I've never taken a doe before, but plan on it if given the chance and I have a question. I don't want to be the guy at the processors with the 60 lb. doe. When it comes to judging bucks, you get a little help from the antler size and body shape.

What is the best way to determine the size and age of a doe, especially when she is alone with nothing to compare her to?

for me, its

1. Does she look big
2. Have i seen her before
3. If yes to above, how many years in a row have I seen her
4. Do I have a clear shot
*Boom*
5. Can I find her

When it comes to does i find it pretty hard to judge the size unless theyre still with a fawn. but if you cant tell by the body or head(fawns have a much smaller head) then i compare them to surrounding things like bushes. Not gonna lie ive shot a couple thinkin they were alot bigger than what they turned out to be it happens i guess

I agree with BuckTread, it is pretty hard to judge a doe when it is alone and you are up in a tree stand. The yearlings tend to have shorter necks and rounder faces than the mature does which have a long neck and more elongated faces. But if you are going for meat, doesn't really make a difference, just make sure you are happy with it when it is down.
Kevin

For this area, 100lbs. is a decent sized doe. But sometimes it is hard to tell if a doe is 100 lbs. if she is alone. I guess I don't feel comfortable about taking a year old doe. I would like to think they have bred at least once before they are taken out of the herd.

Am I thinking too much about this? Until now, all I have taken were bucks.

For me it is the head all the way . longer snout/nose older deer . Short stubby nose yearling maybe 1.5 years old .

Remember this though . No matter what you harvest be happy with what you got . Nothing wrong with a small doe .

We have to shoot a doe first here before we can shoot a buck . I see way to many button bucks shot cause of this . Just be sure it is a doe and let her have it

Yes I agree snout shape and length as a doe grows older the snout gets longer and it starts to turn downward, like old bucks when they get that roman hump on the top of their snouts , the doe in the picture 175lb gutted Ontario deer great genetics

Nice doe Louie, 175 is gigantic!

yea she sure is a big fat doe, so big she had to use crutches i see, lol lol

I don't quite understand why you care Troy. Smaller=tender in my book. I don't ever take them to be processed though, it is way to easy to cut it up yourself. It really is easy and you get a much better product. DL posted a video on here awhile back showing how to cut them up, let me find the link. If you are still worried about being made fun of, wear an old Halloween mask while you cut them up.
here is the link: Butchering video

it is actually better to take out the younger does for QDM anyway

I ended up with two last year. One was 90lbs. and the other 95lbs.

I've been lazy about processing. The guy we take our deer to is about 10 miles down the road from where we hunt and it is just too easy to drop it off and be done with it. But, I have been in there when someone brings in a 50 to 65 lb deer. The general mood turns to disgust. I have since realized that it's not all about size when it comes to picking a deer to harvest. I also realize how much my kids enjoy eating venison and they aren't concerned about how big it was (as long as it doesn't have spots).

Thanks to all that responded.