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P&Y Whitetails

How many P&Y Whitetails have you killed in Ohio and how many years have you been hunting them?

I have zero and this is my first year hunting in Ohio.

Not enough for the 20+ years I've been hunting! Hah!

I have killed 3 but in those years missed alot of hunting while younger, while in college, etc.......plus for several years there I passed a bunch PY deer waiting for that ever elusive BC buck! Should just shot more and enjoyed them the same!

In my 40 years bowhunting in Ohio, I have taken 14 P&Y bucks and 1 B&C. I have gotten very selective the past dozen years, holding out for something bigger than what I've already taken. Alot of years I don't fill my buck tag, and that's alright by me.

That is very impressive bowhawk75.

I was just trying to compare the number of P&Y bucks killed in OH during your time hunting vs. those in WV. The results in WV have not been good.

You can only kill one buck a year in Ohio, In WV they shoot anything with a bone sticking out of it's head, and the poaching in WV is pretty hard to control. WV is also very difficult to hunt with the steep hills and remote access. The bow only units in WV are difficult to hunt to say the least. Ohio on the other hand has excellent agriculture for feed and great genetics in most parts of the state. I lived in WV for 8 years, grew up in Ohio, left for 30 years, now moved home to Ohio for past 3. I saw some big bucks in WV, but very hard state to hunt (southern portion near Beckley). Just shot my best buck to date this year, I think it will make the P&Y but have not scored it yet.

Congrats on the buck Ned. Yes WV is tough hunting and if it’s brown it’s down applies to most places. The bow only counties are good but numbers are low. A group of WV hunters are trying to make a push for better deer management regulations.

What year was the Ohio 1 buck limit introduced?

ever since the deer herd grew enough to allow the dnr to set regs. By 1904, White-tailed Deer were extirpated from Ohio. In the 1920s and '30s, a limited restocking program began as well as the natural migration of deer from surrounding states into Ohio. By 1937 they were reported in 28 counties. By 1943, they were recovered [glossary] enough to begin a regulated hunting season, with hunting in all counties by 1956. By 1995, the deer population had reached 550,000. Deer are found in all 88 counties and are kept in control by a regulated deer season. The importance of the deer in Ohio was confirmed in 1988, when it was recognized as the official state animal. Ican only go back as far as 1960 and it was one antlered buck,and no does could be harvested.

Thanks pappy for your response. That is very interesting.

So I'm assuming everybody is happy with the one and done buck limit. Are there changes that anybody would like to see take place?

One buck/year works

"What year was the Ohio 1 buck limit introduced?"

Was always one buck limit since the time of modern deer regulations in the 40's, and matter of fact, as far a I know the first doe permits weren't given until the 1970s... I remember a doe permit being a privileged tag... If I remember right the first doe permits were landowners permits, because I remember our family receiving the first one around 1974 or 75....

It looks like the one buck limit has worked out well for Ohio. It's hard to convince some in WV that this would improve our deer herd and buck quality.

WV is an awesome place to hunt. Beautiful scenery, saw some HUGE bucks there, and there's some really good bear hunting too. Wish Ohio had a sizable bear population. One thing about WV is, I hardly ever went hunting, or even drove around in the evening or mornings and didn't see deer. Lots of deer, the one buck a year quota would do it some good. How could it not?

Actually, a one buck limit in WV might not be a good idea. If the goal is to grow bigger bucks per capita, then an antler point restriction for a large part of the state might be better, or the whole state. PA did this some years ago, but in my opinion PA doesn't have the deer numbers or genetics that WV has. A one buck limit may backfire because a hunter might shoot the first buck they get a crack at, especially if the gun season is short. Not only that but let's face it, there are a lot of very remote areas in WV that are impossible to enforce hunting laws in, and some in Ohio too. The point is there's a lot of people who could care less about antler size and are hunting to fill their freezer. You may not be able to enforce the one buck, or antler restriction law to begin with.

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