How has new baiting law effected your hunting?

[busta cap]

I noticed. If does have feed, cover and water, they will hang around the same area. I saw the same deer all season as long as I had feed

Yep...and thats why its even more important to not be so focused on killing now that its legal to bait...you can wipe out your Does in a hurry...Its good to here the replies on clubs limiting there Doe harvest...they get it...unfortunately some won't

 

[Bowyer29]

could be because there are less processors in the overall area which equates to more volume for each of the remaining processors. we have probably less than half the number of processors in our area (several counties) than we did a few years ago. several have had to do the same thing you are describing because of increased volume. at least one of the few remaining ones will probably shut down at the end of this year for good from what i hear.

FWIW they have had to shut down at times in years past also for the same reasons. and that was when baiting was not legal.

Good points here.
I think, think being operative, that it is the same number for the last 5 years or so. I'm interested to see the State tally per county when the season is over. I know it isn't 100% accurate but it should give us a rough idea.

 

[ucfireman]

I just looked at the game check results for the county I hunt, Oglethorpe, for this year, compared to last year it looks like 500 or so fewer deer were taken ? While I realize the game check likely isn't all that accurate, when you factor in the deer that don't get reported, it goes along with what I heard about south ga harvest numbers after corn was legalized there .

I don't know if lower harvests really correlates to corn being put out everywhere or not ? But if it does I'm all for it, we've been killing too many deer in the piedmont region, for quite a few years now with the ridiculous either sex days we have.

Of course, going by the DNR's own reasoning, since less deer were killed this year, they'll probably only increase either sex days next year !

I would bet the wet season had more to do with that than the corn, just a guess.

And as Ant said, I think people don't feel like they have to shoot the first/only deer they see if they are seeing decent numbers, on the other hand you hunt for a month and don't see anything- brown is down!

 

[high tech. hunter]

Guess it's time for me to change my little picture to the left ?

 

[oppthepop]

All the chatting about corn......we didn't feed corn, never have. We do feed Buck Muscle and I was glad we could finally feed the deer a quality supplement all year long. Saw deer and bucks every time in the stand on either farm. Killed one buck - a 4.5 year old brute that we knew well, and my son did the same. We haven't killed a doe on either farm in five years (the neighbors weigh heavily on them). One thing we know FOR SURE, the supplemental feed keeps them CLOSE, but they do roam during the rut - and we pray they make it back alive and survive. Neither buck was shot over a feeding trough. Most mature buck pics at the feeders were ALWAYS late at night, even during the rut, but THEY GOT TO EAT GOOD STUFF! Also, we have one old (now he will be 6.5 if he lives) buck who was shot and wounded at 3.5 - SEVERELY but he survived and I am confident the supplemental feed is what kept him alive. I have a shed from him from mid December - big five on one side (posted an earlier thread called "they be droppin'"). he always grows his rack early, sheds his velvet early, and sheds his antlers early. Anyway, sorry for a lengthy comment, but for OUR FARMS, I am glad we can feed all year. i think it's really good for the betterment of the deer herd.

 

[Mark K]

I’ve noticed most of our big bucks quit hitting the feeders at about the hard pre-rut stage. You will see them on cam checking the does out that come in to feed, but the bucks stay back and tend to check and move on if nothing peeks their interest.