I am drawing the line in sand today, and saying enough is enough!! I have had it with small game hunters that have NO respect for our game regulations, NO respect for private property owners! NO respect for our natural resources! It is like the laws do not apply to them!! If we as sportsmen and women do stand up for what is right and stand up to protect our natural resources, then who will?? The DNR?? Give me a break.
Here is what happens when you simply turn your head and ignore what is really going on the woods in SE Minnesota.
My son Steve harvested a nice doe last night while bowhunting on the back our property. He showed great patience as he waited for the ideal shot that would ensure a quick clean kill. After several minutes of watching the doe and her fawns feed, and drink from a small pool of water, the doe finally offered the shot he was waiting for. He sent an arrow right through her vitals and she only traveled about 50 yds before quietly expiring. Steve was fired up!! As we approached the doe, it was immediately clear that something was not right with the deer. She had an open wound on her neck that had become seriously infected and was oozing green. The small entry wound on the opposite side of her neck confirmed what I already knew. She had been shot in neck with a .22 caliber. My blood boiled. I don’t think that small game hunters shot this deer, I KNOW THEY DID!! I have sat in my treestand many mornings during the early archery season and listened as small game hunters started firing volleys in the pre-dawn hours. I look around in faint light, and just like any veteran hunter, I ask,, “what are they shooting at?” It is dark! There is not a squirrel to seen, because THEY ARE STILL SLEEPING!!! I knew then, and I know now what they are shooting at, but I did not have the proof until last night. I was just sick looking at that beautiful animal that had already suffered for an entire week with her nasty wound. By taking her life, my son spared her what was sure to be a slow agonizing death in the coming days or weeks. We field dressed the deer to assess her overall health. The deer was not fit for human consumption. I notified a conservation officer and explained the situation. I asked if the DNR was investigating these types of violations, and if so if they wanted this deer as evidence in the case. The officer confirmed that the DNR is aware of these types of incidents, but did not need the deer as further evidence. It made me sick having to discard such a beautiful animal. What a waste! Clearly the criminal that did this has NO respect for wildlife, NO respect for the law, and NO respect for other hunters. Please join me by standing up today and saying ENOUGH is ENOUGH!! Here are the disgusting pictures from last night. I removed much of the infected flesh while examining her wound, so it looks much better than it was.
Vigilance will be the key to getting control of this situation. Get the phone number for your local Conservation Officer, and when you suspect game violations, CALL THEM!!
Last year while bowhunting one evening along the Root River, I waited as the last few minutes of the golden hour were coming to a close. It was that time when if you hear leaves rustling, you are on the edge of your seat. The turkeys have roosted, the squirrels have tucked in for the night, and the deer are on the move. All of a sudden, several rapid shots rang out from the hillside above me. It was the loud report of a 9mm or 40 caliber handgun. I saw the hunters truck parked not far from mine, with a bowcase in back. What could he possibly be shooting with a handgun at that time of night?? I stopped by the campground the next day where I saw his truck parked with a nice ten pointer hanging in the tree. The entire rib cage had been removed to the spine on both sides,, and I asked myself, why would someone do that?? I stopped to visit the hunter, and several other small game hunters that were in the camp. When I asked if he got a good hit on the great buck, he smiled and showed me a hole right in the back of deers skull. A head shot, at 40 yards he said. Why didn’t I call the DNR??? Why didn’t I report it!!! Because I couldn’t prove a thing!!! You can know in your heart what happened, but PROVING IT is all together different. TODAY IS THE DAY!! That I start being more vigilant, and will report suspected violations!! I will no longer turn a blind eye to violations, because I don’t think it will matter!! I will hold the DNR accountable for investigating suspected violations, but more importantly I will afford them the opportunity to do so!!
Two years ago, after a very very long blood trail that ended a little after midnight when our flashlights went dark, I entered the campground near my home to ask for a ride back to the farm. I entered a small game hunter camp full of laughter and activity. The smell of burning hair and flesh filled the air. My approach startled the group and the tension in the air was very evident. I first thought that the pile in the middle of the blue tarp was ginseng roots, and a lot of them!,, But after looking more closely, I realized that I was looking at pile of squirrels that had be burned over the open flame as a method of preservation. There were at least 100 squirrels in that pile, that is a fact. There were at least ten hunters around the fire, so I told myself, dang.. they must have all limited out. The discussion was long and at times very heated between the hunters, but finally one older fellow told three of the other hunters to give me a ride. So there it was,, me in the front with the driver, and two guys in the backseat behind me. I have often wondered if they were packing heat. Uh… yea. Anyway, Why didn’t I report it to the DNR!! Why didn’t I report it!!! Because they did give me a ride, and they know where I live, and I told myself, if I see that next year , I am going to report it. Today is the day. The line has been drawn. Join me, and stand up for what is right. Call your conservation officer and tell them to get out of the truck, and get into the woods. Tell them that violators don’t put their deeds on display near the road during the day. They hide them in the woods, and operate in the middle of the night. OUR natural resources are worth protecting. They belong to all of us, and I am done letting a few no account criminals steal from you and me.
MOTR
“Introduce your kids to the outdoors, and they will have a friend for life!”
) congrats on that fine doe he took from all of us here at IDO!!! 
And yes I have contacted the local CO but by the time he gets out there they are so far back in the woods or totally gone. We have seen some awefull things in their camps to. We found a dead fawn with just the back straps cut out, and then drug into the woods right behind they tents. The DNR has to figure out a way to educate all new hunters to not destroy every last thing on public grounds or all the public land we have will just be waste lands with nothing daring to enter it, including sportsmen and women.
