Poachers on my property

[bigpaw 77]

About an hour ago (7:30 pm) we heard a shot out behind our house, I walked out side and could hear some guys loading up a deer in their truck, I could hear the antlers hit the truck bed. I yelled out "hey what the hell do you think you are doing?" I ran back in the house and grabbed my hog leg and truck keys and then ran out the door and jumped in my truck. I bet it only took me about 2 minutes to get out to the road and they were already gone. I wanted to get their license plate number and description of the truck I tried but could not find them, they are probably in town by now skinning it in their garage. I called the poaching hotline and got a voicemail. so I called the sheriff's office and got a voicemail, same with the state patrol. So I called my neighbor to see if he had the game wardens number, he gave me his phone number and I immediately called it. Guess what, it went straight to his voicemail too. No wonder these low life pieces of sh#t are out spotlighting deer on private land and shooting them. There is no one to stop them, I tried every law enforcement agency I could think of and no one is there to answer the phone. This really pisses me off beyond belief, my toddler was standing in front of the glass door while these scumbags shot behind my house. For all I know they could have been shooting towards my house. So what do I do now? I left a message for the Game warden, but I am almost ready to start taking matters into my own hands. This happens every year and the poachers get away with it. I don't understand why the game department is not doing anything to try and stop this crap, I am not the only one that has complained to the game department about poaching in the neighborhood.

[jasnt]

 >:(happens to us too      we have livestock in  the feild as well       our game warden only recomended we use game cameras           

[400out]

I don't think there is much you can do! you have nothing for them law to go off of, next time don't go yelling before you are standing next to them.

[seth30]

put up some trail cameras pointed at the direction a vechile would come in on, no flash, and your evidence will help your case

[Machias]

Go see if you can find blood, they may have dropped something from their vehicle in their hast.  Plus when the Game Warden finally does make it around they can collect blood evidence and MAY just be able to match it up later on.  I would sure look though to see if they accidently dropped something.  If you can find where they loaded the deer, they might be able to build a case.  Sorry to hear that.  

[ribka]

Sorry to hear that. Poaching is a big problem statewide. Always catching people tresspassing up by me. Find deer/ elk with their heads or antlers cut-off or shot and left during closed seasons. Cannot get the locals to respond. I try and get a plate and pic and forward it to the local sheriff. Have to keep complaining to get any response. I have written the head of WDFW with my concerns. With ongoing budget problems and lack of personnel it keeps getting worse.

Do what you can to catch these guys. Good luck and stay safe

[Ihuntelk2]

You know i find this story ammusing in one way. I have found myself head back home from the woods many nights and ran into some bucks sitting on private property. But for some reason I have never shot one. I want to so bad but something inside me says thats not the right thing to do. I just dont understand. ITS NOT UR PROPERTY and ITS NOT HUNTING HOURS. I have only killed one buck, a grouse, and a milk jug with my bow in the woods. and i still couldnt bring myself low enough to do that lame *censored*. How could u hang a deer like that in your house or tell your friends ever...losers!!!

[Ihuntelk2]

Dang it im not a liar I shot my buck with a rifle the year my bow got stolen. so i stand correct i have only killed a grouse and a milk jug with my bow.

[seth30]

its the moral fiber and upbringing that separates us from the poachers

[BlackRidge]

Wow, whats with people!?  I'd suggest gates for any roads leading into your property, no hunting signage EVERYWHERE and or gamecams at or around the entrances/areas you know they go. Maybe a few incase they find one (pictures speak volumes, I think we ALL know that  )

I hope you or the law find these guys

[fair-chase]

Assuming you have a barbed wire fence around your property. Find the smallest insulators that you can in the color of your fence posts (or paint them). Using these, hook your top strand of barbed wire to a hotbox. You need to find a used hotbox, the older the better (before the libs started whining about animal abuse). If you can find one from the '60s or '70s they work great. Had one once that dropped a 2000 lb herford bull to the ground and kept him there for a while. This should slow down the hunters and they usually will be in such a hurry they won't think that the barbed fence is hot. If you cannot find an older hotbox you will have to find a converter to boost up power as the new boxes are to puny to slow anything down. I think this would be much more entertaining that a regular old security system.

Oh and don't forget DC power not AC. It keeps 'em hanging around a little longer.

[tshoote30]

Go see if you can find blood, they may have dropped something from their vehicle in their hast.  Plus when the Game Warden finally does make it around they can collect blood evidence and MAY just be able to match it up later on.  I would sure look though to see if they accidently dropped something.  If you can find where they loaded the deer, they might be able to build a case.  Sorry to hear that.  

 
          God that pisses me off. I am sorry to hear that and hope these scum bags get caught, Wish i had some advise for you but I do not. isnt there a saying about  HMMM something that is gettin out of control......... SHOOT SHOVEL AND WALK AWAY!!! I know a little extreme But scum bags like that leave us honest hard working legal shooting game hunters no choice.         nobody else seems to come in and help us right.......

[bigpaw 77]

Ihuntelk2 you hit the nail right on the head with your reply, I have been in places where nobody was around or could have done what these ass hats did and could of put big bucks and monster elk on the wall, but I have always made the right decision, and it is not hard for me to make the right choice.  I dont know how these people can poach big deer and elk and hang the head up in there house knowing that it was killed illegally. I guess we all have a better sense of morals than some.  I do have NO TRESPASSING signs up along the public road, but that only keeps the honest ones out. There is no road going in to my property where they were, people just shoot off the road and drag it or carry it to their truck. And 400out you are right it was stupid for my to yell at them. I thought about that after the fact, all I did was give them a warning that I was coming after them.

[sivart33]

well if you see them next time poaching on your property, people always come back to the scene of the crime.  get the plates....or shoot out the tires ( you where just shooting for practice....)

[Wile E. Hunter]

I REALLY like the idea of a hot top wire.... I REALLY like the idea of the hot wire being HOT. I am certain they won't be expecting that!

Wile E.

[seth30]

If you dont hunt deer, and dont care if you dont see deer pour out some powder tide around your property. 

[HardCorpsHuntr]

Call 911 next time.  It warrants it and they'll answer.

[bigpaw 77]

The hot fence is a great idea, but I don't have my property fenced along the road yet. Maybe I need some booby traps. I have thought about putting my trail cameras out there, but they would not be there long, someone would steal them that close to the road. keep the ideas coming guys and maybe we will come up with a solution. I still find it weird that the game warden has his cell turned off during rifle season.

[seth30]

tell them there is wolves being shot, they will show up

[pat riotic]

Trail cameras

[ser300wsm]

  You know that is sad but probably true: Shoot the wolves & the game dept. will show up: Dang it all to he... People don't have any ethics or morels anymore.. They don't care if somebody Innocent gets hurt. Very sad ...

[shedcrazy]

It all boils down to ethics, some people just don't get it....

[bigtex]

Well from the sounds of your post you had the direct number for the game warden, correct? That can be a good thing or a bad thing. The bad things are the following: you don't know when the warden will be working next and when he will get your message (he might not work till Saturday), he might be working a patrol in another part of the state, might be on vacation, and so on.

The BEST thing to do when reporting poachers is to call the local Washington State Patrol office (the numbers are in the hunting and fishing regs). WSP dispatches WDFW Officers 24/7/365, if nobody is working then they will call them at home and wake them up!

If for some reason you can't find the WSP number, call 911 and immediately state "non emergency wildlife poaching. State Patrol please" and they will forward your call immediately to the WSP dispatch center.

Alot of people have their local WDFW Officers phone numbers and like I said it could be a great thing or a bad thing, a lot of cases can't be made because the witness called the WDFW Officer and they got the message days later. Instead when the witness called WSP and an on-duty WDFW Officers is relayed the info in minutes!

ALSO the poaching hotline is ONLY operable Monday - Friday from 8AM - 5PM!!!!! Outside of those hours call WSP. From the sounds of it you called the wrong WSP number since you got a voicemail. Send me a PM with your location and I will send you the correst WSP number!

[bigtex]

I still find it weird that the game warden has his cell turned off during rifle season.

Well I can answer that statement.

You don't know if his cell is actually turned off, he might patrolling in an area where there is no cell service. No cell service = automatic voicemail.

But lets say the phone is just sitting at home. Everyone knows that WDFW Officers are on call 24/7/365. However that simply means that State Patrol dispatchers can contact them 24/7/365 and they do so by calling their house phones. Some officers do keep their cells on 24/7, but definitely are not required to. They can definitely turn their cell phone off as soon as they end their shift. They just need to make sure their home phone is operable.

[jrebel]

Just something to think about......Trail cameras and / or video cameras are useless if the enforcers don't want to do their jobs.  I have video of a two guys, one with a scoped rifle takeing a doe on private property durring muzzle loader season.  Called 911 and it took hours for them to respond.  Town is only 5 minutes away.  Turned over the video and waited for my 10 points.  Well never heard anything back and when I followed up they said it wasn't worth pursuing.   

[Wanttohuntmore]

Some of you have a mislead belief that 911 or the game wardens will quickly respond.  That is not necessarily so.  I called 911 to report a fire on 7/4/10, and called 2 times, getting an answering machine the second time (first time, nobody picked up).  I left a message, and nobody called back.  Anyways, after the fire was going for about 10 min a firetruck showed up, pretty sure someone else call made it through.  Still though, lost my faith in 911.

Same with game wardens, they need proof of a crime, pictures, evidence, etc.  Plus, they are people too, and are not working 24/7.  Unfortunately, to try and stop these poachers could lead to bad consequences to you as well, if you try and confront them...  I think pictures of them in the act would be a best case evidence for you though.

[Bean Counter]

Take pictures of their tire sign--the tread of their shoes as well. You never know...

[Stomper]

If you don't live in a city you are screwed! I called the other night when the drunk driver hit me,30 minutes and another phone call later,they show up! So that's what you can expect if you live in Smalltown,Washington.

[Bean Counter]

Tell them you have a gun, they'll get there faster   

[calib]

that hot wire sounds like it would be some good entertainment. that would give you enough time to catch them if they got in ause they would have to get back out. trespassing and poaching    could always send the cops to the hospital look for anyone with 2nd to 3rd degree burns to there fun bag

[packwoodcoug]

big tex good info.  Not to be an armchair quaterback but next itme grab the camera.

[h2ofowlr]

I would unload a clip from the AR.  That would get someone there quickly or scare the crap out of the poachers.   

[Wyoming08]

I definately like the Hot wire. I would also say If no one answers at the 911. Leave a message to just send out the coroner! You've already handled the situation and everything is under control!!!

[skynyr]

big tex good info.  Not to be an armchair quaterback but next itme grab the camera.

I had a problem with drug peddling on my street so I started photographing people in the action. I got the idea from the videovigalante on Youtube. http://www.youtube.com/user/videovigilanteokc You should see them fly out of here when they realize they are being photographed. I have noticed a major decline in nefarious activities since we started doing this. I would think this would work good in this case too.

[tritt007]

was it in the woods or more near town?

[NWBREW]

Wow, whats with people!?  I'd suggest gates for any roads leading into your property, no hunting signage EVERYWHERE 
I hope you or the law find these guys

That may stop some. A couple of years ago I drove to my place in Stevens county....fist day of the late hunt only to find a gut pile on my driveway. Someone not only shot a deer from a paved county road but also opened my gate drove in past Posted signs to retrieve their mighty kill. 

Finding a gut pile in your driveway can really piss you off.         No offence gutpile. 

[muleyman]

that kinda stuff totally pisses me off!  there was a *censored* who shot a bear in our friends driveway on long beach a few years ago and left it there when he realized the gate was locked!  i just dont get how people are so stupid sometimes. 

[bigpaw 77]

It seems like it never ends, I am so surprised by the amount of people with total disregard for the law. After last nights incident I was still pissed when I woke up this morning. On my way to town around 9:30 this morning I see a guy sitting in his rig parked next to the state park, he is in complete camo and his buddy is walking into the park with his rifle also wearing all camo and no orange, so I call the number that Bigtex gave me last night for the state patrol (thank you Bigtex) and before I could even get the whole story out to the lady on the phone she had dispatched the state park rangers to respond. About an hour goes by and I get a call from the ranger saying she was patrolling the area but could not find them, but she was going to keep driving the roads and looking for them. I told her thank you for responding so quickly and for staying out after them. I hope they get caught, I see it way to often and now I know who to call when I witness this crap.

[GEARHEAD]

keep a video cam handy. for you guys that experience this annually, get together with your neighbors, and video these guys. infact simply video every suspected road hunter you see. these lazy slobs, keep coming by, driving on their search and trespass/destroy mission, so later when they do, do this. you already have a recording of their vehicle, its plate and maybe the occupants. you can later share this with your neighbors, (and enforcement) in the event they have a complaint and may be able to identify that vehicle you had already made a record of. we started doing this in my area abit south of spokane last year, and its finaly reaping benefits. just simply park/stand  on the side of the road like a cop running radar and video everyone that drives by ya. and let them see you.

[bigtex]

so I call the number that Bigtex gave me last night for the state patrol (thank you Bigtex) and before I could even get the whole story out to the lady on the phone she had dispatched the state park rangers to respond. About an hour goes by and I get a call from the ranger saying she was patrolling the area but could not find them, but she was going to keep driving the roads and looking for them. I told her thank you for responding so quickly and for staying out after them. I hope they get caught, I see it way to often and now I know who to call when I witness this crap.

Your welcome man.
That is the one good thing about the State Patrol Dispatch, they dispatch every state law enforcement agency (State Patrol, WDFW, DNR, State Parks and Liquor Control Board) as well as USFS Law Enforcement and there is talks about having BLM Law Enforcement also being dispatched by them. So it is very easy to get a hold of an officer from one of those agencies, just simply call the local State Patrol office. And once again they answer calls 24/7/365.

[julzzz]

a friend of mine heard shots at 4:30 yesterday morning in a clearcut behind his house. awful early if you ask me.

[bearclawtommy]

ya that sucks people have no respect.   

[DOUBLELUNG]

Call 911 next time.  It warrants it and they'll answer.

Integrity is what you choose to do when there are no witnesses.  Like a poster above stated, it is what separates us from the poachers.

[lablover]

Just out of curiosity why didn't you call 911 and have a deputy respond? That would have been the best way to get law enforcement in the area quickly. Just a suggestion.

[bigtex]

Just out of curiosity why didn't you call 911 and have a deputy respond? That would have been the best way to get law enforcement in the area quickly. Just a suggestion.

The original poster said that he didn't think 911 was the appropriate number to call. There has been quite a debate the past couple years about people wanting to report violations and thinking they shouldn't call 911 because they didn't think fish/wildlife violations are serious enough for 911. However recently WDFW came out saying that it is ok to call 911, just simply state you are reporting a fish/wildlife violation and need to speak to the state patrol (they dispatch WDFW Officers).

I personally have several state patrol numbers in my phone so I don't have to call 911, I just call WSP directly, and I also keep the hunting/fishing regs with me and they have all the WSP numbers in them as well. But if you don't have the WSP numbers in your phone, and it is outside of normal business hours then call 911.

[BlackRidge]

I've always been a fan of the signs that say trespassers WILL BE SHOT. Pretty straight forward....and you are warning them, so if they chose to continue... who's fault is that? Its not entirely legal to actually shoot them unless theyre threatening you in some way, but the language alone would make me stop in my tracks if I was a dumbsh*t poacher

[hunter guy]

A good pair of low light binos might have picked up the plate or make and model of the truck.

[CountryslickR]

Bigpaw....you dont think that WDFW does anything about this? (poaching) .....very untrue....and secondly, when you tried to call the game warden to complain...just remember that probably a hundred other people were doing the same exact thing...get valid info or evidence...then call.