Hunters are conservationists... aren’t they???

So this may be a bit of rant… who am I kidding, may be? It damn sure will be. I have been letting a couple of things fester for a while, trying to make sure that what I say comes across the way I want it to. And some of the information in here will be things that a hunter knows, but I am kinda hoping that this goes beyond hunters to the non-hunters, to give them some knowledge.

As social media expands, and people share their lives (sometimes waaaaay more than they should) I have seen more and more things that just bother the hell out of me. Misconceptions, poor presentation of hunters and hunting… Hunters are conservationists. We know this. Our money goes to protect wildlife and habitat. Hunters often care more and put more back in to the environment than anyone else. Hunters are conservationists… except for those that present themselves as hunters, but are really straight up poachers. (Definition of poaching: Illegal hunting or fishing… period... breaking ANY of the rules/regs/laws). I’m going to talk about a few things that are poaching, period, end of story. Hear me out. Let me know your thoughts.

Many will call me a “Trophy Hunter”. I am not bothered by that term at all, as I do have a lot of taxidermy in my home. What I am bothered by is the commonly conceived notion that a trophy hunter does not utilize their meat. What is sad, is it’s not just anti-hunters and non-hunters with this perception. I have spoken with self-identified “meat hunters” who look down on “trophy hunters”. Trophy hunters utilize their meat also. If they don’t, they’re a poacher. I don’t necessarily mean that they must eat it themselves. There are many ways to utilize even if you don’t particularly want to eat that animal. Donate the meat, either directly to someone or through Hunters for the Hungry or Sportsmen Against Hunger. Often we donate meat for one of many reasons - we have traveled to hunt and taking back all of the meat would be a logistical nightmare (such as Alaska, we brought back 50 pounds of caribou meat, but left the rest for camp utilization), maybe your freezers are already full? Buy another freezer or donate your meat. Perhaps someone goes on an estate hunt, and they are going after a HUGE whitetail deer or some exotic… do you honestly think that if someone is willing to pay several thousand dollars to hunt an animal, that they will balk at spending $75-100 to donate the meat? Of course not.

On to my statement of if you don’t utilize the meat, you’re a poacher… many people who do not hunt don’t know the laws pertaining to hunting (and why would they?). I don’t know the laws in every state, so I will only be specific on state laws that I do know. It is ILLEGAL to shoot a deer in Texas and leave the meat in the field. Whether it’s a spike, a doe, or a 12 point buck, the 4 quarters and backstraps must be utilized. This is also true for Pronghorn in Texas. I know this is also true of Pronghorn in New Mexico, and would assume same with Elk in NM. In Alaska, you must take ALL meat out of the field for utilization, including neck meat, the meat between the ribs, etc. In the end, if you are not utilizing the meat, you are breaking hunting laws/rules/regulations, which makes you an illegal hunter, which makes you… a poacher. Period. End of story.

What do I do as a trophy hunter? Like I said, I am not offended by the term Trophy Hunter, however, I like to call myself a Conservation Hunter. I hunt for mature males of a species. Those that are past their breeding prime. I have taken immature animals when necessary, for example, a gemsbock with a broken spine, dragging his back legs, that is the right and ethical thing to do. I have paid full trophy fee for animals in Africa that are not “trophy quality” because putting the animal out of its misery is the right thing to do. I take females of the species when carrying capacity of the land requires it. When I do that, again, I look for an older, mature animal. I utilize and manage the resource. I am a trophy hunter, and a meat hunter. I am a conservation hunter. The common word here is I AM A HUNTER. Why do we have to divide ourselves? We have enough coming at us with antis. We, as hunters, need to band together to fight the fight and keep our rights to hunt. We ARE conservationists.

My next blog will focus on another type of poaching that makes me super frustrated, coming very soon!