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Which to shoot?

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dewclaw

Well-Known Member
Joined
Nov 8, 2009
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215
Location
Gibson Co. TN
Got a question I've been pondering and curious what others think. I hunt in CWD zone. We've always killed does and donated to Hunters for the Hungry, however we no longer have a processor in our county. I can process my own, but don't need that much meat, but need to kill does.
So my question is if a doe and fawn(s) come out, which should I shoot? I'm about to convince myself that the correct answer is fawns - less meat to deal with, higher quality meat, longer productive life expectancy, etc. I know some might be button bucks, but they are going to disperse any way. So what are your thoughts? and thanks for your input!
 
I'm no biologist. And bsk will chime in I'm sure. But we try to target does without fawns, in doing so out thought process is we are keeping the productive does kind of like a cow calf herd. Do with kill does with fawns for sure we have to kill does to keep numbers down so we have no choice some times. We never shoot fawns and never will personally. If you process it yourself you can make a mature buck taste great, that's not a problem. Honestly it probably doesn't matter in the grand scheme of things but that's how we have done it for 15 to 20 years.
 
Hands down if you looking for meat and quality, tender, and low volume fawns are it. The mortality rate with fawns being what it is there is no guarantee that letting one go will guarantee it's survival. Look at it like beef, how many 6 year old 1800 beef you see at a slaughter house. Any deer regardless of age or sex cooked right is delicious but like beef young and healthy is where it's at
 
grill-n-man2 said:
Hands down if you looking for meat and quality, tender, and low volume fawns are it. The mortality rate with fawns being what it is there is no guarantee that letting one go will guarantee it's survival. Look at it like beef, how many 6 year old 1800 beef you see at a slaughter house. Any deer regardless of age or sex cooked right is delicious but like beef young and healthy is where it's at
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You see a lot of old cows getting killed that's normal. Just saying, that's not accurate.
 
I killed a doe and yearling last year and did the gutless method on them. Deboned, then chilled them and worked them into roasts and steaks the next day.

We eat a lot of deer meat at my house in all forms, and I can 100% tell you that I could tell the difference in the meat from those verses a 5.5 yr old buck I killed Thanksgiving day.

I can put 2 entire does, deboned and wrapped into a 46 qt cooler.

I would shoot the bigger one, work it up and give it to someone in ready to eat pieces.
 
Savage said:
I killed a doe and yearling last year and did the gutless method on them. Deboned, then chilled them and worked them into roasts and steaks the next day.

We eat a lot of deer meat at my house in all forms, and I can 100% tell you that I could tell the difference in the meat from those verses a 5.5 yr old buck I killed Thanksgiving day.

I can put 2 entire does, deboned and wrapped into a 46 qt cooler.

I would shoot the bigger one, work it up and give it to someone in ready to eat pieces.
Click to expand...
What is the gutless method? I've missed that.
 

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