The kill zone??

[mothernatureson]

Okay, lets up the ante. I heard today on the radio that Wisconsin is debating the hunting of feral cats. Making them a legal game animal. "Hunters" claiming that feral cats consume many birds and especially game birds. Of course the usual groups are lining up on this one. I'm not one for shooting cats, and would say the biggest threat to wildlife is loss of habitat. But to each their own, but it just seems like an issue that would tend to make the hunters look bad. IMHO Happy hunting,
mothernatureson

 

[KyFlintlock]

Deer can often times be simply amazing! I've seen em' run for 150 yards with a double-lung and I've arrowed em and had them go 15. Shot a doe through the heart and she went at least 150yards and was bedded deader than last wednesday when I found her...a hole through the bottom of her heart.

I think AS important as the shot is what you do after the shot.... I'll throw another thread out there, cause I think y'all have some pointers that we can use when we have made the shot and the mind is racing thinking that you'll never find that deer.

I can't wait for season!
Wess

 

[cayugad]

Feral or domestic cats (and dogs) turned loose to fend on their own are true hunters, as are the ones, pet owners who see no problem in letting their animals wander around until the animal (cat or dog) gets cold, tired, bored, hungry, or what and comes back home. Just watch your family cat outside sometime around bird feeders....

Living in the middle of no where like I do you, would not think I would ever encounter a feral cat but every once in a while I will spot one in the woods or near the house. I admit I never knew there was a season on them nor have I heard about one being suggested.

This should make all the animal lovers in the big cities scream....

Feral Cat Artical

 

[Old Charlie]

You turn your average dog loose in the woods and it will starve to death. Not so a cat! A cat is a natural killer. And will make a living just fine. Yes they kill a lot of birds, rabbits and other small game.
Old Charlie

 

[Tahquamenon]

Off topic:

The feral cat issue is going to continue to be an issue and a growing one IMO. Along with all of the other neglected or ignorantly released animals and creatures into habitat's that they were not intended. Any of these creatures than adapt and proliferate will undoubtedly disturb the balance of nature and the habitat. Big issue here in Michigan with all of the morons releasing exotic species into the great lakes, rivers and lakes.

With respect to feral cats, I support wildlife management through hunting of any species that unbalances nature and the habitat. Not only that but they are also dangerous to children, spread diseases, ruin poultry/game and breed like rabbits.

Not a cat lover here anyway, but it's not their fault that irresponsible owners release/neglect them and/or do not have them neutered.

:m2c:

 

[Stumpkiller]

The whole CWD has ended any desire I'll ever have for any form of deer meat...

Maybe my reaction is extreme but I only got a few years left so I'm just hunting them, not eating them...

I trust myself/my processor more than a rushed farmer operating with no margin to absorb culls, some minimum wage part-time meat packer in the back of Piggly-Wiggly, or a hurried butcher who spends a few seconds to process a whole carcass.

At least I know the deer was acting normally when I shot it, not lying on it's side dead from "natural causes" or just deathly ill and waiting for the processing truck to haul it to the rendering plant. (I know, not all beef are "pick-ups", but some are).

About the time my deer become posionous, maybe it's time I check out anyway. CWD has to be a horrible way to die, but there ain't many good ones I've run across. My wife and I have each lost a father in a nursing home, and our mothers are in there presently (Her's has Alzheimers & dementia). I see a lot of folks who lived carefully and now they get to end their days as vegetables in storage. If eating wild meat kills me, so be it. We haven't bought much red meat from a market in the 25 years we've been married. If I don't get a deer or two we eat a lot of chicken, macaroni & cheese and spaghetti. I've raised chicken. You want to talk a filthy animal. Ever driven past the Purdue or Allen's plants down in the Carolinas on a humid day? Gag.

I already release 95% of the fish I catch for fear of the contaminants they accumulate and out of pity for the habitat dilemas they face. Too bad we can't catch and release deer (though, I have gone through the motions and counted coop on many over the years).

No offense meant, but if I ain't eatin it I don't shoot it, unless it is destructive or suffering. If deer get to the point where they are wiping out farmers but inedible, I guess I'll still put in some time helping the same farmers whose fields I used to woodchuck hunt and whose woods I now deer hunt. But I don't think my heart will be in it.

I pray to God that CWD never gets a foothold here.

 

[roundball]

No offense meant, but if I ain't eatin it I don't shoot it, unless it is destructive or suffering.

No offense taken...there's a lot a very, very poor people living out in the remote areas where I hunt...they enjoy getting a gift of a good 50lbs of venison and I enjoy filling my tags and giving it to them...I think every state in the country has some sort of Hunter's Food Program for this very purpose...so it works out well for me and the recipients.

Fall'2003, just before Thanksgiving, I delivered a big deer to one family and they were beside themselves saying over and over how this was going to be their Thanksgiving dinner, etc...so I'll continue to put smiles on people's faces like that as long as I can

 

[cayugad]

Roundball I know what you mean about helping others and I commend you for your efforts..

I had an old friend who has since passed away. The old fellow lived back in the woods near me. He was so old and his eyes so bad he refused to hunt anymore for fear of wounding a deer or even making a mistake. So I would always make sure I bought an extra tag each year and shoot him a nice doe. Then I'd butcher it for him and take him his venison.

 

[scott fellows]

i for one am totally in favor of the hunting of feral cats. living in the country as i do i see much damage done by the "good old barn cats". i also think that if people had to license their cats like we do dogs then there would be less feral cats running around to hunt. if i remember right michigan at one time had an open season on feral cats. just my .02 cents worth.
scott fellows

 

[bezoar]

The liscence doesnt meen the dog will be tied up. I have large packs of raoming dogs, that have all the liscences they need to. and i have tape of them ripping up turkeys on my lawn.

 

[Rebel]

A pack of free roaming dogs can be a real danger, to people as well as wildlife. Are you in the city where you can't shoot them? If they are running in a pack, and on your property, you should be able to put them down. If you are in the city, then a call to animal control is in order. Don't get me wrong here, i like dogs, but when they are allowed to roam free and are a danger, then i believe they need to be managed.

 

[sir henry]

Have to agree domestic aniamals means domestic and should be controled. And If people care about there aniamals thats what they should do I own two huntin dogs they never leave my yard unless there with me! If cat owners could control there cats and had to licence them this farel cat problem would go down! Sick of seeing them with young birds rabbits frogs and so on in their mouths or under bird feeders! :m2c: :imo: :curse:

 

[Rebel]

Yea, the sad part is, it is the owners fault, not the cats. They are just trying to survive after being dumped in the wilderness, just like every other living creature. But they do crate a lot of damage to small wildlife and birds, and i suppose, do need to be controlled, just like any other predator.

 

[Huntinfool]

No offense meant, but if I ain't eatin it I don't shoot it, unless it is destructive or suffering.

No offense taken...there's a lot a very, very poor people living out in the remote areas where I hunt...they enjoy getting a gift of a good 50lbs of venison and I enjoy filling my tags and giving it to them...I think every state in the country has some sort of Hunter's Food Program for this very purpose...so it works out well for me and the recipients.

Fall'2003, just before Thanksgiving, I delivered a big deer to one family and they were beside themselves saying over and over how this was going to be their Thanksgiving dinner, etc...so I'll continue to put smiles on people's faces like that as long as I can

Hey Roundball I think it's a great thing you're doing keep up the good work!!

Now I just wish I lived down there cause unlike your statement about, "and I don't know of a single individual hunter in my lifetime of hunting who has killed and eaten his 6 deer per season here in NC..." I'd take some of them critters off their hands! :crackup: :crackup:

My family does eat all my legal limit and I don't feel guilty because I'm one of the poor saps that could use some more! I can't afford to buy that much beef it really helps my meat supplies!

Chuck

 

[Huntinfool]

Have to agree domestic aniamals means domestic and should be controled. And If people care about there aniamals thats what they should do I own two huntin dogs they never leave my yard unless there with me! If cat owners could control there cats and had to licence them this farel cat problem would go down! Sick of seeing them with young birds rabbits frogs and so on in their mouths or under bird feeders! :m2c: :imo: :curse:

Feral cats don't live long around my place I don't know what it is but they just seem to disappear! :thumbsup:

Chuck

 

[BUERICH]

free range domestic animals have always bothered me. i love dogs, and even cats to an extent, but if you're going to have a pet then take responsibility for it and keep it on your property. i've had leases near a development where there were so many loose dogs it wasn't funny. never seen to many feral cats. my grandpa used to have a place that backed up to a trailer park out in the county. there'd be dogs in groups of 5 or more come outa there and chase the cows and deer and whatever else. called the sheriff, sherriff said you could call a dog catcher but you'd have to pay him since there was no city services out there, otherwise shoot em. i don like shootin people's pets, but they were a long ways from home. lot of them were really poor, starving/sick, some were pretty aggressive.

 

[jim gray]

I love dogs to, but when people allow their pets to threaten livestock and wild animals something has to be done and frequently the only option is to shoot them.

I've seen results from several studies that suggest that domestic cats are the primary predators of song birds, and rodents in areas that they inhabit. This included pets as well as feral animals, though. I don't know the parameters of the studies; so the results may or may not be accurate.

 

[Stumpkiller]

I've got three cats (one a former feral that the dog found when it weighed just one pound and was barely a mouthful ~ now they're best friends and wreslting buddies). And this is a Kerry Blue Terrier that's supposed to be "pet agressive" as a breed. Yeah, right. We keep cats indoors 100% of the time. The dog never goes outside unattended, ever. I blame owners, 'cause the animals just do what animals will. They are 100% innocent creatures. I consider my pets as family. Like human children you get back what you invest into them in love and training. When left to their own and bored they get in trouble. Can't blame a cat for taking a bird. They're hardwired for that and about perfectly designed to do it.

I even appreciate the feral cats to an extent. We've killed off any native creatures in that niche, so they serve a purpose in rodent control. But, they have a tendency to overburden a region because humans keep pumping fresh litters into the ecosystem. I certainly don't want to be the one to remove the only companionship an elderly widow might have that was just passing by, but I have ended the careers of a couple toms that were patroling my favorite grouse thickets.

We've got one hanging around the shed now that is obviously one panicked cat, likely a recent drop off. She (?) responds hopefully to soft talk, but then bolts suddenly. Probably been mistreated along the way. We've got plenty enough moles and field mice to keep her employeed and will probably end up with a full-time outdoor pet if I can live-trap her and get the vet to seperate her ideas from her abilities. Our house is on a not-to remote stretch of road that has nothing but river on one side. We get lots of Christmas trees, bags of trash and pets dropped of. Humans can be such . . . humans. :curse:

 

[Keith]

Pets certainly kill quite a few birds and small mammals. Dogs running deer is a real problem because the prime time to do that is winter when the deer don't need the extra stress. But, my real gripe is people who just dump unwanted pets. Nothing like taking responsibilty for yourself or what you've caused. I'll stop before I my the other foot on the soap box.

Stumpy, I've adopted a couple of stray cats. If you can get to them before they go feral thay are great pets. Strays seem to appreciate it the home I think. Anyway, good luck catching that cat.

 

[brushbuster]

animals act like animals and humans do the same ,
even though i feel strongly about eatin what you shoot ,i also believe that animals out of control must be controlled and i have no compunctions about taking an animal out of circulation if they are a threat/nuisance to my live stock or family