Poaching problem

[nathan]

To those who live here in the country, is it common practice by some country folks who dont follow the law and go poaching in order to feed their families?

 

[jbkebert]

No its not a comon praqctice for those who live in the country to poach game. However it is very common for folks who live in the country to chase off city slickers who think they can hunt and poach where ever they please.

 

[Shadow 7D]

I know those who have done it, a few have a family that refuse to eat venison now
BUT, I know just as many who take pictures of license plate and are on first name basis with F&G

 

[nathan]

Especially those who own large tracts of land and values stand in pure freedom from Govt interference.

 

[buck460XVR]

I don't think country folk poach any more than urban dwellers. Since they generally have more access to game and more time, they tend to do better than most urban dwellers during the regular seasons. Thus less reasons to poach. Also many states allow land owners to hunt small game year round on their own property. With food pantries, food stamps and other social programs to feed the hungry, there isn't any legitimate reason other than greed and a love to kill for poaching.

 

[lloveless]

buck460XVR said: I don't think country folk poach any more than urban dwellers. Since they generally have more access to game and more time, they tend to do better than most urban dwellers during the regular seasons. Thus less reasons to poach. Also many states allow land owners to hunt small game year round on their own property. With food pantries, food stamps and other social programs to feed the hungry, there isn't any legitimate reason other than greed and a love to kill for poaching."
Until it is your family not eating, and no gas to access those programs. With a tract of land close by with plentiful game. Oh yeah, I'd be feeding the family. Pride does strange things to people. Thank God I've not been in that position.
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[northwoods99]

There are poachers and there are guys that hunt out of season. This might sound weird from a former game warden. Poacher kill with the lack of sport and not because they need to but because they can. Country folks that kill to feed his family has a proud side and is not willing to take the hand outs of welfare. As a boy my family was not rich by no means and many a peice of illegal deer meat crossed these lips. As a warden I saw this violation from both angles. Yes the county folks got a ticket also, but many time I would have the deer cut up and return with a permit for them to have it. Once I knew the families that needed it, I delivered many deer that were hit by cars to these families. Doing this cut down on the illegal hunting and in the end I did my job, the right way. With a little honor and respect of the people I served.

 

[Liberty1776]

I have mixed feelings on the subject - my roommate in college - who got there on a football scholarship, told me he couldn't remember tasting any meat at home besides venison. They lived on it year 'round. His dad had died when he was a kid and they still worked the small family farm. Tractor had a spot for a 22 rifle and he assured me close head shots kill deer just fine. For spending money he cut and peeled poplar logs with his brothers. These folks were poor as anyone, and great people. They needed to eat with a mom and four boys in the family. I can't consider it poaching.

Now, the gutless bastards that kill animals for fun and leave them lay - they need to be kneecapped...

 

[jbkebert]

I agree with the above.

Folks that are poor and need the meat. I will gladly donate a deer or two. Hell I would buy them a box of shells.

I belong to a organization called Share the Outdoors. Which provides meat for familes who are having a rough go. Hunters may drop off legally taken deer to be processed at a local processor. The organization pays for the processing and distributes the meat to folks who have signed up. We do around 40 animals a year. We would do more if we could and had the familes to take the meat.


Now for the sorry suckers who shoot a deer and cut the headgear off and leave the rest to rot. Man that kind of behavior just makes all hunters look like plain trash.

 

[Sav .250]

a lot of stories about poaching are not about ....feeding the family.

 

[alsaqr]

To those who live here in the country, is it common practice by some country folks who dont follow the law and go poaching in order to feed their families?

The vast majority of deer poached in this part of OK are bucks that are left to rot. The perps who poach here are only interested in the horns.

 

[akgriffin]

As i grew up, my grandfather and friends would get some beer and a spot light and we would drive, they would drink beer and shoot a deer, and i thought that was alright to do for a long time. I know now how wrong it was, but i will say no deer was shot for fun it was eat'n.

 

[MtnCreek]

There are people near me that supply their families’ protein needs w/ venison and to a lesser extent, squirrels and other small game. If some take game out of season to feed their family, I have Zero problem with it; just don’t do it on my property w/o permission. The way I see it, the game is there for our use and these people are at least willing to get off their butt to get it (contrast that to the gimmie crowd out there signing up for every gov program and feeding their family with MY hard earned money).
A guy that lives a few miles from me said “the only season we got around here is salt and pepper”.

 

[ridgerunner1965]

this is definitely a delicate subject in many places.i for one dont consider it poaching if you shoot a deer on your land and utilize it to the best of your abilty to feed your family.a true subsistance hunter is not going to be shooting big bucks or older does.he is not going to take a risky shot and risk it getting across a fence on the neighbors land.there are a lot of small farms in my area that raise a few cattle and its very hard to kill a steer or heifer worth 2 weeks pay and eat it when you can eat sum tasty deer meat that your feeding with your grass and browse anyway.a lot of people who voice strongly against any kind of subsistance hunting have never been in a position where they needed to do it.

 

[mr.trooper]

I know a guy that is technically a "poacher" I guess.

He always buys the appropriate tags/permits, and he never takes more game than they allow.... but he uses whatever equipment he wants, and takes them when it's convenient for him.

He pays in his money, and he doesn't have any adverse effect on environment or game populations... but in the eyes of the law he is still a 'poacher'.

 

[Art Eatman]

Going back to the opening post, with opinions based on reading articles over a period of years: I doubt that there is as much poaching as some believe. I doubt that poaching for meat is as much from necessity as it is for the taste of wild game.

It is known from reports from wildlife agencies that much of the poaching is for financial reward: Gall bladders from black bear. Antlers in velvet. Trophy antlers.

And, sale of meat, primarily venison, apparently. Such a black-market poaching ring was caught in Texas, some years back. Comments were that such a ring was not unique--which means that it's likely an ongoing problem.

 

[blindhari]

I guess I have been a poacher. I grew up in the California delta country. I used a slingshot to take big tasty pheasant. Of course it took Mom and Dad two years to tell me there was such a thing as pheasant season. When we had extra Mom always had me take baked pheasant to those who could use it best. This would have been 1956 into 1958.

blindhari

 

[Double Naught Spy]

To those who live here in the country, is it common practice by some country folks who dont follow the law and go poaching in order to feed their families?

No doubt there are folks who don't follow the law and folks who feel any animals on their own land are their own animals and hence not subject to the law, but as noted, such folks don't seem to be common. There are bad people everywhere who skirt the law and may do so with all sorts of justification.

The vast majority of deer poached in this part of OK are bucks that are left to rot. The perps who poach here are only interested in the horns.

How would you even be able to determine this? Bucks poached for antlers may be the most common abandoned carcass seen, but any whole carcasses removed won't leave any sign.

 

[alsaqr]

How would you even be able to determine this? Bucks poached for antlers may be the most common abandoned carcass seen, but any whole carcasses removed won't leave any sign.

We own three properties in OK. The two large places have large fields that border roads. In the past 10 years i have found over 60 dead deer in our fields: Very few were does. There was very little evidence of deer being dragged through a field. Those places have very good fences. Only one guy ever cut a fence; but that is another story.

Typically there are cartridge cases in the road, there is evidence that someone went over or under the fence and a buck is rotting in the field, scalped. Sometimes they take the neck and cape, but usually not.

Spotlighting on one place is way down since the neighbors were allowed to hunt. They call the game warden on spotlighters. The judge took one spotlighters late model Duramax pickup. We also moved the game plots to the back of the property.

 

[BADUNAME37]

I live in the country.

I live in a real rural area. People who live way out in the mountains could shoot deer all night long, bait deer, put up salt licks, etc.

IF they happen to get caught by the game warden, there will be a raid on their house and their freezer and any other place where animal parts may be hidden and found! They get the opportunity to have their picture on the front page of the paper, they get to spend a night in jail (or longer), just think, they get all kinds of neat things like that!

 

[ridgerunner1965]

one poster mentioned a taste for wild game as a reason for poaching.ive been known to get really sad when im out of deer steaks!ive also been known to salivate copiusly at the sight of a fat lil button or yearling doe!as a side note, i dont think ive ever heard of a poacher being caught roun here that didnt shoot from the road or the truck come to think of it.

 

[Hangingrock]

My Uncle Walt the diary farmer shot deer on a regular basis. He considered them nuisances and didn’t tolerate crop damage. His point of view was if the deer are considered property of the state then let the state feed them. He had a Winchester pump and used 22-shorts. He was extremely pragmatic. The farm is long gone now replaced by a housing development.

 

[Cob]

There are routine "Sting" operations in this area where game wardens use mechanical deer in poaching problem areas. Sometimes decoys are used in daytime, other times at night, depending if road hunting or spotlighting is the problem. Private landowners readily cooperate with them on a routine basis to stop the poachers (AKA criminals) in the act.

If you are willing to risk poaching, then you also risk losing the vehicle you are hunting from, firearm used while poaching, loss of legal hunting priveleges, and fines that are sometimes excessive/ and or jail time. The risk just is not worth it.

Spend a bit of time studyting your game & hunting area, and you can have a much more rewarding experience doing it the right way. In this area, poaching news spreads quickly & even if you "skip" the criminal fines you may face, the social consequences are just as bad. Your name gets ruined, you may get "blackballed' in hunting circles/ clubs.

 

[Art Eatman]

Never know who's gonna be illegal during hunting season. One game warden heard shots after hours during dove season. Followed up, and found three guys with more than their legal limit on doves, as well as having shot after the closing time.

So one says, "Do you know who I am?" "Yeah, I know who you are, you jug-eared s of a b."

Lyndon didn't appreciate it, although Judge Moursund laughed about it when he'd tell the story...

 

[rondog]

I've never been deer or elk hunting, never had anybody to go with and I know better than to try it alone. Never had a burning desire to do it, but I would like to try it. I've eaten venison that was damn delicious and wouldn't mind having a freezer full. I think an elk would be too dang big for me though.

But I agree about country folks that are needy, they should get some slack somehow. Not a "free ride" per se, but like northwoods99's post #7 above. I'd hafta say you're a helluva guy, my friend, for treating people like that. Kudos to ya!