Deer season, early start.

Cass

I did not renew my Deer license this year for the first time in God knows how many years but I just noticed that the season for 2024/2025 starts August 1st (so today) instead of September 1st.

What did I miss that caused this and who went out for it?

kunekunesika

I remembered last night at about 10😂

None of my shooting buddies were out either. Shooting velvet stags not for me.. might get one during the week for a few burgers

Grizzly 45

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/2058362522/deer-season-early-start

What caused it…Ostensibly to get us in line with the NI season, but it was a sop to the farmers to reduce numbers of deer nationwide. As well as increasing the season for females and calves until April.

Shooting stags in August…Not Likely.

Rescueme0007

Well it appears that I'm the philistine on this site.

I'll be going out for an evening stalk in a couple of hours hoping for a young fallow buck or two.

All the landowners who've given me permission to shoot are very keen that the number of deer be reduced on their land, due the damage to crops, fences and the fear of the deer acting as a vector for diseases which may be transmissible to domestic stock. If I made my living from the land I believe I'd be just as keen as they are.

I would expect deer to be in good condition at this time having had a mild summer and good fodder. I do not seek trophies so I'll target the younger, tastier and hopefully less cunning animals! 🙂

6.5x55 seller ammo

My self and others have been out but to no avail! You have to be up far too early and far too late.

I think I’ll wait until September.

The heat doesn’t help mind.

alex90

Im the same, ive been watching and walking my permissions, and chatting to the landowners, they're mad keen for numbers to be reduced to remove pressure on grazing land. Ive seen plenty of prickets around, I'll be out this week to hopefully take 1 or 2, good table animals as well. If I'm not out someone else will be brought in to cull.

Rescueme0007

Took my first buck of the season yesterday. I inspected it thoroughly post mortem. In very good condition, plenty of fat and no abnormalities. Low tick burden so all good!🙂

kunekunesika

Enjoy eating that lad😁

whelan2

Was a lad on my land on Saturday. He had no permission. I never met him before. Said he was shooting deer. I told him to get lost, also assumed the season hadn't started yet. I'd have had no bother letting him shoot if he introduced himself, said if he was insured and asked permission.

Cass

To those that feel the need to apologise or have some sense of "shame" for going out, why would you? You're doing nothing wrong and if you want to then haveatit. I never went out before November each year but I wouldn't dare criticise those who go out on the first day of the season.

The thread was started as a "I didn't know" or surprise it was changed topic of discussion not as a means of belittling those who chose to use the new rules.

I was just curious as to why it happened and who if any were opting to use it.

Do you think this will be the new norm, or is it a once off for this season only? What is reasoning beyond coming in line with NI, as said above?

Is the thinking that it'll help reduce numbers and if so how can they say numbers are up or still increasing as they have nothing but antidotal evidence (word of mouth) as I know of no census that has ever been done.

Uinseann_16

Ill be heading for a shot during the week , honestly my main concern is the heat I've got no cold room so it's a race to get the carcass home butchered and in the freezer!

Grizzly 45

Do you think this will be the new norm, or is it only a once-off for this season? What is reasoning beyond coming in line with NI, as said above?

It's the new norm. As of now, it seems ROI,NI and Scotland[?] are all "suffering from excessive deer numbers".Now we can open a Pandora's box here of the politics, reasoning and whatnot and how all practical and scientific advice was listened to from stakeholder groups and then seemingly ignored [ala FEC] and this came out along with the process of setting up paid[?] mercenaries to reduce the number of deer where there is a problem.

https://www.agriland.ie/farming-news/watch-10-deer-management-units-to-be-set-up-over-coming-year/

https://www.agriland.ie/farming-news/deer-management-units-and-manager-tender-due-in-coming-weeks/

Already there have been stories and actual cases of chancers claiming to be "Dept approved deer cullers" and brow-beating farmers signing over the shooting rights for deer in the Tipperary/Munster region.

So IOW if you as Joe Normal, can't spend a vast amount of time on your let , between trying to make a living and whatnot.An approved Dept hit team could arrive on your let and do it for you much to your farmer's delight and probably the loss of your let rights as payment to this guns-for-hire unit.

So my two questions on this will be;

How long are these guys going to have in time to sit all day and night out in someone's field or forest to cull a decent number to make this a viable operation?

A cull is a different operation to hunting, where the name of the game is to reduce the numbers in a set area in a given timeframe,if they are going to use our traditional methods of stalking or tree standing, that will be the least efficient use of manpower and time.

Are they going to be approved to lamp or use NV by the NPWS to cull at night? Are they going to try something different like maybe try driving the deer onto a line of guns,or use bait in an area?

2] Who is going to take all this venison in the game dealers? Already the rumoured price for the season is going to be around 1.25/1.50 per kilo shot to the GD requirements.IOW neck or head shots = more injured deer.

Game dealers have a quota that they can handle too per season and with earlier opening/later closing they are going to be full a lot quicker and be in an overstock situation or offering cents on the kilo. This already happened at the end of last season when some GDs were posting on social media that they were full and not taking carcasses at the end of the February 24 season.

IOW a lot of this looked good in a PR blurb and in political careers. But the reality on the ground of the practicalities of this being carried out will be a different matter entirely.

Is the thinking that it'll help reduce numbers and if so how can they say numbers are up or still increasing as they have nothing but anecdotal evidence (word of mouth) as I know of no census that has ever been done?

Seems to me it was the lazy way out with "Shure if NI and Scotland are doing it ,we can do it too as it's the cheapest and easiest way for us." thinking/excuse. As you said without some proper foundational data of a census done on a county, province or national level,you are just going on the assumption that every county in the 26 has Wicklow/Kerry numbers of deer that need culling. You could have a "hotspot" all of a sudden in one county, because of say, mature timber felling and the deer are moving to new cover a few miles over and are now making themselves at home on a new farm that is adjoining a plantation that is not ready for harvest. Cause and effect.

kunekunesika

They also seemed to think we were all at home oiling our rifles🫣. Turns out the kids are on holidays, the grass and the hedge have to be cut endlessly, and it's too hot.

I can get an animal to the fridge fairly quickly, but if there is any delay in finding it, game over. Certain places I just won't risk shooting for that reason. Other places are marginal because of growth. I lost plenty of well shot animals on previous sections, just taking too long to find in long pasture.

Is seems everything has its season, and August for me involves most of the above and 99s . Hope there's a few deer left for me 😂

Fabarm12345

I shoot four or five animals for the table and only shoot from October onwards, the heat long grass and vegetation at this time of year is not to my liking as I am getting on a bit, stay safe and enjoy your sport as it will have a shelf life in the near future

alex90

Shot my first animal of the season on Friday evening. Landowner delighted, 2 stag calves in a group of 12 hinds with calves.

Rescueme0007

I got in contact with the nearest Game Dealer (GD) during the week, to see if he wished to take the buck I recently shot, he said ,no, he'll not be taking deer until the 01st September. So I've butchered it myself, but running the chiller has been more expensive than usual due to the heat.

I've had two calls from different landowners advising that they'd be pleased to see me out stalking as they're infested with deer (one in NE Cork the other in SW Kerry).

My freezer is currently full, so I'm more than a little nonplussed as to what to do. I dislike killing the beasts if the meat is not to be used, seems very wasteful and there's a fair bit of travelling (cost) involved. Have not heard much about these "Deer Management Units" does anyone have any information as to how this scheme will work?😔

bluecloud23

On a separate note anyone finding it hard to get a butcher to cut up a few deer, not mad on selling and want to gift a few friends and landowner, Any contacts Mayo area to butcher a few throughout the season greatly appreciated.

alex90

If you cant find anyone, watch John griffins videos, the hunting and homestead butcher. Excellent videos explaining it all from start to finish

clivej

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122533087#Comment_122533087

It's all to do with traceability and cross contamination. That's the reason butchers won't take in a carcass.

Grizzly 45

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122533087#Comment_122533087

Another way around it is to ask the butcher if you are a regular customer to come over to you after hours if you have the facilities IE a garage and a hoist, some butchering knives and an empty freezer and show you in a personal hands-on demo on how to break down the carcass exchange a few cuts of meat for personal use?

That way he has no fear of X contamination of his premises or tools or the H&S getting on his case, and you get to see and do it hands-on 1to1.

Gman2021

have been out a handful of weekends as one of my permissions is a tillage farm. Deer do damage during the summer months and as soon as the crop is cut they lift and head off somewhere else so I rarely catch them during the season. Lots of does and fawns. It’s very warm weather to be out, even with the 4/5am starts it warms up very quickly in the morning. Would be a race to the butchers

Hunter456

don't let these so called ''department approved deer cullers'' run ye stand yer ground and go about your business where you have permission to shoot, these lot are no good for our sport and they are doing every thing to keep the whole lot for themselves, there is a few well known individuals claiming to be this and that around were i shoot the farmers aren't buying it.