Doc

Ha-ha-ha ..... I can just picture hunters walking up to the hunting counter of Walmarts or Dicks and wrestling a bloody old doe carcass up onto the counter so they can get their buck license.

Don't confuse people refusing to be bullied into participating in a foolish, idiotic plan with refusing to do their part in harvesting deer. Those of us who see that doe-only, bowhunter-only, plan for what it truly is have no problem taking does. What we don't accept is the idea that doe harvests and deer population control is solely the responsibility of the smallest group of hunters shooting the most inefficient weapon. That plan and the way it was implemented cast a dark shadow over the credibility of the DEC sincerity about the problem.

My favorite critter to hunt! The size ..... The power ..... the unpredictable temperament .... The taste of the meat ..... And for all the bone addicts, what an impressive set of head-gear! You can all keep your wimpy little elk with their sissy pathetic squealy voices. make mine moose every time.....lol.

And apparently raccoons, coyotes, skunks and possums and a whole lot of other pests and critters as well.

Yeah, everybody thinks these bears are just over-grown puppy dogs. You hear stories about the little old lady chasing them off with a broom...lol. Well, they aren't over-grown puppy dogs, and they can catch you, kill you and eat you if they choose to do so. I picture walking in or out from my stand in the dark during bow season armed only with a stick and string in conditions where even that would be impossible to use, and then walking into the middle of a sow and a couple of cubs. That's not a nice thought when you hear that large stick crack in the pitch black trail ahead of you ..... lol.

You flagged down a car and a stranger agreed to help you drag the deer the rest of the way out? That was indeed your lucky day. You should have run right out and got a lottery ticket. What a great guy! It kind of refreshes your faith in mankind. Apparently there are some pretty good guys still left in the world. I'm thinking that most guys would have flipped you the bird and drove off. Others might have offered the use of their cell-phone to call somebody. Others might have offered to drive to or towards your camp to get help. But here a total stranger parked his car and walked in with you to help drag the deer to the road. That is amazing!

The problem is that the DEC Commissioner is appointed by Cuomo. And whatever political lobbying and pressure that Cuomo receives from the moneyed interests of the state including campaign contributors gets passed down to lackey that he put in charge of the DEC. The DEC gets the word via political command.

There will come a time when future Americans will be wishing they had some of that land back. Hell, I already do when I consider how much of our food comes from countries where the average farmer envies and hates our guts.

The last time I saw a crow picking away at a maggot infested purple, runny, oozing, hairless, stinking, deer carcass, I kind of made a promise that that was one critter that I will not be eating.

Pa can do whatever it wants, but paying bounties has been illegal since 1971 in NYS Figure11-0531 of NYS Environmental Conservation Law: Notwithstanding any other provision of this chapter or any other law, rule or regulation to the contrary, on and after July 1,1971, it shall be unlawful for any department or division of this state or any political subdivision thereof to pay bounties on the taking of wildlife except when the state Department of Health, or any local health authorities, determine that a type or class of animals constitute a health hazard as carriers or potential carriers of disease. So unless you can prove that coyotes are a health risk, don't be expecting any bounties to be offered by the government simply to help out the deer herd.

There seems to be some misunderstanding that deer numbers are impossible to control. It really doesn't take EAB or any of the fancy abbreviation brain-farts. All it really takes is to convert some portion of regular gun season to doe only, and you can eliminate all the deer you want to. And I am quite sure that the DEC is preparing a plan to justify whatever the financial interests of the state are lobbying for.

Who can blame the landowners for converting their primary assets to cash. In the case of farmers their land is their retirement investment. With so many of the farm kids opting for other more lucrative occupations, when it comes time for the farmers to enjoy their golden years, they have only one fund to tap into and cash out and it's a red-hot one. And the smaller the parcels sold, the higher the price per acre. It certainly is no mystery why they sell. And today with autos being so reliable, and the highway system built for 55+ MPH, commuting from rural areas is no longer any big deal. Also even though land prices keep inching up, they are still far lower than acreage near the cities. So the city folks are still being lured out into the country to create the home of their dreams. I can't see how anyone can place blame, it's just a natural evolution of land use. It's just the reality of excess population and the "American Dream".

I'm ready to be heading toward summer. What a long winter this has been (and it just started). Just the other day, we had a dusting of snow (of all things). And the temperature was below freezing (if you can imagine that). I can't take it anymore I tell ya. I'm scratching and digging for anything that makes me think it will get better.

There was a time when rural people were mostly hard working farmers who's honesty was not to be questioned. Many deals and agreements were established with only a handshake and nobody worried about it because a man's word was his bond. Well times have changed and not necessarily for the better. Many of the rural residents are uprooted city dwellers most of whom moved out to the country for good legitimate reasons. However, along with this migration from the city came some who see the country as refuge from their past, and a new easier place to ply some rather unsavory lifestyles, from crack houses to meth plants to lifestyles of burglary and such. When I was a kid, we didn't even know where the key to the house was. Didn't need it. Today, I feel that every building on the place needs to be kept locked and I even lock the car while it is in our own driveway. A shotgun sits on the wall above the bed, and every lock on the house doors has a deadbolt accompanying it. Yup, times are much different, and neighbors are looked at a bit differently these days and with an eye of distrust and suspicion. And once in a while that distrust and suspicion turns out to be warranted.

Soon we will encounter the day with the least number of daylight hours. Each day will seem longer. Of course they are still 24 hours and not really "longer". It just means that means that the number of hours of daylight will soon be increasing. We're heading for summer .... right? Check it out...... http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/science/12061231/When-is-the-shortest-day-of-the-year-the-winter-solstice-2015.html "The December solstice happens at the same instant for all of us, everywhere on Earth. This year the solstice occurs on Tuesday December 22nd at 04:49 GMT (Universal time) with the sun rising over Stonehenge in Wiltshire at 08:04."

I do believe that not only are we losing elbow room, but wildlife suffers with the crazy way that we are over-running the land with development and over-acquisition per person. Not only are there more of us, but we each have learned to take up a bigger footprint on the land. I watch the woods stripped with lawn, macadam and concrete taking its place, and I have to wonder where all the critters will go that used to live there. Well, some will modify their behaviors to live among us, and there will be conflicts that will fall on the DEC to combat. I do think the DEC may be looking down the road and are seeing diminishing hunter numbers and participation, along with increasing deer/human conflicts due to human expansion into natures animal habitat, and with financial interest getting ever more noisy and influential. Perhaps all that accounts for some of the recent panicky acts that look like clumsy attempts at eradication. They are trying to figure out how to control growing herds with shrinking habitat and fewer, and less motivated hunters and how to placate the political forces of the financial interests impacted by deer. I believe that is why they look at bow seasons as wasted harvesting time that has to be severely modified to use more efficient weapons and more drastic harvesting mentalities and methods. I think they are not interested in granting hunters the luxury of challenge anymore. They want that time slot filled with activities aimed at more efficient ways of eliminating the vermin (deer).

Yeah, telling the story of that hunt probably wouldn't really impress anyone ..... lol.

The problem is that the deer might be found by another hunter and he may tag it resulting in a harvested deer gets counted twice.

I have been discussing hunting in Germany with my Brother-in-law from Canada who visited Germany a while back, and it piqued my interest as to how other countries handle some of the problems that we face in hunting and game management. Doing a bit of internet research, I came across an article that lays out a strange system that is way different from anything that I could even imagine. Yes it's a rather lengthy article, but amazing in the description of a system of hunting in Bavaria where hunters do the game management and actually have some pretty heavy legal responsibilities in doing so. You all might want to have a peek at it. Who knows, it may be something that we will see here someday. http://fwp.mt.gov/mtoutdoors/HTML/articles/2003/HuntingGermany.htm

Generally speaking, almost all broadheads will do what they are supposed to do as long as you have your bow tuned for them, and they are consistently going where you intend them to go, and you have your form properly developed and under control, and you take only high percentage shots. So really it is more about the shooter than the broadhead.

If you put a bullet through one of those collars, are you financially responsible for the damage?

The NYS business interests regarding deer management have taken precedence over all aspects of deer management. Oh yes they have thrown in some random words about forest regeneration and habitat, but this document as far as I have been able to determine is really all about satisfying the squeakiest wheels who claim wildlife management must now be conducted with their interests in the forefront. Business now is the primary influence in establishing deer densities. They started it all with the implementation of Citizen Task Forces in the 90s to establish allowable deer densities according to business needs and wants. And now they are expanding that principle with USDA and Federal fish and game intervention and institutionalizing it all within the DEC.

Sure he wants the antlers, but he didn't seal the deal did he? He came up way short and didn't really earn them. The guy who found them wants the antlers too, and has more right to them as far as I am concerned. The first guy lost his claim when he turned around and went home. After that, the whole carcass, antlers and all, became just another remnant laying in the woods rotting, to be found and claimed by whoever comes along.

Our numbers have been real low in recent years. I would really feel bad if I was to kill one.

Would that be Canadice?