Do you hunt solely for trophy?

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9mmforMe

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Let me first say that I am not a hunter. I do understand clearly that many hunt to provide meat for the pot. I also understand that thinning a herd is a wise ecological practice depending on numerous variables. But how do you feel about hunting just for the kill/trophy? And why do you feel this way?
 
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I hunt to lower my grocery bill. If it happens to be a large specimen, so much the better. Last deer season, I killed a 9-point whitetail minutes after first light on opening morning. Biggest deer i've ever shot. Got him squared away, then went on to hunting does (I had two doe tags). Still got some meat in the freezer, mighty tasty.
 
I first tasted venison about 5 years ago. A friend at work knows I love steaks and gave me a few to try...some of the best meat I've ever tasted.
 
I hunt for meat but as long as the meat isn't wasted, I have no problem trophy hunting. Just look at what trophy hunting in Zimbabwe has done for the elephant populations the last few decades.
 
Well, first of all I dont like to "kill" for the sake of killing. Hunting is not about going around killing things for me as I dont have a primal urge to kill. When I do take an animal, I do all I can to reduce suffering and I try to make it a quick kill (and believe it or not I do feel kind of bad for the animal every time, since I have pets I cant help it). I love hunting because its a challenge, it provides memories, I love being out in nature, and frankly I like big trophies on my wall. I set a certain standard for what I consider a trophy in that particular area that Im hunting. If Im hunting on my farm, a 125 inch deer is big for my immediate area (east texas) and would take it in a heart beat. If Im paying for a hunt in Wisconsin or Iowa, I try to keep it at 140 inch minimum because I want to take something that I cant really find on my farm, or at least not very often. As far as meat, I like some wild game meat more than others (still prefer beef over venison). The experience is first, the head on the wall is second, the meat is third. The meat I dont use I give to family and friends (usually make summer sausage and give it away at Christmas).
 
I hunt because I enjoy it. I hope to get an outstanding specimen but like others I will take any legal animal. I will kill hogs,venomous snakes,rats and venomous spiders at every opportunity otherwise I have to have a reason to kill ei; food,pelts,predator control,etc. I will often pass up legal game if I haven't got a use for it. Hogs and deer must be controlled or the resulting damage to crops and landscapes can be tremendous.
 
I'm not sure of the meaning of "just for the trophy". I'm generally keeping an eye out for the biggest buck in the pasture, but I guarantee you that he's gonna contribute to many and many a good meal.

Always remember that it was hunters, collectively, who created the rules and regulations we have in hunting. The vast majority of hunters despise those who would kill a trophy animal and not take the meat--which is why there are laws against wasting edible meat from game animals.

Taking a really big trophy whitetail means, most of the time, that a hunter has outwitted a pretty smart critter. There is thus more of a point of pride in demonstrating proof of one's skill. But even a big trophy buck can be quite tasty if the cook knows what he's doing.

And a dumb cook can ruin a young, tasty doe.
 
A lot of what Art said and I will also add...Look,a guy that has killed dozens upon dozens of deer in a life time many times changes to hunting for a top quality wall hanger buck and while doing so lets several to hundreds of deer walk before finally pulling the trigger.
I hunt on a very large low fence ranch in south Texas and it took me 12 years before I finally was able to kill a 151 B.C. 12 point buck.
Yes, I usually will take a spike or a doe sometime during the hunting season for meat but it may come as a surprise to some of you that have never had the opportunity to hunt on a good Texas private land ranch but it is not at all unusual for me to see in one morning or evening hunt to see 8-20 decent whitetail bucks.
Trophy hunting generally is an evolved taste for a lot of hunters that have as I mentioned earlier killed a lot of deer over the years.
We allow others a lot of opportunitys to score on the deer we pass up.
 
I think hunting solely for a trophy is a pretty despicable thing to do, and a waste of life and sustenance. It's even worse to kill and not take anything.

I try to use as much of whatever animal i kill as possible*, and in the case of bucks, that means using their racks as an ornament for a wall as well as their meat on the table.

Never had anything stuffed; not being a fan of glass eyes... normally i just cut off the skull-cap/antlers. It's free and easy.

Also, in the case of bucks, I've found that they eat better when they're younger, ergo their rack is less of a "trophy" for the wall. But it is nice to have a token of theirs years later, to remind you of the hunt and of the life sacrificed.

*: I make exception for coyotes, since i don't eat them; but i will skin them and keep that.
 
In 46 years of deer hunting I have killed over 75 deer,which were mostly bucks,and in that time I have mounted exactly 3.
One 11 point and two 12 points.
All three truely good bucks more than deserving to be immortalized forever on my wall.
I can still remember vividly each one,the condition of the weather and time of day,even the rifle used to deliver the shot.
1977,1979,2005.
 
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I think a 'trophy' is different for many people. For example, I consider my first buck antelope a trophy, and it still hangs on my wall. If I were to take it to cabelas to try and get them to hang on their wall, they'd probably laugh at me and tell me I'm not welcome in their store any more. However, it was my first buck, so it'll always be special to me, no matter how big it is. I've also never shot a bull elk, so while I by no means want a spike, I would have no issues shooting and mounting a 4x4 and calling that a 'trophy'
 
If having a trophy is the only thing desired,one can be bought at an estate sale or non-pick ups from a taxidermist. No need to get up early,venture out into the cold to shoot your own.
 
If it's a trophy it might cost you a lot more than you think.
But define what you consider a trophy.
Someone in a heavily populated over hunted region may call a spike a trophy(good god!),others might consider a non typical a trophy.
Others would consider any 10 point a trophy.
And then some consider anything with a width over 16 inches a trophy.
Some would say trophy starts at 140 B.C.
 
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Lots of good information, thanks guys.

BTW what is a spike? And what does B.C. stand for?

The reason I aksed this question was because I read of a hunter who paid a good deal of money to have a "panther" in what was described as a large cage for him to shoot. The animal had no means of escape whatsoever and there was no stalk involved. Does this type of thing occur often?
 
I read of a hunter
Click to expand...
Beware of such things. While it is certainly possible that this took place,it is more likely a tactic of an anti-hunting group attempting to smear hunting. Facts are seldom used in anti-hunting rhetoric.
 
I went "deer hunting" approx 39 years
Shot approx 22 deer.
I never cared much ( or my family) for deer meat.
I enjoyed getting away for 7 days---play cards. drink beer & shoot the breeze.
That was my vacation--away from the rat race////////////////
Getting a deer was secondary
I enjoyed reloading, target shootin, etc much more than looking for deer.
Been retired 11 years--no need to get away now///////////////////// :D:):):D
 
I shoot one doe to put in the freezer. After that, or even before that since I can shoot a doe anytime, I'm looking for a buck larger than one I already have on the wall. Hard to do.
 
9MM, a spike is a buck deer that has no branched antlers or brow tines.
Sometimes they grow straight up and sometimes they bow like cow horns,which is why some people use the term "cow horn" spike.
B.C. means Boone & Crockett which is a very tedious scoring system that measures many aspects of a deers antlers to come up with a total score.
170 gets the deer into the official Boone& Crockett score book.
It's somewhat like winning the lottery on wild game.
 
I don't hunt solely for trophy but I'd be lying if I said I didn't want to kill a big buck. I have no qualms about shooting a doe when legal though, and here in Arkansas, that's pretty much any time deer season is open. If I've got a couple of doe in the freezer, I'll pass on one, especially in the rut.

Like others here, I have no use for anyone who would keep a trophy and waste the meat though. I would imagine that goes for pretty much everyone though. The jackasses like that are the exception, not the rule.
 
I hunt for meat. I really don't care about trophies, but if I got a particularly nice buck or hog I might see a taxidermist. I haven't gotten one I felt was worthy of paying to mount on a plaque for the wall but if I did get one like that I might do it, after butchering it out, of course. Some of the people who trophy hunt around here, and I assume other places, donate the meat to food banks, and I can't fault them for that. The meat is not going to waste.
 
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