Poaching Deer

[DeerHunter01]

Well as long as I was a State Conservation Office this stuff happen alot more then people realize.

I thought I would post this deer for all to see, it was poached in the State of Ohio.

The problem is most hunters see a buck like this a few weeks before season and they go into the woods in search of his trail or scrapes and rub's, making this the main reason they went there in the first place. Now there hunting every day and they never see that buck again, and wonder what happens to it.

Most poached deer in our states are shot with a 22 cal rifle, or a Cross Bow and most likely from a vehicle. After they shoot the deer they keep moving along the highway until a later time that night, then they drop off a person to go get it, while the other person drives around until this guy gets it to the road side.

What always gets me, is why do you have to mess up my hunting grounds ? or maybe my son's first buck, when we can hunt legal.

Out of all the arrests I have made in poaching none , repeat none of them were poor, where they didn't have the money to buy food for there house.

One family that I had arrested had just moved into a house along a road that had no one near them. I got a call at 5PM in the evening that a man was hunting rabbits and came across 4 Gut piles from deer, and he said it looked like a blood bath .

When I got to the location I parked about a mile away, found where there was four gut piles and then I spotted another one on the side of the hill about 30 yards away. but there was no drag marks. so As I walked down this old coal bank road, I spotted small blood drops, so I followed them to the back of these new peoples home, got to looking and found 5 deer completely boned out hanging from a large deer rack beside the home, So I went and got a search warrant for the house and when I returned to the house I had two other officers with me. I knocked on the door, as a lady in her middle 50s opened the door, I said you know why I am here ? she looked at me and said Damn we just got them all cut up and packaged. and then invited us to have coffee while we packed all the deer meat out of there house. at the end of this the total fine came to close to $3000.00 . And as I was leaving the husband came over to me and said can I still deer hunt this year too ?

But anyway off track here, here is the picture of the buck that was just killed in Ohio.

Thanks
D/H

[cook]

In your experience,how many poachers do you think are generally honest people that just couldn't help themselves?I've heard that excuse before,and I don't agree with it for a second!!(kinda like locking a car keeps an honest man honest)

My Grandfather taught me that Morals are what you do when you are alone or no one is watching.Guess some people never had a good role model.

With the price of trophy antlers people are paying,its only going to get worse.

At least in the example you provided,the people used the meat,and didn't just cut the antlers and waste the rest.Still don't make it right.

[VerotiK]

That happens around here quite a bit and it really p*sses me off. Last year, a old lady my parents know, was walking along the highway in from of her house picking up trash and found several large heavy trashbags and knew something wasnt right, so she called the sherriffs office. They came out, and someone had cut the deer in big chunks, put it in trashbags and dumped it. No, the hams and shoulders weren't gone, only thing missing was the antlers. That happened several more times. What are the people that do this thinking? Its sad to take an animal's life just for it's antlers. What a waste. As far as im concerened, if your caught once, you should have your hunting privlages taken away for AT LEAST 10 years. Ever caught again, you should go to jail and never be allowed to hunt again. People know better, and everyone that hunts knows it is wrong.

[armynavy]

Why only 10 years I think it should be no hunting for life, I love my racks as much as the next guy but if I cant get it legally then I just dont get it. Taking of deer out of season you had better be starving to death if you want my sympathy.

[three_rivers]

I'd agree with most you guys. There should be a hefty penalty for poaching. Now taking away hunting privileges for life is harsh for a beginning hunter or youngin. Five or ten yrs maybe but not forever. I'd be lying to tell you i haven't ever done anything that would be considered poaching. That was all when i was young and naive. I do know better now and have a better understanding of our ecosystem and how humans impact it all due to education.

As bad as hunting is getting the tresspassing and poaching is gonna get a whole lot worse. Its just cheaper to get caught tresspassing than to pay to hunt here in arkansas anyways. I know of a fella last year that got caught not once but twice. Nine hundred dollars in fines are cheap compared to a fella hunting across the slough on the same property for twenty five hundred dollars.

You take pics or call wardens and i've found it only turns them on you. Walk up to your vehicle with tires cut or winshield busted. I've even found a two way radio in a stand that came from one of the hunters in a club a mile north of us. The radio worked great to know they watch when you come and go so they could pretty much hunt all over everywhere and hide when they need to hide. Its nice to know how they see you as a @$$hole and talk so nice when you happen to say hi.

I'd say increase to fines to where its not worth getting caught and the points!! If people are willing to pay good money the fine should be higher and the penalties tough. I will also say until they do it'll get worse every year.

[Gator]

DH man that is just plain out wrong. I agree that there should be some very hefty fines and I think that there should also be some jail time as well. I also believe that they should lose all there firearms, truck, house (if that is where they stored and cut up the meat as it is then a crime seen) and anything thing else related to hunting every time they are caught. After while they would fine it a lot cheaper to hunt legally than pouch.

[craddock1]

in 1973 i lived in a very rural area. there was a huge buck in the area. i started watching him in july and as season neared i felt i knew exactly where he would be on opening morning. three days before season my wife woke me at 2:00 a.m. and said someone was shining a light on the house. while i was getting dressed i heard a shot down the road. when i got outside a car spead off from just down the road. i walked down and found a large pool of blood and drag marks where they had drug him out of a marsh. i never saw my buck again. that season i killed a small spike. i think the poacher should be shot.

[MadKater]

i cant stand poachers,and its not just poachers who illegaly take deer,it could be any kind of animal....we have alot of poachers around here,not so much the kind that spot light deer at night and empty a clip of .22 mag into a deer but we have alot of what i call cheater poachers.in IN we are only allowed 1 buck per year unless you happen to take one in what is called an "urban zone" then you are allowed 1 inside the urban zone and one in regular season.ive heard of folks taking bucks in non urban zone areas and tagging them in as urban deer so they can shoot another buck.or guys that take deer with a gun and tag em in as archery deer so they dont waist thier gun tag,just stupid stuff like that.
the year before last i wa shutning one of the biggest deer i have ever seen around here,i seen him sevral times while on stand and even more time crossing roads and standing in fields and what not,i even had a shot at him once but i didnt take it because i didnt like the angle he presented me.anyway one mornign while i was driving the the place i hunt i noticed a deer dead on the side of the road and could tell it was a buck but wasnt sure how big it was,i got curiouse so i stoped to check it out and as soon as i walked over to it my heart just sunk,it was "my" deer at first i thought maybe it was hit by a car or somthing but afte ri lifted his head up i could see he was shot several times in the head and neck area with small caliber rifle or handgun and even worse the deer had also been guted,i called it in and as i was sitting in my truck waiting for the CO to show up thier was a truck creaping down the road shinning a spot light in the ditches and at first i thought it was the CO but as soon as the guy driving the truck seen my truck he floored it and got out of thier,the CO showed up and i gave him a discription of the truck and also all my info he needed and went on my way.i never did hear anything else after that and i hope the guy was caught.all i can say is he is lucky i didnt catch him...sorry im so long winded i just cant stand poachers!

[Gator]

Ok guy’s here’s one for the record book’s. I have been watching this deer now for about 3 months now. Got it down to with in a few minutes of when he comes to this feed fild I have and which way he come during the am and the pm. Will I could tell he was big but not sure how big until about an hour ago. Mr. Wells a local game warden here came by and ask me what the deer looked like that I have been watching for so long, so I told him that the rack was dark and tall it looked to be very wide also. The deer was very large for this area and light colored also that is what caught my eye about this deer from jump street. Well he showed me a pitcher of my deer 15 points eastern count. G2’s about 113 ¾ inches long. 21 inches inside spread. They stopped a guy coming of the road I live on this morning after some one reported hearing gun shots. They guy had the deer covered with tarps and some tools and such trying to hide the deer. They saw blood on the tail gate of the truck and searched it and found the deer. This guy has been caught before pouching before and they got him again this year. I hope this time they hang him, They saw him pulling on the road from the felids behind my house. This pisses me off to no end. I ask Mr. Wells if I could shoot this peace of trash but he said I would go to jail then, but I believe it would be worth it. I will have to testify because they busted him coming trough my back side yard(that is the only way into that field now and he said I told him he could go back there, WRONG!!!! It is black power season here but he had a Henry 444 in his truck and no black power. That SOB should get hung if you ask me my entry for the big buck contest was taken by a thief.

[JAYNC]

I think poaching should be in two parts, if someone is starving and cant afford food, or if they are stranded then who cares. But if someone is just shooting them for the antlers then prosecute them. My dad told me that when he was in the service in alaska, a man was stranded in his cabin way out in the boonies, he couldnt get out because the weather got bad too quick. He had no food so he shot a moose and kept it outside in the snow. When spring came they asked him how he survived all winter, he said he shot a moose and ate it all winter long and they fined him and put him in jail. To me that is total BS, I guess they would rather have a human die instead of a moose. That is way overboard.

[crazy]

Jay, we are not in Alaska man well ok 99.99% of us are not. There are things called jobs and supermarkets. A good box of shells cost 10$ go by a happy meal if your hungery. I don't care if you are hungery I leave your lunch alone you leave mine alone. $3k total for 5 deer, would be better off having it 3 grand per deer.

[THE FISH WHISPER'ER]

ya poaching sucks and i don't. but what about the morons that go out and gut shoot every thing that comes by. then is eather is to lazey to track or just to dumb to reilize that no shot is much better than a bad shot . i am tired of finding animals that were wasted because some nimrod got a bow for christmas . there is more to being an hunter than pulling a triger or relesing an arrow

[Noodlejug]

First off poaching for horns is bull they fall of the deers head. Hello? In these parts the sheriff is the most active poacher around.
Right, I got my eye on this big buck, I got him patterned. SO DOES FIVE OTHER GUYS. Then you see the glass flash right behind the fence and you hear, what a !@!@% head. Mind you I am sitting on my front porch. Now when season opens and we all got guns and we are all of questionable character cause the other guy is calling MY deer HIS deer. Then the rigs are crawling up and down the fence line with guns and testerone hunting your field looking for THIER deer. Lock the gate and keep your powder dry. I will take the doe, thank you.

[Big Nick]

So does he get to hunt again? I sure hope not!

It seems to me that the 3,000 fine isn't nearly enough

[DeerHunter01]

He got to finish out the year with his hunting license, but starting the next year he ended up with 6 years suspension from hunting.

I really don't know if $3000.00 is enough, I might agree to it if they had to also serve 6 Months in county jail too. I think that would get the point across even better.

[derbycitycatman]

Its always good to hear about a poacher getting caught even if we dont like the penalties. I would like to see forfeiture of anything involved in poaching. Whether that be a rifle, atv, truck, or house. Maybe even putting their faces in the paper or making them wear signs on the side of the road saying Im a poacher. Sometimes humiliation can be worse than paying fines.

[Big Country01]

I Personally Don't Think Takin' Away There Huntin' Rights Is The Answer If They Got Enuff Gaul To Poach In The First Place A Huntin' License Isn't Gonna Make A Difference . They Should Have To Replace The Deer With A Another Of Equal Or Greater Quality,take Everything You Have In Your Possesion I.e. Gun ,truck, Etc. And To Top It Off A Healthy Prison Sentence With Fines To Boot......

[dan 1989]

i know personally people who do it and have never done it myself and never will but getting the law around here is no good so im stuck but the people who tresspass are the ones who really get me going when there is public land provided or they can just askto hunt somewhere

[Phil Washburn]

i tried poaching a deer once...i think i will stick with eggs...the deer just made SUCH a mess :o

[Big Country01]

Hey Gator I Feel For Ya Man "that Sucks Out Loud " Hope Ya Can Hang Em'out To Dry For A Long Time...

[davesoutfishing]

I hunt for the meat if I get a buck but I do the shotgun season only first one that walks by is in the frig legally I dont care how big it is I just want the meat

[Big Country01]

Most Of The Guys I Hunt With Hunt For The Meat And During The Bow Season The Common Phrase Is If It's Brown It's Down "as Long As It Don't Have Spots" But We All Keep It legal ...

[skippy]

One of my old high school buddies called me one night. He told me there had been some poaching going on at his grandfathers farm in Indiana. At the time we were in The Park Services and Wildlife program at a Vocational School. We knew the game warden personally. This guy was shooting every thing, racoons deer, fox, u name it, and he would leave the hole thing laying where he shot it. Yes, thats right he took nothing, at all. So one night we walked the property, 108 acres, we found where the guy had cut the fence, we found his deer stand, and escape path. We stayed out there untill we heard gun shots, we called the warden, me my buddie and grandpa, all blocked his truck in, we caught the guy, I thought my buddies grandfather was going to kill the guy, he put him through a wall in the house, any way, when the warden showed up, he conviscated all this guys gear and gave it to my buddies grandfather for catching the guy, He also did 10 years... not enough by far, but at least he was caught....

[skippy]

My mistake, his grandfather did not get the guys gear, he got a 5000 dollar reward. Sorry, got too far ahead of my self.

[cats4uandme]

i have a weird thing on this. ya its wrong to poach deer. if someone is in hard times and shot a doe to eat and told me i most likley wouldnt say anything. poaching a big buck like that isn't cool. the ones whom poach for the rack and or $ is IMO way more in the red than a fella whom lost his job and shoots one for his families bellys. not long ago we all lived off the land free of charge. now its taxes and a fee to breath darn near. i am not saying its ok to shoot a deer without a tag and such but if i was broke and had no food and a rifle ide put food on the table for my kid one way or another.

shame that one was taken in this manner. i myself wouldn't kill a big buck. i like the meat. those racks mean little to nothing to me. ill have a few fish mounted on the wall and lots of deer in the belly. i ain't shooting a buck cause his rack looks neet. i released a 20" largemouth and am having a reproduction made for $240. and its still alive. its illegal to poach and thats the law. im in total agreement with that. and follow the law.

i hope im never in a situation where im starving. i will find food. untill then i will continue to purchase my hunting lisc and hab stamp and fishing lisc. its the law and if i have the cash for poles ide rather be legal. survival is one thing. stupidity is a whole nother fish in a pond.

[DeerHunter01]

Let me ask you guys something ?

So if a guy was to eat the meat its ok to Poach ? cause a couple of you might as well have said this.

Should I be allowed to go shoot a deer, cause I like deer meat anytime I want ?

Let me say this, the people in hard times don't do it !! its the people that has money and could afford buying a beef that go out and shoot them. 95% of the time.

A few years back, I was coming thru a very small town in Pa. just on the outskirts of it , I seen a flash of a light like a flashlight on the edge of a corn field. I drove past the area and parked and walked out through the filed it was in Archery season but it was 10:30 at night , Figuring I was going to walk up on a couple of guys tracking a deer they had shot. When I get there here is two men that I know very well and both of them had damn good jobs and here this one guy is holding a 22 rifle and a rechargeable spot light. They had shot this deer and was just cutting out the back straps and both hind quarters, and had the rack of the deer in a Knapp sack.

Should I have left these guys go ? cause they were hungry for deer meat ?

I understand if someone is starving they need food, but there is there church and food stamps and other ways and means of getting food, but these are the ones thats not doing it. Its people that work every day , and have the money to spend on gas driving around all night getting there deer. Ok, I am done.. LOL

[MadKater]

now a days people just dont starve in this country,thier is just to much help out thier for them to get. thier is no excusse for poaching a deer, the only reason people poach is temtation.say youve been hunting a whole week without seeing a single deer then one night as you are driving home this awsome 10point walks out infront of you and stops now that is temtation and some people just cant handle it.and then you got your guys that poach and they see it as a hobby,going out to some secluded area at midnight with a .22 rifle and a spot light and start shooting deer with no remorse.i have an uncle in jail rite now for shooting a bionic buck,now most people that do thi smay get thier vehicle and gun taken away and hunting privliges for awhile but this was his second offense for the exact same thing how stupid is that? some poeple just dont learn thier lesson :confused:

[fwmud]

A poacher is just another criminal.
When I hunted as a kid,it used to confuse me why there was never the same amount of "doe days" every year. As I grew older I learned that each state has biololgist that study the deer population to determine how many does need to be culled.
A poacher upsets this balance that because of mans incurstion into nature, there just isn't that much natural selection going on.Therefore,the deer population is controled by hunting.
A poacher is simply someone who is either too lazy or a sorry hunter to begin with,and won't follow the rules.
A poacher takes away from those who pay for their license and go by set rules and regs.Punished on second offense? I think it should be on the first offense. "OOPS! I accidently pulled my spotlight and somehow the rifle sliped into my hands and shot the deer".
Come on, poaching can't happen by accident. It's planned and carried out with intent.

[river scum]

poaching is wrong IMO. many good observations why are listed here too. i dont poach(my liftime licence cost too much lol)

the way i stand on this issue,and many others is mind your own buisness! DH you had a job to do and thats fine we do need laws and law enforcment. i believe alot of people worry too much about what others are doing and not enough about theselves though. if you cant put your trust in friends then who? rats i have no use for,i was raised to be true to family and friends and that i will!

[catfishcentral]

I don't think there's any real reason to poach. In our current society nobody needs to go without food. There are too many programs to help people in need. A person who claims they need it to "feed their family" is full of it. The time it takes to hunt deer, not to mention money you still need a weapon and shells or arrows that time can be spent working a job. We basicallly have zero unemployment in this county if you need a job there's one out there for you. Why do you think all these people come over here from Mexico? Because they can find jobs that many people don't want to do. I hate poachers and don't think there's any reason to do it but I would never turn in my best friend unless it's a real extreme circumstance and jail time in most cases it just silly. Our prisons are way overcrowded and no there's need to spend taxpayers money on stupid people. I think large fines that get bigger and bigger for repeate offences will stop a person from poaching. If I ever decieded to poach a deer and had to pay a 5,000.00 fine and lose my license for a period of time I think 90% of those poachers would stop. Get caught again triple those fines and lose your license forever. Third offense then maybe talk about taking someone's house and car. It costs in most states 40 grand a year to house a immate. They can pay fines, do lots of community service and lose their hunting previlges. I don't want to pay for some stupid jerk who spotlighted a deer or two put in jail. If I had a friend that I knew was poaching I don't think I could really turn in a real best friend. Now I would have a serious talk with them and explain that I don't want to know or be a part of those activities.

[Gator]

Ok here is an update on the guy they caught yesterday at my house. The judge he saw first thing this morning and ordered that he be held in custody until he is brought before the state court judge on the pouching charges on Friday. Now as for the criminal trespassing charges 2 counts 1 filed by me and 1 filed by the land owner the guy was told he would serve 180 days in the county lock up, received a fine for $2500.00 and 1 year probation. This sentence is to start upon the competition of any jail time he receives from the state. The judge did tell him that when he sees the state judge that because this was his 3rd offense here in the state of Georgia the minim he would receive is, lost of the weapon involved, lose of the truck involved (which was a company truck belonging to his boss), 180 days in the state lockup, lost of his hunting and fishing privileges in the state for life, loss of his privileges to own a weapon designed for hunting which includes all long guns (rifles & shotguns), all bows and any hand gun with a barrel over 4.5 inches long. He could receive up to 5 years imprisonment and fines up to $50,000.

DH in answer to your question even if the meat is eaten wrong is wrong no questions ask. I don’t foresee and here in the country that has the need to pouch for a living. Your not fighting for your live trying to evade capture by an army during a time of war. You are living a nice life and relaxing with AC and beer. The way I see it is like this is it ok to drive drunk and possibly kill some one because you were out drinking away from home? It’s the same thing, wrong is wrong.

[Mark J]

Trespassers I hate. I'll police that myself .
Seems everyone has these 30 thousand dollar pickups these days.
I've modified a few in my time with a 30 caliber or a .44.

Since I'm one of those deer hunters that finally realized how stupid I was for hanging in a tree in 18 degree temperatures after leaving a wife and a warm bed to do it, my views may have changed dramatically.

I think poaching is pretty lame but let me tell ya, I hate a deer with a passion.
I'd love to never see another deer track on the ground myself.
Throughout my years of hunting, I've seen the antlers on a deer's head cause more problems then the deer itself.
Crop damage from deer around here is bad. They'll ruin a soybean field just laying in it and walking all over what they don't eat.
If it's brown it's down, I could care less what he has on his head.
The only thing an antler is good for im my opinion is a handle to drag the dang thing out of a corn row so he wont ruin a combine.

[derbycitycatman]

Ive lost "best" friends over stuff like this. They are stealing from the state, the landowner and me and you. So if your best friend knocks over a liquor store your not going to turn him in? Who needs friends like that? Many states had to work hard and spend alot of money for the hunting we all enjoy. They got that money from license buying sportsmen not the deadbeat poacher that supposedly isnt hurting anybody. If you poach that says alot about you and if you dont turn in a poacher that says alot about you. A criminal is a criminal, I seriously doubt that that is the worst they have done.

[Mark J]

Yep, thats exactly right.

[SSG Johnson]

I dont have many friends one because of stuff like that and the other a true friend would help you bury a body. Thats why I call very few people true friends. Thats all I have to say about that. As for the poacher well you already know how I feel about that.

[jason454ci]

Poaching is wrong and everybody knows it is. Thats why there is laws against it. I don't even want to hear what their reason for doing it is. It is an unexcusable crime and they should get the maximum sentence allowed by law. The laws could probally be a little more strick though. There should be no tolerance when it comes to these people. They think there is so many deer nobody will miss one. Well there's a reason there so many, because they set limits on how many can be killed. I agree the do ruin crops. Seen it many times around here. But you can contact the local game warden and get destruction permits here in Ohio. I don't know if this is true about all states. I would probally turn in my own mother if she did it. I just wish they had the resources to catch more of these criminals. We all can do are part to help out by turning them in. Most of them don't see meat when they do it all they see is a big rack. I do know this them antleers ain't very tasty no matter what you marinade them in. LOL

[delawareriver]

if any one says they hunt for the meat then thats bullcr@p, ill sell you alot of meat for less money then it costs for, shells, guns, coats, boats, lisecnse etc. kind of like when i hear guys say the fish to eat as there using a $200 rod and reel combo and sitting in a $45,000 bass boat. thats alot of fish fillets in the local super market if you ask me.

people hunt for the rush, as do i. for me i get a rush from hunting and having the same level as everyone and shooting that large buck that escaped everyone else. what does it mean if you cheat in anything? its like people trout fishing before opening day, what does it mean if you caught a big one? nothing anyone can go out and do it. who cant go out with a spot lite find a buck and shoot it.

[SSG Johnson]

I was just thinking about that Little brother and my thought is if you are hunting for meat then why not let the bucks walk why is it that everyone has to take a buck instead of a doe.

[delawareriver]

very good point there. why shot the 1st deer they see and not wait for a 4 or 5 year old deer to come. im sure you can get alot more meat out of a 4 or 5 year old doe or buck than the 1st deer you see. now only if everyone understood this

[Mark J]

If I'm shooting a deer to eat it wont be a 4 or 5 year old one.
Them youngins are the best table fair.
If that aint enough meat shoot some more.

[SSG Johnson]

Your right Mark but would you wait for a forked buck and pass on a doe and still call yourself a meat hunter. Ive heard that alot and these same people will take the buck following the doe when all they are after is meat. Me personally I hunt bucks big bucks but if a does happens by guess what I just became a meat hunter. I wasnt diputing you but asking the question not as you but as other hunters. I know what you are saying.

[delawareriver]

i personaly cant tell a big difference if any between older and younger deer besides when you eat with a family of 5 you go hungry with the small ones,

what do you think about the law in NJ we have to shoot a doe before shooting a buck. it has decreased the doe populaton greatly but my second cousin had to turn a large buck down since he didnt have his doe tag filled yet. sorry alittle off topic

[SSG Johnson]

That is an excellent rule if you asked me that buck will pass his genes on and it really stinks for your cousin but thats the breaks. I personally take a doe first If I can. I will take every doe I can with my anterless tags to lower the ratio between does to bucks. I will let small or young bucks go and hope they make it. I can tell you that the differance between this year and last is tremendoes because last year they put in the 4 point rule. 4 points on one side to be a shooter.

[jason454ci]

It does sound like a crazy law to me but I'm sure its there for a reason Delaware. If everybody was shootin for horns there would be no bucks and lots of doe. Has to be balanced somehow.

[derbycitycatman]

After years of hunting I wont take a buck unless he gets my heart racing. I usually try to get my meat(doe) first and then go buck hunting. When I first started hunting it didnt matter, if its brown its down. Now I want to make sure of what Im killing. I like my venison way better than anything you can buy. Theres no telling what was fed to it or where it came from. I havent bought meat in years, I would rather kill my own.

[SSG Johnson]

The reason behind it is a mature doe will have two to three fawns now multiply that by how many does are out there and you can understand why it is good to take the does and keep them under control. As for the bucks if you let the little young ones walk and grow they will get to be big trophy's and nothing will make your heart race like a big really big buck standing in front of you.

[Whistler]

My philosophy while hunting:

I am a meat hunter, period. If I didn't eat deer I wouldn't hunt deer. Just like squirrels. I think they are as much fun to hunt as anything in the woods, but I don't like them for food, so I don't hunt them. Do I shoot bucks? Yep, I wouldn't mind getting a trophy buck someday, but I don't go hunting with that in mind. Will I shoot a fork horn or a spike right behind a doe? Yep I sure will if it's the bigger of the two and will provide more meat, and unless the law changes I always will if I so desire. On the other hand I will also shoot a big doe over a smaller buck too. Have I shot a button buck? Yep, only because I get so excited when a deer walks in my range that I can't tell the difference. Should I quit hunting because of that? Again, not unless the laws change. Do I pass on small deer waiting for big ones? No, not with my luck and small hunting area I don't, I want meat in the freezer. I am a lucky person I believe. I can hunt every weekend between Novemeber 5th and January 15th. I have since 1993. My wife loves the meat and we share it with the kids. So she has never once hassled me about hunting, or fishing either for that matter. So I hunt every weekend for just over two months and I might get 3 deer if I'm lucky. Most I've gotten in one season is 6. Do I need 6? Not since the kids moved out. LOL This year if I get 2 I'll be able to stop hunting and start fishing again if I want. But I'll probably keep on hunting for my neighbors and some of the less fortunate people I know. One of my friends is an E-7 and hunts my land exclusively. Last year he took 9 deer on my land. He kept 3 and gave the rest to his soldiers that like deer and don't hunt. I will agree with Mark about old deer though, smaller ones are much more tender. And I love to grill venison steaks. So the more tender it is the better as far as I'm concerned. We all have our own way of looking at it. I don't think my way of thinking is any better than anyone else's, and I sure don't think anyone else's is any better than mine either and that goes for ethics too. In our state the deer population has exploded. If in my county I were to take every legal deer last year it would have been 127 deer of which only 3 could be bucks if I counted right. This year it is more. And if I hunt other counties, there's even more you could add to that number. So I don't feel bad at all for hunting like I do. I used to belong to a deer hunting board. One of the reasons I left it was because all the guys that hunted strictly for trophies would put anyone down that didn't see things their way. Well, I'm here so I guess that shows how much their opinions meant to me. LOL They talked about anything they wanted to on that site, kids and all, and flaming seemed to be expected and nobody did a thing about it. About the 3rd time someone called me a name for hunting like I do, I was history. I feel that we should be able to say we want about how we hunt/fish without fear of getting chastised over it just because it isn't the way someone else does it. As long as it's legal that is.

[Mark J]

On the farm we ask that 2 doe be taken before a buck.
It's not uncommon for me to walk out of the house to go to work in the morning and see 12-18 deer in the backyard. All doe unless there is a few knobby heads in the bunch.
Our herd is so far out of whack buck to doe ratio wise but our deer per square mile is astronomical in proportions.

I asked an old man up the road the other day if me and the nephew could hunt one of his farms. He lets me hunt when I want to but I clear it through him every year. Nice old fella with thousands of acres scattered around this community.
When I asked him he says, You got a rifle aint ya? I said yes sir!
He says good, them bowhunters aint gettin the job done.
Now if you think I hate a deer , He hates them with a passion.

Really I dont hate a deer as much as I hate what deer hunting does to grown men. All our family land connects here leaving me with substantial acreage to hunt. After years of hunting and putting up with attitudes and men acting like spoiled kids, I finally said Ok, yall hunt the whole dang place I'm going to hunt this 50 acre tract, the tract I live on. I'll stay out of the woods on the rest of the farms.
Well buck fever sets in quick. Next thing I know I guess they think I know something they dont so where do they hunt? Not on my 50 acre tract but they got me surrounded and are encroaching.
The last few years I have just thrown the towel in. I'm not dealing with grown hunters anymore. But they still aint getting on this little 50 acre tract.
I got a nephew that gets the first and last crack at em and a very few close friends inbetween.
If I go hunting i'm gunless, the nephew carries the rifle, I'm just there sharing what I know and still enjoy hanging a lockon and screwing some steps in for him.
The hunter attitude I'm fed up with is lack of respect.
My family has toiled and farmed this place since King George granted it to them. Nobody has more right to hunt it unimpeded then us that bear the name, but you always got a few that don't or fail to respect that. Then you got a few that are so afraid a 15 year old kid might kill a monster instead of them. Then you got a few bow hunt only types that think you should block out sections of your land just for their use because they are the exclusive bow hunter club of 3 oaks and a stump. This aint no club med of deer hunting folks. This is a farming operation first and foremost.
Buck fever clouds a man's judgement. In all this you have to maintain long standing friendships and be neighborly with life long neighbors that have been there for you when you needed a hand.
That's the main reason I have taken myself off the dance floor.
It just doesnt mean as much as it used to.

It dont mean I wont lay a few down here and there. I got a nice set of french doors opening up onto the backyard and I'm not beyond laying a rifle barrel on the driver side mirror and busting one from the heated cab of a truck when the oppertunity presents itself. I just aint in the game anymore.
I find that through my refocused efforts of trying to dwindle a deer population through a nephew is a whole lot more rewarding then deer hunting ever was to me when I was successful in my hunts.

When he shot his first last year at 252 yards quartering away the first time he had ever pulled the trigger on a centerfire rifle I was indeed more jubilated then he was. I was on cloud nine for weeks even though it was only a button buck. He has yet to understand the feats he accomplished that day first in the shot he made and second what happened inside of me. I changed my will that next week. He'll get the rifle I cherish, the same rifle he got his first with. I realized without a doubt this is where it's at. It's all about the kids now, I've had my long run with it and enjoyed most of it. It's time for me to take the time to teach and pass the torch.
I'll just fish after that.

[river scum]

I dont have many friends one because of stuff like that and the other a true friend would help you bury a body. Thats why I call very few people true friends. Thats all I have to say about that. As for the poacher well you already know how I feel about that.


amen to that brother! we need more people with integrity like yours in this country.

[Whistler]

That is a very important thing I forgot to mention Mark. I've been taking younger people hunting/fishing with me for years, mostly youger soldiers while I was in the army or my kid's friends that wanted to go. I'm probably through taking them for now though. Just don't meet to many to take. Now I'll wait and teach my grandkids if they want to learn. Got lifetime sportsman licenses for them already. Got a new one to get it for now though. New addition about a month ago. I can't wait to get them out camping like I used to do with my dad. You're absolutely right. Kids are where it's at!!

[Mark J]

My dad doesnt hunt anymore at all. He grew soft hearted as he got older.
Not a thing wrong with that in my book. He still occasionly fishes with the grandkids which I am glad to see. When he lost his brother 2 years ago next month who loved to bass fish with a passion and I loved to show them up on the water I heard him make the statement to someone at the funeral home that he lost all desire to fish when he lost his brother. Only in the last 5 years did they become closer in retirement and pick back up fishing together again after having to work and raise families.

I heard that statement come from his lips and it destroyed me. The man who ALWAYS carried me fishing from the time I was big enough to crawl in a jon boat and the same man that endlessly got me un hooked from snags without a cross word or complaint.

Good thing he has 5 grandkids, They have gotten him back out on the water fishing where he belongs.

As his grandkids were born one by one , each and everytime they got a lifetime sportsmans license for their 1st birthday, boys and girls.
Inscribed on their license is "Love Grandaddy"
I'm still trying to get him to put up the funds for my lifetimes. Fat chance! :D

If all goes well I'll take you up on the soldier gig atleast once this year. I got a good friend that wants to bring one of those freedom fighters up for a hunt.
I can't wait to accomadate. I just hope I can pull one out of the bag for them and make it worthwhile. The pressure is on.

[fwmud]

Mark, I remember that post from last year on the old board.Great story!
When one of the boys comes up for a hunt, give me hollar.I'd be proud just to walk along w/ yall.
I don't hunt anymore myself,but I can still walk and enjoy the great outdoors.
PS; Ignore Bob, I don't talk like I normally do when hunting.
Great posts from you and bryan!

[VerotiK]

I consider myself a meat hunter too. To a point, anyway. This discussion went on in the bowhunting forum. Will i pass a big buck, even if im after the meat? No i wont. Did i hold out for a buck and a buck only? No, i took a doe. It wasn't the first deer i saw either. I saw a bigger 5-point that i passed on. I realize that meat is alot cheaper in the supermarket. My main purpose for hunting isn't to just get meat. Its the whole experience. But getting meat out of the whole deal is what im after. If i happen to kill a trophy deer along the way, then its all the better.

[cats4uandme]

deer is good eating. i have cooked several roasts this year from button bucks to doe. all were some tender stuff slow cooked on the grill. i don't hunt them but have several buddies thst do and they ain't stingy with it. heck a tag is only $26 and you can shoot two. an old shotgun from dad free and slugs $5. how is that expensive?

there are a lot of meat hunters here. they will shoot either a big buch or doe for meat. if its a tropty fine. THEY STILL EAT THE DEER. so saying there arn't any meat hunters cause the store is cheaper is wrong. i don't care if beef is two cents a # i love deer meat. ate it since i was a kid. i hit one with my truck a few years back. got right out loaded it up and called it in and took it to the locker.

so at this point i have a f.o.i.d. card. my grandpa has an old bow and shotguns. i could get slugs for $5 and dig out some hand me down camo, and spend less than $30 on a tag and several of us cut up our own meat. so for $40 i could get 100# of venison. try getting 100# of serlion for $40.

[cats4uandme]

i also fish for food. now sure, i love the sport of it. the catch the fight. i have spent a ton of time here helping folks also to catfish. i have a lot of rods and reels. like 25 or so a $2000 boat and lots of gear. guess that makes me the trophy hunter,lol. but after all that i still put fish on the table for the family. in a lifetime im sure i could figure out the cost of fish and if i broke even but thats not happening. i don't need a $200 reel but if i want one ill get it. its just how serious ya want to be. you can catch catfish with $20 zebco and $2 worms. i chose to spend thousands. ya can deer hunt with a rusted gun or fraied bow. some choose to spend thousands. don't make em any different.

an like i said. i wouldn't poach a deer for the fun. if i wanted deer i would tell my cousin to shoot me one and ill buy the tag. it ain't worth it. and dh. yes those two with the good jobs ya. bust them. they were breaking the law and have no excuse either way. they need a stiff fine to teach the to buy the permits.

[Whistler]

LOL, Jeremy I only wish it were that cheap for me. LOL Funny thing if you really get into it. Buy all camo clothing, to include shirts, pants, jackets, rainwear, parka, etc. Then throw 500 sq inches of bright international orange over the top of it all. LOL Make sense? Camo clothing is expensive!! And if you buy scent control stuff it's much, much more. Around here people wear camo all the time like it's "in style". Costs way too much to me for that. I pack mine up at the end of hunting season in storage boxes with fresh cut cedar chips(from a small tree I cut each year) in them. When I unpack them they smell like the woods here and it does for several washings. Throw in a 300 dollar treestand, 400 dollar rifle, 100 dollar pair of good warm hunting boots, warm gloves and all the gadgets you can think of and the cost per pound jumps considerably!! LOL

[cats4uandme]

makes sense. your into hunting like i am with fishing. you don't need a $50 lead pot 3-4 $30 molds and 5-6 ambass, 2-3 penns, i loose count, lmao, and 25 r&r's and 2 soon to be 3 boats to fish. but i have it. (just got a new lee iv pot at gan mnt for $49.99) maybe were crazy????????????? na. lol.

i have a shed that looks like a sporting goods store. my buddies have nick named it little cableas, lmao. if it were pouring down rain in the dead of night i have the means to sit on the boat, either one, lol warm and dry. no. it can get real expensive soon as ya figure out ya like doing it. :p

[SSG Johnson]

I hope ya ll didn't take me wrong. I wont get on anybody for taking a deer young or old buck or doe. Its hard not to pull the trigger when a deer is standing in front of you. But to me an old rutting buck isn't good for anything accept making deer brats. I butcher my own deer and can tell you there is a big difference between a doe and an old rutting buck. The smell of the meat is different and the old buck's meat will be dark red and have a Strong oder to it. Not a bad oder but stronger than the doe's.

I believe Whistler and others are true meat hunters but others call them selfs meat hunters and then kill a small buck over a big doe. I have seen that happen something about bucks I guess. I guess I would call myself a meat trophy hunter because I have let young bucks walk even this year already and in the past but also have killed young bucks up in the season when I needed more meat and haven't killed what I need to kill yet. I guess I'm a hypocrite on this one not really situation will dictate to shoot or not to shoot. But I'm not going to get down on anyone that takes a legal deer it is that mans choice period. Anybody that gets onto someone for taking a legal deer is wrong with the exception of if it is on your own land and you are being selective on what you are shooting. I don't have a problem with someone telling me that they only want me to shoot does on there land or there is a big buck on there if I see him let him walk. Its there land and if they are trying to grow bucks then that is there prerogative.

[Whistler]

Jeremy, I'm like that with fishing too. LOL

[SSG Johnson]

By the way I'm taking a 35 yr old man out tomorrow for his first hunt I have been saving a deer back here I could have shoot a couple of times for this guy. I sure hope that deer shows up tomorrow so he can kill it. What a great memories to have on your first hunt. Wish us luck.

[cats4uandme]

ya i know :D one of these days i may go all out and have the house on wheels like ya got too. i got a nice new tent but yours retains heat better. :p

i agree chuck. if ya got your permits and ya want to shoot a doe, buck, or a 48 point non typical for the record book so be it. like fish. if you took it legal and want to eat it i have no problems with it. sure it stinks to kill a huge fish or deed IMO but everything has its mortality. i would sure as heck rather see a 50# flathead get eaten than all that good white meat just die in the river of natural causes. :eek:

[Whistler]

They passed a law here about 5 years ago that only allows 3 bucks per year, no matter what season or weapon. To tell the truth, I haven't see any real changes yet. I know with time it will improve the "Quality" of the bucks here, but so far I see nothing different. A big deer here is less than 150 lbs dressed. Go 60 miles north into KY and that's a small deer. Go where ChuckB lives and that's a baby at best!! At the same time they made that rule, they also increased the doe harvest by leaps and bounds to what I posted above. First 5 years I hunted in Tennessee you could get a doe in each of two muzzle loader seasons and if you archery hunted you could get 2 does. And IF they held a special 3 day hunt after the season was over, you could takd two more. And that was it. Big difference between the few then and the 120+ now. LOL. This year it's legal to take 3 does a day for almost the entire 2 months we can hunt. And you can legally shoot all 3 from one group if you can reload that fast. LOL

[Whistler]

It's much cooler in the summer too Jeremy. LOL Took me a long time to move up to that camper.

[centralcalcat]

I have hunted all my life and have had many opportuities to poach,but never have and never will. No animal is worth violating the law and my moral principal.

The only acceptable reason I have ever heard in all my life for poaching, was on a t.v. show about a California Game warden, he busted a guy for poaching, who had been poaching for a few weeks, taking one deer every so often. he had been taking out all the meat, becasue he was poor and the meat feeding his kids, he always left the racks if it was a buck. This took place back in the sixties, so most of the programs we have now to help those in need, were not around. In a case like that he was arrested and charged, but in that time at that place it was acceptable in my opinion. Today, in America that excuse is not present. SO there is no excuse for paoching. All it does is put a bad rep to a good sport.

-brian

[cats4uandme]

well this story kind of fits the subject.




Fla. Woman Find Bullet in Pork Casserole
October 21, 2005 7:44 AM EDT
ORMOND BEACH, Fla. - Was the pig a victim of a drive-by shooting? That's one theory to explain how a bullet wound up in Diane Johnson's pork loin casserole.

She said there was no mistaking the projectile's distinct shape in the pork loin she bought at a Publix grocery store.

All meat is scanned with a metal detector before reaching Publix shelves, said Dwaine Stevens, spokesman for the company in Florida.

It's not clear how the scanners missed the bullet - or how the bullet got in the pork loin in the first place.

Stevens said someone may have fired into a herd of grazing livestock.

According to the Wisconsin Pork Association, professional slaughterhouses don't shoot animals, for employee safety and meat quality concerns.

Johnson, 74, said she was satisfied with a $10 dollar refund and another fresh pork loin from Publix.

She said she didn't plan to sue because no one got hurt.

[derbycitycatman]

My grandma has told me this story for years. Now mind you this is back in 1920-30's bfe texas. Nearest store was probably 30-40 miles away adn meat was just hard to afford. They were sitting down for dinner when they game warden dropped by and they were eating venison out of season. So as the warden sits down to eat someones says will you please pass the coyote.

[centralcalcat]

I hope ya ll didn't take me wrong. I wont get on anybody for taking a deer young or old buck or doe. Its hard not to pull the trigger when a deer is standing in front of you. But to me an old rutting buck isn't good for anything accept making deer brats. I butcher my own deer and can tell you there is a big difference between a doe and an old rutting buck. The smell of the meat is different and the old buck's meat will be dark red and have a Strong oder to it. Not a bad oder but stronger than the doe's.

I believe Whistler and others are true meat hunters but others call them selfs meat hunters and then kill a small buck over a big doe. I have seen that happen something about bucks I guess. I guess I would call myself a meat trophy hunter because I have let young bucks walk even this year already and in the past but also have killed young bucks up in the season when I needed more meat and haven't killed what I need to kill yet. I guess I'm a hypocrite on this one not really situation will dictate to shoot or not to shoot. But I'm not going to get down on anyone that takes a legal deer it is that mans choice period. Anybody that gets onto someone for taking a legal deer is wrong with the exception of if it is on your own land and you are being selective on what you are shooting. I don't have a problem with someone telling me that they only want me to shoot does on there land or there is a big buck on there if I see him let him walk. Its there land and if they are trying to grow bucks then that is there prerogative.


Thank you Chuck for this post. Now will ya come out to California anf get our fish and game to unscrew our deer population. Does way out number bucks here doe to no buck season. Due to the amount of people hunting, most hunters end up taking smaller immature forked horns. My view is it they need to allow for a number if doe tags a year and raise the buck requirements to a minimum of three tiens on one side. I think doing that would breed a healthier deer population.

An examplr of what I am talking about is this. WHile hunting three days we had an average of a 20 to 1 buck to doe ratio.

-Brian

[VerotiK]

The way the law is in Arkansas now, they have a 3 point rule. The buck has to have 3 points on ONE side of his rack. They changed this rule 3 or 4 years ago i think. Also, you can kill a spike, as long as the spikes are less than 2 inches. Im not sure what the thinking is behind that one. I guess it is because most bucks that are old enough to be spikes have spike at least 4-6". I wish they would go with a rule where there had to be 4 on each side. That would make for higher quality bucks, but what do i know. I have alot of respect for these wildlife biologists that work for the game and fish commissions. Alot of hunters think they are stupid and dont know what they are doing, but they really do. I know they are doing what's best for the herd. There was an article in the paper here on the debate going on about running dogs during deer season. There was one old man that kept giving the young biologist a hard time, about almost everything he said. The biologist finally made the statement that the old man spent 3 weeks a year watching deer, while the biologist said that he spends almost every day of the year working and watching deer. The old man was silenced after that.

I agree with SSG Johnson, i guess i am the same as him. Im a trophy-meat hunter. Like i said before, i passed up an immature buck and took a doe instead, not only because i wanted some meat in the freezer, but i also wanted the buck to have a chance to get bigger.

[SSG Johnson]

The problem with it is that we are just now starting to understand the whys and hows of getting trophy bucks in our states. Thank goodness that we have finally woke up and started a real conservation program. It will take time but I feel pretty sure that just like catfishing as the sport grows and more and more people get involed it will get better and better. I can tell you that the 4 point rule in Missouri is working around here anyway I have seen many more bucks and big ones over the summer than ever before. Hang in there and write letters it will change.

[centralcalcat]

Thank you Chuck for this post. Now will ya come out to California anf get our fish and game to unscrew our deer population. Does way out number bucks here due to no doe season. Due to the amount of people hunting, most hunters end up taking smaller immature forked horns. My view is it they need to allow for a number of doe tags a year and raise the buck requirements to a minimum of three tiens on one side. I think doing that would breed a healthier deer population.

An example of what I am talking about is this. WHile hunting three days we had an average of a 20 to 1 doe to buck ratio.

-Brian


( sorry guys i confused myself with that post figured I'd fix it for what I had to say)

[bluecatnut]

tonight my buddy turned in a guy that was hunting on fort campbell ky.
and shot a spike buck but did not check him in on base he called his friend and told him he was gonna need help hiding the deer so he could drive it off the post and check it in at a archery shop in ky so my buddy called the hunt and fish shack and they said if the guy did not bring in the deer they would call the federal fish and game. my buddy is showing the fed where the deer was gutted out i will let u know more when i find it out

DUSTY
U.S.M.C. ALUMNI

[bluecatnut]

dh could u tell what the finds might be for poaching on federal property
thanks
DUSTY
U.S.M.C.ALUMNI

[SSG Johnson]

BLue I know around here there really isnt a fine per. say its more that you lose your hunting privleges to hunt on post for a matter of time usually its a year. Now with that said I think it would fall to the state as what the punishment would be as you have to have a state tag to hunt on or off post. The post only makes the rules while on post but have to follow what the states rules and reg. are. In other words they can be added to but not taken away from. For instance you can only hunt with shotgun or muzzleloader on post but off post you can hunt with rifle. Now you will be subject to UCMJ if you are in violation of hunting reg. on post as well as the state regulations if you are military. If not then you would loss the right to hunt on post for a period of time.

Its not a good thing to get caught in the wrong on post as it does go the provose marshal and then comes back down the chain of command. You would think that it would deter from people doing it but it doesnt seem to there is more poaching going on post then off post it seems. Mostly road hunting in my opinion.

Three years ago I know of a young Pvt. that was from NY city and heard it was deer hunting season so his cousin came here so they could hunt. These two had never even hunted a squirel and didnt have a clue. Well they loaded up there 30-06 into there celia and drove around with the windows down listening for deer in the woods. They where in a no hunting area and out pops a doe on the road so they stopped the car got out got the gun out of the trunk of the car and then one yells to the other hey look as a huge and I mean huge buck stepped into the road and looked at them. They shot and killed the buck then went to the CO office to asked what to do. Because the buck would not fit into the trunk of the car. They where told they needed to tag it and then gut the deer and have it checked. There responce was "Tag whats a tag?" "How do you gut a deer?" and "check it check it for what". These two didnt pay a fine didnt get into trouble and where able to keep the deer. 23 point non typical buck. It was found that the two where just completly clueless as to what they had done. It was found that they had heard others taking about deer hunting and thought it sounded like something fun to do as they both grew up in NYC and had never even seen a deer with the exception of seeing them while driving around on post. When the CO officer told them they had poach a deer one of the boys replyed "No sir we didnt boil the deer we shot it". In this case I feel that the CO and the judge did the right thing as the boys where simply clueless. Later it was found that bass pro gave one of the boys 50,000 for the rights to the rack. I dont know that as fact but that is what was said.

[derbycitycatman]

Ignorance is no excuse. Ever tried getting out of a speeding ticket cause you didnt know the speed limit.

[crazy]

Thats a crazy story. I agree just because you did not know. Don't mean they should not be punished.

[Whistler]

I'll tell you what. I have a question. Why on earth would anyone shoot a deer on post while it's a legal hunting season and not check it in. It's rifle/muzzleloader/shotgun/bow season right now on post depending on what area he was in. And has been for weeks. I know someone on post who works with the game wardens, I'll see if I can get some info tomorrow if he still works there.I know one thing, the guy that reported this better be right. Or he's gonna pay the price. They don't take it very well when someone falsely makes a claim about stuff like that. On Fort Campbell they have Federal Game wardens right now. Normally it's just MP's on special assignment with an identifier. But right now they are all either deployed or being deployed. Federal guys don't play either. I'd hate to be either the guy that illegally took the deer or the guy that makes a false accusation to them. Either won't be much fun.

[bluecatnut]

Their Were 6 Federal Wardens From Lbl 3 Tenn Wardens The Ltc Of Pmo Hunting And Fishing Manager From Base And 3 Jr Mp I Mean E1-e4
And My Neighbor .they Were Amazed That My Neighbor Took Them To The Exact Location .
Then One Of The Game Wardens That Me And My Neighbor Know Asked My Neighbor Why He Turned In This Guy My Neighbor Told Them He Gave The Guy A Chance To Turn Him Self In And He Did Not Do It. The Federal Game Wardens Told My Neighbor They Were Waiting To Make An Example Out Of The First Person They Caught Poaching.they Got A Sample Of The Heart.then They Went To The Soldiers On Base House And Asked Him If Hey Shot A Deer He Them Told Them He Didnot Know What They Were Talking About The Warden The Showed Him The Piece Of Heart And He Still Said He Didn't Know What They Were Talking About Then The Saw His Boots Were Covered With Blood And Then They Asked To See His Truck So He Showed Them It Amd They Took A Blood Sample From That Also. Might Now I Was Told They Are Getting A Search Warrent For His House To Find The Knife That The Guy Had. The Reason They Are Looking For The Knife Is My Neighbor Helped The Guy Field Dress The Deer Beause He Needed Help While My Neighborwas Trying To Break Through The Pelvis The Tip Of The Knive Broke So If They Find That They Have A Tight Case The Only Thing That Is Missing Now Is The Deer.
Well I Give More Of A Report Later On.

Dusty
U.s.m.c Alumni

Courage= Doing The Right Thing When No One Is Looking

God Bless

[DeerHunter01]

Federal fines are alot different then State fines. All Federal charges go to your Federal Building in that State. and Most of the times there will be a fine imposed and a loss of hunting privileges for at least 2 years or more.

Federal Fines can go from anywhere from 250.00 to 1000.00 . I agree with Whistler, not sure if there is other check in stations around that area but if he did take it to another place that was not checked it could cause a big problem on the Base.

Look I have no problem turning someone in for a violation of the laws and I encourage it to take place, its sportsman's policing our Ranks together not just fish and game alone, its all of us as one. But please make sure your turning in the right person for a violation of the law, the fed's will do a quick database of license's in Kentucky and Tennessee to see if this guy has a hunting license and then they will check with all the check stations, prior to going and seeing him.

D/H

[bluecatnut]

He Was Hunting Double Zero About 1 Mile From The Hunt And Fish Shack. The Guy Checked Him Self Out Of The Area And Didn't Turn In His Permit. This Is Nothing To Lie About And I Am Personely Offended. U Can Asked Wild Bill Or Allen At The Hunt And Fish Shack
Or If U Know Dale One Of The Tn Game Wardens He Was Their Tonight U CAN ASK HIM ALSO
Well U Tell Us What U Know Tommorrow

Dusty
U.s.m.c Alumni

Courage= Doing The Right Thing When No One Is Looking

[hookeye]

The poaching here has become terrible the last few years, and it just sickens my stomach. I live very close to the Lake and public hunting area and the last couple of years people have been driving up and down the roads with 22 rifles killing a lot of deer and just letting them rot. They have also killed numerous cattle in the same manner. I just do not understand how someone can get their kicks out of such useless slaughtering. :cursing: Last year a group of them were caught, their excuse or reason, " We were drinking and didn't have anything better to do"! It is a shame that such animals have to lose their lives and all that meat has to be wasted because someone got bored, not to mention the fuel it gives the activists out there, which they use against ethical hunting. It is both sad and infuriating to say the least!

[Whistler]

Dusty, I didn't mean for that to sound like I was accusing you of anything. If you took it that way I apologize. I just meant that anyone, not just this instance, that makes an accusation will have to be pretty accurate with absolute proof. I had a soldier when I was still active that found that out the hard way. He saw what he saw, but couldn't prove it. And in his case a gut pile wasn't enough. Anyway I hope they get this guy and hang him. Sorry about the confusion.

[Whistler]

Another thing that happened here about 5 years ago. I have a friend that was on his way home from hunting one Saturday morning. He was driving one of our many back roads and ended up following an older white Ford pickup. He was driving pretty slow and eventually stopped. Bill said he saw a gun muzzle come out the window and a shot was fired. He looked in the direction of the shot and saw a bunch of deer running. He didn't even get out of the pickup to see if he'd hit anything. He then continued on and stopped again about a mile further down the road. Muzzle out the window and another shot. This time he got out and walked over to the downed buck and dragged it back over to the pickup, loaded it and took off. All while Bill was right behind him. The guy even waved at him. LOL Well Bill got his license number and called it in to TWRA. They put him in touch with the local game warden. Bill said he told him he'd get back with him in a few minutes cause he had to check the license database to see who it was. Well in about an hour he called back and told Bill he knew of this guy and had many run-ins with him. Said he had no hunting license as it had been permanently revoked by the state long ago. He also told Bill that he would have to meet him at the courthouse and swear out a warrant on this guy if he wanted anything done about it. Bill thought that was dumb, but he went anyway. They did all the paperwork and when they were at the point of submitting to whoever it was to go to he told Bill that the likelyhood of anything coming of this was slim to none. Told Bill that they would probably get it to court and the guy would deny it all. Judge would probably be caught in a "His word against mine" dilema and dismiss it. Bill said he went livid. And the game warden was right. It never even made it to court. The guy hired a lawyer and got it tossed. Unbelievable to me that it could possibly happen like that. What do they do with people who turn others in under the stop programs? I asked a game warden who was standing on my property waiting for me to come out of the woods one morning about turning in some dog hunters. Hunting with dogs in Tennessee is strictly illegal. LOL He said that in that case he'd almost for sure have to see it himself and not just see the dogs and hunters, but see them get a deer. I know these guys work hard, but to me it seems like an unwinnable battle.

[rednecksportsman511]

i volunteer at the birmingham zoo, and they had an incident where a guy broke in, and shot their prized buck, Bucky. the found his carcass in a park a few miles away, w/o the head and cape. they finally caught the guy 3 years later when he entered Bucky in a contest (when i say prized, i mean prized). a zooworker recognized bucky's head intantly and they arrested him. but statute of limitations had run out and he wasn't even fined.

thing is, when he shot Bucky, the other animals in the pin panacked and 6 died from breakin their necks in the fence or of panic.

[bluecatnut]

as of this morning the guy had a 350 dollar fine from the base and the investigation is still going on i have to speak to the tn game wardens at 3:30 i will let you know what is going to happen next

DUSTY
U.S.M.C. ALUMNI
COURAGE DOING THE RIGHT THING WHEN NO ONE IS LOOKING

[crazy]

Then I ask my self why they have the 1-800 numbers to call to turn in poachers if they don't do anything. It's almost like you have to take the law into your own hands on your own property. Then again the criminal has more rights then the law abiding citizen. All this is just not right if you ask me. In the county where our property is one of the biggest deer poachers is the son of a conservation agent. Everyone in the area knows it but yet nothing will ever happen to him because of who is daddy is.

[bluecatnut]

that is when u bring in the big dogs like federal fish and game they will make sure that stuff just don't get swept under the rug.

DUSTY
U.S.M.C.ALUMNI
courage = doing the right thing when no one is looking

[kaleigh]

Like the old quote from the Baretta Show "IF YOU CAN'T DO THE TIME,DON'T DO THE CRIME. If poachers are caught,there should be NO MERCY.give them the max time that the law allows.There is as much reason for poaching as there is for robbing a gas station or a small store.If you are hungry,GET A JOB!!!

[flathunter]

I live in Ohio and see it quite often, it makes me sick. And the slap on the wrist these poachers get is usually a joke....I have turned in poachers several times using the 1-800-poacher number, never did any good.

[poppie]

Open your mind guys, there's a lot more to poaching then killing deer for their racks. Poaching has evolved into a multi-Billion dollar a year business.Body parts of some animals are worth a fortune in different parts of the world especially the orenient!

Killing a deer and not mailing in a report IS POACHING!

Killing a derr and not checking it in IS POACHING

Killing any migratory bird out of season IS POACHING

Removing trees from state owned land IS POACHING

Taking of any protected species of anything IS POACHING

Killing a sizzortailed flycatcher and taking the tail feathers IS POACHING

The point is simple math. The fines for poaching are nothing when compared to the potential profit. If you break down the individual parts or feathers a BALD EAGLE (1) could net a poacher thousands. One (1) paw of a black bear could bring 10,000$ in China

Poaching has evolved far faster than law enforcement to stop it! Police cannot stop drug trafficing because there aren't enough cops yet the Police outnumber wildlife officials by at least 100 to 1!

If we want to stop poaching HUNTERS MUST POLICE OUR OWN RANKS! If that means turning in someone you know so be it!
One of the things I fought for in PA. but never got was for the PICTURES of Poachers who's licenses had been revoked POASTER ON A BOARD IN EVERY BUSINESS THAT SELLS HUNTING LICENSES! SHOW THE WORLD WHO THES BUTTWIPES ARE! No good because in would infringe on the poachers Constitutional rights........BS.............I must therefor conclude the rights of a poacher are more important than those of an HONEST CITIZEN.....I DON'T THINK SO!

The first buck I killed was a spike who's longest spike turned out to be 2 1/2 inches. ILLEGAL. So we called the Game Warden (DIDN'T LEAVE IT IN THE WOODS) who came to check it after scraping the hair off the skull he squeezed out 2 3/4 inches so we payed the fine and I got my tag back so I could continue hunting. Doing the right thing coast $25.00 but earnd our hunting camp a million dollars worth of good will! 3 days later I shot another spike whos spikes stuck 2 inches above the ears but IT TOOK ME A LONG TIME TO SHOOT!

There's nothing wrong with making a mistake until you try to hide (cover it up) it up! REMEMBER THE ACTION OF POACHER DIRECTLY REFLECTS ON ALL HONEST HUNTERS! Poacher ain't your friends they are low life thieves!
Later Poppie

[bluecatnut]

well they only gave the guy a 350.00 fine and banned him from hunting on fort cambell for life . they said the only reason they didn't do more is because he had 3 small children i told the game warden "well he wasn't thinking of them while he was committing the crime so why should they be so lienient on him after the fact".

DUSTY
U.S.M.C.ALUMNI

COURAGE = DOING THE RIGHT THING WHEN NO ONE IS LOOKING

[Bayoubear]

Is a huge difference tween an honest mistake (half an inch of antler) and shooting a ten-point at three a.m. with a spotlight. We have had ridiculous problems with poachers on our land for as long as i care to remember. Our fences have been cut, our gates winched down, deer shot from off of my stand as i was walking to it, guys with spotlights rutting up my field all hours of the night, poached deer field-dressed right under my stands, carcases left in middle of my road, mothballs put in my corn piles, (corn's legal here) one fine fellow took a dump on one of my salt blocks, (blame the hunting club behind my land).
on and on and on and on.

these are not the crack-head gangster criminals or the thugs just out of prison doing this. its our fellow hunters. folks like you and me that PRETEND to be upstanding citizens yet when they get out of town with a gun they seem to lose all sense of decency.

over the years i done about all i could but to no avail.
ive called game wardens, ditto the deputies, photographed vehicles illegally parked on my land, patrolled at night like a security cop, numerous confrontations, let air from tires, (only to delay their leaving, ive not damaged anyones property despite whats been done to mine) on and on and on.

its truly a sad state of affairs when i have a good hunt ruined by the idiots that have no respect whatsoever for the game they hunt or the environments in which they do it in. no wonder landowners are increasingly reluctant to allow "hunters" access to their lands.

apathy too is somewhat to blame as well.
what was the posted comment? 100 cops to 1 game warden?
we have to police ourselves, most states have 800 numbers to report
game violations. use common sense... no i wont turn in your ten year old kids first deer a quarter inch too short, but the three bucks my neighbor has under a tarp in the back of the pickup,, hell yes. my knowing about it and not reporting by proxy makes me just as guilty and thusly would cost me any right to complain about the poachers.
no one else is protecting our rights...
its up to us.

chad

[centralcalcat]

In Alaska there was a case about 9 years ago where fish and game caught a guy with nearly 300 black bear gal bladders. He was selling them in Asia and leaving the rest of the bear there to rot. That makes me sick. I can understand leaniancy on those who accidently make a mistake,

Such as a hunting partner of mine shot a moose up there it ws 1" shy of having a legal spread. He then dressed the moose and hung the moose in camp. This followed by him taking a drive to locate a warden and showing the warden the kill a light fine was all he got and the meat and rack were taken. To me there are grey areas of every subject and too many people I have seen see things in black and white.

Blatent poaching is Wrong and should follow by harsh punishments, mistakes happen and while punishment should follow the punishment shuld be fitting of the crime.

-Brian

[H2O Mellon]

I have a difference of opinon on some of this:

A few of you have said that there no way anyone can go hungry in our world, etc... well that is dead wrong. I know a couple people in some of the lowest income areas in the state of Ohio that have lost their jobs. A couple of these gusy did poach deer to feed their family. Was it right, legally No. But when a man has to choose between that & his family, I wouldnt expect it any other way. Now granted these cases are RARE. It's easy for us to say that it's not possible, I mean heck most of us have to be in our warm houses & obviously have more of lifes more luxurious items such as computers if we're able to read this, but the fact is that there are cases of people that go hungry out there.

Poaching & My Experiences:
Aprox 7 years ago, I know someone who turned in some people for poaching. The state was Ohio, county was Hocking, Township was Laurell. This person spoke to the game warden personally & was assured that this would be confidential. Sure enough a couple days later the game warden came in along w/ some more officers. Nothing showed up. Nonone got busted, but it did bring lots of heat down. Now heres is the bad part: The Warden told the ones involved that the report came from "In House"-Those were his EXACT words. Now , I can tell you as a former Fraud Investigator, that should NOT have been done. I can only tell you the trouble that caused. Families were seperated and lifes were changed from those two words. I cant go into details, but that experience has lead me to keep my mouth shut. My story is pretty easy to verify, go to the Ohio DNR web site, find the officer for Hocking co & ask him. I had a couple very interesting phone calls with this officer & the state offices located in Athens, Ohio.

[H2O Mellon]

FYI: Figured I'd add a side note.
In my post it may seem like I'm anti Game Wardens, I'm not. In fact I was registered in the ODNR/Game Warden program @ Hocking College, in Nelsonville, Ohio before changing my mind, plus as mentioned before I am a previous Fraud INvestigator, so I've worked with many police officers, deputy sheriff's, detetives, etc... I have a ton of respect for them, it's just in my certain hunting area, I've learned not to say anything.

[davesoutfishing]

From the IDNR Press release:

MISSOURI VALLEY, Iowa - Two Nebraska men were caught Sunday evening
with two antlered deer that had been shot with rifles. Jamey Vornbrock,
29, of Tekamah, Neb., and Mark Bolin, 38, of Omaha, Neb., were caught by
Iowa Department of Natural Resources conservation officers as they
attempted to leave a field, west of Mondamin, and head back to Nebraska.



Neither individual had an Iowa deer tag or small game license. "These
guys knew what they were doing," said DNR conservation officer Dave
Tierney.

Tierney, along with a fellow conservation officer, confiscated a
Browning 9 mm pistol, a Weatherby Vanguard .300 Magnum rifle, a
Weatherby Mark V 7 mm rifle, a Kawasaki 650 All-Terrain Vehicle, two
antlered deer and various other items. Charges are pending.

Tierney said one of the antlered deer would score right around 150
points, which is an important score total when assessing fines. If the
deer has a gross score of more than 150, the maximum fine could be
$20,000. If it scores under 150, the maximum fine could be $10,000.

The men were caught because of someone having the courage to make a
phone call and alert officers about what was going on.

"I can't stress enough how important it is for people to call us
when they see illegal activity. It really makes a difference,"
Tierney said. The Iowa DNR has a toll free Turn In Poachers hotline,
1-800-532-2020, and callers can remain anonymous. Callers can also call
officers directly. Cell phone numbers are listed in the Iowa Hunting
and Tapping Regulations and on line at www.iowadnr.com.

For more information, contact Mick Klemesrud at 515-281-8653.

[H2O Mellon]

Yeap Baitkiller guys like that are horrible.

A couple years ago @ Downs Bait & Tackle in Logan Ohio a guy checked in a nice Buck, around a 10 pointer if I remember. Well it was a cross bow kill, sort of...... The deer still had the cross bow bolt in it, which in return was STUCK IN THE BED OF THE TRUCK! Yes, this guy shot to deer w/ a gun, then shot his cross bow into the deer after he put the deer in the bed of the truck & didnt think to check & see where the bolt went. HERE'S YOUR SIGN.... :eek:

I do have a question, why/how are there so many poachers in KY using Cross Bows? You have to get just as close to them w/ a Cross Bow as a Compound Bow.

[ASASIN]

They had a bust here in Missouri quite a few years back where a fellow used a .410 with a crossbow bolt to shoot deer with. Also had another guy who claimed to have shot a nice 195+" deer with his bow around Wallace State Park and they shot it with a rifle and then stuck an arrow in it to check it in. Everything would have been fine, but they took it to a processing plant to have it done up. Here's your sign!!!!!!!!!! LOL!!!!!!!!! Good thing the processor was an honest guy and they got what they deserved. Horn hunters like that aren't what this sport needs. Greed got the best of 'em. Myself I'll shoot a doe before a world class buck, because it ain't about the horns to me, it's all about the meat. Gave up deer hunting long ago to chase ducks/geese and have never looked back. God bless.

[okiecop]

Here is a story for ya. back in 92 when i was still in the navy we had a couple of dogs that wouldn't leave from the ambulance bay. After a few hours of being annoyed i went outside to see just what they were after. Too my suprise the dogs were trying to eat a mule deer that someone had dumped off. All they took were the antlers. after calling the base police the game warden came and took the deer. it was nice and weighed in at 218# but that is before being dressed out. Still it ticked me off that someone would do that. I think people that get caught poaching should suffer like somone that gets caught making drugs take everything that they own and after they get out of prison then they can start over from scratch.