Sako’s & Game Fall 2023

[Bucktote]

Believe it not in Texas there are “exotic” properties advertising “hunts” for kangaroo, bongo & giraffe. Excess zoo species available.
With no concern for spreading animal diseases, parasites or zoonotic diseases. Disgusting…

Same mental lightweights that loosed pythons in Fla. State govt. fools allow exotics to be imported with no regard for future ramifications.
Ever wonder why we have the Gov.t we have now?

 

[Spaher]

Well, from the first post on this topic I expressed reasons for optimism on this coming season. Ranch manager jumped the gun on 2 cameras as too hot to see deer in the day & found a couple of interesting ones on the first day, both still having anticipated growth as tines still rounded. Jumps on mass and antler growth on 2 known bucks. Another 6x6 with abnormals aged at 7.5 yo that was a 5X last season at 6.5 in the triple photo showing big jump in mass, beam & overall tine length. The other is a 9yo with H-1 mass about 8.5” each side so ought be a few inches north of 45” & beams ~29”, as we have his sheds from 4 prior years as pedicles kept growing and beams ~28”. You can see his hooves & large post-mature chest, a big bodied black faced buck.
Just to get early optimism going for this coming season for those that hunt WT deer.
Cheers

 

[paulsonconstruction]

Well, from the first post on this topic I expressed reasons for optimism on this coming season. Ranch manager jumped the gun on 2 cameras as too hot to see deer in the day & found a couple of interesting ones on the first day, both still having anticipated growth as tines still rounded. Jumps on mass and antler growth on 2 known bucks. Another 6x6 with abnormals aged at 7.5 yo that was a 5X last season at 6.5 in the triple photo showing big jump in mass, beam & overall tine length. The other is a 9yo with H-1 mass about 8.5” each side so ought be a few inches north of 45” & beams ~29”,View attachment 30814 as we have his sheds from 4 prior years as pedicles kept growing and beams ~28”. You can see his hooves & large post-mature chest, a big bodied black faced buck.
Just to get early optimism going for this coming season for those that hunt WT deer.
CheersView attachment 30815View attachment 30816View attachment 30817

You must have genetically insert Elk DNA into the deer on your place! UNBELIEVEABLE!! Thanks for the pics.

 

[dustinga]

The 9.5 looks tired. He'll probably jump in front of a speeding bullet, before seasons end

 

[bloorooster]

Are there any wavers to sign that remove the liabilities and complications of death due to heart attacks, strokes or otherwise for a client hunter when the buck in photo five steps into shooting range? Have Mercy!
Thanks Spaher , I will keep the image of this buck in my mind, and when my opportunity comes on a shooter class buck, my aim will be solid as stone.

Thanks for what you do for whitetail deer

 

[Spaher]

Prospects trickling in as ages to be determined but at different stages of growth related to when shed & a month away from beginning to putting on fat as heat stress impacts body condition & antler growth. Forecast for season as good as those from tropical storm predictions helping our eco-region out.

 

[gunner620]

Always enjoy seeing your pictures of the beautiful bucks that you have caught on your game camera's . Keep it up for our enjoyment. Thanks

 

[stonecreek]

Hey, Spaher: Did you get some helpful rain out of the tropical storm that passed over South Texas?

 

[Spaher]

3.1" was welcomed like an ice cold beer after working on a hot sunny day. Just before the end of the dog days but sorely needed to get some forbs going and introduce confused fawns to rain and cooler mornings, something they did not know existed.

 

[stonecreek]

3.1" was welcomed like an ice cold beer after working on a hot sunny day. Just before the end of the dog days but sorely needed to get some forbs going and introduce confused fawns to rain and cooler mornings, something they did not know existed.

You should have some does that eat like Kobi beef this fall! Maybe some record buck weights, too.

 

[Spaher]

It’s going to be nuts, as all the signs were there.
Ages to be determined but all the factors seem to come together. For every one of these there are others that must be removed to continue the predictable optimism.
Relevance is Sako exercises, of course…
Sharing our program to those that enjoy WT.

 

[icebear]

Amazing. That's the word for it. An almost unbelievable convocation of prime buck deer.

 

[douglastwo]

It’s going to be nuts, as all the signs were there.View attachment 30972View attachment 30973View attachment 30974View attachment 30975
Ages to be determined but all the factors seem to come together. For every one of these there are others that must be removed to continue the predictable optimism.
Relevance is Sako exercises, of course…
Sharing our program to those that enjoy WT.

For every one of those monsters taken, about how many other bucks will be removed to maintain your program? Thanks for sharing photos and knowledge......and of course your Sako pics.

 

[Spaher]

Douglastwo, no simple answer due to variables such as weather, heat, fawn survival, etc but I’ll give you our harvest last season & an imprecise calculation of where we estimate the longer term effect will be.
Imprecise because we use cameras now more than ground scouting & many deer are missed.
2022-2023 season we harvested 136 Bucks & 130 does. We had 59 deer designated as undesirable traits to remove as “culls” due to no. of points, short beam length, extreme age or tine length. Of the 59 we removed 45, so ~75% designated harvest success. Every year this category has been shrinking as we still have unharvested bucks we missed then recruitment into the category as some deer develop. A slow process because we cannot judge the females/does potential to make fawns & use age for doe removal. We shoot all spikes, period especially in good years as they had every chance to do more. A numbers game & this pool has also been shrinking over the years. Then a number of not known deer are removed based on hunting decisions based on age & desirable/undesirable traits.
“Trophies” or desirable traits are broken into different categories as: off-limits (no top shooting & super traits; need age or not sure; estimated not old enough & hold; & ready.
Here is an imprecise breakdown:
Ready age & desirable: 27
Off-limits: 5
Need age: 26 (potential to go into ready);
Not ready & hold: 42
These total 100 & we took 12 of the 27 “trophies”, & left 15.

The need to eliminate from the pool is 59 (45 removed); 33 ready (12 removed, but 100 prospects).
Every year the ratio is expected to change in favor of the desirable traits, but there will always be bucks that must be removed as well as does in relation to estimated fawn recruitment to have low numbers. Our mgmt plan is to continue to increase the better traits by using bullets long term.
Here are some deer we want (must) remove:

 

[bloorooster]

I’d like to volunteer my services…what must be done, must be done!!
Better yet, transfer those bucks to my property!

 

[Bucktote]

Douglastwo, no simple answer due to variables such as weather, heat, fawn survival, etc but I’ll give you our harvest last season & an imprecise calculation of where we estimate the longer term effect will be.
Imprecise because we use cameras now more than ground scouting & many deer are missed.
2022-2023 season we harvested 136 Bucks & 130 does. We had 59 deer designated as undesirable traits to remove as “culls” due to no. of points, short beam length, extreme age or tine length. Of the 59 we removed 45, so ~75% designated harvest success. Every year this category has been shrinking as we still have unharvested bucks we missed then recruitment into the category as some deer develop. A slow process because we cannot judge the females/does potential to make fawns & use age for doe removal. We shoot all spikes, period especially in good years as they had every chance to do more. A numbers game & this pool has also been shrinking over the years. Then a number of not known deer are removed based on hunting decisions based on age & desirable/undesirable traits.
“Trophies” or desirable traits are broken into different categories as: off-limits (no top shooting & super traits; need age or not sure; estimated not old enough & hold; & ready.
Here is an imprecise breakdown:
Ready age & desirable: 27
Off-limits: 5
Need age: 26 (potential to go into ready);
Not ready & hold: 42
These total 100 & we took 12 of the 27 “trophies”, & left 15.

The need to eliminate from the pool is 59 (45 removed); 33 ready (12 removed, but 100 prospects).
Every year the ratio is expected to change in favor of the desirable traits, but there will always be bucks that must be removed as well as does in relation to estimated fawn recruitment to have low numbers. Our mgmt plan is to continue to increase the better traits by using bullets long term.
Here are some deer we want (must) remove:View attachment 30978View attachment 30977View attachment 30979

Great Pics. Mr. Spaher.
What makes the cull bucks shown above "Need to be removed"? They look
like they have good antler growth except the do not look like the points are
same on both sides? I like to keep mature does that have success in raising fawns & try to eliminate very young does & old does that may be barren . My problem is that our farm is small & every one is not on the same page!!
A management program like yours is possible when all hunters are of the same mind set. Keep up the good work & those Sako's busy!! B/T

 

[Spaher]

Bucktote, nothing wrong with these bucks but we would rather have a tall frame 5x5 breeding even if young. At age 4 if all they are are 8 pts we remove as a numbers game. Some are really big but not trying to reproduce 8’s & give the 5x5’s, 6x6’s, 7x7’s & non-typicals a chance at replicating those traits.
We try harvest before the rut so they don’t breed & then much harder to hunt during the rut as they chase does into the thick brush, & they are often dominant in fighting as older.
Not meant to offend anyone but over time our criteria has evolved & we have more to sift thru to choose what to remove.
Our program will not work on a beginning scenario as need be applied with more caution & less “violent”than ours over the many years implemented and criteria modified. The goal is to continue to increase desirable traits every year.
As to does the older does have been found to produce more females than males & why we remove most, only leaving a few traits we like like really long big bodies, color variations like black face, dark capes, etc.

 

[stonecreek]

This one is a great example of a big-bodied "trophy" 8-point that 95% of hunters would love to have. But if you're seeking to get better heads from your herd then this one shouldn't be breeding the does and generating more bucks that max out at 8-points. As Spaher says, it takes years of dedication and selective/adaptive hunting to get a deer herd to produce the kind of trophies that his does.

By the way, I'll bet that Spaher would be happy to send that corn-stealing raccoon in the lower LH corner of the photo on to his reward, also. An L46 in .22 Hornet would be just right for the job.

 

[Bucktote]

This one is a great example of a big-bodied "trophy" 8-point that 95% of hunters would love to have. But if you're seeking to get better heads from your herd then this one shouldn't be breeding the does and generating more bucks that max out at 8-points. As Spaher says, it takes years of dedication and selective/adaptive hunting to get a deer herd to produce the kind of trophies that his does.

By the way, I'll bet that Spaher would be happy to send that corn-stealing raccoon in the lower LH corner of the photo on to his reward, also. An L46 in .22 Hornet would be just right for the job.

Mr. Stonecreek!
A friend of mine invited me to hunt his farm & said that the deer were really eating up his corn! As I sat there about early dusk the real culprits appeared. *Eight rotund squirrels waddled thru the brush & fell upon the corn with great zeal!! the deer never showed & Ray went to shooting squirrels later that season. The Sako was silent that evening!!

 

[bloorooster]

This one is a great example of a big-bodied "trophy" 8-point that 95% of hunters would love to have. But if you're seeking to get better heads from your herd then this one shouldn't be breeding the does and generating more bucks that max out at 8-points. As Spaher says, it takes years of dedication and selective/adaptive hunting to get a deer herd to produce the kind of trophies that his does.

By the way, I'll bet that Spaher would be happy to send that corn-stealing raccoon in the lower LH corner of the photo on to his reward, also. An L46 in .22 Hornet would be just right for the job.

And with that Hornet..where would you place the shot?