Property Line Hunters

[TedLaRue]

The conservation officer also reminded attendees that despite land belonging to landowners, the wildlife belongs to the state, so...

If "the wildlife belongs to the state", then if the deer are eating my fruit trees and my garden, is the state going to compensate me for the damage? Is the state paying me for maintaining a suitable habitat for deer, rather than developing the land into town houses or a shopping mall?

I made a mutual agreement with my immediate neighbors that we could hunt on each other's property, but that agreement would not extend to guests of the neighbors.

The problem with the guests is that they don't know the boundaries, they don't have a vested interest in the land (especially if they are "city folk"), they don't know where my house is and in what directions they should not shoot. I trust the neighbors, but I don't trust the neighbor's friends or relatives.

 

[DwightD123]

If "the wildlife belongs to the state", then if the deer are eating my fruit trees and my garden, is the state going to compensate me for the damage?QUOTE]

Ha ha ha...well put. I would hate to live in a state that took the view that they could supersede landownders rights to that degree. I mean I know wardens can come on the property but to come in to track a deer even if the landowner says no? That's a whole new level of wrong. Next thing the guy tracking gets hurt and sues you....smells like a turd in turpentine to me.

Back to the property line hunters it is almost a given that your going to shoot deer that go on to the neighbor's land. It happens. If you set up on the property line its gonna happen a lot more. Why put yourself and your neighbor in a situation of ruining his hunt to track your deer if you can try to avoid it? It's flippin basic common courtesy.
Pull in by 50-60 yds and your odds of downing that game on your land increases dramatically. It's not like the deer appear at the property line magically in a puff of green smoke...they have to walk there. Find their trails and back off a tad. It clearly indicates these guys are not thinking of others.
On a separate note I appreciate you guys helping me keep my mind straight on some of the more innocent situations. It's easy to get upset at everyone when some really don't realize what they are doing. I am trying to discern the ignorant from the asses and act accordingly. It's nice to be able to have a place to bounce stuff off of others.

 

[Skyco]

Small tracts of less than a few hundred acres, I just don't understand why they wouldn't be fenced. That is if you care about keeping people off.

My camp land, 10 acres, is in the mountains...fencing it would cost an outrageous amount due to terrain on about half of it.
Why should we have to pay for a fence because other people are unethical idiots? Yeah I know...shouldn't need alarms and surveillance cameras either

I had a request from a guy to hunt my 10 acres, he was laid up for a few years due to a back injury and used to hunt there before we owned it.
I really wanted to grant his request but I've had too many bad impressions of hunters, like already said some that seem to otherwise be good decent people turn into complete jerks (not the word I wanted to use) when hunting.

 

[Redneck in training]

Somebody is apparently poaching on my land even outside hunting season. I found several arrows and also two dead deer that were not retrieved over past few years.
About two or three years back my wife was walking to the back of the property and felt some motion but couldn't see what it was until she almost run into a guy sitting there in his camouflage. He told her that he thought he was hunting on my neighbor property but it was obvious he was lying.
I heard about a guy in our area that has "his deer" almost like pets. They run wild but they are used to come to be fed. He pens some of them during hunting season. I saw pictures of few record bucks he has there.

 

[lockhaven]

I would be careful saying the deer belong to you. Does that mean that if they get in the road and cause a wreck you are libel? Ownership goes both ways.

 

[DT86]

Why put yourself and your neighbor in a situation of ruining his hunt to track your deer if you can try to avoid it? It's flippin basic common courtesy.
Pull in by 50-60 yds and your odds of downing that game on your land increases dramatically. It's not like the deer appear at the property line magically in a puff of green smoke...they have to walk there. Find their trails and back off a tad. It clearly indicates these guys are not thinking of others.

You already answered your first question. They clearly are not thinking of others. Other hunters or other land owners. I think they get tunnel vision of the mind.
As for the deer magically appearing on the property line, I think you missed their reasoning. It's just the classic "grass is greener on the other side" mind set.

 

[two_bit_score]

I would be careful saying the deer belong to you. Does that mean that if they get in the road and cause a wreck you are libel? Ownership goes both ways.

I think you could get away with saying " that one isn't mine".

 

[two_bit_score]

My camp land, 10 acres, is in the mountains...fencing it would cost an outrageous amount due to terrain on about half of it.
Why should we have to pay for a fence because other people are unethical idiots? Yeah I know...shouldn't need alarms and surveillance cameras either

I had a request from a guy to hunt my 10 acres, he was laid up for a few years due to a back injury and used to hunt there before we owned it.
I really wanted to grant his request but I've had too many bad impressions of hunters, like already said some that seem to otherwise be good decent people turn into complete jerks (not the word I wanted to use) when hunting.

Yeah, that was a dumb statement I made about smaller tracts being fenced. :ashamed:

 

[GPintheMitten]

I have been on the opposite side of this and can speak to it.

A few years ago my daughter and son-in-law and I bought 40 acres for a future build and horse farm. It was open land except the growth along the fence rows and some woods in the back. The land had been surveyed for the sale so we knew the property lines and had walked them before and after purchase several times.

So, for deer season that fall, I setup on our property in the brush along the fence row with a small ground blind made out of pallets. I faced inward toward the open space of our land.

Later on opening morning, the neighboring property owner came driving his pickup at a high rate of speed and slid to a stop and came out yelling at me.
I calmly explained to him that we were his new neighbors and that I was on our property etc. He never really calmed down that day, but a few weeks later, my son-in-law said he saw him and the neighbor apologized for being a jerk.

Now, had there been some nice brushy coverage elsewhere, I may have set up there, but as most typical farmland, the brush and trees along the property/fence lines makes good coverage. And my son and son-in-law were setup in the back along the woods.

So remember, property rights work on both sides of the fence.

 

[RobertBrown]

These people aren't actually shooting deer that are on your property when the shot is fired, are they?

There aren't to many hunters that will pass on a good deer just cause he's standing on the wrong side of the fence. They will tell you "the deer jumped the fence after I shot it", unless the deer is head shot or you saw it get shot, you can't really dispute the claim.

40 acres isn't much room, it's enough for 1 or 2 hunters. You must have some decent deer crossing it or they wouldn't want to be on or close to it. If that's the case, the only way to protect your hunting interest is to be there and stand your ground. I doubt that these people are going to give up on it especially if they are not breaking any laws. You may be better off leasing it to them and hunting somewhere else.
Moth balls, coyote urine, your own urine, will deter deer. I would not broadcast this over a large area, just piss on the tree stand or tree he's hunting in every chance you get. This will keep the deer away from his stand but he's still going to shoot deer on your property if your not there.