Group Hunting Law / Bowhunting
Wisconsin
Contributors to this thread:
I have a question, that I think I already know the answer too,,, since DNR wants every dollar, they can get.... I became a silent partner for various reasons, on land in SW Wis. The primary owner will get 6 doe tags this year, on this property. He will never fill them, nor does he want too,,,,,, He maybe will eat one deer a year..... Again private property.....
So if I am the only other guy, hunting the land, why can I not use the tags,,,,, makes no sense to me........................
The DNR wants deer shot, so why can I not shoot them, on my partners tags, that are for free?
For the record,,, I think in CWD zones they should let me shoot more bucks, IF you believe in CWD.
For the record,,,, I do not believe in the whole CWD scam.... I have not seen anyone die from eating venison, and have not seen sick deer.... If I saw a sick deer, I would shoot it, and dump it...............................
Michael - When I was on the WCC the group hunting law for bow was brought up. One of our guys from Dane County just said, no. Why not I asked him. He said it's already being done, if you get my drift.
CWD - I can't agree with you more. With all the millions of dollars spent already on CWD we are no where even closer to managing the disease. I believe CWD is not controllable and we'll never be able to stop it. If it's in the ground and plants it'll be impossible to stop it. Let Mother Nature take care of the deer. The whitetail deer have been around for three & a half million years and she's been doing fine taking care of them. I'm sure they've been through many diseases as bad as CWD and have survived just fine during those 3,500,000 years.
Well, you need an archery license to hunt deer, and those same tags your buddy has that come with his license, come with yours. Good point on two things. Just because the tags are available, doesn't mean you have to fill them, and CWD is something I won't test for, or concern myself with. I also hunt private land, and five antlerless tags went unfilled this year, and I could have filled more than 6. This season I think I'm shooting at least two does though. The numbers are at epic levels here.....and I like that.
Hoot you should have asked him, “no dude I don’t get your drift.” I am always amazed at things on the internet, in wi outdoor news etc. that suggest that all sportsman break or bend rules and laws, poach, are lazy etc etc etc. I don’t know who these people hang with, but a character evaluation of thier buddies is seriously over due. I have 3 kids an I have pounded into thier fiber thier is only one way- the right one, whether you agree with it at times or not. I have pounded more partners down the road, including relatives because of thier blatant disregard for rules and ethics in the outdoors.
In regards to the doe tags- for Christ sake get your damn wallet out and buy the damn things- you seen the price in the store of protein alternatives? The dnr should be charging $50 a tag after harvest you’d still be farther ahead. Sorry if I stepped on toes here but the cheapening of the deer herd in this state is enough to make me throw up
Hoot you should have asked him, “no dude I don’t get your drift.” I am always amazed at things on the internet, in wi outdoor news etc. that suggest that all sportsman break or bend rules and laws, poach, are lazy etc etc etc. I don’t know who these people hang with, but a character evaluation of thier buddies is seriously over due. I have 3 kids an I have pounded into thier fiber thier is only one way- the right one, whether you agree with it at times or not. I have pounded more partners down the road, including relatives because of thier blatant disregard for rules and ethics in the outdoors.
In regards to the doe tags- for Christ sake get your damn wallet out and buy the damn things- you seen the price in the store of protein alternatives? The dnr should be charging $50 a tag after harvest you’d still be farther ahead. Sorry if I stepped on toes here but the cheapening of the deer herd in this state is enough to make me throw up
I am always amazed at things on the internet, in wi outdoor news etc. that suggest that all sportsman break or bend rules and laws, poach, are lazy etc etc etc. I don’t know who these people hang with, but a character evaluation of thier buddies is seriously over due. I have 3 kids an I have pounded into thier fiber thier is only one way- the right one, whether you agree with it at times or not. I have pounded more partners down the road, including relatives because of thier blatant disregard for rules and ethics in the outdoors.
I guess your answered your own question.
The concept to get extra buck tags in CWD zones happened under EAB as they gave out a buck tag for every doe that was shot. That reduced trophy hunting. Do that to Buffalo Co. and land prices will come down. By giving out doe tags they are giving the opportunity to shoot more does not giving landowners rights to the deer. That is not a WI concept. Anyhow, is someone has a license they likely have doe tags which they can use to take out the does. There are already too many seasons in SW WI. to shoot does. Part of the problem is landowners keep hunters off to protect their buck hunting, hence the Holiday hunt. The other is most guys have all the deer they want in the freezer.
I think you should be able to use the landowner's tags as an invitee on the land. Of course I also believe the DNR should hand out free bonus tags (more than just the 2 or 3 that come with the license) to landowners that are willing to help reduce the deer population in areas the DNR feels are overpopulated, which in all honesty I'd say is at least the complete southern 1/2 of the state, likely central wi too. I know a guy that registered either 7 or 8 deer last year, and I'm sure it would have been more if he didn't have to pay $12 a piece for tags. Sure $12 isn't expensive but it's the thought that counts, does the DNR really want more deer killed or not? Since there are enough landowners that hoard deer and are jealous about what the neighbor shoots (and how they shoot it) the DNR making free tags easily accessible for landowners that admit there's a problem and are willing to help seems like a win win situation. I'd also say these free tags should be given without the necessity of having to join dmap and without having to give the DNR access to stalk your land, and these tags should be transferable to invitees on the land. This goes right back to the same question does the DNR want more deer killed or not? If so there should be no hoops to jump through for landowners willing to help.
Aren't ag tags open to anything? I know people that would go to farms with that have these tags in February and shoot does with rifle.
L2H, there are units that give you many antlerless tags when you simply purchase a deer license. I believe these are the tags he speaks of? And yes, ag tags are open to all legal weapons, and open outside of the normal hunting framework.
CWD. Where did this systemic disease come from? Was it always prevalent? How did it just pop up? Always been around in my opinion just that they made a test to find it. I'll wager that if you go back to 1950 and used this modern test there would have been positive tests then too. Bubonic Plague you don't hear much about anymore but it still exists. Prairie dogs out west test positive for it and they call that disease resivour. A animal that has the infection with no symptoms or sickness. But get a flea on you from a prairie dog you can get it. CWD just popped up out of nowhere. They can test for it that is all. Been around forever. As stated above i too have never seen a sick deer or heard of any human contracting it from consuming venison. Why don't scavengers or Wolves get it? Do the scavengers not eat deer that died from it or Wolves who would be quick to kill and eat a sick deer before they hunt healthy deer? Easy meal a sick deer but seems the Wolves are awful healthy. CWD is used a a ploy by the DNR I think
I have no idea where ethics come in. If the rule says I can not use them, I dont. I will just purchase a doe tag. Question was simply, if the tags are given, why they could not be used, by the official landowner, to those who hunt the land. You can with ag tags.
Hunter still drinking the DNR Kool-Aid? How does it feel to be a head bobber for the department?
If you can afford to buy land, you can afford $12.
The ag tags come with hoops to jump through, and myself and most others I know have no interest in shooting pregnant does after the normal season is over anyway so additional free bonus tags given to landowners that could be used during season makes more sense. We also see too many basket-rack and scraggly bucks, bringing back earn a buck would help with that too and could help prevent the spread of CWD for those that care about cwd. I believe the ag tags come with the landowner having to prove crop damage and whatever else, in counties that the DNR is already giving out additional bonus tags with every license that would tell me they feel there are too many deer in those counties, if they know that they should also know that there is crop damage. As I mentioned the $12 is not the problem, the idea of landowners paying to help the DNR with the deer overpopulation issue doesn't sit well with some people and deters them from participating.
I haven't done it often but I have enjoyed my group hunting. I've enjoyed hosting Groups in camp up in the big woods. Everyone enjoyed it. Down in Georgia we would get a group of bow hunters together and do deer drives. That was fun and productive. Tags or shortage of tags was never an issue.
Deer drives were always a blast. Nowadays you can't find enough hunters willing to walk through the woods to do one. Everyone just wants to sit and wait. Deer drives definitely got the deer on their feet and moving. I miss those days.
Is it really finding enough hunters to make drives, versus the landowner doesn't allow them, because he doesn't want a lot of hunters on their land and the deer pushed onto other properties
Oh my gosh Tom,,, what a topic you brought up.... I remember all the days, of 25 guys and gals, driving deer in the Kettle Moraine North, after gun season. All the fun we had, and the hot fires and pot luck suppers we would have. Nothing but fun.....
In 2011 was my last antelope hunt. I met these guys from central Wis, who invited me, to their annual deer hunt, with bows, at Buck Horn State Park. Tags were available, and on the average about 18 would show up guys and gals, from Superior to Racine, for this annual pre Christmas hunt.....
You had to wear orange, well organized etc, so much fun..... So many great archery times,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,, wow ,,,,, What ever happen to the fun.......................
The fun went away when it was required to kill to have fun. It’s called the easy button- box blinds, bait and crossbows
Group bagging in any form should not be legal. If you don't have a tag for it yourself, you shouldn't shoot it.
There is plenty of public land in Wi to have successful drives. Problem is that you need a good number of hunters/pushers, if driving a large chunk of land.
in the 60,s and 70,s i was part of a driving group ! Yes lots of commaraderie, Lots of fun ! BUT lots of lost wounded deer, Hey for those who havent participated, try this, Place cardboard inside a car tire, Roll it down a hill, try hitting it with an arrow at 30 yards !!!! Next, Deer drives with many people with rifles can be dangerous, These are the main reasons our group let it go long ago,
Very unethical doing drives with archery equipment, puts a bad stain on the sport, just like Cappys skid marks.
Well, the drives were different days, I know..... of course you could tell that to Ben Pearson, and Fred Bear, and Art La Ha..... especially Art........................ Today it is a different world and in many ways, ,,,,,, I use to take my bow, and my dead rabbitts and get on a city bus, to get home, from hunting in the parks.....
Stumpshooter - if it's unethical doing drives with archery equipment is it unethical doing drives with guns?
No, Greater recovery rate with firearms
Thanks Stumpy, it always help when you put your ignorance on display!
Our gun hunting group still do deer drives. I think people forget that a lot of deer that are pushed will ease through the property and/or are easily stopped to get off a great shot. I've hunted with a rifle for 25 plus years and have only missed one deer in that time frame. I wouldn't even say I'm great shot. I just take lay ups. We don't do silent drives any more and we have a pretty good system. Usually, it's the young guys pushing for the older guys on private land and vice versa on public land when the young guys need to get into a climbing treestand. I love a good deer drive. When you are mobile with tree stands it can be fun to plan which way to push from and where to post up. Some of the best drives happen with a good plan and only a handful of hunters. I don't think deer drives are unethical. It's the shot you take that can be questionable. I know plenty of hunters that take unethical shots just sitting in their stand. It's honestly scary listening to what some people will fling a bullet at. Hell, that goes for a lot of guys with bow in their hands too.
Big Eight that is a good post. Its not for everyone, and you need the room to do it, and you have to respect, on public, where other hunters are, so not to screw them up. Was alot easier, in the 70s, and 80s, more room, less hunters, in my opionion. We did the same up in Bayfield, and later when we moved down to Clark county, before the wolves got thick in there.............................................. We would call our drives rabbit hunts, because that is how we hunted them,, and used climbers etc, and bow hunted like this, very effectively, during mid day, when not on stand.................... Our so called drives, were more of a soft "push", and it worked well at times,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,
GH, I agree the "soft push" often times worked very well. The deer know we are in the woods with or without us making it obvious. A slow, quiet walk by the drivers would get the deer moving but not at breakneck speeds, they just moved enough to try to avoid us.
We would do a lot of one/two man walk throughs/arounds for gun season that worked well in the natl forest. Kind of a, "at 11:00 I will get up and walk through this area to you".
Live2Hunt....thanks for waiting until 11! Just about every season I have a dude wandering around by my climber by 9 opening weekend. I'm in really heavy cover, the odds of jump shooting a buck in the Nicolet, north of Hwy. 70 are pretty slim for the average gun hunter. I usually hunt deep so a guy has to work to blow up my stand....but my spot has had my dad or uncle sitting it for the last 60 years so I can't bring myself to move
I've been on drives both bow and gun and I cannot remember ever killing a deer on a drive with the group I was with. Others in the group did but not me. They did let me help drag the deer out. One time in Georgia I got invited to a deer hunt with dogs. That was different. Kind of like a deer drive but they let the dogs do the driving and standers waiting for the deer. Another time in Georgia, hunting public land, there were collared dogs running deer through the area I was hunting. That time I did get a deer, a nice buck thanks to the dogs. One of the dog handlers helped me drag out that deer out.
What landowner tags are you referring to? The only tags I am aware of are ag damage, DMAP, and the ones you get when you purchase your license-which should include free ones for pretty much any county in the area you are referring to.
That's exactly what I am wondering, what kind of tags is the OP referring to. Unless something changed, if they are ag tags, don't all or the majority have to be filled, otherwise they will not be reissued the next year. If they are tags that come with your licensee's, you are eligible to get those antlerless tags also.
Ag tags are available to everyone. If the permit holder is playing games by saying they already have people hunting then report them. They will lose their permit.
Joel - Correct on the ag tags. I know on bear ag tags you have to shoot every bear you can, including cubs. If they find out you shot ma and not the cubs you lose your tags.
its really great to see deer hunting and fun in the same posts here. With our group the most memorable hunts either start w/ a deer drive-gun, or have ended w/ a deer drive-bow.