And just when was this handicap only for crossbows ? I don't think you have your facts correct . Just my opinion but I think if you closed crossbows season or just made it a few weeks you would just have more compound hunters out there . people want the longer season . And as the crossbow is a easier tool shooting a compound bow of today is just not that hard . I have seen people that have never shot a bow in there life go get a new bow have it set up and fitted then spend twenty minutes with a bow tech person on the range and be shooting in the ten ring at 20 yards . I do agree that the state went way to far with the doe slaughter of the past .
How to return ohio deer hunting to great status AGAIN
A look back 20-30 years ago will clearly show how our deer seasons went downhill———
Crossbow hunting went from handicap to all season long public use
call in/online deer check in (great for Amish and poachers)
over use of damage permits took some area herds down to nothing
brainwashing kill them all liberal 6 tag counties
I believe if the crossbow issue is corrected
Not saying to ban public use all together
Just not all season long
you correct these issues and the gun seasons will return, and no we don’t need bonus weekends, and definitely not added gun seasons, that’s insane at the present herd size
I think an earn a bick system should be considered along with a buck size limit
Buck to doe ratio is completely out of control
As the buck numbers and size are in serious decline
Crossbow hunting went from handicap to all season long public use
call in/online deer check in (great for Amish and poachers)
over use of damage permits took some area herds down to nothing
brainwashing kill them all liberal 6 tag counties
I believe if the crossbow issue is corrected
Not saying to ban public use all together
Just not all season long
you correct these issues and the gun seasons will return, and no we don’t need bonus weekends, and definitely not added gun seasons, that’s insane at the present herd size
I think an earn a bick system should be considered along with a buck size limit
Buck to doe ratio is completely out of control
As the buck numbers and size are in serious decline
1 - 20 of 26 Posts
Ohio legalized crossbows in Ohio for ALL use in 1976. Deer herds peaked on the mid to early 2000s.
There is no proven correlation to the online check system and deer not being checked.
Our deer manager, Mr. Tonkovich, is wanted by almost every other state to help them manage their herd.
The only thing I agree with you is that the individual area needs to be managed by the people hunting it. Oh wait, that's exactly what Mr. Tonkovich said two years ago.
Bucks in my area continue to be as big as they have been since I started hunting it 6 years.
There is no proven correlation to the online check system and deer not being checked.
Our deer manager, Mr. Tonkovich, is wanted by almost every other state to help them manage their herd.
The only thing I agree with you is that the individual area needs to be managed by the people hunting it. Oh wait, that's exactly what Mr. Tonkovich said two years ago.
Bucks in my area continue to be as big as they have been since I started hunting it 6 years.
I have never been a fan of the earn a buck system or a point count on bucks or a spread width restriction . I don't feel that deer management should cater just to the trophy hunters . And I also don't feel any hunter meat hunter or trophy hunter should have to pass on a buck because they have not shot a doe yet . just my 2 cents many dissagree with me and that is fine . We all are entitled to our opinion .
You’re not alone, one buck serves just fine as a middle ground between trophy management and ability to harvest a buck of one’s choosing. Earn a buck is an idea I’ve never fully understood.I have never been a fan of the earn a buck system or a point count on bucks or a spread width restriction . I don't feel that deer management should cater just to the trophy hunters . And I also don't feel any hunter meat hunter or trophy hunter should have to pass on a buck because they have not shot a doe yet . just my 2 cents many dissagree with me and that is fine . We all are entitled to our opinion .
Last years EHD kill was a setback in terms of mature bucks but the deer population where I hunt in Ohio is over capacity. No complaints with quality. Habitat quality is declining. Putting some fresh and impactful habitat on the landscape is all it really takes to go from too few deer to plenty in Ohio. A lot of places are sitting at too many deer in terrible habitat if that says anything.
WTH are you smoking?
When I first started hunting Ohio In 1987 there was on a ONE DEER LIMIT PERIOD.
Ohio’s deer management has been good I’ll admit and it doesn’t matter the tool you use, it is the bag limits that impacts deer herds.
When I first started hunting Ohio In 1987 there was on a ONE DEER LIMIT PERIOD.
Ohio’s deer management has been good I’ll admit and it doesn’t matter the tool you use, it is the bag limits that impacts deer herds.
I have personally experienced the decline in not only deer numbers but the number of mature bucks in Southeast Ohio. First on public ground then on private property in muskingum Co. Finally over the last ten years on private ground in Morgan Co. Too many does were killed for years and I have personally witnessed The DNR hand out 150 nuisance permits to a county airport and an adjacent property owner. This decimated the deer population in the area. Finally due to many causes out of state hunters flocked to the state with the lure of giant bucks. Nearly every farm is leased or hunted these days. Crossbows should be legal during all archery seasons for youth, elderly and handicapped but able bodied hunters should put the time and preparation in to be proficient with a long bow. Today’s Xbows are accurate and deadly to farther distances with little to not practice once they are sighted in. If you dont think the overall quality of the deer herd is a shadow of what it was in the 80’s thru the early 2000’s you are kidding yourself.
I find it interesting that regarding archery season, literally nothing has changed in the 51 years I have been alive, other than extending into the first week plus of February. Yet that is where everyone places the blame on the perceived destruction of deer hunting in Ohio. Yes, the bag limits have changed, but those are not specific to any season. Hunter's attitudes and preferences are what's changing. I find leasing and predators to be bigger issues. That being said I still think we have great overall deer hunting in Ohio....but our gun season stinks. I'd much rather bow hunt or late season muzzy hunt.
Get rid of all of the land leasing.
I never heard the suggestion for a requirement of a longbow for all but the elderly, youth or handicapped deer hunters before.....be interesting to discover the point where elderly begins.
So, are Ohio deer hunters saddened because they are failing to harvest a deer? or because they are not seeing enough deer to maintain interest when faced with greater costs and increased difficulty in some areas of the state, in some years, and when compared to more shining times?
I still get shown a lot of dead deer photos here in Washington County and also from over around Chillicothe..... I wonder if many of those who swelled the deer hunting ranks came solely due to those shining times, from wishing to be known as a Deer Hunter and from images of big bucks on message boards?
If so, they might be wise to consider that now that the blush has slightly faded for a spell.....the rose remains.
And the rose, should be enough for a deer hunter, eh?
It always was enough back in the late 70s.
Perhaps, the problem is less deer numbers, easy-killin' tools, DNR desires or the hated A-mish and most from an attitude of deer hunters themselves .....who forgot or never even really knew why they were there.
So, are Ohio deer hunters saddened because they are failing to harvest a deer? or because they are not seeing enough deer to maintain interest when faced with greater costs and increased difficulty in some areas of the state, in some years, and when compared to more shining times?
I still get shown a lot of dead deer photos here in Washington County and also from over around Chillicothe..... I wonder if many of those who swelled the deer hunting ranks came solely due to those shining times, from wishing to be known as a Deer Hunter and from images of big bucks on message boards?
If so, they might be wise to consider that now that the blush has slightly faded for a spell.....the rose remains.
And the rose, should be enough for a deer hunter, eh?
It always was enough back in the late 70s.
Perhaps, the problem is less deer numbers, easy-killin' tools, DNR desires or the hated A-mish and most from an attitude of deer hunters themselves .....who forgot or never even really knew why they were there.
As a small game hunter, that would be wonderful, but I am afraid that ship has sailed. Too many farmers now depend on the extra lease income to ever give it up.Get rid of all of the land leasing.
I personally think the coming of coyotes and bobcats has impacted the deer herd more than issues already mentioned. I can remember seeing 20-30 deer herds in the fields of SE Ohio in the 1980s, but we didn’t have deer predators then. In those days, the first morning of deer gun season literally sounded like a war had started. Today many (most?) hunters have already bagged their deer during archery season by the time gun season rolls around.
I started deer hunting in 1984, first hunt was Washington Co, saw ONE deer. What do people see down there now? I can guarantee it's more than one.
The reoccurring theme in most of the posts is access to land. We live in a country of free business practices. If you say "get rid of leasing" you are telling someone they cannot do what they want with their property.
How many leases have been given because of disrespectful hunters? I know of one farm that went to leasing because the owner was tired of the duck hunters whining to him that another hunter/group of hunters did something they didn't like. Instead of handling it like adults and working it out they "went to dad" to tattle and dad said "Fine, you're all off my land" and leased it. It's a prime location in the Greater Dayton area that pulls a ton of birds. (No, I was not one of the whiners as I only hunted it with friends)
We can be our own enemies.
The reoccurring theme in most of the posts is access to land. We live in a country of free business practices. If you say "get rid of leasing" you are telling someone they cannot do what they want with their property.
How many leases have been given because of disrespectful hunters? I know of one farm that went to leasing because the owner was tired of the duck hunters whining to him that another hunter/group of hunters did something they didn't like. Instead of handling it like adults and working it out they "went to dad" to tattle and dad said "Fine, you're all off my land" and leased it. It's a prime location in the Greater Dayton area that pulls a ton of birds. (No, I was not one of the whiners as I only hunted it with friends)
We can be our own enemies.
Old story but corporate ground was often open to public hunting thru agreements, initial tax trade-offs, etc…..but that,….changed as, for example, when timber ownerships began to trade.
That no on was either watching or caring or, most correctly, they benefitted from those lost acres and acres of public hunting….well, that happened. Often by pretending the change was solving a trash issue….what a lunk head idea that was to enable pulling an end around.
Not all leases on ‘private’ acreage are equal to a farmer and his back 40.
Be nice to once see a proper definition of Private…seen enough of the end arounds.
That no on was either watching or caring or, most correctly, they benefitted from those lost acres and acres of public hunting….well, that happened. Often by pretending the change was solving a trash issue….what a lunk head idea that was to enable pulling an end around.
Not all leases on ‘private’ acreage are equal to a farmer and his back 40.
Be nice to once see a proper definition of Private…seen enough of the end arounds.
I totally agree bobcats and coyotes have had an impact as well
That's a Grand Slam!It always was enough back in the late 70s.
Perhaps, the problem is less deer numbers, easy-killin' tools, DNR desires or the hated A-mish and most from an attitude of deer hunters themselves .....who forgot or never even really knew why they were there.
WEEL SAID. I, started hunting deer in 1970 when ,I returned from the army. One deer limit. You had to put in for a doe permit. Plenty of deer then. From then, to the time the deer slaughter started, there were pleanty of deer.WTH are you smoking?
When I first started hunting Ohio In 1987 there was on a ONE DEER LIMIT PERIOD.
Ohio’s deer management has been good I’ll admit and it doesn’t matter the tool you use, it is the bag limits that impacts deer herds.
This answer is simple...
1. Give some kind of incentive for people to kill coyotes. It was just within the last few years that dnr admitted the population was out of control and they didn't know what to do about it.
2. Raise the price of out of state tags and licenses.... tired of running into idiots from NC who blast everything that moves on land they don't have permission to be on. Have seen alot of spikes that were still warm after running these idiots off.
3. Put some damn regulations and requirements on these mouth breathing "guides"
4. Go back to a check system. The state makes so much money on tags ect there is no reason we can't get the check stations back and get real metal tags for the deer like we used to. Many are far to comfortable poaching because the state had made it so easy to lie and poach.
5. Give farmers incentives to keep or install fence rows. Stop letting them cut and burn all scrub brush on unfarmable ground.
1. Give some kind of incentive for people to kill coyotes. It was just within the last few years that dnr admitted the population was out of control and they didn't know what to do about it.
2. Raise the price of out of state tags and licenses.... tired of running into idiots from NC who blast everything that moves on land they don't have permission to be on. Have seen alot of spikes that were still warm after running these idiots off.
3. Put some damn regulations and requirements on these mouth breathing "guides"
4. Go back to a check system. The state makes so much money on tags ect there is no reason we can't get the check stations back and get real metal tags for the deer like we used to. Many are far to comfortable poaching because the state had made it so easy to lie and poach.
5. Give farmers incentives to keep or install fence rows. Stop letting them cut and burn all scrub brush on unfarmable ground.
Yes, and thank you for your comment. This subject has been beaten to death by many here. Many that have not bothered to search actual facts. It is an emotional subject - I get it. I still wish you all great success in your hunts but I'm sure tired of the complaining about lack of bucks, lack of does, lack of trophy's, darn Amish, darn ODNR, darn crossbow hunters, etc.... Get over it already. Go hunt and have a great time out in the woods. Sheesh!Ohio legalized crossbows in Ohio for ALL use in 1976. Deer herds peaked on the mid to early 2000s.
There is no proven correlation to the online check system and deer not being checked.
Our deer manager, Mr. Tonkovich, is wanted by almost every other state to help them manage their herd.
The only thing I agree with you is that the individual area needs to be managed by the people hunting it. Oh wait, that's exactly what Mr. Tonkovich said two years ago.
Bucks in my area continue to be as big as they have been since I started hunting it 6 years.
1 - 20 of 26 Posts
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