From what I'm gathering, a lot of people are not aware that this weekend (Oct 12-13) is an early muzzleloader season in Ohio. This two day season is antlerless deer only, regardless if you are using a muzzleloader or bow.
Below is an email the ODNR is sending out.
Ohio Offers Antlerless-Only Deer Muzzleloader Hunt Oct. 12-13
No bucks may be harvested during this weekend
Ohio hunters have the opportunity to participate in a new antlerless-only deer muzzleloader season Oct. 12-13, according to the Ohio Department of Natural Resources (ODNR).
It is legal to hunt antlerless deer statewide with a muzzleloader or bow during the two-day season. No bucks may be harvested regardless of hunting implement. Antlerless deer include deer without antlers and deer with antlers less than 3 inches in length. All hunters are required to wear a vest, coat, jacket or coveralls that are either solid hunter orange or camouflage hunter orange.
Hunters will be able to use antlerless permits and either-sex permits during the two-day season. Hunting hours are 30 minutes before sunrise to 30 minutes after sunset.
This muzzleloader hunt encourages early antlerless harvest. Reducing the deer population early in the hunting season means that more resources will be available for the surviving herd later in the winter. Harvesting does early should make for a more intense rut by encouraging buck movement.
A new tagging procedure administered by the ODNR Division of Wildlife requires hunters to make their own game tag to attach to a deer. Game tags can be made of any material (cardboard, plastic, paper, etc.) as long as it contains the hunter's name, date, time and county of the kill. Go to the Deer Hunting Resources page at wildohio.com for more information on changes to the game check process.
All hunters must report their deer harvest using the automated game-check system. Hunters have three options to complete the game check:
• Online at ohiogamecheck.com;
• Call 877-TAG-ITOH (824-4864);
• Visit a license agent. A list of agents can be found at wildohio.com or by calling 800-WILDLIFE.
Game-check transactions are available online and by seven days a week, including holidays. Landowners exempt from purchasing a deer permit, and other people not required to purchase a deer permit, cannot use the 877-TAG-ITOH option.
The ODNR Division of Wildlife remains committed to properly managing Ohio's deer populations through a combination of regulatory and programmatic changes. Progress toward reducing locally abundant herds can be expected. Strides have been made to reduce deer herds in many counties closer to target levels.
Ohio hunters are encouraged to hunt more does this season to help the needy in their area. The ODNR Division of Wildlife is working with Farmers and Hunters Feeding the Hungry (FHFH) to help pay for the processing of donated venison. Hunters who donate their deer to a food bank are not required to pay the processing cost as long as funding for the effort lasts. More information about this program can be found online at fhfh.org.
Deer hunting in Ohio continues to be a popular activity for many who enjoy the outdoors. Ohio hunters checked 218,910 deer during the 2012-2013 season. Ohio ranks fifth nationally in resident hunters and 11th in the number of jobs associated with hunting-related industries. Hunting has a more than $853 million economic impact in Ohio through the sale of equipment, fuel, food, lodging and more, according to the National Shooting Sports Foundation's Hunting in America: An Economic Force for Conservation publication.
ODNR ensures a balance between wise use and protection of our natural resources for the benefit of all. Visit the ODNR website at ohiodnr.gov.
Thanks, Just checked my tags and I do need to make a separate to attach to the animal.
QuoteOriginally posted by Bowbldr:
Thanks, Just checked my tags and I do need to make a separate tag to attach to the animal.
You can also print these to carry with you..
http://www.dnr.state.oh.us/Portals/9/pdf/deer%20harvest/DNR%208842,%20GAME%20TAG%202013.pdf
That made it easy..
thank you irishhacker...good info...
There will be a lot of nice bucks checked in Monday....;-)
I agree Rod..
We are making friendly bets here at work.
The average buck total for Ohio this year is 206 bucks killed per day.
So far, the guesses for Monday are 362 - 520 - and 618. lol
Yep, on the Monday buck kill... :)
irishhacker - Put me down for 751... :)
Where are you seeing those statistics? Just trying to learn. Would be cool to see. Tks
ceme24 - I have stats somewhere, when a chance, will post.
Deer kill is down 30% this year compared to last year. The ODNR has the stats on their website comparing this year with last. Still have 3 to 1 doe to buck kill.
I have to work this weekend anyway
I may have taken the smoke pole out for a freezer doe.
But I have to work and wil hit the woods Tues.
I agree that a lot of cheating will happen
QuoteOriginally posted by ceme24:
Where are you seeing those statistics? Just trying to learn. Would be cool to see. Tks
Ohio DNR Deer Harvest Comparison (http://ohiodnr.com/Home/HuntingandTrappingSubhomePage/DeerHuntingResources/deerharvestcomparison/tabid/24154/Default.aspx)
I hate this new hunt. Doe only for muzzleloader is fine but for archery it is really dumb.
I hate this new hunt. Doe only for muzzleloader is fine but for archery it is really dumb.
Come Monday, likely be some perturbed bowhunters when the buck they were hunting gets blasted over the weekend by a poaching smokepoler...
We've had a MZ doe only season for years here in PA.
That ends hunting "undisturbed deer with a bow" For 7 days, they stomp and tromp thru bedding areas, doing drives, and raising cane all over the state. Sr's can use regular rifles.
Archers have to do some orange when moving and in a nearby tree (100 sq) but it changes so I'll have to check if I go out.
Deer are near frantic after a week of guns booming...at least you have a weekend only, but archers can still shoot buck here. Or could, again, things change. I'll have to double check.
Then comes early small game, then regular small game and fall turkey coincide with archery. Things get a bit frenetic in the woods after that early do MZ season!
And yet, we STILL see fawns with spots in early archery...so they're not all getting bred first estrus YET!
QuoteOriginally posted by Zbone:
Come Monday, likely be some perturbed bowhunters when the buck they were hunting gets blasted over the weekend by a poaching smokepoler...
That is an unfair statement, that would be like someone calling all trad. bowhunters poachers. I think the idea of a hunt like that during the archery season stinks but we need to respect others rights and their character, we have a youth gun hunt this weekend so the main thing is to be aware of others so there are no accidents.
My son and I will be in a blind with our bows.
Anyone that doesn't like this new season can always choose to sit it out or be in the woods.
If I sat home every time there was the potential for a poacher to ruin my hunt, then I'd never get out.
Poachers are gonna poach, no matter the season.
Otto! gotta give you a call.
So glad i saw this. just moved to ohio and would never of known.
We've had a youth rifle weekend (tomorrow in fact) and an early MZZL (next weekend) for more than 10 years here. No problems with it all. I don't much like putting on blaze orange but that's the only impact to me.
Tomorrow my son and I will accompany his 10-year old son on his first deer hunt. I'll leave my bow at home. My son will be with the son in a buddy ladder. I'll be out of the way, waiting in the barn. I'm along in case tracking or packing help is needed (and to enjoy the excitement).
I do understand the Law Enforcement logic of making everyone shoot Does during the upcoming OH season but I have never agreed with laws that are written with violators in mind. Most hunters, no matter their equipment, are honest and law-abiding.
If someone is going to poach they will do it anyway regardless of rules or seasons. I don't hunt with a muzzleloader but I'm sure most of them are just as ethical as bowhunters.
Just to clarify, not all bowhunters are ethical either.
I'm not worried about the poaching side of it although there will be some of that. I think there will be an increase of bucks on Monday due to mistaken identity.
If you accidentally shoot a buck on the weekend; Do you leave it lay and spoil so as not to get into trouble? Or do you check it Monday as a bow kill so as not to waste the deer? Ethical dilemma....
Regardless, this post was meant as an FYI so we should probably try to keep it at that. Hopefully, this makes bow hunters more aware and keeps guys out of trouble.
I was aware of the regulation changes, but this is a good reminder.
thats how it starts, they did that crap in nj, now the whole season keeps getting shorter for and permit season starts, ,and gun seasons get longer. soon you will lose your first chance to a gun.
Saw a doe and a couple of forkies this morning. Heard a fair number of shots as well.
It'll be interesting to see the kill #'s off this weekend.
Thank you for the stats link.
I killed a fine buck a few years back with archery gear on the youth gun weekend. Guns were going off within a few hundred yards of me. Sometimes deer get pushed your way.
I am guessing quite a few deer will be nocturnal until rut after this weekend though. State land will be real tough.
Overall, OH still has shorter gun seasons than many states.
Those that don't believe bucks were poached over the weekend are naive to society....
Curious to see the stats. irishhacker - Wish we could somehow get the one day buck kill stats for today...
We have that next weekend. bow hunters have to wear orange but... We can take buck or doe
It does screw stuff up for a while rap huntinghere on public land. I just might be out there with em.
Thanks for the link. Some weird stuff this year in Ohio.
Last year I really enjoyed hunting late season. I am hoping the removal of the "bonus" gun weekend before Christmas will lead to better archery hunting around the holidays.
With gun, bonus gun, and late ML seasons the deer never settled after gun. We might get a couple of weeks in late Dec early Jan of stable bow hunting this year.
The potential for any additional poaching is related to the 'no bucks' weekend. If poaching occurs, it won't be confined to ML users....bow users are not morally better or more likely to adhere to laws than ML or shotgun guys. Let's not make this into an attack on ML users...a good many of which are also bow users and TG members.
My concern with the season is simply the loss of opportunity for bowhunters to harvest a buck if that opportunity shows. A guy who works M-F and hunts weekends is being deprived of opportunity, and will obviously be distraught if the buck of the year walks by.
Today the great orange army barrage begins...
What excuse is the DNR going to use when the kill stats show down again? My guess is EHD...
I hope the ODNR gets their collective heads out of thier rears and figure out they need to decrease the kill limit. I wish they'd go back to 2 statewide. I got a good buck this year, but man it has been slow.For me and everyone I know.
According to a press release I saw from ODNR, they will be happy if the overall deer harvest is down another 10-15% again this year. They are saying that it demonstrates a decrease in the herd and that is their goal.
As far as accidental shooting of bucks during muzzleloader season goes, my favorite county saw a 30% increase in the number of bucks harvested just after the DOE ONLY muzzleloader season. They were down almost 16% before the doe only season and then somehow miraculously they were up 15% after the doe only season. That 30% swing in the math which doesn't add up to good things....
I'm not saying anything was intentional, but the county shouldn't go from a deficit of bucks to a surplus after a doe season. :readit: Somebody shot the wrong thing.....
5:15 pm. At this exact moment (just before dark) I can see 17 deer from my house. The guns are popping steadily here, and lots of venison is going in freezers.
Yeah...I have one tag...think I will sit out smoke pole season and go in for the long grind to Super Bowl Sunday. There's a decent chance I won't sit a stand again until after Christmas. Deer just get too messed up after gun season.
I have hunted the PM on the past 3 super bowls. I am beginning to enjoy that....although I wouldn't admit to that last year as my arrow careened through the woods at 4:45PM after striking a branch on it's way to a doe on that last day of the season....what a way to end a season - listening to your arrow ricochet off trees as does scatter in all directions. I was so focused on my spot on that doe I totally didn't even see that branch.
Lets all head to Kevins... Oops, I forgot we don't have a lease contract... :)
(that was a joke Kevin)
In all seriousness though, that is why you have, quote: "too many" deer, because nobody has or can afford access to kill them... Don't understand how you don't get that...
QuoteOriginally posted by buckeye_hunter:
According to a press release I saw from ODNR, they will be happy if the overall deer harvest is down another 10-15% again this year. They are saying that it demonstrates a decrease in the herd and that is their goal.
As far as accidental shooting of bucks during muzzleloader season goes, my favorite county saw a 30% increase in the number of bucks harvested just after the DOE ONLY muzzleloader season. They were down almost 16% before the doe only season and then somehow miraculously they were up 15% after the doe only season. That 30% swing in the math which doesn't add up to good things....
I'm not saying anything was intentional, but the county shouldn't go from a deficit of bucks to a surplus after a doe season. :readit: Somebody shot the wrong thing.....
YEP! Phone it in and tell them what you killed. If it had to go to a check in station might be different.
I just checked the county I hunt and Buck harvests are down -11% for bucks and -21% on does so far for the archery season as of 10/27.
Thought things where different this year.
Bob
Actually every farm around me, plus mine gets hunted in bow and gun season, Gary. The nearest lease is 4 miles away. We local landowners do discourage trespassers and guys who take unethical shots, so that eliminates a few lazy window-shooters.
Within the counties I commonly travel (Jackson, Athens, Vinton, Meigs, Ross, Scioto and Gallia) I'm not having any trouble seeing deer out in the fields at morning or evening.
Oh, so you displace other locals to lease....
So basically you're managing your local deer herd rather than the state, yet you claimed the state was doing a fine job with the statewide deer population.... I don't get it...
"Jackson, Athens, Vinton, Meigs, Ross, Scioto and Gallia"
How many of these does seen will survive these hunting seasons, and all the vehicles you guys hit them with, to reproduce fawns that'll survive until next year?
In my area where big farms and large tracts of land are are not common, (and amish are) and the if it's brown, it's down mentality, while deer run wildly dodging whistling slugs from one small patch of land to the other, they whack over 50% a year....
Gary, I'm not sure where your anger comes from. I am not part of any lease, and that's not what this thread is about. I own land and I let others hunt there at no expense. The deer are free to range anywhere they want. No food plots. No lease anywhere close to me. Come to think of it, I don't believe there is a NO HUNTING sign hanging within 2 miles of my home. The neighbors don't shoot guys who ask to hunt. I'm seeing an abundance of deer. I'm happy when guys hunt them successfully, and that's why I invite my friends to hunt my farm, and we've taken a pile of deer from it over the decades. We try to do our part. My neighbors allow me to hunt their farms, but I actually seldom do as I have enough acreage where I live.
I don't manage deer at all, unless you consider shooting the heck out of them as managing. I just hunt. I've defended Ohio's efforts to drop the deer population, mainly because I believe there are too many deer when you look at the big picture. I know you're only capable of looking at it from your somewhat limited and disgruntled perspective. I understand.
I'm not skeptical of the ODNR. I'm not paranoid about other hunters. I don't think a conspiracy exists to deprive me of a deer. I don't think the state is out to screw me or other hunters. I don't want a deer population of 750,000+ statewide. I don't need to kill 3 deer a year to be satisfied. I tend to report what I see from where I live in rural deer country. I give the ODNR credit for ignoring the minority and managing the deer population for the majority of residents of Ohio, and not just hunters.
I've got a super-abundance of coyotes here, too. They don't kill off the deer, contrary to popular rumor.
"I've defended Ohio's efforts to drop the deer population, mainly because I believe there are too many deer when you look at the big picture."
"I give the ODNR credit for ignoring the minority and managing the deer population for the majority of residents of Ohio, and not just hunters."
Yep Kevin you're never wrong, or won't admit it...
That is where you and differ bigtime, and from the sound of some here and from hunters afield I talked to, they aren't seeing enough deer either...
If you farmers have a deer population issue, allow more to hunt your land to kill them, its that plain and simple....
Oh well, it'll be fine with me when many quit due to lack of game and sightings...
Five hunters in orange on my property today, so no problem there. My employees hunted here yesterday and killed 2 deer. We'll do our part.