Baiting Bill HB1618/SB1942

[Buzzard Breath]

Here is a link to send a letter to your legislators opposing this bill:

http://advocacy.deerassociation.com/tn-hb1618/allow_baiting_on_private_land/

Mine has been sent. If you oppose this foolishness, I hope you will respond as well.

Sent

Thanks for the link

 

[vinootz]

I got a neighbor like that. He's not next door, but around the bend a mile away. He takes them out from his porch. But I've always wondered if he bagged some of my pets. He's hard core and I never hold it against him. They're really great to watch. When the turkey , Fox and deer hang together it's really cool. See some pics of my front and back yard in Pennsylvania. Bear around too.

 

[Hillbilly Hunter]

Wild animals should never be pets.

 

[Flintlocksforme]

Wild animals should never be pets.

Agreed. Feeding backyard animals has created a generational decline in acceptance of hunting.

 

[TheLBLman]

How many times has everyone heard,
"Do not feed the bears"?

Same should generally go for all wildlife?

 

[XCR-2]

It won't make a difference if it becomes legal or not. Everyone who would bait if it were legal already does and those who don't now wouldn't anyway. Just a bunch of hot air.

 

[megalomaniac]

In many corn-baiting situations, raccoons & crows eat more of the corn than do deer.

I know many deer hunters could care less about turkeys (and other birds), but crows may in fact break up more turkey nests in many areas than do raccoons.

Crows are very quick to notice a nest-sitting hen turkey periodically leave her nest for feed & water. When she leaves, those perched crows (some of them also nesting high in a tree above the nesting turkeys on the ground) note the dozen eggs now visible. Crows eat turkey eggs, as does about everything else.

I would assume corn aflatoxin would kill a crow as fast as a turkey, but it may be that crows are so much smarter than turkeys, they know better than to eat it?

According to well designed studies by MS State, only 30% of corn gets consumed by deer. The other 70% is eaten by other critters (mostly raccoons)

 

[Hillbilly Hunter]

According to well designed studies by MS State, only 30% of corn gets consumed by deer. The other 70% is eaten by other critters (mostly raccoons)

Im not worried about the corn the deer eat. Its the turkeys, birds, and other wildlife.

 

[TheLBLman]

Im not worried about the corn the deer eat.

You may not worry, but feeders (even if not corn) increase predation by dogs & coyotes, and the deer preyed most on become male fawns.

"Feeding" or "Baiting" locations become great ambush sites for predators, due to the deer/turkey going to & from an exact "spot", as opposed to being all over a "field" of food.

 

[killingtime 41]

I don't disagree. And you won't catch me saying baiting is a good thing regardless of time of year or for what reason. If it's bad for wildlife then it's bad for wildlife.

As I understand it baiting is illegal for hunting not because of it's detriment to wildlife but because it gives unfair advantage to one hunter over another by altering the deer movement. Simply put the guy with the biggest pile of bait has the deer and his neighbors do not. Public land hunters get completely left out. Yet we all pay the same price for a license so we should all have equal opportunity. If fairness is the objective then the proposal should be legal baiting ANYWHERE, not just private land. But the proposal has nothing to do with fairness. It's all about a rich politician allowing his rich buddies to legally hoard the lion's share of deer. Call a spade a spade. It is what it is.

While I agree to your fairness statement. Legal Baiting on public land would be a site to see. You'd have acres upon acres with piles of everything known to man. I don't see why they would legalize baiting at this point in the game. Are they trying to explode the cwd rate or what. Cause the info the TWRA puts out about CWD and how it's transmitted would be awfully misleading and very counterproductive. If we are to believe what they put out.

 

[Hillbilly Hunter]

You may not worry, but feeders (even if not corn) increase predation by dogs & coyotes, and the deer preyed most on become male fawns.

"Feeding" or "Baiting" locations become great ambush sites for predators, due to the deer/turkey going to & from an exact "spot", as opposed to being all over a "field" of food.

What i mean is the other wildlife is at a much higher risk than deer. Baiting is irresponsible.

 

[Deer Assassin]

Wild animals should never be pets.

I agree with that

Besides some can turn on ya

 

[Ski]

While I agree to your fairness statement. Legal Baiting on public land would be a site to see. You'd have acres upon acres with piles of everything known to man. I don't see why they would legalize baiting at this point in the game. Are they trying to explode the cwd rate or what. Cause the info the TWRA puts out about CWD and how it's transmitted would be awfully misleading and very counterproductive. If we are to believe what they put out.

For sure it would be a mess. I couldn't imagine what it would look like if baiting was allowed on public! And yes if baiting is legalized it will look awful hypocritical for the efforts of combating CWD.

 

[TheLBLman]

I couldn't imagine what it would look like if baiting was allowed on public!

EVEN WORSE, is legally allowing hunting over bait (baiting) on the private lands surrounding the public lands?

If you look at at only a half-mile wide perimeter of private land around most public lands, that "band" of private property often exceeds the acreage of the public land being surrounded.

The deer on the public land are the same deer on the private land.
Deer (and ducks, and doves, and all wildlife) belong to the public, not the private landowner.

Should it be a private property right to be able to "lure" public deer off public lands with methods not legal for hunters on public lands? That would be like saying the laws don't apply to politicians, but the general public must obey the laws the political class is allowed to exploit?

 

[TheLBLman]

And yes if baiting is legalized it will look awful hypocritical for the efforts of combating CWD.

That, too.

Could this latest push to legalize killing deer over bait be more about selling "canned" hunts to non-residents? That did appear to be what the "trophy velvet" hunt idea was more about?

Can't let them do this on public lands, else they might not be willing to pay to hunt the private estates of those selling the hunts?

Seriously, is this another "follow the money" thing?
Why else do politicians suddenly start pushing it?

 

[Bloodwolf1984]

I think it should be...people who hunt food plots are already doing the same thing...so why not?

 

[Hillbilly Hunter]

I think it should be...people who hunt food plots are already doing the same thing...so why not?

It is not the same thing. Please read the entire thread and educate yourself. Opinions should always be based on facts. I don't mean that in an abrasive way.

 

[gladesman60]

It won't make a difference if it becomes legal or not. Everyone who would bait if it were legal already does and those who don't now wouldn't anyway. Just a bunch of hot air.

That is absolutely not true. I know plenty of guys that do not bait but would if it were legal.

 

[Acorn]

The fact is when I plant food plots or a patch of corn I'm trying to pull deer off the neighboring property or trying to hold them. If I did use a corn feeder during season it would be to try and pull deer or hold them. One just uses natural farming practices and the other one doesn't.

 

[scn]

I think it should be...people who hunt food plots are already doing the same thing...so why not?

That may be the dumbest statement in the whole thread.