Would you take a bear based solely on colour?

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Albertarookie

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So there is a small (appears to be just pushed off mom) boar hitting the bait. My goal for this year was a bigger bear than last year, but this little guy is a beautiful blonde and it's very tempting to take him. What would you fellas do? Take him for the colour or give him a year and hope he makes it?
 
Assuming you want him for a rug or a mount, take him if he's legal. That said, if it lived another season or two it may get the opportunity to pass on the genes, but then you also may not see him again. I'd say take it so long as you're planning to make good use of it, which, by the way you're talking it sounds like you will.
 
I like the idea of leaving him to mature and pass the genetics on (hopefully). I'll probably sit the bait Saturday and see what happens, I suspect I'll hold off on him but damn that's a strong temptation.
 
It really depends on what your goal in bear hunting is. Small bear meat tastes good. Small rugs don't look as cool as big ones. Really small rugs look extra not cool. No shame in taking a small bear if that is what you want. If it's not, you will be dissapointed, regardless of the colour.
 
If your goal is a bigger bear than last year, you know what you should do. If you don't really have a goal, do what you feel like. The only way to shoot a big bear is to not shoot a little one.
 
Albertarookie said:
So there is a small (appears to be just pushed off mom) boar hitting the bait. My goal for this year was a bigger bear than last year, but this little guy is a beautiful blonde and it's very tempting to take him. What would you fellas do? Take him for the colour or give him a year and hope he makes it?
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Would I take him or let him pass based on colour? No! That's discrimination and completely not politically correct!! ;)
 
I wouldn't intentionally shoot a small bear no mater what colour it was. a lot of work for a floor mat and 25 to 30lbs of meat.
 
I was considering a blonde, 5 foot stretched suitcase bear for ten minutes from eighty yards recently. I have two black bear tags naturally and still couldn't bring myself to call one of them him. If all you're doing is stocking the freezer they'll be good eating, but I like the rugs too and would feel a bit silly with a skinned out Teddy bear on the floor, whatever the colour. I can't look down on taking any legal bear you just have to decide how much the trophy means to you.
 
I always promised myself I'd never shoot a bear unless it was at least as big, or preferably bigger, than my biggest to date. I backslid a time or two, but generally I stayed true to the course...but that was back in Ontario, where they're all black. I might be able to pass on a chocolate bear, maybe even a cinnamon...but a nice blonde? I dunno, my trigger finger is flexing just thinking about it. :)
 
If your having second thoughts, let it go,let it grow. Feel good your giving it a chance to one day become a real trophy animal. Letting an animal walk sometimes can be every bit as rewarding of a hunt.
 
After a couple close calls - I shot the first blonde I could get it done on. He wasn't big, but he was very blonde.

I wish I hadn't. A small bear is a small bear no matter the colour, and a small bear rug looks stupid.
 
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