mammasboy

Let me first say that I have nothing against high fences(my father was from Texas). I believe the point Data was tring to make was that the deer he hunts can go wherever they want, deer in fences can't go wherever they want, no matter what the size. That is simply fact.

datamax

TXhighrack


Take some of your own advice. The deer I dunt around my house (my first year living there BTW) gets quite a bit of hunting pressure from surrounding areas. I can tell you this - deer that are not hunted hard - like your huge Texas ranches - are much dumber than deer in rural public land areas that get hunted hard. The bucks I hunt in Kansas, they are not like the deer I hunt here at home.

I've hunted many states, I have some knowledge of how hunting goes. Public land deer, and deer that are free to roam with no fences that recieve hunting pressure, are totally different animals than those deer than recieve very little hunting pressure because of fences etc etc.

Thats why when I go to Kansas I'm picky and look for a big buck. Shooting a little one out there isn't a challenge. Hell the deer never even look up in the trees where I hunt ! In Arkansas, they come through the woods looking up in the trees - totally different deer behavior !

As for experiencing differnt Hunting adventures ? I've never hunted a big Texas ranch - don't intend to anytime soon either. I have hunted I think 10-12 states for deer, elk, mule deer and antelope though. I've had my share of Hunting experiences - but shooting half tame deer in a fences area is NOT Hunting and nothing I'd want to do anyway. Oh, I suppose I would do it, for the meat maybe, but it still wouldn't be hunting.

IL-Cornfed

I can't say that I'm against high fences at all. In fact, IF I had the money to buy as much land as I would like, IF I couldn't get the neighbors to go along with a serious management and/or had a problem with tresspassing then I would fence the property. I'll admit it would be pretty cool to actually know that when you passed up an animal that you thought has serious potential, then a neighbor couldn't blast it! If ya got the money.... it's your land, go for it!

LBR

Never thought I'd say it, but I have to agree with Data on this one. Doesn't sound like you've ever been on this side of the fence. Ever tried hunting a small patch ofpublic or private land where the deer get really pressured? They come in looking everywhere, know lots of tricks, and seem to understand hunters a whole lot better than the average deer. I've never hunted a fence, and don't intend to, so I'll have to rely on plain 'ol common sense and what I've gathered from talking to others.

When you have a huge fenced in place with very limited acess, a limited number of "hunters", and deer that walk by people unmolested for years (until they grow an acceptable rack), do you think for a minute they are going to be as wary as the ones that have to look over their shoulder from the day they hit the ground? And you think this is "zoo" hunting? Give it a try sometime, then see if you have the same opinion.

I really don't know if animals are considered public property, government property, or whatever here in MS. I'm pretty suregame animalsaren't considered public property, because we have to buy a license, follow game regulations, and can only hunt them in the alloted seasons. Doesn't sound like private property to me. The law in TX stating that they aren't private property, outdated or not, should mean something also.

You might try this--put out a food plot, mineral suppliments, feeders, etc.--everything you can to help the deer herd, but do it on public land, then try to claim those deer as "yours" and see where it gets you.

Cut to the chase here--it's about money. You make money selling "hunts". You like money, so you like this set-up. It's to your benefit to defend it. I can understand that.

Or, it could be that you have plenty of money, and like to have your own little hunk of deer heaven, and don't want others to gain from your hard work. I can understand that too, but you can't horde public property. No different in that aspect than doing the same thing on public land then trying to claim the deer in that spot as yours.

If the deer never see a fence on some of these places, what's the point in having the high fence? A high fence won't keep a trespasser out any quicker than a low one--wire cutters don't care if the fence is high or low.

Public perception, whether it's based on facts or not, is going to play a big role in the future of hunting. Fenced operations offer nothing positive to this.

I don't like the practice and don't agree with it, but I can understand feelings on both sides. I just wish the defense would be made with a bit more honesty. You like it, you can afford it, you make money from it, you can do it legally, andfor those whocan't it's justtheir tough luck. You don't care what the public thinks, they probably don't know the real story anyway. "Life isn't fair, deal with it." I'd have more respect for someone who would just be blunt about it and tell the truth, rather than trying tosugar coat their defense or make up a bunch of excuses.

Chad

recurver67

Put up a high fence call it a farm. Hunt it and call it BULLSH-T!!!

datamax

Its also about horn porn LBR - whatever it takes to maximize the size of the deers antlers to impress others with your "accomplishment"

Its a complex issue to be sure.I'm guilty of a bit of horn porn myself (my Kansas hunting). But when its all said and done ? High fenced places selling deer that they raise for big horns is NOT good for hunting. It never has been, it never will be. Legal ? Sure, why not, its not unlike raising a cow and butchering it. Is it Hunting ? No more so than the cow.

TXhighrack

LBR:

I'm not trying to compare how hard it is to kill a deer on pressure public land and killing a deer on a large piece of private land. What I'm trying to say is that just because the deer on private land is not pressured or shot at by every JoeBlow in the woods dosent mean that deer is tame and its not like hunting in a zoo. Those deer on private land are still WILD animals they just dont have to live in fear every second of their lives.

I've been very blunt on this topic and havent tried to sugar coat anything. I'm sorry if you take the truth as sugar coating. And just because I dont say what you want me to say, like "high fences are a zoo", dosent mean I'm trying to dodge the real answer.

The deer never seeing the fence is even more reason to have one, it just means that the high fence on that property is even that much more ethical and "fair" to the deer. Compared to deer that spend there lives in a small couple of acres pen. And we really dont care if a poacher knows how high the fence is, if and when he gets caught he'll face a felony charge and go to prison for a couple of years.

NO, your wrong, I dont make any money from hunts. I'm not a guide, I'm not an outfitter, and I dont lease any of my land for deer hunting. I do however buy hunts, but I'm losing money not making it. Me and my family own a couple of ranches in south Texas, some of which have a high fence others dont, but this land is for our private enjoyment andwe have no desire to sell hunts or mess with lease hunters.

TXhighrack

Datamax:

No, the deer on private land in Texas are not "much more dumb" they are however much more natural acting. They dont have to walk around like they are on crack, looking up in every tree and around every bush waiting for Bubba to launch an arrow at them. You might find this hard to believe, but the deer in your area dont act like that everywhere. The deer that you hunt have had to adapt and change their natural ways because of man. If you like that then so be it. But I prefer to hunt deer that have possible never seen a human and act the exact same way its descendents did 1,000 years ago.

Heres another one of these comments that you spout off, even though youprobably know its not true but you say anyway just trying to get under my skin. The deer down here are not tame. If you take a 10,000 acre piece of property and simply erect a 7 foot fence around it, the deer will not become tame just because of a fence that is 3 feet taller then what was there before.

True, any form of QDM has to do with "horn porn". If bucks didnt have antlers then I probably wouldnt be nearly as interested in deer, I'm sure most would be the same way. The horns are what makes deer uniquie and adds to the mystery and excitement of them. If they didnt have horns then they would be like rabbits, all acting and looking the same, which is probably why I dont hunt rabbits. But it has NOTHING to do with impressing other people. When I walk into somebody elses trophy room, I admire the animals, not the hunter. I have bigger things in live to "brag" about. If your biggest accomplishment and the only thing that you can "beat your chest" about, is the big buck on your wall, then your a pretty big failure in life. I have bussiness vendures, and my family to brag about, not some 180"+ buck that I happened to get lucky with.

datamax

Uh ..... yeah, actually, they do with the exceptions of hunting large acres of private lands.

Its a different kind of hunting. In places that don't have large tracts of proivate hunting lands, the bucks are super smart. They don't make mistakes often. Just watch the next Realtree video ........ those deer are on private ranches and do things public land deer, or even deer that don't have large private trace to live their lives on , would rarely do.

Your large private ranch affords you hunting for bucks that are not hunt shy. That = easier hunting. Why do you hunt like that ? Because you can, because you like seeing a lot of deer, because you like shooting 160" deer every year, because you enjoy QDM managements ......... I don't know and don't care really, your perrogative, your hunting, not mine. However, when the fenced place becomes too small, and when those animals are sold with a gaurantee of a kill for a high price so some city slicker can throw a big buck on a wall ? That aint hunting and it never will be.

Not tame maybe ........ but they will become lots easier to hunt

MasterBlaster

Same thing I was thinking.[:'(]

This is a complicated issue. Yes there is some jealousy/envy from one side of the issue. There is also a lot of greed involved. I also see some elitism as well. With TXhighracks continual "Joeblow" and "Bubba" comments. This tells me that he thinks he is superior to and does not want to share the PUBLIC ANIMALS with "Bubba"(who cant afford or most likely didn’t inherit 300 or even 5000acres and was not born with a silver spoon up his rear) that has to hunt a hunting club that has 3 members per 100 acres or to "joeblow" who cant even afford that that hunts public land (which is very sparse in Texas). One thing I see as a problemfor hunting is the more valuable it gets the less people that will have access to it. This equals shrinking numbers of hunters. Then when hunters are more of a minority of the general public the easier it will be to make it illegal. So Highrack enjoy those racks while you can. Your actions may make it harder for your great grandchildren to hunt.

EXACTLY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
This is about the best argument against fencing I have seen.