kremer_mike

I guess they figured they would have better luck shooting at fenced in deer rather than the real deal. Maybe they thought no one would be able to tell the difference.
Good eyes.
Mike,-

rather_be_huntin

I can' t say whether or not it was illegal but the private farm comment where laws don' t apply is what I' d bet the deal was.

I' ve thought about it before and I see a little bit of both perspectives. I do not like game farm hunting at all. I will never do it although I don' t think it should be illegal either. I just don' t see the satisfaction in shooting a " farm" deer. Takes away from what hunting is supposed to be in my mind.

However the animals on a game farm may not be completely wild but they are as close to it as you can get without the real deal and I think you can learn a lot from these animals. You can observe " natural" behavior without the rigors of putting in countless hours in the field. And when you' re talking about the cost of paying a television crew that makes sense to me. As a viewer you get to see big bucks and lots of them and how they behave, thats educational if you ask me. Now true they had it a little cozy (I saw the show too) in their towers but it' s how you hunt them right? Find a good vantage point (ie treestand or ledge) over looking feeding areas in the evenings and mornings. True its not that easy but even the public land hunts they edit the waiting and show the " action" shots. So its not real different from a viewers perspective.

Maybe I' m nuts but I dont think its all that horrible. Sounds real cost effective if you ask me. Alhtough I' d be dissapointed if they mostly showed " farm" hunts. I' m still a fan of the public land hunts.

Cougar Mag

Jimmy, the state of Illinois deer hunting regulations state that deer hunted in gun season in Illinois can only be hunted with shotgun, muzzleloader or with handgun in handgun season.......whether its private or public it makes no difference, although I will admit the Illinois hunting guide makes no mention of game farms. Quite possibly it is a game farm, I will try to check it out.

If its a game farm, might as well go out and pay a farmer to shoot a steer.

Jimmy S

Cougar: I can certainly see where a misunderstanding could occur. The point you were making is well taken. I will admit that my initial reaction to posting without first gathering all the facts was a bit off-base. You have my apology and I couldn' t agree more with your feelings on these kind of hunts......Jimmy

Angus74

The web site to the ranch where the hunt took place is
www.samsonsridge.com
but I cant get it to open. They must be having problems with the site. I have a brochure from them and it is high fence, a lot like the Sanctuary in Michigan where Bill Jordan started out i some of the early Monster Bucks videos.

frizzellr

The Texas Trophy Hunters television show has never been known for its ethical behavior. That is one reason I refuse to watch it anymore. Those guys are just plain stupid.

losthwy

Hey it' s TV! I' m not surprised at all they air " CANNED HUNTS" . Seen em' - shows where the " guide" tells the " hunter" where to park his ass and procedes to tell him the deer will be along shortly, crossing from this spot to that spot[X(]. Nothing wrong with it, but just call it hunting. No more than spending a weekend at a Dude Ranch makes you a Cowboy. It' s Game Shooting.
Many famous/rich " hunters" buy their hunts this way. Hey it' s TV!

txhunter58

I saw your subsequent post, but I also wanted to add that they go to a lot of trouble to present these on TV like they are " real" hunts, making it hard to know unless you do lots of research. I once watched an elk hunt in Utah that talked about how much time they spent scouting and how hard it was hiking in the rocky terrain. I then looked up the ranch on the internet and found out it was a 1000 acre high enclosure. They even had the bulls listed by name and price. It made me mad enough that I emailed the producer and sponsors of the show to tell of my displeasure. If they had simply made the statement that this was a game ranch and the animals were not wild, I would not have been so mad, but they tried to pass it off as a real " hunt" .

Quote: I watch these shows to see BIG Bucks. I don' t want to see these guys hunting public land and taking a 110 or 120 buck. Heck, I have enough of that running around my woods and on my wall. I want to see bruisers.

I can see " bruisers" by getting a copy of the B&C records and see deer taken by fair chase. I want to see some big animals taken too on TV shows, but not at a game farm. I also think kids watching the shows get a warped view of what they are going to get when they go in the woods. That is why I like to see shows where kids take normal deer or even does. If people want to make money from hunting shows, I expect them to either be honest about where they are hunting or pay their dues just like the rest of us. I don' t agree that it is ok to take " shortcuts" using game farms just because it is faster and easier. They and their sponsors will not get my support.

As far as the animals being realy wild, it depends on the size of the enclosure and the number of animals in it. There are places all over Texas that have 100 acres under high fence and 100 animals in there. In that case there is nowhere for them to run and they are getting 80% of their feed from a feed truck. Not wild in my book.

loner

I HAD RATHER SEE HUNTS WITH 110-120 CLASS BUCKS UNDER FAIR CHASE SITUATIONS THAN WATCH 150-160 CLASS SHOT ON RANCHES AT$5000-8000 FROM SHOOTING HOUSES OVER' FEED' PLOTS.

rather_be_huntin

Just a what if scenario. What if they did 100% public land hunts? Heck throw in private lands where there are no fences. They don' t find as many " bruisers" and they have to spend many more days in the field. I don' t know what ya' ll think it costs to make a half hour spot but I' ve gone to seminars put on by Jim Horn from the Primos staff and it costs them much, much more than the $5000 cost for a tag at a game farm. Meaning TIME IS MONEY, and a lot of it. Heck those truth series videos are well into the 100' s of thousands to make. With that what if scenario, wouldn' t only a few of the high dollar shows survive? Meaning you' d only get to watch a show or two a week?

I don' t agree with lying about where they hunt but I think sometimes for the survival of their show they have to have fast hunts with big animals. Seems cost effective and puts butts on the couch. I' ll be comepletely honest and say I' d love to see 100% public land fair chase hunts. My favorite shows are still the shows that show only fair chase and no fences, like Primos. I also will NEVER hunt a high fence area, but if it means the survival of some of these shows then a game farm hunt once in a while is fine with me.