Normalize the Ultimate Restraint!

The time of year we look forward to 11 months a year is right around the corner. We day-dream about it. We spend all summer waiting for that first crisp fall morning when the frost is melting off the landscape. There is a specific kind of magic when you’re climbing into a tree stand, watching the woods wake up, and have that feeling deep within which connects us to nature. Hunting is woven right into our wiring. As for myself, I feel an internal drive to hunt. 

This is a different topic, however... if you’ve been keeping a pulse on our resource, you know the woods are changing.

I talk with folks all around the state, and a shared concern echoes through every text thread, coffee shop, and happy hour. The deer numbers simply aren't what they used to be in nearly all of our favorite counties. Between EHD outbreaks, shifting weather patterns, habitat changes, cell cam knowledge, weapon options, and over-the-top hunting pressure, our whitetail population is carrying an unreasonalbe burden. They are resilient creatures, but they are currently under exorbitant stress. Because we cherish this resource, it’s time we find the mental fortitude to elevate the conversation about what it truly means to have a successful season.

Historically, success was measured by the weight on a tailgate or a notched tag. There was a time when taking any legal deer was celebrated without question, and the pressure to not go home empty-handed pushed many to squeeze the trigger on a less than a mature buck just to end the season. I get it; nobody likes tag soup. But if we want to be true land stewards, our plan of attack must evolve alongside the needs of the wildlife.

Today, one of the biggest, most profoundly impactful decisions a hunter can make in the woods is refusing to pull the trigger. The choice to do absolutely nothing.

The Grit to Let Them Walk

It takes skill to pattern a deer, determination to wait out the freezing cold, and hard work to make a clean, ethical shot. But it takes an entirely different level of discipline to bring your weapon up, dial in at a beautiful, healthy whitetailed deer, take a breath, and intentionally lower your hands. Or better yet, not even reach for your weapon. Instead, reach for your phone and record yourself a memory.

That moment, the conscious decision to let him walk, is one of the most mature expressions of respect a hunter can show.

When you choose to give that buck a pass, you are acknowledging that his life holds more value to the future of the herd than it does to your desires of today. You watch him slip back into the brush, knowing that you have gifted him another day to navigate the timber, to grow stronger, and to eventually reach that majestic potential that makes the Iowa whitetail legendary.

Why the Pass Matters

Managing a property for long-term wildlife balance requires us to look far beyond the current season. We have to think outside the box. When we collectively decide to hold our finger, we are actively participating in real-deal conservation. This mindset provides incredible benefits to the land and the herd:

• Building a Sustainable Age Structure: Mature bucks take 5-6 years to grow. By protecting immature animals, we allow a balanced age structure to develop, creating a healthier, more dynamic breeding cycle and a more natural social hierarchy in the woods.

• Relieving Population (or lack there of) Stress: When the herd is already navigating disease and environmental pressure, reducing our harvest of immature deer acts as a crucial pressure release valve, giving the population the breathing room it desperately needs to be sustainable.

• Enhancing Property Value: As a land specialist, I can assure you that a farm known for harboring LIVING mature, well-managed deer holds IMMENSE value. Buying real estate and practicing stewardship is an investment in the dirt itself that builds SERIOUS equity.

Wearing an Empty Tag as a Badge of Honor

It is time we change the culture and ENCOURAGE passing deer. In other words, we need to normalize and celebrate eating tag soup!

Now, if you know me, you know tag soup is not something I set forth to do. I hunt to bring meat to my table and to wrap my tag around a buck I’m proud of. But hear me out on this: if you spent your fall working the land, sitting in the biting wind, observing the wildlife, and ultimately coming home with an unfilled tag because you refused to settle for a young deer, I will shake your hand with far more admiration than I would if you were showing off the one you harvested as a slump buster.

An unfilled tag does not mean you failed. It means you succeeded in exercising ultimate restraint. It means you prioritize the long-term vitality of the Iowa whitetail over a fleeting moment of gratification.

If you hunt your very best, hunt smart, give it everything you have, and still end up with an empty tag because you let the young ones walk, so be it. No shame in that whatsoever! That is something to hang your hat on, rest easy, and BE PROUD knowing you were the best steward you could be.

Him or Nothing

I'll be totally open with you. I was after one single deer last year. It was not the biggest deer I have ever chased, or even shot for that matter, but it was him or nothing.

The fact that I was after only him meant the entire herd across the places I have access to received extreme benefit from the food plots provided to the habitat improved. But more importantly, they benefited from the fact that NONE of the remaining "decent bucks" were pressured or shot by me. There is one guaranteed way to make sure a buck does not make it to the next year, and that is to fatally shoot it. I am publicly begging the hunting population to resist the temptation. It wouldn't surprise me in the least if a biologist told me there is only 1 mature buck for every 200-300 acres of cover. If it were true, lets look at the math on that...it could mean that if 3 or even 4 land owners whom each owned 80 acres of diverse whitetail habitat, only ONE of the owners could harvest a mature deer for the season, AND YOU KNOW WHAT?? That's fine! So be it. Land ownership is not about killing. It's about making memories and making it better and more valuable because you owned it. You improved it. You improved it for the future! And kudos to you for doing so!

This year, hunt with intent, but let them grow. Find joy in the sunrise, the stillness of the timber, and the knowledge that by showing restraint, you are ensuring our slice of heaven remains wild, healthy, BALANCED, and full of potential for generations to come.