Trophy definition

[masonred]

The deer will eventually eat whatever is out. It took a few years for the deer on my place in the hill country to start eating the pellets mixed with corn. This was before "deer feed" was popular and even had people scough at the idea of feeding a deer something with any nutritional value more than corn.

[Horsehide]

Please take my comment with a grain of salt, since they are coming from a guy who has never shot a buck. To me, a trophy is a pleasurable hunt topped with meat in the freezer. The memories and experiences of these times shared with friends are worth more to me than a set of antlers. Maybe someday, I will go after a buck, but at this time I feel blessed hunting does, up close.

[BarBBar]

A grilled ring of smoked link sausage from Griffith Taxidermy in Burnet with some scrambled eggs, Texas Toast and hash browns is a trophy, especially from an archery deer. As far as bucks go, a trophy for me is a buck that I worked hard for that brings that moment in time back to life, with the respect all going to the natural beauty of the buck, rather than to me.

[DRT]

I haven't seen a buck in four years that got me pumped to shoot.
Don't get me wrong. I'll shoot cull and management bucks. In the end they are meat. Delicious, healthy meat.
But after all these years, money spent and time served on good properties, mid 120s bucks are the best I've done. And that isn't a big buck to me any more. But I got sick of going into season with nothing special on the cameras, discouraged before opening day. So this year it's about shooting a mature buck. Five plus, with a trad bow, on property I'm an owner of and putting blood, sweat and money into to improve.

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[LAW]

A trophy is anything taken with a trad bow

[MedicineMan7]

I've got one place that's around 200 acres or so I've been fortunate to hunt for the last 20 years and I'm still stumped to this day about it. I've seen the deer numbers increase greatly during that time period and if I want to go hunting to see deer and have an opportunity nearly 100% of the time, it is the go to place. With that being said, it is the mecca for 115" deer, regardless of age and I have zero clue why. I know people who hunt the area all the way around it and multiple 170+ deer are taken every year within a mile or so of its perimeter. We put very little pressure on it, its covered with cameras all over, lots of food, thick cover, water, ect. and still to this day I've yet to get pictures of a deer over the mid 150's mark and I've got thousands of pictures the last few years.
It stinks putting so much time and effort into the place, but I hold the hope that at some point the tide will turn and we will start having some of the giants on our place that the area is known for. I still go back time after time knowing that the chances of killing a 120+ are slim, but it is still a blast to hunt and I consider every deer shot there with a stick bow a trophy.

[DRT]

I've got no where else to burn the tags so I guess I'll smack a cull or two but I will enjoy eating them.

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[meltingfeather]

I'm with the folks who say it's whatever you think it is.
To me the hunt matters far more than the kill-- even if it's just sitting in a tree watching the sunrise.

[DUKFVR]

a trophy is in the eye of the beholder.

this!!

[DRT]

You know I'd not shoot a deer if I stuck to this.
And I so like eat them.

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[walker1983]

You can't kill what's not there. Hunt the best bucks you have on your place and be happy if you get a target buck.

I wouldn't want to put time and money into a place that didn't have a reasonable change to grow 140'' deer annually, but big horns are still a large part of the chase for me - even w/ the bow. Putting feed money into a deer herd that is limited by genetics, available natural browse, or surrounding hunting pressure would make me consider a move to greener pastures.

[DRT]

You can't kill what's not there. Hunt the best bucks you have on your place and be happy if you get a target buck.



I wouldn't want to put time and money into a place that didn't have a reasonable change to grow 140'' deer annually, but big horns are still a large part of the chase for me - even w/ the bow. Putting feed money into a deer herd that is limited by genetics, available natural browse, or surrounding hunting pressure would make me consider a move to greener pastures.

Well if I were independently wealthy I might have a better ranch. [emoji1787][emoji23][emoji1787]
However we are working on this one and while there is an opportunity it could be flipped and us move for now it is where we are.
We have all of those factors. On one side no hunters. But on the other they are hunting 7 hunters on less than 900 acres and are brown and down folks.
We'd like to lease the place out from under them next season.

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[diamond10x]

Any animal you are proud of, to me, that would be anything I kill. The adventure, memory, and enjoyment is all that matters at the end of the day.

Heck I killed a pronghorn back in early October in WY, measured 10”, he was beat up and already had been wounded by another buck and hunter and limping around on 3 legs. At the end of the trip I was happy as can be as it took 6 days to finally get a shot on a buck and it was a great memory. That pronghorn skull now hangs on the wall in my dining room.

[Shurshot]

Like already said any deer can be a trophy to someone. For me I always think older , mature or post mature bucks are more of a trophy. They are fewer and far between, and smarter than younger deer.

[Ætheling]

Eye of the beholder.

I see a kid on here with a spike on the ground and I consider that more of a trophy than anything 150 plus bought and paid for but I am sure to that person it is a trophy so.... back to the top.