Curmudgeon

When did I do that? I only question your bigotry. I don't apologize for anything other than my own mistakes.

I wasn't talking about HIllary. I was talking about Trump. Never in my life have the Presidential choices been so dire.

Right Belo! Anyone who trusts Trump is engaged in magical thinking or a victory of hope over experience.

It went off the rails on page 1 and hasn't been back.

Simple questions Grow: What happened to Jennifer? Why is she gone?

We keep them closer to home than DOT does.

I'm not exactly sure what your point is. This bird spent 3 days eating on the side of NY 17 just east of East Branch - and that isn't the only time. That is that overlaid cluster of data points. She also spent time along local 2-lanes and I-87 during migration. She found a pile of dead deer put out by a coyote hunter. That kept her off the roads for over 2 weeks. That bird on the bait while waiting for that young bald eagle to get out of the way of the net No argument on wind projects. I have a long history on industrial wind issues. There are areas that are effectively off limits due to my efforts. Lead is a separate issue. Just like cats. The wind industry likes to use your same methods, arguing that cats kill many more birds than turbines.

The birds would be feeding on those deer if they were still on the edges of the roads. Unlike deer farmers, we don't move them far.

Thanks Rattler - I thought I had lost my touch. BTW - Are you a snake, or does Rattler refer to a hunting technique?

God made sheep to cut the lawn. They turn grass into meat. What a deal!

Hummers are dangerous. My deck is in the flight path.

Virgil - I'm surprised. I threw out a lot of bait and got little response. The only ones I didn't poke were the misogynists but they have been keeping a low profile lately.

Oh, it's the club that denies global warming, and that raptors are poisoned by bullet fragments. It's made up of people who believe the 2nd amendment was handed down by God himself. It's the club that thinks persecuting coyotes actually does something besides increasing coyote reproduction. It's populated with people who think the only good Muslim is a dead Muslim. Some others who think we need to log the Forest Preserve. Some members are gung-ho frackers. If you think we need more deer, everywhere, regardless of the impacts to forest and other wildlife, you can certainly join.

I'm glad to see I have another fan. You joined the club.

Those things were all over when I was a kid. I haven't seen one in ages. Very nice.

I missed it. So shoot me...............

I don't know if anyone has examined what they eat. There are a lot of pigeons in the valley - all within easy flying distance.

Great pics. I know the site well. Those birds tolerate a lot of with all the foot traffic. I had to lecture a Coby student about proper wildlife etiquette. He did not realize that getting bombed by them meant he was stressing birds that have a lot of work to do - including keeping eggs and young warm. He was the catalyst for the signs that went up a couple of years ago asking people to back up if the birds are agitated.

Regarding the title of this thread, I see no lack of deer in Edmeston or surrounding towns. Leonard processed 1500 each year. That suggests no shortage here. He doesn't get all the deer. He isn't the only butcher in Edmeston or nearby.

I agree with Larry. In the 2 years they charged him for, they allege 3 tons of venison. That equals 6000 pounds. Since he processed 1500 deer each year, he only needed to take 2 pounds from each customer to get his 3 tons. I started the other thread on this. I did business with him once, and only once. The owner isn't Hoag. Hoag is just an employee. I am hoping - upon conviction - that he is required to make restitution to everyone on his customer list. I won't qualify since it has been over 20 years since I went near the place.

I hope they order restitution to the people who paid for him to process their venison, which he stole and sold to others.

He has a system: everyone gets the same amount of meat. It is kind of like socialism.

This guy is in my neighborhood. He has had a reputation for years. It always surprised me how many people I knew continued to patronize him. From today's The Daily Star Oneonta: DEC says local man stole, sold deer meat BY JESSICA REYNOLDS Staff Writer The owner and manager of an award-winning area butcher shop were arrested Tuesday after a two-year state investigation and an undercover purchase unveiled theft of venison products. Joe Leonard, owner of South Edmeston meat-processing business Farmers Place, has been charged with stealing more than 3 tons of processed deer meat and venison products from customers, Department of Environmental Conservation officials told The Daily Star on Wednesday. Members of the state DEC’s Bureau of Environmental Crimes Investigation executed a search warrant Tuesday afternoon at the butcher shop, at 256 County Highway 20, and found more than 3,600 pounds of illegal venison product, according to Benning DeLaMater, public information officer at DEC headquarters in Albany. DeLaMater said the investigation has been ongoing for two years. Leonard, known locally as “The Deer Man,” is president of the New York State Association of Meat Processors Inc., according to the American Association of Meat Processors. The 73-year-old was charged with felony illegal commercialization of wildlife, felony grand larceny, fourth-degree criminal solicitation and felony firstdegree illegal scheme to defraud after he allegedly sold illegal venison products to undercover investigators, DeLaMater said. New Berlin resident Tamra Hoag, 57, who is manager of Farmers Place, was charged with illegal commercialization of wildlife and first-degree illegal scheme to defraud, according to the DEC. Both were arraigned in the Edmeston Town Court and released on recognizance. Leonard and Hoag could not be reached for comment Wednesday night, but The Daily Star has interviewed Leonard in the past about his venison processing, for which he has won many awards. Farmers Place provides custom butchering, catering and retail sales, and customers include farmers and hunters. Products include hot dogs, sausages, jerky and more. Leonard started processing venison in 1959, he told The Daily Star in November. When the meat-cutting business is busy, he typically cuts 50 deer a day, he said. “Venison has always been a big thing for us,” Leonard said in the interview. “Sometimes hunters are lined up down both sides of the road. Last year, we took 400 deer in the first three days, and we do about 1,500 a year.” Farmers Place has six or seven employees, Leonard said in November, but that number doubles in the autumn with an increase in work volume. Leonard also told The Daily Star that he is the first and only U.S. meat processor to win the World Cup at the International Meat Trades Fair, the world’s largest meat competition. In 2009, Meat & Poultry — an industry magazine available online and in print — interviewed Leonard about his trade. Leonard told the magazine that his meat career began at the age of 17, when he was hired by a Russian family in Oneonta that ran a meat market. It was there that he learned the importance of customer service, he said. After five years at the shop, Leonard went to work for Grand Union, where he ran meat departments for 20 years, according to the article. In 1983, he started his South Edmeston shop. DeLaMater said he could not elaborate on the undercover investigation. Further details will be available June 6, when Leonard and Hoag are due back in court, he said.

Sheep only make noise when they are having difficulty.

I have always interpreted snorting as an alarm that is used when a deer is worried but not entirely clear on the nature of the threat. This is an opinion based on experience, not any research or reading.