Is a 4 point a trophy?

i agree. i get it all the time being made fun of for killing a forked horn or 6 piont or whatever. that kinda ticks me off. killing a deer no mater the size is smething to b proud of. drives me nuts. i killed my first with a bow this year. went to check it in. was a 60lb yearling. had people teasing me bout it i told em kiss my ass. i was very proud of that animal.

Any animal, humanely taken in fair chase is a trophy to be proud of.

Those who ridicule the lawful and fair efforts of others are truly the "Slob Hunters".

Be proud.

oklahoma
caveman

Sounds like you need to hunt up some classier folks to hunt with! To demean anothers kill is truly snobbish. Sounds like they don't want any meat! And if it was mine they damn sure wouldn't get any.

i agree

I have been rraised with the reverence for life that doesn't allow me to mock anything that god has allowed to give its life for the nourishment of me and my loved ones. I pray for success when i hunt and I thank God for the Animals that he delivers to me. In my opinion that is far more important that the hunt itself. The quest for food and survival is what has made us what we are today, we need to honor that heritage, as well as the animals that we take. they were living beings same as us, and we should all only hope for as much respect in return when it is our time to go.

the hunt itself and the memories are the trophy - not the animal.

The first deer I ever shot was a 5 point with 1 of those points under 1 inch (therefore a four-point deer under Texas law). That deer is just as much of a trophy as the 140-class buck on the wall next to it.

"Trophy" is in the eye of the beholder, but for me, a 4 point would not be a trophy.

I believe any animal that you are proud to have hunted successfully is a trophy. It's the journey to me, not the destination.

Meat is meat. I could care less about antlers when I hunt deer. You can't eat the antler. I could care less what anybody else thinks about it too. I killed a 8 pointer this year, my wife a doe. They are both in the freezer right now, and you know what, I can't tell a lick of difference between em!

Some of my most challenging hunts were "bald" critters. The degree of difficulty to obtain rather than the size of the game can earn the term "trophy" in any hunters book.

I have to laugh when someones calls a 4 point a "monster" or "giant" and so on. Those terms really don't apply unless it's reached Boone & Crocket record books.

I'll tell you, MOSTLY I agree. But, there are hunters here in PA who shoot bears that look like cubs and then get their pictures in the paper. It looks to many non-hunters and hunters alike that they have slain the "teddy-bear". I think it shows poor judgment and reflects poorly on the hunting community. I realize that judging size of these animals in the field might be problematic but some of them are so small that it is embarrassing.

As for your 4 point, congratulations. I have shot a spike or two myself. In the traditional and connotative sense of the word it is not a true competitive trophy per se, but I agree that God provides our game and am thankful for each fairly obtained kill. I agree with the brother hunter who said that the hunt and experience is your "trophy". One of my most memorable hunting experiences was a year when I shot nothing. It was a great hunting season with friends in beautiful snowfalls and sights of doe parading in front of my stand all day.

some good natured teasing is one thing, being mean is another. Any deer taken legally that will be eaten is a trophy!!!

Some people don't get to hunt much, others only can hunt public property. Not all these areas house massive bucks. As long as you are happy about taking an animal, do so and don't compare yourself to hunting a private ranch over a feeder or field of soybeans.

I guess it depends upon what you mean by ''trophy''. I am not real crazy about hunting for the sake of hunting or just for a single small part of an animal.

At one time, not so long ago people hunted in this country to feed their families. With the loss of rural community and the rise of the social state (read: food stamps) such things are a rarity. It is becoming more common that many hunters do not keep what they kill, excepting the rack and I wonder what is really in it for them? Because a man without a vested interest will give up his luxuries in a pinch. Will they continue to work to protect hunting when it becomes difficult and more ''unpopular''? I hope so, trophy hunters have been very helpful so far.

But if by trophy you mean something to be proud of as you put meat on the table than sure it is a keeper. Proper game management might mean that something with spikes would not be a great kill in one area but in another would be perfectly fine. Just about everywhere a good sized four pointer is fine.

I passed up a 4 pointer last year because I wanted to shoot something bigger if I had to spend an hour or more dragging it out of the swamp. That was after passing up a 1/2 dozen does. It was the last deer I saw last season. I learned something from that experience.

This year, I manned up, and shot a huge doe (the DNR aged it at 3.5 years), yes I passed up a few smaller ones until this one gave me the opportunity. Considering the amount of hard work I put in setting up a stand, travelling to my hunting destination, and dragging this deer out of the woods, I consider it a trophy. Its meat in the freezer.

A 4-pointer a trophy? It depends on how you feel about it. If you worked hard for it and made a clean kill, it most certainly is a trophy to you.


In my circle of friends who are hunters, 3 or 4 of them are the archetypical 'trophy hunters.' They seem to shoot a lot of 160 class or bigger deer, but they also spend 100x as much time in their stands or scouting than I do, and on a weekly basis pass up on 1.5-2.5 year old 8-pointers that I would never dream of passing on. I don't fault them for their hobbies, and they don't really give me grief for shooting does or small bucks.

Not having hunted (yet), I'm not sure I'd care about a trophy. Or even really a picture taken with it. I'd certainly be proud, but I think I'd just be proud for me. Not that I wouldn't have pics or a thophy per se, but any pics or trophies would be inconsequential to my pride.

In that light, it's a real jackass move for someone to diss you because your deer was (perceived as) small. They just need to thump their chest and tell you how big their d**k is. Lame.

Point is... be happy for yourself. The rest is secondary.


-T.

Any deer worthy of you taking is a trophy of sorts and there's nothing wrong with any of them but I consider a trophy as one that I would be willing to spend almost $400 for a shoulder mount. In nearly 30 years of hunting that's only occurred once for me (a 12 point with good mass).

I have mixed feelings on this topic. When I was younger I hunted in an are that was tough just to see a deer in and shot yearling bucks in back to back years while my dad and brother both came home empty handed. In that case I certanly felt very proud of my deer! I now hunt in an area in north western MN where many big bucks roam and wont shoot anything that I dont feel is atleast 3 years old. I know someone in our hunting party that owns a couple hundred acres and every year he shoots 3-4 basket racks off of his property then wonders why he never shoots any big bucks? If you want too be a true trophy hunter you have too lean not to shoot the 1st thing you see and you have to be willing to come home empty handed. I say if you want meat for the freezer shoot a doe and give the young buck a chance to grow into his full potential. If every hunter in your area has this additude everyone will eventually reap the rewards of trophy bucks in the future. This seems to be more of a common practice in the bow hunting community than with the gun hunters. I think a major reason being the much longer season, 4 months vs 2 or 3 weeks. A feel a mature buck is a majestic animal and a true trophy but unless you are selective as to what you shoot you may never have the chance to harvest one.

I get all kinds brought into my taxidermy shop. I've mounted all size racks. Even the people with the spikes are proud of their accomplishment, and to be honest, I'm tickled to see the shine in their eyes as they tell their story. Everyone has a different view of what makes a trophy, and you should be happy with your own standards.

I've taken some pretty nice bucks, but one of my favorites is a small 3 pointer I took back in 2000. After the shot, I went and got my 4 year old nephew and he tracked it for me. I put them on a plaque along with a poem I wrote about him called:

"The Tracker."

"This 3 point rack is small, but to me it means a lot;
Not because I took it, but because of how it was got.
For in the year 2000, after the shot was done,
I decided on some special help to make the job more fun.
So I went and got The Tracker, and put him on the trail;
He followed sign 100 yards and found it with out fail.
Now his name is Austin ________
And this was his first track job when he was only 4."

Austin is almost 12 now, and everytime he comes into my shop he has to check out that plaque. You'll never convince either one of us that deer was not a trophy.

you can't get much better eating deer than a 60# yearling I personally would rather kill one like that than an "average" buck
Roy

I haven't hunted much in years, just got back into it this year really. I consider every animal I've hunted or fished for to be a "trophy." Deer, rabbit, squirrel, bass or brim. Every one is a gift from the good Lord, and it's only through His blessings I'm still able to hunt or fish at all.

You see, back in August I had a four way cardiac bypass operation. About six years ago, I survived cancer surgery. Things like that will make you really appreciate the little things in life. I'm happy to be able to walk out back of the house, set on a bucket, and wack a bushytail once in a while. I've passed up a lot of them, and missed a few that I should have dead to rights. It doesn't matter. I treasure each kill, and laugh at the misses. I've already gotten to enjoy being in the woods again. Shooting is just a bonus.

Enjoy your time in the woods and fields. Thank the Lord for his blessings, no matter how big or how small.

What are you looking for?

"Trophy" is what you make of it. I know a man who wants only large antlered deer. No official scoring, just his own satisfaction. To him, a trophy is a large rack.

I hunt for meat. I've shot deer with respectable antlers, but none very impressive. For me, a trophy is puting meat in the freezer. A big bodied doe is a trophy to me.

I'm gonna go with a Trophy being a bigger buck. Lets be honest, do you consider a 4th place ribbon for your bowling team a trophy? No its the 4 foot tall gold plated bowler on a marble slab thats the trophy. Same thing, a Trophy buck is the big one. My little sister got a really nice 8 pointer this year, but I got 2 nice does with a freeze full of meat but I wouldn't say thats the trophy, its just a freezer full of yummies. Call it what it is and be happy with that!

I unfortunatly must hunt public land. I consider ANY deer a trophy, buck or doe. I like most would like to bag a big buck but have been known to bust the first deer to cross my path!

The common usage of the word is the Boone & Crocket record-book meaning. "Great ol' big braggin' buck".

As far as how folks want to use the word, I can't see as how it makes any difference. Whatever floats your boat. But, still and all, the word itself has to do with achievement above and beyond the ordinary. The Heismann Trophy doesn't go to the guy who just showed up in pads...

Art