General Discussion
In reply to the discussion: Why is hunting given a pass? [View all]csziggy
(34,136 posts)For decades, I didn't allow hunting on my farm. It's relatively small - 60 acres. When we first bought, the land to the east of us was owned by a plantation that covered thousands of acres. The plantations in this area are managed as hunting preserves and for timber growth, so wildlife had a continuous range. The deer, turkey and other animals roamed freely. During hunting season, the populations on our farm increased, since they were not stalked and shot.
But the plantation sold off the 1500 acres immediately to our east, the land to the south of us was divided and sold as small farms, and the wildlife that lived on our farm became an isolated population. Conditions are good, so they have produced too many offspring and the numbers aren't reduced by natural predators. Over the years inbreeding and too many individuals made our little herd of deer have some serious health problems.
A few years back I gave permission for the family that is running the farm to hunt deer. They manage the herd and don't hunt at random. They watch the deer over the year, get to know the individuals and their standing in the herd, and select one or two specific deer that they think need to be removed from the group, because of physical defects or age. Some of those things are the factors that would allow a wolf, panther or coyote take a deer down if we still had any living around here.
In the last several years they've taken one or two deer per year. Already I'm seeing an improvement in the health of the herd. The ones that are left are larger and are no longer seeing the physical problems that were probably caused by inbreeding or poor nutrition.
They use every bit of meat from the deer they take - though they give me a cut or two. The parts they don't use the butcher they take the deer to has a use for and gives them a discount on his work in exchange. So nothing goes to waste and more important the deer are healthier.