Thursday, November 22, 2007
Deer, hounds, Humane Society
Bill Cochran
Recent mail
BILL: I read with interest your Web site article on the decline in the fall turkey kill (Last week’s Cochran column). I think you and Freddie McGuire are right on the money. The decline is not from the lack of turkeys. Turkey hunters will tell you that there are more turkeys for harvesting than ever. The decline is due to the lack of hunters and the diversion of turkey hunters to muzzleloading deer seasons.
The decline in turkey kills west of the Blue Ridge will accelerate further next year when one week of fall turkey season overlaps with a week of deer muzzleloading season, as more hunters will choose to hunt deer rather than turkeys. Many turkey hunters will choose not to hunt that week at all.
In my opinion, the change in the regulations by the Virginia Department of Game and Inland Fisheries to overlap turkey and deer muzzleloading week is the most ill advised and irresponsible change in the turkey regulations that has been done in years.
First, from the safety standpoint, no turkey hunter in his right mind should hunt that week where muzzleloaders may be hunting. In all probability, there will be fatal hunting accidents when this change goes into effect. In past years when rifle deer season and fall turkey season overlapped, there were fatal hunting accidents almost every year where turkey hunters were killed.
Aside from this, many fall turkeys will be wasted by hunters shooting them with muzzleloaders, because there will be nothing left but a blown up turkey carcass.
Rather than overlap this week, it would be far more feasible, safer and realistic to simply close the week of turkey season and move it to the second part of the season in December and January or let the two-week part of the fall season come in a week earlier.
To encourage fall turkey hunting, perhaps the suggestion of a fall tag in addition to the three spring tags may have merit. It relation to the estimated turkey population in Virginia, three tags per season may be low compared to other states that have higher annual tags but have less estimated turkey populations.
J. CARSON QUARLES
Roanoke
Former DGIF board chairman
BILL: I’ve read over and over again from deer dog hunting associations that no on is showing up at these Virginia Department of Game and Inland Fisheries hearings to support new legislation against dog hunting. This may be true. Most landowners are like myself, scared to death of hordes of armed men who canvas our farms with words and deeds of anger.
Each year I have to confront several trespassing dog hunters who threaten and curse me and my family. This in not a joke or bogus claim. It is totally true. I have had deer guts left on my back porch as well as many other acts of aggression by deer clubs. Do you really think I want to risk my family and property by being present in front of hundreds of angry armed men, trying to stop the one thing they are wiling to go to jail for?
I think the Virginia dog hunters have to understand that their rights to hunt should not, and will not, override my right to privacy and security of my family and farm.
Furthermore, isn’t it a little audacious to think that they should make up 70 percent of the study group, yet accuse the DGIF and Virginia Tech of “cherry picking?”
It is up to each landowner to sue hunt clubs and lease holders every time an act of trespassing occurs. Then and only then will the state legislature act honestly.
S.P.
BILL: You are 100-percent correct about the Humane Society of the United States.
TERRY BARBER
BILL: Thanks for making the truth about the Humane Society of the United States more readily available to the public. All animal lovers need to know what those people are really up to.
CAROL FURNEE
