would shoot a doe for sure if one would present a shot.

[onthetake]

The fawns are definitely being shot because they aren't smart enough to avoid hunters. That doesn't make it right. That's exactly why rules are needed. The hunters shooting fawns obviously won't self regulate and pass up fawns. Also antler restrictions would definitely increase the number of mature bucks on the refuge. However I don't know that it would increase the number of mature bucks harvested. The refuge deer aren't like you would find hanging out at the feeder on your average deer lease. They are smart (does and bucks) and very sensitive to human traffic . Refuge deer are very good at not being seen. Talk to hunters and most will tell you they see deer on the first day after that the deer become very scarce. Lol. That only leaves the inexperienced fawns wondering around where they shouldn't be making themselves easy targets.

[Rhino427]

The fawns are definitely being shot because they aren't smart enough to avoid hunters. That doesn't make it right. That's exactly why rules are needed. The hunters shooting fawns obviously won't self regulate and pass up fawns. Also antler restrictions would definitely increase the number of mature bucks on the refuge. However I don't know that it would increase the number of mature bucks harvested. The refuge deer aren't like you would find hanging out at the feeder on your average deer lease. They are smart (does and bucks) and very sensitive to human traffic . Refuge deer are very good at not being seen. Talk to hunters and most will tell you they see deer on the first day after that the deer become very scarce. Lol. That only leaves the inexperienced fawns wondering around where they shouldn't be making themselves easy targets.

I'm glad someone understands !!!

[gonzaleziam]

You would pass on a fawn?.....the most tender meat?? Jk.