Tracking Deer With Dogs: The Problem
Monday, August 13th, 2007Passport to Texas from Texas Parks and Wildlife
East Texas is known for more than its pine trees. It’s also known for being the only place in the state where running deer with dogs is commonplace.
Running deer with dogs is an illegal “sport” whereby a dog owner sends Fido into the woods to flush deer into the open. If the dog’s master correctly calculates the outcome of the chase, his prize is a clear shot at a whitetail. Game Warden Major Robert Carlson.
The dog trails the deer and the sport of it is for me [as the dog’s owner] to determine where that deer is going to cross the road and that’s where I need to be standing for me to shoot the deer. When they’re doing this, they’re running across people’s personal property. You know, it just boils down to that was a legal activity years ago, but you were supposed to shoot them on your property. You don’t have a right to turn a dog loose for it to wreak havoc on everybody’s personal property.
Running deer with dogs was made illegal twenty years ago. Major Carlson says this unlawful sport persists, and interferes with those who hunt deer legally.
What happens is with the deer running through there on a semi-regular basis, well that keeps the deer heard stirred up and run off so that the legal hunters can’t hunt either.
Beefing up efforts to eliminate the activity is tomorrow.
That’s our show for today…with research and writing help from Loren Seeger…For Texas Parks and Wildlife…I’m Cecilia Nasti
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