Should or Shouldn't you

[Double Deuce]

I have been deer hunting for many years now and Im trying to learn the correct way to manage your land for deer. All I ever get is a big argument over whether or not you should shoot spikes. Can anybody help me out on this bc every artilcle that I read normally goes both ways..

[Dutch Dog]

Well, first off, in Mississippi it's illegal to shoot em. Some goober a long time ago said "once a spike, always a spike" BS. Monitor your deer herd, if possible, and take mature deer that don't meet your expectations. If you see a really nice 3 1/2 year old to 4 1/2 year old, leave him alone....let him get to 5 1/2 + then take him. It will do 2 things...allow him to be all he can be and allow him to pass along his genetics for good antler growth to a few generations of deer.

[tunica]

aint a legal buck one that has at least 4 points?

[DUCKAHOLIC]

You need to contact MDWFP and get on DMAP....it is a free program and they can help you obtain what you are wanting. Some spike will remain spikes, although not all, with the DMAP program you can harvest these inferior bucks out of your herd.

[Ducks be us]

Let the spikes go a coupla years...thin out the does

[tunica]

Let the spikes go a coupla years...thin out the does

your saying does the does right

[BAY KINGFISHER]

get in a program, its all about genetics, nutrition, and age....a good management program should encompass all of these

[Greenhead22]

DMAP is for doe slaughtering and that's all. We were on it years ago and that's all it was about......giving out as many doe tags as you would want and kill more than the state limit allowed.

We were on dmap and another big buck program at the same time, and it didn't help us not one bit. We refused to kill does while the clubs around us start ground checking, and now we have no does in the area because of it.

[Ducks be us]

Let the spikes go a coupla years...thin out the does

your saying does the does right

I DEFINATLY DO does the does... them suckas are delicious around medium

[cwink]

I say let them walk.. Especially since they aint legal..

[MSDawg870]

Antler limits for clubs don't grow bigger bucks, ageing a buck before you shoot it works for managing a big buck program. I don't hunt for horns but if a big walks by I'll drop him if he's got 4 pts.

My 2cents.

[Hayes]

IMO you also need to take the acreage you have into consideration and the people around you if have a small tract of land a nothing but ole yahoo's around you that shoot whatever you will be waisting your time and effort

[Greenhead22]

IMO you also need to take the acreage you have into consideration and the people around you if have a small tract of land a nothing but ole yahoo's around you that shoot whatever you will be waisting your time and effort

ding ding ding we have a winner !

[pondman]

To shoot or not to shoot spikes......

Listening to Dr. James Kroll and Dr. Harry Jacobsen will get you two different answers and if you look at the whole picture they are both right.

We get a periodical at my office called Wildlife Trends. Its more of a techincal journal rather than a recreational one. The author looked at both pieces of research and came to these conclusions and it makes a tremendous amount of sense.

Kroll's work was done in Texas on areas the were primarily under high fence. He research indicate that spikes were genetically inferior. OTW shoot spikes.

Jacobson's work was done in the Southeast in Mississippi and Alabama in "wild" (meaning no fence) situations. He found that if you give spikes time they will produce antlers that will score nearly as well if not as well as branch antlered 1.5 year old bucks.

They why they are both right has to do with birth dates and nutrion levels. In Kroll's work (as a general rule) were not limited by nutrition, the buck to doe ration was close to 1:1. This means the does were well fed and all dropped fawns in early summer. Combine plenty of nutrion with plenty of growth and the 1.5 year old bucks should have produced the best possible antlter growth. In other words, genetic was the only thing limiting antler growth becasue they had plenty to eat and were fawned at the proper time.

In Jacobson's work, food was not always plentiful and the buck to doe ration was usually off. This meant does didn't always get bred durign the first rut and may drop fawns as late as August and September. Additionally the yearling deer didn't always get proper nutrition; therefore, antler production usually suffered.

In other words if you have the correct buck to doe ratio and penty of food, then a spike is probably inferior. If you are lacking in either or both of these areas he may not be inferior and could grow up to be a wardaddy.

Pond