Yesterday, the ranch owner called me and said that there was a gentleman that was going to be hunting for deer and elk on the ranch starting this weekend. And he asked if I wouldnt mind giving this guy some ideas of where he might have some luck, so I told him no problem. This guy shows up yesterday evening and we talked a bit and I gave him some ideas. He asked if I was going to be hunting, I told him no, that my wife will be though. I told him that I bow hunted on the ranch. And he asked me if I had any luck and I showed him the picture of the buck I had gotten. He then told me, "you should have not shot that buck. That way you give him a chance to pass on his genes!" He then told me, "that is why I dont like bowhunting. Because bowhunters shoot the breeder bucks before they have a chance to breed and pass on there genes."

Now, I am not a biology smart at all, so PLEASE correct me if I am wrong, but this is my opinion and what I told him..

When you have a deer herd in a certain area, arent they all from the same gene pool? And if you shoot a mature buck in the herd before he breeds does, and a younger buck comes in and breeds those does, isnt that younger buck passing on the same genes? Because more than likely, one of those mature bucks was his papa... And who knows, that younger buck might grow up and be bigger than him...

After much debate, we finally got off the subject. When he was getting ready to leave, I told him, "Be sure and not shoot a mature buck, shoot a young buck!" And he looked at me dumb founded, and asked me why? I told him, "because the mature bucks have not bred yet, that doesnt start happening until the middle of next month." He just turned and left. I think I ticked him off!!

So, what do you think? Am I totally wrong????

I'd say your spot on. I'm glad you put this fellow in place. He sounds like a complete hypocrite. He says he doesnt like archery hunting because they havent breed yet and then he goes and hunts the second season before they have chance to breed anyways. WOW. Too bad you have to deal with this A hole hunting the same area as you guys.

Hey just make sure your wife shoots a bigger buck than him!!!

Obviously the picture you showed him was a decent buck because he considered it a "breeder" buck. If that is the case, he likely has a couple of years of breeding under his belt and his genes, although not this year, have already been introduced into the population.

This is hunting, not animal husbandry. Perhaps he would have been more pleased at a game farm.

I believe his argument had less to do with biology and more to do with jealosy.

That guy is a retard, a bucks genes dont change from the time he is born till he dies, what he is ,is what he is. He will pass those genes on no matter the age, some people

I would have told him to go jump in a lake and if anyone should no longer be breeding, it should be him... There is nothing that ticks me off more than one hunter wragging on another hunter...

As for your question(s), breeder bucks for the most part are a myth. There is zero evidence that any particular bucks' genes are going to be better than the next for the same reason(s) you posted. Also, the female deer have as much or more to do with the genetics of the next generation of bucks. It has long been established that there are only two things that we as hunters can control. One is the age structure of the deer herd and the other is nutrition. Trying to control the gene pool is a silly endeavor.