what was your first animal

[Otter]

I started with rabbits and grouse with my dad at 12. My first big game animal was a WT fork horn on my 18th birthday.My first leagal year in Nova Scotia.

[gonefishin]

First was a 4x4 whitetail that scored 101 5/8... the exact same size as my Dad's first deer.

[bezner]

thanxs for everyone who responded to this..i just feel it is important to remember when we all started out, that we all did it for the thrill of the hunt and we didnt care so much about the "trophy status" of the animals we were taking. the hype of todays trophy has gone way to far..yes i have shot a few nice deer but i will always remember the first deer i ever took...and to me that is more important than anything

[Coyote223]

My first one was a coyote with Tikka T3 223, that is always a good memory.

[live4therut]

Originally Posted by bezner

just wondering what your first animal was ,how big ,what methed...etc....mine was a whitetail when i was 14..a little fork horned buck...to this day he is still my favorite animal...will get him mounted one day...i used a 30-06 remington 760 pump...i hated that gun. it always jammed in real cold weather...

That's funny my first was a fork horn mulie at 14 the that same gun with the same hatred for it! It jammed and boy did it kick, but my grandfather gave it to me and I still have it to this day and will give it to my son when he's of age. I also agree with your comments of people putting an importance on trophy hunting, don't get me wrong I love to shoot big deer but the memories of the hunts mean a lot more to me then any mount would

[KegRiver]

The first thing was probably a squirrel, but I'm really not sure.
I did a lot of hunting when I was young, starting at around eight years of age.
I remember hunting and shooting lots Rabbits, Squirrel, and Grouse. Oh and tons of blackbirds and house sparrows.

My first big game animal was a Cow Moose, not sure of the rifle any more, probably my brothers 30-30. I was about 14 at the time.

I remember shooting my first Beaver at age 12. Most of the animals I shot back then were hunted for their pelts. My allowance was whatever I could earn from trapping/hunting, pelts. Squirrel were our #1 targets for this.

[slough shark]

my big game animal was a 120ish 4x4 whitetail taken with my bow when I was 17.

[buckmasterjr]

mine was a 4x4 whitetail buck last year when I was 12 (i'm 13 now). I used my dads ruger 30-06.

[Ryry4]

First big game animal was a white tail buck. Shot it with my cousins 6 mm.

[top predator]

first tagged animal was a few days after my 12th birthday.

was a yearling doe shot with a 308 winchester model 100 (POS in cold weather)

i was pretty dman excited needless to say.

was 24 years ago...its been skinnin and grinnin ever since

[dtbuckmaster]

My first big game animal was a 4 point Bull Elk. Shot it with a Winchester Model 88 Lever Action 308 at 200 yards. Then the next day I shot a Bull Moose. It was quite a hunt.

[fisherwoman]

Ruffed Grouse, age 24, break action 16 gauge Cooey shot gun.

[Wisebuck]

9 1/2 year old Blacktail Buck on Vancouver Island. 2x2 he had degenerated but was a bull of the woods at 180 lbs dressed (on cattle scale) F&W road check removed lower jaw to have it aged and sent me a certificate with results. I was 12 and had just finished my hunters ed a month before. 30 30 marlin iron sights now in my youngests sons hands. Will never forget that day. Some 32 years ago now. Wow am I that old? lol

A 166 gross wt buck IS A Trophy.

[DidsburyBowHunter]

mulie 2 point with the pse nova at the age of 12

[xtreme hunter10]

Originally Posted by bezner

just wondering what your first animal was ,how big ,what methed...etc....mine was a whitetail when i was 14..a little fork horned buck...to this day he is still my favorite animal...will get him mounted one day...i used a 30-06 remington 760 pump...i hated that gun. it always jammed in real cold weather...

Mule deer spiker was my first deer. a little 2x2.

[bezner]

anyone have pics

[Okotokian]

My first was a sparrow, with a pellet gun as a kid. Felt lousy afterwards, asking myself why I did it. I think it has left a bit of a sour taste in my mouth with regard to shooting animals "just because". Rationally or irrationaly, I just feel more justified if I'm putting the animal to some use... meat, fur, whatever. We don't need to argue the point. Not preaching.

[7mm08]

Snowshoe hare at about 30 yds with a cooey .22 bolt action. I was 11 or 12...memory gets fuzzy sometimes. I dont think I touched the ground more than 5 times on the walk(...ok...sprint) home. Never ate a rabbit that tasted better. I still laugh out loud at the goofy grin on my face in the picture my mom took of me holding the rabbit outside our house. Ahhhh..if only life were that simple again.

[ishootbambi]

first ever....a gopher. first big game...4 point mule buck. back then they were general and where i live to see anything with 3 points was truly something.

[SHORTMAG]

2 rabbits with my 20 ga at 14 yrs old....(1974).. YIKES!!...sighhhhh....I was 16 when I got my first whitetail. He was a BUCK allright ....a 60 lb button buck. There was 12" of new snow down. I was using Dads old mod 94 .."thutty-thutty"...open sights @ 40 yds...He looked as big as a horse then coming up thru the woods ! I tried a couple of times for a shot as he walked closer to me, but he kept on hiding behind that long eared Rocky Mountain sight I was so proud, I almost cooked him driving it around on the hood of my 74 Plymouth Scamp!! Still etched in my mind as one of my most memorable ones!!

[bobalong]

Originally Posted by bezner

just wondering what your first animal was ,how big ,what methed...etc....mine was a whitetail when i was 14..a little fork horned buck...to this day he is still my favorite animal...will get him mounted one day...i used a 30-06 remington 760 pump...i hated that gun. it always jammed in real cold weather...

I did not take my first deer with the 760 pump, which was a forkhorn with a 30-30 when I was 14. I traded that gun in the next year for a Rem 760 pump, and I have taken every big game I have harvested with it since, that was almost 40 years ago. It still has the original Lyman scope on it as well, has been a very reliable rifle for me.

[wolfman403]

Started when I was 5 or 6 more gophers and birds then I can count but got my first big game animal at 16 with my bow. It was a nice muley doe I was prouder than a dog with a dead gopher.

[thunderheart]

a little forked black tail buck around lake cowichan 35 years ago... blasted a nasty hole thru him with an old ought six, but boy was he yummy.

[Rigby]

First big game was a 5x4 whitetail shot at 7 yards with my jennings buckmaster bow at 14 years old.

First critter ever like many others was some little bird with the pellet gun when I was really little.

[S&C_Coach]

First big game animal was a 4x4 whitetail - he's on my wall and will never forget how excited I was. I was 24. My family didn't hunt and I had finally done my hunters training and went out with some cousins I had married into.

I was loaned a 303 British. Problem was that the owner was probably 5 times my size so the scope was a little far back. When I took the shot the scope smashed me in the face, cut me open a little and knocked me backwards on my butt. I was hooked and now over 10 years later I can't wait for the day I can take my little ones in the bush - should be this year.

[1BUCKWILD1]

first big game animal was a white tail it scored 144 4/8 shot it with my 270 winchester

[catnthehat]

I think my first was a woodchuck, can't quite remember that far back!
Cat

[whitetail Junkie]

Whitetail buck...5x5 110" Gross B&C at 12 yards,270 win browning A-bolt

edit: miss read post....first animal ..........Blue bill duck,with a 410 gauge.

[deanmc]

Red white faced angus. Around 800 lbs.

[greylynx]

Arnold the pig.

shot him between the eyes with a .22 short while he was eating chop.

That was the easy part, then the fun of butchering came next around a bunch of cleanliness guys like my dad and uncles.