Thursday, January 01, 2009
'Hunters' hunting dogs
Bill Cochran
Recent mail
BILL: Your story (last week’s column) on the dog that was shot in Southampton underscored a problem that we’ve been having down here for awhile. Every year our club loses several dogs for one reason or another. We have not yet found any shot.
This year we lost two beagles near Emporia during the first week of the season, and they’re still gone. Both had tracking collars that were checked for good function and had new batteries. We suspect the dogs were stolen.
A farmer friend in Berlin had a pet yard dog get shot with a broadhead during the archery season a couple of years ago. The dog had wandered onto an adjacent hunting lease. The bowhunters denied all knowledge to the sheriff, and the dog did recover, but it was an ugly situation.
It’s an ongoing problem and the sad part is that the offenders are actually other hunters; although, I don’t think that they reflect the dignity of the person that I consider to be a hunter. It’s a shame.
PENN RIGGS
Norfolk
BILL: I heard that the Virginia Department of Game and Inland Fisheries has an outdoor report that it will send to people via e-mail who request it. How can I get hooked up with this?
C.H.
C.H.: The electronic Outdoor Report is the work of David Coffman. It has been around for about two years. Coffman reports there are 16,000 subscribers to the free service. The report covers a variety of subjects of interest to outdoor sportsmen and includes a freshwater fishing report. Recently Coffman has made the site more personal and readable. Every sportsman should be a subscriber.
Go to HuntFishVa.com and click on “Subscribe to the free Outdoor Report.” Fill in the required information. It is that simple.
BILL
