It's Not "Your" Deer...Is It? - Editor's Stump

[Dan Salmon]

This column is another reason why my subscription will continue to be renewed.

Dan, I believe you have out done yourself with this editorial. Since I began deer hunting in the early 90's, I can't help but notice the number of people that I have heard use this phrase and truely mean it.

This, in my mind anyway, is one of the major driving factors in the disapproval of and opposition to any and/or all new/different hunting regulations that are proposed in the state of Wisconsin. Antler addiction in this state is as bad or worse than illegal drug abuse. I can't tell you the numbers of stories that I hear of families that have internal feuds going on that are due to deer hunting, not to mention the feud between private landowners and public land hunters in this state.

I applaud you for taking a stance against this childish act of jealousy by grown adults. Big bucks with large antlers used to be a symbol of a hunter's skill, now all it seems to be is a status of a hunters pocket book.

[kbdeerdown]

I couldn't agree more. As a father of a young boy I truly don't know how I would react if this happened to my son. I guess I would only hope that it wouldn't ruin his spirit and desire to continue hunting ... I hope the young lad of Wisconsin and his family rise from this unfortunate situation. It not only sounds like a "my deer syndrome" situation but also a frown down on gun hunting as well. We're all on the same page - we love to hunt deer - however it may get done!

[Everyday Hunter]

My magazine failed to show up until yesterday, and someone apparently "went postal" with it, tearing a big chunk of the back cover away and mutilating the last several pages.

The "Editor's Stump" came through without damage, however, and it was excellent. From my own stump, I sometimes hear well-meaning people ask me, "Did you get your deer?" As far as I'm concerned, no deer out there is "my" deer unless and until I have harvested it.

When a hunter targets a single buck, he knows the risks he is taking. One of those risks is that someone else may kill the buck. If that happens, the hunter who has decided to kill no other deer might not even know the deer is dead, and he continues to hunt without the possibility of killing anything. In this case, at least the hunter found out. It may not be easy to accept, but he should accept it anyway, congratulate the young man who shot it, and move on. It's a matter of sportsmanship, and it's no different from an athlete training as hard as he can to win a championship, and then losing it. And the great thing about deer hunting is that there is always next season.

Steve

[ranwin33]

Dan's editorial was EXCELLENT! 
 
Speaking as someone who has hunted a particular deer during a season, and was lucky enough to get it, I can say that had I not shot the deer and someone else would have, I would have been saddened by the fact, but I would never hold a grudge against someone being luckier than me. 
 
Anyone who is hunting a particular deer should know going in that there is a highly likely chance that you won't be successful and if you can't deal with that idea, then you shouldn't be doing it.
 
Success, especially among our youngest hunters should be CELEBRATED!

[swebb398]

I agree that no one has ownership rights to any game animals. To publicly diminish a young hunter's accomplishment in this fashion is deplorable. But I feel that there is more going on here than jealousy and anger toward this young hunter.

As a long time bow hunter I share in the frustration felt by many of us. There are so many "special" gun seasons in Wisconsin that it is getting difficult to follow them. There is the youth hunt and the first antlerless hunt during the early archery season. Then after the regular gun hunt we have the muzzle loader hunt, and the late antlerless hunt during the late season. In total we now have four extra occasions when the deer are being shot at. This has not only reduced the deer population, it has altered deer behavior as well. It has made finding deer during daylight hours very difficult.

We may have been spoiled in the past by having the two month early bow season all to ourselves, but I think the pendulum has swung too far and at the expense of bowhunters. Furthermore, even the gun hunters are not happy with the results of recent hunting seasons. If you look at the recent harvests it is obvious that someting has changed. Is it bad herd size estimates, weather, all of these extra seasons, or all of the above? It is obvious that the DNR will do what it wants and that we hunters have little meaningful input or control. All of the DNR surveys and hearings amount to little more than a kangaroo court. So we have to accept the facts and be thankful that even if we don't have the ideal situation we are still able to climb a tree and spend some beautiful time in the woods.

Scott

[69Viking]

Mr. Salmon thank you for posting this.  Dan I read your Editorial last night and couldn't agree with you more.  It was an excellent article, probably one of the best I have read in D&DH over the few years I have been a subscriber.  What kind of person could do this to a kid?  I hope somebody shows this guy your Editorial and this blog so he can read about how other hunters view him because of his selfish ways.  Maybe he won't care but somebody needs to show him what a fool he's making of himself.  He's the one that should be criticized for his actions, not this poor kid who had the chance of a lifetime.  That's why youth hunts exist, to give kids the chance of a lifetime and have success before the adults take to the woods and rightfully so.  I hope somebody steps in and puts a stop to the ridicule this pour kid has been getting from this guy, it's just not right.  Maybe David Letterman or Jay Leno could bring this kid on their show and let Letterman or Leno show millions what kind of person this guy is, I bet that would quiet him down.  Kudos to you Dan for writing the article to bring attention to it, I think most hunters will agree with you and just mabye this guy will see what a fool he's being.     

[Washburn]

The thought that I "own" a deer has never entered my mind until now; and the thought sickens me.
I was fortunate enough to shoot two bucks this year. Modest racks but trophies to me.
Every time a package of venison comes out of the freezer and to our table, a deep, sincere thanks will be given to these two great animals. Sometimes the thanks will be verbal; more often, a silent moment remembering the hunt.
I don't own these deer. If anything, I "owe" these deer my most sincere thanks and gratitude.

Washburn

[Dan Salmon]

Great post Washburn.

[nhdeerchaser]

That story breaks my heart.
I have never shot a deer, but I can promise you if I was with my son or another young hunter, the hammer that would drop would be from thier rifle, not mine.
I hope this very mean individual has'nt ruined a hunter for life.
Washburn said it best. We don't "own" these animals. We are blessed that we have the chance to pursue the most beautiful animal God ever created and if the youngest in our ranks harvests the trophy of a lifetime at the beginning of his career, good for him!
Thank you Dan for telling the story.

Mike

[buckhunter21]

I agree, this was a great story Dan, and one of the reasons D & DH continues to be at the top of the list as far as everything Whitetails!