WVDNR Has No Common Sense


CamoGuy

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I hope this doesn't fall under "brand bashing" rules.

I just read the WV Department of Natural Resources handbooks (in other words the hunting regulations). Apparently they have some of the most dim-witted residents of our state working there. I will try to summarize and be brief without ranting too much.

First let me say that the doe population is in no way smaller or in danger here. I travel locally quite a bit and I see deer EVERY DAY. If anything the deer population is up.

In 2005 the doe harvest was down. The WVDNR essentially took that info and decided that this must mean the doe population is down and pretty much closed all doe hunting for 2006. In previous years there was a 3 day doe season, plus you could harvest a doe or buck in muzzleloader season and you could take a doe with your bow.

This year you can only harvest a doe in doe season in VERY limited areas of overpopulation with a lottery-drawn tag and with a bow in bow season. Doe season is entirely closed in my county and is only open in a small area in one neighboring county.

After reading all of this I get to the end of the handbook and there is an article on CWD in WV. It explains that a deer with CWD was found last year in the northern panhandle. Then it proceeds to give a list of ways to help prevent the spread of CWD. Anybody want to guess what one of the ways is?.......REDUCE THE DOE POPULATION!!!!!!!

I am so frickin' irritated right now I can hardly stand it. mad.gif What dim-witted moron at the WVDNR planned this out? How do they expect us to reduce the doe population when they closed doe season???

I have seen some pretty stupid things out of WV government before but this is right at the top of the DUH!!! List.

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Re: WVDNR Has No Common Sense

[ QUOTE ]

In 2005 the doe harvest was down. The WVDNR essentially took that info and decided that this must mean the doe population is down and pretty much closed all doe hunting for 2006.

[/ QUOTE ]

That's one of the reason many of us in here try to encourage folks to take a doe, if the option is there for them instead of a buck.

Here, we are only allowed 2 deer per year, one of which may or may not be a doe. In the past we used to focus on bucks, because we all love to get a buck, who doesn't, but after being a forum member here I have learned a lot of things, and for the past 3 or 4 years we have been opting to try to take does as well. It has really helped control the deer population, the buck to doe ratio, and the quality of the bucks on the one small farm we hunt, and like mentioned here, it gives stats for the government to make more sound decisions as well.

When we opt to shoot bucks only, we end up hurting ourselves in the long run, in so many different ways.

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Guest bwilson301

Re: WVDNR Has No Common Sense

WOW!!! it is hard to believe that the state would do something like that. i live in missouri, we can shoot as many does that we can, i try to shoot 3-4, i give the meat from two at them toshare the harvest and keep 1 or 2

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Re: WVDNR Has No Common Sense

If this does hold to be the truth(I'm not doubting you) it will probably cause at least 2 hunters not to go there this year from out of state.

It does torque me out slightly because of the past 4-5 years me and my father have been doing whatever we could to get the Doe population under control where we hunt in WV.

We bought and filled extra doe tags and always passed on smaller racked bucks every year.

Really starting to see the benefits of it too...one year of the neighboring properties slamming every buck they see because they cant shoot a large mature doe will devastate that work.

I'm not saying that everyone will do it...but I bet it will be like someone pulling the plug on a full bathtub smirk.gif

It was getting to the point we were actually seeing strong rut activity with bucks pushing does and coming into doe decoys too mad.gif

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Re: WVDNR Has No Common Sense

I have to agree. In NY, we have far to many does and few DMP's. The liberal mentality at the DEC is to control the population by killing every buck. Didn't you know every good liberal must have an shot at a buck regardless of the ratio. They paid there money and for the tag and apparently demand it! Ha. The bucks hardly get out of the womb before getting blasted. Its time to limit the buck take a bit - limited licenses or 8's and ears, etc... and take more does. NY is over 1/3 wilderness and could be a hunters paradise but they knuckheads in WV and here in NY screw it up.

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Re: WVDNR Has No Common Sense

Yep same here in Minnesota. We have way to many does around and I would glady take a doe over a buck. I haven't taken a doe yet, but did try twice.(The shots were off a little bit and had to go sight the gun in again.) We can get up to 4 exta antlerless tags here. Plus we get either sex tags for bow and rifle, but can only take 1 buck.

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Re: WVDNR Has No Common Sense

I dropped my lease in wood county this year. We have been there 7 years and taken 40 + deer off the property. 920 acres. Population dropped off hard 2 years ago. Didnt see that many last year.

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Guest Mathews4

Re: WVDNR Has No Common Sense

[ QUOTE ]

I hope this doesn't fall under "brand bashing" rules.

I just read the WV Department of Natural Resources handbooks (in other words the hunting regulations). Apparently they have some of the most dim-witted residents of our state working there. I will try to summarize and be brief without ranting too much.

First let me say that the doe population is in no way smaller or in danger here. I travel locally quite a bit and I see deer EVERY DAY. If anything the deer population is up.

In 2005 the doe harvest was down. The WVDNR essentially took that info and decided that this must mean the doe population is down and pretty much closed all doe hunting for 2006. In previous years there was a 3 day doe season, plus you could harvest a doe or buck in muzzleloader season and you could take a doe with your bow.

This year you can only harvest a doe in doe season in VERY limited areas of overpopulation with a lottery-drawn tag and with a bow in bow season. Doe season is entirely closed in my county and is only open in a small area in one neighboring county.

After reading all of this I get to the end of the handbook and there is an article on CWD in WV. It explains that a deer with CWD was found last year in the northern panhandle. Then it proceeds to give a list of ways to help prevent the spread of CWD. Anybody want to guess what one of the ways is?.......REDUCE THE DOE POPULATION!!!!!!!

I am so frickin' irritated right now I can hardly stand it. mad.gif What dim-witted moron at the WVDNR planned this out? How do they expect us to reduce the doe population when they closed doe season???

I have seen some pretty stupid things out of WV government before but this is right at the top of the DUH!!! List.

[/ QUOTE ] AMEN BROTHER...i couldnt agree more....this years regulations was almost confusing to read with some of the crap they had in there....and whats up with the huntin liscense's....they jacked the price up on them and they changed the price of the extra stamps too...it used to be $10 a stamp now its $20

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Re: WVDNR Has No Common Sense

In Illinois, we seem to have something straight. I sympathize with yall. We can kill as many does as we buy permits for. When I buy my Archery permits over the counter at WalMart, I get a antlerless only tag and a either sex tag on the same permit. Then I can do the same thing for Shotgun or muzzleloader if I get picked in the drawing in late summer. I have a limit of 2 bucks per year no matter what method I use to take them. If I get one with shotgun then I am only allowed another one with bow. It seems to work really well for us and have only a few changes I would like to see made. I think that every 4 years they should have a season where you can take only 1 buck no matter how you do it and endorse the taking of more than one doe. I also think the seasons should be opened in September in that same year like say Sept. 15. Give us a chance to take a velvet deer once in a while. I think it would make a very special trophy. I also think the seasons should be 9 days in a row for shotgun/muzzleloader and make a special muzzleloader season for does into Feb. 15 every year.

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Re: WVDNR Has No Common Sense

i belive i lean more towards you arrow on this subject the best thing i read in the regulations this year is the size limit on bucks in the blue stone wild life managment area witch is 14 in or bigger give it a few years and the public hunting might be worth hunting agin next if they could mannage the dummies that go there it will all be top notch by changing the size limit i think it will help

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Re: WVDNR Has No Common Sense

[ QUOTE ]

In 2005 the doe harvest was down. The WVDNR essentially took that info and decided that this must mean the doe population is down and pretty much closed all doe hunting for 2006.

[/ QUOTE ]

Just as a point of curiosity, what is the real reason that the doe harvest was down if it wasn't because of a smaller doe population? How much was it down? And finally, does WV have their state broken into management areas, or does this permit lockdown apply to the entire state regardless of local harvest figures?

Doc

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Re: WVDNR Has No Common Sense

That seems to be a trend and I feel your pain, here in Connecticut you can hunt small game (Gray Squirrel, Woodchuck, Cottontail Rabbits) which happen to be during our Archery Season from a 1/2 hour before Sunrise until 1/2 hour AFTER Sunset. But we Archery hunters have to stop AT SUNSET. So here's my take on this, you can be in the woods with a gun shooting up in the air at a squirrel a 1/2 hour after sunset, but you can't be in a treestand with your bow shooting down at a deer, hmmmmm last time I checked the effective range of a gun compared to a arrow shot from a bow, I think the gun won...gives you a warm fuzzy about the people making the rules huh?

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Guest BRONZEBACK

Re: WVDNR Has No Common Sense

You should see waht that CWD word does to people! We have a Herd Reduction ZOne and a Eratication Zone......Limitless tags and you can hunt almost all year long if you wanted to! confused.gif They have found very few deer with CWD and it is an excuse to be able to almost wipe out our deer herd in a few counties.....makes me sick! mad.gifI am sorry to hear all that and I hope it doesn't get like it is here in WI!!!! blush.gif

It sucks......you go out to go bow hunting during the rut and here your neighbor sits in his box stand and blasts the buck that is running across the field at 200 yards, and you are sitting up in a tree with a bow, very depressing! My county isn't in the zone....YET! But my friends are not even bow hunting this year. BOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!! mad.gifmad.gifmad.gifmad.gifmad.gifmad.gifmad.gifmad.gifmad.gifmad.gif

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Re: WVDNR Has No Common Sense

i think thats why our state has a four deer limit, you can kill 4 does, or 2 bucks and two does, but we have an antler restriction, the bucks have to have atleast 3 tines on one side, normaly 5 or 6 point or up, its easyer to take does than a buck, i normaly kill more does than bucks, last yr 2 does and 1 buck

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Re: WVDNR Has No Common Sense

And once again, just as a point of curiosity, what is the real reason that the doe harvest was down if it wasn't because of a smaller doe population? How much was it down? And finally, does WV have their state broken into management areas, or does this permit lockdown apply to the entire state regardless of local harvest figures?

Doc

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Re: WVDNR Has No Common Sense

[ QUOTE ]

And once again, just as a point of curiosity, what is the real reason that the doe harvest was down if it wasn't because of a smaller doe population? How much was it down? And finally, does WV have their state broken into management areas, or does this permit lockdown apply to the entire state regardless of local harvest figures?

Doc

[/ QUOTE ]

The only section there really is is like mingo county and a few other southern counties where its bowhunting only and i think you can only take bucks right now.

Over in Randoloph county they need to stop shooting does theyve got 3 does in that hole county it seems like. If there not careful there going to kill all the does. The DNR needs to do somthing about this and once again i think there handling it the best way they can. If i read right there thinking about adding AR (antler restriction) to the hole state if it works well in the state land there adding it to.

But if you think were going the wrong way your crazy. Last year i saw about 4 to 5 does per buck. Personaly i think thats better than what it seemed to be the year before that when i saw about 10 to 15 does for every buck i saw. Thats just me saying numbers there probly no where close to being right.

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Re: WVDNR Has No Common Sense

One other thing.

You want them to raise the doe kill right?

When they lowered it everyone was saying thank god because you could kill to many deer. I dont get some of you guys the state is doing what they can right now. Dont get me wrong im not happy with some of the stuff they do. But lower doe kill is good.

If you want to see less does focus on the does for one dont take a buck this year. That is how you want to hunt your deer.

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