If we are going to manage the deer heard in the State of Alabama to trophy quality. I mean make it to where there is a 5 yr old mature buck behind every tree on large and small tracts of land (Nah, never mind. piss on the small acre guy), we have got to stop letting these kids kill young deer. Social media is riddled with photos of kids with young, small bucks. That 3 point could really turn in to something in 4 years from now and by killing it, you are reducing your neighbors chances of killing a mature deer down the road. I mean lets face it, how many of those kids will actually grow up to be "Trophy" hunters? 20% at best? So for every 100 new hunters, 20 of them will grow up to aid us in our plight to kill monster deer in Alabama. The other 80 will be posting pics with comments like "he ain't no monster but it's meat for the freezer". First deer should be limited to does to ensure good shot placement under pressure and then 2nd deer maybe 3.5 yr old, then 4.5 and so on.

We preach that today's kids need to hear the word "No". So we need to start telling them "No" in the shooting house.

Don't shoot the messenger guys, I'm just trying to come up with ways that we can MBHGA.

I don’t think this will go like you think it will

My kids were both allowed to kill whatever first buck they wanted. After that they had to shoot bigger deer except on public land. My 17 yr old hunted a few times early but with no shooter bucks alive this year hasn’t been back.

News flash , this just in............... it ain't just kids shooting small , young bucks. Nothing wrong with letting young hunters shoot a few young bucks . They will graduate to whatever Daddy or Pawpaw or whatever their hunting mentor does in time. After all, deer are a renewable resource .

Screw that.

Sounds like a great way to ruin a kid on deer hunting in Alabama and make them never want to go.

Hunting needs to be fun for kids and countless hours or for some entire seasons with no shots is no fun and not enjoyable.

Not everyone wants to shoot trophy deer, some folks just want to have fun and shoot what makes them happy.

I’d just like to focus on that with my kid and get him hooked on the outdoors.

what we are shooting (if legal) is None of anyone else’s business.

Damn, deer hunting is supposed to be a fun enjoyable activity

I think it will go exactly like I think it will.

Lot of bow hunters will kill smaller bucks because ,,,,, well , I was using my bow if I was gun hunting I'd passed him up. Lol

If it’s state legal and club legal, you or your child should shoot it if you like it.

TDDS. Trophy deer derangement syndrome.

I agree but with today's kids they learned more about self-gratification than hunting . They aint taught how to hunt they taught how to kill. Most if not all kids are taught ,,,, plant a green field , fill a spreader with corn set in a box shot deer . I'm fine with it .


The real fun is in small game and that will teach them a lot stuff about hunting and how too hunt. Make them better deer and turkey hunters too. Hunting now ah days ain't taught like it was in the past.

Mine will be allowed to shoot whatever makes them happy just like my dad did with me, if they wanna let one walk that’s on them

Absolutely starts with kids. I don't let kids shoot any young deer no matter what and shocker they understand why. First deer if they are a guest at our place can be a mature doe or a mature buck nothing else is an option and if they shoot something else they don't get to come back deer hunting. We can still be friends but you don't get to hunt anymore. Kids are capable of so much more than we let them be.

Yep, never understood when friends say he would have been a nice bow kill. Nah he still too young

I’m not above letting kids kill them a buck, but don’t use the excuse for shooting for meat when there’s 50k doe does doe’s running around, then gripe about not having any decent deer. And kids ain’t the only one. I have an uncle that would shoot a spike in a field full of doe does doe’s every time

Bingo. If you think I'm gonna make my 6yo grandchild wait on a trophy that may not even exist on our property, you've got another thought coming. Trying to make a small child a trophy hunter is the easiest way I know to make them not want to hunt. If that's what you're after, you've got the right plan.

The rule for me has always been if you shoot it you shoulder mount it. It’s saved alot of lives when I was younger.

I always had to shoot bigger than before…saved some bucks as some were the same size…we were never allowed to shoot does growing up.

I think a big thing for me was the camp experience. Our hunting sucked as a kid as it was more common not to see anything than we saw stuff. Being at the camp with my Big papaw or both my dad and big papaw really made it fun which is why I wanted to go so much.

I agree with a lot of the points above but the lack of pressure that was put on me to shoot a big buck or shoot something helped continue to make me want to go. Just make it fun for the kids!don’t just make the hunting aspect fun but everything about it. Simple stuff as dad would stop at subway on the way down which I never got to eat other wise etc. I really can’t wait for my son to get old enough to go!

Our rule is any first buck, but we try to make them older crappy horned deer that need to be shot. After that they shoot 4.5 year old club legal bucks. Let them kill does if they wanna kill. You don’t have to kill a buck to get “hooked” on the outdoors. Spending time outdoors will do that itself.

I really dont understand how teaching a kid management and conservation is a bad thing. Every trigger pull is a management decision and they should learn that. Make other stuff fun. Scouting, feeding, looking for acorns, killing does, trapping coons and coyotes… make those things fun and enjoyable. Killing a young buck really should not be taught as a fun thing to do.

QDMA is the worst thing that ever happened to not just deer hunting, but hunting in general. It has sucked the fun right out.

If you have to coddle, protect and feed a deer for it to live long enough to match your idea of a trophy, it's no trophy at all. The hard to kill ones that have had everyone after them every day they've been alive are trophies. Your pet deer is nothing. Zero. Trophy management is a bad joke born of a perverse mind consumed by antler lust. It's the same as these boys worshiping artificial over-sized body parts on girls and paying them for videos and undergarments. Pathetic.