Why Game And Fish Should Have Fed Deer This Winter

[wolfbait]

https://cowboystatedaily.com/2023/07/16/guest-column-why-game-and-fish-should-have-fed-deer-this-winter/?utm_source=Klaviyo&utm_medium=campaign&_kx=03QhdhzlvjEwc5SAgf0fx06umFkyTHl9Uc97HTi5MXeNGGMZDqRLeqPZMZUnznjw.UXPtrV

[bearpaw]

https://cowboystatedaily.com/2023/07/16/guest-column-why-game-and-fish-should-have-fed-deer-this-winter/?utm_source=Klaviyo&utm_medium=campaign&_kx=03QhdhzlvjEwc5SAgf0fx06umFkyTHl9Uc97HTi5MXeNGGMZDqRLeqPZMZUnznjw.UXPtrV

Great article by a man who was in charge of the former feeding program in Wyoming, he is right on the mark!

[GASoline71]

Good read.  It also talked about influence from "environmental groups" and pressure through the Geological Survey Office from Bozeman MT, in the influence of not feeding game animals.

"Within the Wyoming Game and Fish Department there is a segment of employees that are vehemently and philosophically opposed to feeding big game under any situation.

They have gathered support from some environmental groups and the Geological Survey in Bozeman, Montana.  Department administrators have allowed these individuals free rein to promote their cause and has reached the point that much of the public and other department employees actually believe the non-native food sources does more harm than good."

Enviros and their ilk gaining access into Game Departments anywhere they can.

Gary

[RB]

Great article, always wondered how they determined feeding Deer was bad, people have been doing it for years and they do just fine.

[SuperX]

Great article, always wondered how they determined feeding Deer was bad, people have been doing it for years and they do just fine.

I think it's a new trend due to the spread of CWD and how feeding deer can cause it to spread

[boneaddict]

     nice!

[buckfvr]

Rather than acknowledge this man as being correct on the matter, they will stay the course and discredit his entire narrative.  There is zero chance any game department admits they were wrong in any way.  My experience with wdfw is their managers will argue in support of their misinformation and lies to the point of death, they will take it to the grave rather than give in.

[bearhunter99]

Very good read in my opinion

[GASoline71]

Rather than acknowledge this man as being correct on the matter, they will stay the course and discredit his entire narrative.  There is zero chance any game department admits they were wrong in any way.  My experience with wdfw is their managers will argue in support of their misinformation and lies to the point of death, they will take it to the grave rather than give in.

Unless it's in regards to managing predators.  Then its protection over management.

Gary

[ducks4days]

Rather than acknowledge this man as being correct on the matter, they will stay the course and discredit his entire narrative.  There is zero chance any game department admits they were wrong in any way.  My experience with wdfw is their managers will argue in support of their misinformation and lies to the point of death, they will take it to the grave rather than give in.

The commission doesnt need to discredit his narrative, they have been able to achieve most of their goals by placing their fingers in their ears and shouting "LALALALALALA" when competent biologists begin speaking. No point in taking the risk of trying to fight against hard numbers when you can just ignore them.

[bigmacc]

Rather than acknowledge this man as being correct on the matter, they will stay the course and discredit his entire narrative.  There is zero chance any game department admits they were wrong in any way.  My experience with wdfw is their managers will argue in support of their misinformation and lies to the point of death, they will take it to the grave rather than give in.

The commission doesnt need to discredit his narrative, they have been able to achieve most of their goals by placing their fingers in their ears and shouting "LALALALALALA" when competent biologists begin speaking. No point in taking the risk of trying to fight against hard numbers when you can just ignore them.

Pretty much sums it up.👍  Man I miss having a “real game Department” in this state and not just an extension of the government and it’s anti hunting lobbyists agendas.

[hunter399]

It's all about the money.
No need to spend money on feed.
When they make money regardless of ungulate population.
They can let it go to endangered species before they start losing enough money to care.

[elksnout]

Less than 3800 deer survived out of a herd of 28,000? 

elksnout

[Karl Blanchard]

Less than 3800 deer survived out of a herd of 28,000? 

elksnout

That's the estimated impact based on collared animals.


https://wyofile.com/whats-in-store-for-the-devastated-wyoming-range-deer-herd/

[Mtnwalker]

Less than 3800 deer survived out of a herd of 28,000? 

elksnout

That's the estimated impact based on collared animals.


https://wyofile.com/whats-in-store-for-the-devastated-wyoming-range-deer-herd/

Ugh what a bummer

[ducks4days]

Less than 3800 deer survived out of a herd of 28,000? 

elksnout

That's the estimated impact based on collared animals.


https://wyofile.com/whats-in-store-for-the-devastated-wyoming-range-deer-herd/

That number seems to track with the supplemental info in the article

By the time UW professor Kevin Monteith, who leads the lab, briefed WyoFile in early June, roughly 70% of the herd’s collared does and 60% of collared bucks had been lost to winter. Every single collared fawn born in 2022 was gone. A single yearling had been hanging on, he said, but it too died on May 15, the opening day of the delayed shed antler hunting season.

[kodiak10]

It is crazy to me that so many people can easily be convinced that supplemental deer feeding kills them. It is like they have never been in farmland where deer are hanging out in hay / alfalfa.

Even though I do not know wyoming, I bet the  effects of this year's snowpack will last a long time. Must be terrible for local communities that rely on hunting tourism / out of state tags to help their small communities.

[Special T]

Here is a great article on the subject.

https://www.fieldandstream.com/story/hunting/do-bait-bans-really-help-fight-against-cwd/


THIS commission has tried to push for a baiting ban state wide with a couple of instances of CWD. NO reason exists to ban it state wide because we have 2 natural passage divisions. 1 the Columbia river. 2 the cascade mountains. have no doubt that CWD is a problem. We as sportsmen need to avoid Deer urine, Make sure to de bone  and skull cap our takes out of state. I have read studies that show  small bait sights like what we are currently limited to have less affect than apple orchards or hay fields. Why? They do not draw from larger geographic areas in which we see deer migrate to. CWD is a real threat! WE have to do our part.

It is obvious to many here that most of the commission are anti hunters, and will use every convenient opportunity to chip away at hunting. Perhaps a lack of winter feeding had some influence by the commission, perhaps not. WDFW IS feeling pressure from the Commission and it is one of the reasons Im a supporter of the WWC lawsuit against the Governor.

[Special T]

"Should chronic wasting disease been a factor in deciding whether or not to feed?  Chronic wasting disease can be considered a “wild card” in this situation.  The disease is 100 percent fatal with deer and kills them at a relatively young age. It has had detrimental effects on deer herds.  Presumably it would be spread more rapidly if deer are in close contact with each other.  This could be the situation if the deer were fed in a manner that put them in close contact with each other.  However, given the terrain of much of the deer winter range, deer could be fed in a manner where they are scattered, perhaps even greater than when feeding normally on winter ranges. 

The bottom line is the disease is working its way across Wyoming and will be here, if not already in the Wyoming Range deer herd. Given, I am not a disease expert and can only use a layman’s approach to assessing the situation.

Using the most recent information as presented in Cowboy State Daily, less than 3,800 survived last winter from the 28,000 head that entered the winter.  CWD will likely be present and will affect the herd’s ability to recover its former numbers.  It seems to me that had feeding begun early enough to save most lives, the herd would have had a better chance to recover.  Given the buck/doe ratio as presented in the 2021 Annual Report and the reported adult survival rate for last winter, less than 2,700 does are left to rebuild the herd.  This deer herd may never recover given the presence of predators, the potential effects of CWD, and the possibility of more harsh winters."

Given the amount of predators we have we can only assume the same... and that some folks would like to have a much smaller herd... reducing hunter numbers. We have heard that some Commissioners fee we have no need for Recruitment Retention and Reactivation (R3) and their motives should bee easily seen through.