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Post by ridgecommander on Mar 11, 2024 6:23:53 GMT -5
True. But that’s a truth even on public land. Yep. Remember though we are talking about a highly managed hunt where they want results. The rules are two pages long. They kicked off another group because they were not killing many deer and their record keeping was poor. A guy that hunted with the other group formed another group to take this over. He is a data guy professionally and will surely do a better job this time. He wants hunters that know how to hunt, take great shots and make them count. The alternative to failing to kill enough deer is sharpshooters, but that takes hunters out of the mix.
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Post by davet on Mar 11, 2024 6:54:12 GMT -5
The amount of urban wildlife that live around my daughter's home is quite surprising. They have a groundhog that shows up and it's so old that it has long tuff's of fur behind each leg "elbow" and a beard of sorts. Also have pics of red fox and I have watched raccoons come in and out of street catch basins. I can only assume they nest there.
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Post by dougl on Mar 11, 2024 8:35:30 GMT -5
I was involved with something similar for years,except there was actually 3500 acres of undeveloped land with no houses anywhere near.There were also small parklets within the residential areas that were loaded with tame,hand-fed deer.These deer needed to be killed but I never participated in hunting those parklets.It was sad to see grown men fight over who got to shoot the tame deer with their crossbows.I resigned when that started to happen.
We also required people to mark their arrows but it was just in case a bunny hugger found a road kill and just stuck an arrow into it to blame it on the hunt.
I still own property in there but haven't been involved in several years.Last year,we had to re-take our proficiency test and got permits.The plan was to kill a few doe in the late season but we never hunted it one time.The undeveloped land is completely trashed and almost deerless in the late season.Over 80% of the deer are now shot in the parklets.
Interestingly PSU just got a grant to test deer for covid and they collared 40 deer with GPS devises.All they did was drive around and dart them from a truck.
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Post by ridgecommander on Mar 11, 2024 8:51:21 GMT -5
Honestly, I am hoping to get assigned some properties where the back porch or a shed makes the best ambush place. Saves a lot of time setting stands and blinds and that is where the deer seem to like to be.
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Post by jwk on Mar 11, 2024 8:59:50 GMT -5
Honestly, I am hoping to get assigned some properties where the back porch or a shed makes the best ambush place. Saves a lot of time setting stands and blinds and that is where the deer seem to like to be. That video was recorded from the bedroom window. Would have been a perfect shot for crossbow.
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Post by dougl on Mar 11, 2024 9:19:58 GMT -5
Honestly, I am hoping to get assigned some properties where the back porch or a shed makes the best ambush place. Saves a lot of time setting stands and blinds and that is where the deer seem to like to be. To each his own.Those deer to be shot but that wouldn't be fun to me.
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Post by Loggy on Mar 11, 2024 9:33:55 GMT -5
Honestly, I am hoping to get assigned some properties where the back porch or a shed makes the best ambush place. Saves a lot of time setting stands and blinds and that is where the deer seem to like to be. To each his own.Those deer to be shot but that wouldn't be fun to me. RE: Shooting tame deer from homeowners "back porch or shed etc". I'm 100% with you on that Doug... wouldn't be fun for me either. Hopefully no video's are taken & get publically posted. IMO...these type of hunts may in someway(?)benefit a mere handful of "hunters" but exposure of such actiivity has potential of blemishing our sport impacting many. This sounds like a "no brainer" case in having the Pro's swiftly/discreetly remove deer at night. Of course...to each there own & JMHO.
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Post by ridgecommander on Mar 11, 2024 9:58:43 GMT -5
To each his own.Those deer to be shot but that wouldn't be fun to me. RE: Shooting tame deer from homeowners "back porch or shed etc". I'm 100% with you on that Doug... wouldn't be fun for me either. Hopefully no video's are taken & get publically posted. IMO...these type of hunts may in someway(?)benefit a mere handful of "hunters" but exposure of such actiivity has potential of blemishing our sport impacting many. This sounds like a "no brainer" case in having the Pro's swiftly/discreetly remove deer at night. Of course...to each there own & JMHO. Believe me. I am not doing it for the sport of the hunt. The administrator has been after me for a few years to help out. It does put hunters in a good light to be providing a service to these folks and the boro if it is done right and deer need removed. It will be interesting. My epxerience hunting around Pittsburgh is the deer can tell pretty quickly who is hunting them and who is not. They may be "tame" around normal behaviors put don't take to well to someone in a tree or the strange smell from a blind.
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Post by Dutch on Mar 11, 2024 10:39:34 GMT -5
Those deer are tame, until you are somewhere you shouldn't be, according to them
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Post by ridgecommander on Mar 11, 2024 10:51:13 GMT -5
Those deer are tame, until you are somewhere you shouldn't be, according to them Thats pretty much it.
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Post by dougl on Mar 11, 2024 12:18:35 GMT -5
A few years ago,a big non-typical 13 point was shot through the neck and back leg,most likley by someone roadhunting.The arrow eventually fell out of the leg but the one in the neck was still there.This buck was a regular visitor at my buddy's yard where his GF pulled the arrow out of it's neck.It's true that they learn where people are a threat and where they aren't but near the houses,they're sitting ducks until they get educated.
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Post by rusty on Mar 11, 2024 13:19:31 GMT -5
This is one place where a baiting program could be a big help, maybe even night shoots under porch lights where several neighboring properties agree that vermin control is needed. Since population control is the goal, and some hunters will still think of the bucks as trophies, maybe 3 or 4 does killed to earn a buck permit is in order.
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Post by ridgecommander on Mar 11, 2024 14:24:30 GMT -5
This is one place where a baiting program could be a big help, maybe even night shoots under porch lights where several neighboring properties agree that vermin control is needed. That would be a big help for sure, but the PGC cannot legalize baiting in Allegheny County. I didn't know that a few years ago but within the actual game laws there is langauge that specifcally removes Allegheny County from counties that the PGC can regulate baiting. It would take legislation to legalize it then the PGC could then allow it.
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Post by davet on Mar 11, 2024 15:25:26 GMT -5
My younger sister lives out near Gettysburg. She has several deer that she "takes care of" and one is now a nice size 8pt. He's about 4YO at this point and he will allow her to get within arms length of him. She will not pet him, but she does talk to him.
She told me her neighbor will sometimes watch the interaction between her and the buck and (as I would be) is amazed that the buck lets her that close.
She lives at the base of a mountain and it's hunted pretty heavy in the fall. So far, he's made it 4 years. She said he disappears during buck season and she doesn't know if he's made it through until mid to late February.
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Post by bushmaster on Mar 11, 2024 15:44:23 GMT -5
I can get within 10ft of deer in my yard. They are use to me. My neighbor has been feeding a buck sweetbread from his hand for 3 seasons. He's a nice 8pt.
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Post by ridgecommander on Mar 14, 2024 7:18:04 GMT -5
Had to take a bowhunter safety course to be eligible to hunt in this program. Just finished it a few days ago. A legit three hour course that you couldn't skip through as every page was timed. I missed a few questions along the way with chapter tests but ended up with a 98% on the final.
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Post by rusty on Mar 14, 2024 9:06:34 GMT -5
I would wager that most killers will be out for antlers to show off. I think it should be at least 3 does killed before a buck is fair game. I can't imagine having a buck killed in such an area mounted, but that is probably what most guys have in mind.
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Post by ridgecommander on Mar 14, 2024 9:14:00 GMT -5
I would wager that most killers will be out for antlers to show off. I think it should be at least 3 does killed before a buck is fair game. I can't imagine having a buck killed in such an area mounted, but that is probably what most guys have in mind. I believe you have to shoot one doe before someone you shoot a buck. I asked the fellow about how the guys did on bucks last year. He said not too many bcks were killed. Most of the guys are there to shoot does. The bigger guys are still not dumb and are mostly nocturnal till the rut. Interestingly, he said hunting pressure was lightest durig the rut so he susepcts many of the hunters hunted their normal areas during the rut. Very few real big ones have been killed in there he said.
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Post by ridgecommander on Mar 22, 2024 7:18:25 GMT -5
I have to go take my shooting profiency test soon. Three arrows have to be in the kill zone at unkown distances with broadheads. No rangefinder.
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Post by dougl on Mar 22, 2024 9:24:30 GMT -5
Most guys are looking for as many easy targets as they can find.These hunts bring out the worst in people.I started one of these programs and once we got the OK to start hunting the "residential"deer,grown men were fighting over these spots.That's when I called it quits.
A few years ago,one of the expert hunters who was a product tester,posse member,youtube wanna be shot a huge buck in the late season.He posted the kill on a facebook site and made it sound like it was a several year quest for this mountain giant.I couldn't resist so I posted a picture of it eating out of a woman's hand.
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Post by dougl on Mar 22, 2024 9:29:48 GMT -5
Two years ago,another guy I know killed a 160+ inch buck in there.It was another tame hand-fed deer that was well known.He actually drove it out to one of his properties 20 miles away for the hero shots to pass it off as a wild deer.The rack was too unique so he changed his story that he shot it across the main rd on some property that a Dr owned.It's sad.
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Post by ridgecommander on Mar 23, 2024 6:51:55 GMT -5
One of my spots I hunt around Pittsburgh there are turkeys that will basically eat corn at peoples feet. Those same turkeys pick me out of a tree at 50 yards if I twitch and run the other way.
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Post by davet on Mar 23, 2024 7:00:35 GMT -5
At my daughter's place in Mt Lebanon I had a deer on the other side of the front window chomping away at one of her plants. So, I went out the front door and the doe was ten feet away, just looked at me and kept chomping. So I began walking right at her. She turned and went up to the sidewalk and stopped. (Like 20 feet away). So, I walked at her again and she ran across the street to the opposite sidewalk and again, stopped. So, I started across the road and she finally walked back across the road....but down about 5 houses.
I guess she figured the chow was just as good 5 houses away and would not be harassed by some crazy guy with a cane!!!
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Post by ridgecommander on Mar 23, 2024 7:21:29 GMT -5
At my daughter's place in Mt Lebanon I had a deer on the other side of the front window chomping away at one of her plants. So, I went out the front door and the doe was ten feet away, just looked at me and kept chomping. So I began walking right at her. She turned and went up to the sidewalk and stopped. (Like 20 feet away). So, I walked at her again and she ran across the street to the opposite sidewalk and again, stopped. So, I started across the road and she finally walked back across the road....but down about 5 houses. I guess she figured the chow was just as good 5 houses away and would not be harassed by some crazy guy with a cane!!! I experience the same thing sometimes. I believe it is what they perceive as normal and abnormal. The Deer are used to humans in yards, sidewalks etc.... When I am in a tree in the woodlot across the street, they don't give me the same casual leniency if they come my way. If they are downwind in the yard, they just stare at me. If they are downwind in the woodlot, they blow and get out of there.
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Post by davet on Mar 23, 2024 7:25:40 GMT -5
Yeah. I think instead of a camo outfit when hunting urban deer perhaps a house brick pattern or siding pattern would be better. Then you could just sit on the patio and take shots from there!!
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