Maybe an alternative to AR would be the isuueing of permits. Both buck and doe permits to landowners. Have state biologist do survey in areas to dtermine density and buck to doe ratio and then issue permits accordingly. Some years you will have more does to kill, and some years more bucks. You might even have a time when you cannot shoot a buck. The landowner buys them and then uses as he sees fit. Of course if you are high fenced you can continue with MLD because your deer to do affect the general population. It will decrease the number of deer killed and bring back numbers in some areas. And in other areas where the deer population is to high it will get it back in balance. Example would be one doe permit per 50 acres and 1 buck permit per 100 acres owned. All permits are transferrable to leasee.

So only the rich with a lot of land can take more deer than the rest?

won't work....you'd end up with alot of landowners who would't be able to hunt. that would never fly

or maybe that 8 guys on 40 acres with 10 feeders stop shooting more deer than their land can sustain?

People complain there are not enough deer. People complain that they cannot shoot any deer they want. This solves both.

Why do so many hate on the rich. If you could trade places you would. How about just saying that doesnt sound equitable or something else instead of blah blah blah, the rich. I can assure you that a lot of large landowners dont consider themselves rich. In fact a lot would consider themselves much less so. Having a large tract of land does not make one rich.

They tried this plan in the 70's I think in Webb county and issued buck tags 1 per 200 acres if I remember to stop the shooting of as many bucks as a ranch of say 200 acres could draw across the fence and kill. Did not last to long from what I can remember.

This quote coming from a guy who posted a hunting camp pic that was not just mere shack.

HUH?? So you are saying that if I own 3000 acres I am not rich? How can that be? If I ever want money I could just sell the land. At the going prices of today's land.. I would be rolling in the millions. But yet.. I am not rich.. heh.. OK..

I agree that having large amounts of land does not mean you have loads of money in your pocket.. But you have wealth in land and that will always hold more value than any currency.

X2

look out I'm going to agree with txtrophy85...(kinda)

more needless restrictions on landowners


Plus,
Probably the only way for TPWD to really control harvest, and a strict management scheme.

BUT, TPWD doesn't need to be (AND SHOULDN'T BE) in that type of management. The program they had in place pre-AR kept the herd health and was easily adjustable if numbers got out of hand.(i.e. add/take away a tag)
Our state herd isn't/wasn't in "trouble"....???4 million deer???

Great, just what we need, more hunting laws regulations and restrictions.

I just do not believe you should be able to buy 10 acres and shoot every deer that crosses your fence. If you have multiple 10 acre tract all togethor and they are all being hunted, you are just looking for an accident to happen. My parents bought ten acres that is not attached to the ranch to build a house. There is no hunting at all there. At the ranch is where we hunt. NOw it is not a big ranch like all the "rich people", but it is 330 acres with four blinds and feeders and I think we have to many blinds.

So I wouldn't be able to hunt at all on my 32ac place. That would suck! I have had this place for 4 yrs now & have only taken 3 deer off of it. 1 the fist year & 2 last year. Last years deer were a spike and a doe. I'm not out killing every deer that I'm allowed, I'm trying to manage the herd & put some meat I in the freezer. But with your alternative I couldn't do either.

We have a similar place to yours, little over 320 acres with 4 blinds and a tripod and a couple pop up locations. It isnt how many blinds we have, it is what we shoot that makes the difference. We do numeouse surveys a year to determine our harvest including camera surves, haun walking line surveys, feeder counts and blind logs, and spotlight counts. Compile the info figure out our density and harvest accordingly. This year we are only supoosed to shoot 2 bucks and and 2 does, last year we were only suposed to shoot 2 does. Our population is still rebounding from over hunting but is pretty close to where it needs to be.

One deer, either sex per person.

If a landowner wants one, they should not be told know because they only own 49 acres...

that said, if a landowner wants his deer depleted, let all his friends hunt that 49 acres, tough luck.

If you want to defend your land, fence it.

We need landowners rights defended, not the governments power extended.

50 acres is just an example. The biologist may say we need to take out more deer, which would shrink the amount of land needed to hunt. Fifty and 100 or just easy round numbers that I came up with.

I've seen what AR has done to East Texas. There is simply MORE DEER there now. (The only thing I don't agree with is the Rifle DOE season there. Thanksgiving to that Sunday with a 2 doe limit? How about making it a 1 DOE all seasons combined. I've seen small does shot over that period, because of the time limit).

In Mill's county, I've seen lots of wider deer now.

Fact is, AR works.

Not saying your density is the same as ours, but take this for example.

Our carying capacity is 1 deer to 15 acres. If you apply this then you have 2 deer on your property. Last year you killed all the deer and there are none this year.

Same as the argument people have against high fencing, the deer are the states deer you are depleting, not the land owners.

matt

I have seen an increase in the number of larger deer and more numbers of deer since the AR's were implemented. I am fine with them. Nothing will ever make everyone happy but I don't see a need to mess with anything. Put me on record saying that I like what TPWD has done and is doing.

I do not have an issue with what the State of Texas is doing. We have one of the greatest hunting areas in the nation with liberal and fair laws. I was just offering a fix to what many consider a problem. In Medina county, where I hunt, it was not unussual to see 25-30 deer persitting when I was a kid. (25 to 35 year ago). This would be mostly does with 4 or 5 bucks mixed in. We had doe permits then and deer were everywhere. Now no doe permits, land getting divided up, landowners leasing out their land, etc.. and now we on a good day will see 10 11 does and the occassional buck. This is with us shooting 3 sometimes 4 deer a year off 330 acres. If we could afford to high fence our land we would, but cannot. Therefore every deer that I feel is to young or not ready to harvest does not get the same pass from the neighbor. If it has horns it dies on his place. I have talked to him and it is his land and he can do whatever he wants. It just effects everyone around him and what they are trying to do. I do not want my grandkids (hopefully want have them for about 15 more years)to not have a place to see deer, because some idiot that goes out with the thought process of I got five tags and paid x number of dollars to hunt and I am going to get my money's worth. Take what you need to fill your freezer for the year and then just enjoy watching wildlife.

So I wouldn't be able to hunt at all on my 32ac place. That would suck! I have had this place for 4 yrs now & have only taken 3 deer off of it. 1 the fist year & 2 last year. Last years deer were a spike and a doe. I'm not out killing every deer that I'm allowed, I'm trying to manage the herd & put some meat I in the freezer. But with your alternative I couldn't do either. [/quote]
Not saying your density is the same as ours, but take this for example.
Our carying capacity is 1 deer to 15 acres. If you apply this then you have 2 deer on your property. Last year you killed all the deer and there are none this year.[/quote] I understand your theory but the deer just pass thru my place anyway. There isn't a deer that stays here unless the rut is in full swing. I have seen a buck with 2 or 3 doe bedded down in my pasture the last couple years.

I like it! No one with less than 100 acres can shoot a deer.

I understand your theory but the deer just pass thru my place anyway. There isn't a deer that stays here unless the rut is in full swing. I have seen a buck with 2 or 3 doe bedded down in my pasture the last couple years. [/quote]

I understand you and know where you are coming from, but you have to also realize that your harvest isnt sustinable because you dont have enough land. Yes the deer come and go, but your neighbors are shooting deer too, and it is the combination of your land and their land that allows the deer to survive. That is the point. If everybody had 32 acres and shot two deer a year then in a year or two there would be no deer. I know it is a fine line to walk, but you gotta draw a line somewhere.