Thread: What constitutes a trophy???

@deer243 Very good points mate. I'm primarily a pot hunter, and like bringing home the bacon (well venison, I've only killed a handful of pigs...). But I love big antlers too. Like you, in some of the areas I hunt I shoot anything as there will never been any thing decent come out in terms of trophies. In other areas, I'm a bit more picky (Centrel Otago, Greenstone/caples, among others). I do that by taking a hind/doe instead of a young stag and checking over stags for antler quality if I have time. Also, to be fair I don't hunt much during the summer these days anyway.

However, each to his/her own, while I'll ask people not to shoot good stags in in velvet, I'll not judge (to much) if you do as plenty of folk just want meat. I love that NZ has pretty nonrestrictive game laws and each hunter can do as he pleases.

I've come to this point in my hunting as I have regretted shooting young male deer (in areas with good trophy potential) and a large velvet stag in the past. These are really just my personal ethics/standards that I hold myself too, mainly so I don't feel shit about what I've done. Lessons in wider life are kinda the same....

Thanks for challenging me on this, as it helps me to cement my thinking.