An early-season doe makes incredible table fare. As the season begins, most bowhunters have exhausted last year’s venison supply, and harvesting a fat doe in early season makes sense on many levels. The video, “5 reasons Deer Hunters Should Harvest Does Early,” concludes this post and is very well done. Before proceeding, I’d like to add a few reasons of my own.
Confidence
Does and fawns are just as wary as a buck, yet they tend to feed and move much more in daylight than early-season bucks. You have been practicing for months, and making a good shot on a big doe will significantly increase your confidence for later in the year, as well as prove the competence of your gear. Any deer with a bow and arrow is a trophy of sorts, and if you come up short, it demonstrates how you need to double down on successful tactics.
Venison Excellence
Sam Zircle, shown above, is a good friend and hunting buddy who lives in Central West Virginia and helps me with “game management” when I hunt there. Since the archery bear and deer seasons open on the same day, Sam was gracious enough to process my big doe while I tried for a bear on the evening hunt. He skinned and quartered the doe soon after the harvest, and we cooled it with ice in a large cooler. I was able to bring it home and take it to my favorite butcher, who adds 25% bacon ends to the ground meat, rendering it absolutely delicious.