doe meat

[codypernice11]

This year i will be taking atleast one doe for meat.What kind would be best for meat,a smaller young doe,or an older big doe,some of the does around here are huge,but would the older deer be tougher? and if i shot a younger doe while there were older does there would i ever get the older ones back by my tree stand or would they stay away,i think if i shot an older doe that if there was younger deer with it that they would be stupid enough to come back in a few days.

[Zbearclaw]

I have always taken the first slick head that either looked up at me, or showed signs that she knew I was ther, because once the rut starts, she will have bucks after her, and her acting suspicious around my stand is a no no when the bucks are around.

As far as the meat a younger doe will taste better than an older doe, but an old doe still tastes better than most bucks, in my experience anyway.

Good luck, how many tags can you fill up there anyway, I can fill twelve if need be

[RtWill78]

I've always thought that the younger deer taste better, just like with most all other animals (veal, etc.), I once when I was 13 shot I a yearling and it taste less "gamey" was more tender, or so it seemed. I agree that bucks are generally not as tasty as does, of course this is up for debate.
RT

[cavey]

codypernice11,

Younger will always be more tender, and does will usually be more tender than bucks unless they are really old. The does just don’t seem to have the same amount of muscle to fat that bucks will, especially during rut and after when fat content drops on the bucks. Viny is lean, but fat gives flavor… so I’ve been told. (I’m not a meat cutter and others may have different or better opinions) but, chances are your deer population is mostly young deer anyways 0 to 2 ½ - 3 ½ year range. That is what makes up the bulk of most deer populations so… realistically short of shooting a fawn or yearling doe chances are you will have good young meat regardless of what you shoot.
Even if you shot a buck and are like 75% of the hunters that buck will be a year and half old and will be pretty good eating.

By the time you cut up a fawn or a small yearling you don’t get a whole lot of meat, it will be really good but just not enough volume to really mess with.

As for culling the older does, I’m not a 100% on that need… chances are if you pop one, and don’t give a power Yea-haaa!!!! And do the hokee-pokee on the stand, the deer are not going to abandon the area…. They are there because it’s a good spot to be or to travel through… let the area settle down for a while and I’m sure you can come back and kill another deer there again and again.
Once again, opinions will very here… be as careful as you can on being busted… they ALL have fairly good memory especially if you continously educate them as to your stand location but I would not worry about old and young does, just shoot the one that gives you the best kill shot.

[codypernice11]

Bear claw,i get a tag for anterless,and antler,and then another doe permit,and my dad gets his tags and doesn't hunt bow,and i have 2 tags from last year that i never filled,so when it comes down to it i have 8 tags,(not counting ones that i could get from other family members)way more then i'll ever have the need to fill,becuase i'd have no place for the meat.



thanks everyone for the advice

[Cloak N Dagger]

Cody,

If you don't have room in the freezer for your deer meat, try canning it. Just cut, trim and de-bone the meat. (Remove ALL fat when you trim) Then pack the meat into quart size glass canning jars, along with a tsp of salt and a tbsp of liquid smoke (optional). Put the lids on the jars and place in a pressure canner for about 45 minutes. The meat will be preserved indefinitely with no need for refrigeration. The meat will be extremely tender, even if it's an older buck. Plus it's already cooked, so all you have to do is open a jar and heat it up when you want to eat it.

One question ... Wouldn't using other people's tags on your deer be illegal?

[RtWill78]

Cody I guess you could put an ad in the paper asking people if you could buy tags in their names too. If I'm not mistaken that is illegal, and would be considered poaching if you shoot deer that you do not have a tag for? Just think about it and do the right thing.

Cloak, I'd never thought about canning deer like that, it makes total sense and it would definantly get your seasoning deep into the meat and make it tender. My biggest problem is not enough freezer space, I need to get a deep freeze. Any way, thanks for the info.
RT

[BDB]

I usually can some of it. I use scrap meat that I cut into cubes. I take a mason jar and put in a tea spoon of salt then layer meat cubes and diced onions until the jar is packed tight. Then I put the jars in a large pot of boiling water with just the lids above water line. I boil for 3 hours then seal them and throw them in the cupboard. Turns out great just to eat on it's own, add to a stew (already has gravy) or my favorite is taking a few jars to a duck blind to eat during slow periods :). We made about 60 bottles from the neck meat of a large bull moose once. Lots of work but very tasty. I'll have to try the dash of liquid smoke that was suggested, sounds yummy

[Airborneguy]

In NY, where he hunts, you can transfer doe permits between people, but only two. On the other hand, if the hunter is with you whose regular tag you are filling, and doesn't care, they can just say it was their deer. BUT, they must be there right away, like as soon as you kill the deer, because you must fill out the tag as soon as the deer is dead. I don't see anything wrong with it that way, as long as everyone has a tag, AND IS PRESENT. If you already filled yours and are out without one hoping to fill someone elses, you'll be in big trouble and it is wrong. But let's say my uncle is only hunting this weekend and knows he probably won't fill a tag. If we only get one deer, shot by me, why not use his tag so I can continue to hunt after that? I don't see anything wrong with that as long as he is there and the deer is porperly tagged with a legal tag. Carrying someone else's tag who isn't there is a big no-no and stupid though.

[las]

Sorry to run off subject - shoot a big doe and the young will hang around, shoot a fawn and your big doe will become much harder to harvest but not impossible. I ate a 3.5 year old buck last year that was tremendously good, I can't really tell which is better- young or old? I fried steaks off that buck and steaks off a half year old doe and between the five who ate, none could decifer the difference? A young deer just seems better!

To answer the question about cross-tagging or 'party-hunting' it is legal in some states. The problem comes in when you get the guy who shoots everything that walks in front of him. I met 'him' last night. He has shot a buck in the first week for the past four years and suddenly finds a hunting partner immediatly after his kill?(this allows him or his partner to harvest a buck) He was quick to brag about the buck he had killed, and that it gave him an opportunity he could'nt resist, but it was only harvested because he needed venison to eat. I promise you that this man already had an opportunity or within a day would have had the opportunity to kill a doe (I see an average of 3 does a night = one within shooting range = a lot of does in our area) but instead he has to hang his balls in bronze and let everyone know that he killed a 'buck.' The buck was 1.5 year old 8 pt. with incredible genetics, but will never have the opportunity to pass them on, this means 5-15 does will lose these genetics this November! This man harvested a deer with the same instincts as a young doe - nothing more. Too bad he's 55 years old and only wants to 'get done' with deer hunting so he can head to North Dakota duck hunting. I could shoot 9,999,999 bucks this year in Minnesota as long as I had a license for my sister, mom, dad, brother, cousin, 25 friends, grandpa, grandma, everyone - as long as they are hunting with me(yeah right) it's legal. Ever wonder why Minnesota has some of the best habitate for whitetails in the world but is hardly ever ranked in top 5-in yearly production of trophy whitetails, without a doubt - Minnesota should be at a minimum of 1-5. Thanks to our regulations we will never be there.

[shufigo]

Guys, this has the potential to become a real hot issue (shooting deer on tags that belong to someone else). So far it's been real nice and civil -- I hope it stays that way.

[codypernice11]

In new york (it satrted last year) you can sign off your doe tag to someone else by just signing the back and giving writing permission.If you look at my post all i said was it was a possibility but i did say it i wasnt going to do it, but if i did do it it would be llegal.

[RtWill78]

Originally posted by codypernice11@Sep 28 2004, 07:38 PM
In new york (it satrted last year) you can sign off your doe tag to someone else by just signing the back and giving writing permission.If you look at my post all i said was it was a possibility but i did say it i wasnt going to do it, but if i did do it it would be llegal.

Cody, I stand corrected and I'm truly sorry to have implied/said that you were going to break the law. I should have checked my facts first, again I'm sorry .
Sorry.
RT

[Airborneguy]

That didn't start last year, you could always do it with the old ones. The one thing you can't do though is pass off a regular tag. And I want to stress...you have to have a valid regular tag to hunt in NY. If it has been used, you are done, UNLESS the DMPs are yours, then you can continue to hunt. You cannot go out with no regtular tag and someone else's DMP.

DMP = Deep Management Permit

[BelchFire]

Cody,

Here in GA, we have laws like you would expect. Your tags are your own, and cannot be transferred. To that end, we get two buck tags, and (I'll have to check this year to be sure) 10 "antlerless tags".

This keeps the population in check as LAS has noticed. When I shoot does, I make every effort to wait until I'm about to leave the stand. Let's say I've been watching two does feeding all afternoon. If it begins to get dark, I'm watching for that big guy that spooks around in the dusk without any notice. There's only a short period that I consider "prime" for this, but if he's a no-show, I may plug a doe right before I get down.

When I do, I make every effort to be sure that she's an unattached doe. I.E. she's not nursing, or even hanging around a smaller yearling or fawn that could be left "abandoned" without her.

As many have noticed, the age range we're talking about between young and old isn't tremendous. A 1.5 year old doe, and a 3.5 year old doe really aren't that much different. Doe meat is generally tenderer than buck, and rarely has that "buck in rut" taste that some of those big ole salty brutes have. I'd go for the older ones if you really want to distinguish.

As for the learned behavior..... I've noticed that deer will continue to feed with one "in the ditch" if you made a clean shot. However if you shoot one and he/she thrashes about a lot, that's gonna run the other deer off right away. I've had a deer come back to feed on the same hunt that I missed him on earlier...to the same spot. Unless you show yourself, and leave a lot of scent, I don't think a single shot/kill is gonna spook them more than immediately. Just as cavey said, they're there for a reason (travel/feed/scrape/whatever) so they'll be back.

G'Luck, and keep us posted on your success.

BelchFire

[codypernice11]

np rightwill