What do non-hunters get wrong?

[Alan]

I'm curious what misconceptions you all face. Do people think it's easy? That we're guaranteed tags? That animals just walk up to us? I'd love to hear what you've had to explain to family, coworkers or friends

 

[Stewie]

Folks often think you're guaranteed to bag something. I tell them luck's part of it, but being ready, scouting and having patience are what really decide if you get anything.

 

[Shane]

My friends seem to think deer just walk right up to you. I have to tell them you need to be good at tracking, calling, and knowing which way the wind is blowing. That's way more important than they think.

 

[Wendell Reich]

1. Scopes are cheating since it’s like a laser beam.
2. Trophy hunters only kill for fun and don’t eat the meat.
3. Hunters just like killing and don’t like animals. Why else would you kill them unless you hated them?
4. Hunters will cause extinction of animals in Africa if they keep killing everything.
5. Hunters = Elmer Fudd.
6. Hunters are stoopid inbred hillbilly’s

 

[Drycreek]

Many of them have never considered a scenario in which wild animals are not hunted. The status quo would soon be replaced by very few prey animals in less populated areas, and populated areas overrun by prey animals. It has already happened around the suburbs of Austin, San Antonio, etc., you can hardly have any shrubbery unless it’s something deer just won’t eat. Many Northern cities have had this problem for years, and some have instigated bow hunting within city limits to combat the problem. I imagine that most people who don’t want animals harmed would be devastated to see a deer dragged down by a pack of coyotes on their street, but they don’t want a hunter taking them out either. It’s hard to have it both ways.

 

[BrotherHubb]

When I became a Texas Hunter Education Instructor in the '80's, the first thing we talked about was conservation and how hunting is a major contributor in maintaining healthy populations and healthy animals. Remember when California outlawed hunting that there were so many deer that they became a real problem in cities and towns, looking for food, same with cougars around the same period and I don't recall if it was Kentucky or Tennessee who experienced the same thing. So a lack of knowledge about the need for hunting is widespread and fed by anti hunting groups who are ignorant and extremely narrow minded.
I personally abhor those who go out to kill an animal for a rack or some sense of bravado and don't properly dress the animal for food. I have on occasion been moving through the woods and came across the carcass of a buck with his antlers cut off and the whole body left to rot, pissed me off to no end. I only hunt for food and if I see a mature buck with a nice rack and can make an ethical shot, then he goes in the cooler. I usually give the horns to a friend who makes things from them, don't need trophies and don't have any on a wall. I'm not knocking those who do since I respect everyone's right to do so, plus, who will keep taxidermy in business, it's just not for me.
It's like everything that folks complain about out of ignorance, never done it, don't understand it and therefore it can't be right. I guess they've never been truly hungry.

 

[Wendell Reich]

I personally abhor those who go out to kill an animal for a rack or some sense of bravado and don't properly dress the animal for food.

I agree with you about these “slob hunters”. It’s been my experience that guys who leave meat behind are generally rotten people in all other aspects of their life too. You can judge a man by how he treats his game.

 

[Wendell Reich]

I’m a trophy hunter and I am proud of it too. “Trophy Hunting” is used as a pejorative. It’s meant to demean and vilify the hunter. Nothing could be farther from the truth.

Here is where I really ruffle some feathers … so, get ready.

Meat hunters contribute little to conservation, but they contribute more than non-hunters and far more than anti hunters. There is little management for age or buck:doe ratio. If it’s meat, it’s killed. Nothing wrong with it, but, let’s be honest about what it is and the financial vale it places on wildlife.

Nobody is spending many thousands of dollars in feeding and conservation to shoot a doe.

Trophy hunting is the major contributor to conservation. I’d guess 95% of the force behind wildlife conservation is from trophy hunting. Remember, quail is trophy hunting too. Huge money in those little birds.

The trophy hunting market dictates the value of the game. In Texas, a Whitetail buck is worth $3500 on the low end all the way up to 5 figures on the top end. And I’m not talking about deer breeding. I mean wild free range Whitetail, or native fenced Whitetail.

Trophy hunting value is 10x to 20x what a meat hunting value is. Nobody is spending $5000 for a Whitetail doe or spike. But $5000 for a representative 140” TX whitetail is the going rate.

When faced with best land use practices, a landowner will not pick meat hunting over livestock, but often will pick quail and/or trophy deer hunting over livestock.

When you manage for trophy game over cattle, or over meat hunts, every other specie benefits. More grass for nesting quail and turkeys. Predator control, which benefits every specie. Deer are protected and allowed to reach maturity. You would be hard pressed to find a negative in managing for game over livestock.

I bought 1000 acres that was overgrazed and over hunted because the owner didn’t care about the game. It had a true “ag production “ value.

I got rid of the cattle and focused on game only. A few years later, it was a completely different place.

If hunting was outlawed tomorrow, it would go back to cattle and the game would mostly disappear.

There are examples from all over the world that I have seen firsthand.

If it pays, it stays.

 

[BrotherHubb]

Wendell, I get it, The business of Trophy hunting can be pretty lucrative and I have no objection to it. I did a photo shoot for a friend who owns Whitetail Junction 3K acres of whitetail and exotics. We swapped out the photo shoot for a Red Stag hunt. It is a great experience to have some amazing animals in relative close proximity. They have whitetail over 300 B&C which are pretty awesome to photograph. Had a 200 class buck almost walk into the ground blind I was using one morning to shoot (photos) that was a surprise for both of us.

I had no idea how big a mature Kudu is until I was 50 ft from one.

It's a personal perspective relative only to me, we may disagree on the conservation aspect, shoot too many bucks and you have nothing to breed the does and yes, ratios are very important especially if you're managing a ranch to make money. I would be happy to take a cull 120 that was getting older to improve the quality of the heard. Just not going to pay a lot for it, not enough value in it for me.

Axis doe used to be a really economical way to fill the freezer with good meat, not anymore. Now you have to pay $5k or more for a Trophy Axis buck and maybe they'll throw in a doe which they have too many of for healthy ratios. Oh well

 

[Carpe Sus]

My friend's mom asked him for some 'free' deer meat because deer just grow on his place. He shot, cleaned, butchered, and bagged the "free" deer meat for his mom. He then presented her with a whole, butchered deer and a piece of paper explaining how much that free meat cost him to give her. Since he shot 2 deer that year, he divided the expenses between the two and figured that free deer cost him about $1200, plus 2 evening sitting in the stand to get mama's deer, 4 hours butchering and bagging, etc. She was shocked free deer meat cost so much.