is it legal to bait deer in washington

[big wood]

just wondering if it is legal. I cant find in the regs that it is or isn't

[Bigshooter]

Legal

[DBHAWTHORNE]

 

[500 long]

An officer told me it is not illegal to feed deer or elk. Check the trail cam photos, most show apples on the ground.

[boneaddict]

Legal.  Do a search on here, the RCW has been posted several times.  The topic may be locked but should be still on here.

[CedarPants]

An officer told me it is not illegal to feed deer or elk. Check the trail cam photos, most show apples on the ground.

WDFW officer?  Just curious on the background behind that ....

[huntnphool]

just wondering if it is legal. I cant find in the regs that it is or isn't

 Yep, legal to bait deer and call it "fair chase" but illegal to use a lumenok, go figure.

[CedarPants]

Here we go .....

[h20hunter]

Im quite a master one would say.

[buckfvr]

yep.....go ahead and feed them so you can see does on your pile all day and get lots of nice night time pictures of big bucks.....

[500 long]

An officer told me it is not illegal to feed deer or elk. Check the trail cam photos, most show apples on the ground.

WDFW officer?  Just curious on the background behind that ....

A multitasking sheriff.  Also a hunting buddy of mine.

[longknife]

Legal! You can bait deer, and elk in the state.

[muzzlebuck]

...

[NWWABOWHNTR]

just wondering if it is legal. I cant find in the regs that it is or isn't

 Yep, legal to bait deer and call it "fair chase" but illegal to use a lumenok, go figure.

Pope and Young does not address this in their "Rules of Fair chase", I guess some of it has to be common sense? However back to the original post, as stated legal, maybe not ethical in some opinions.

[BOWHUNTER45]

Yeah bait em up and be sure your feeder is in the picture when you kill something ya know just like on T.V 

[500 long]

I have never eaten with Mr. Pope, Young, Boone, nor Crockett. Table fare means more to me than a bragging score. Don't get me wrong i have saved every antler from my first 3" spike deer to my biggest 4 x5 deer or the 5 x 6 elk.  They make a nice conversation piece but I will not eat tag soup waiting for a "trophy".

[PolarBear]

Tag soup tastes better than baited venison.

[huntnnw]

Baited venison tastes better than a mt buck 

[500 long]

FYI polarbear I have never harvested game with bait, except fishing. But I would not turn it down if it was a have or have not situation.  Legal is legal. Tag soup is not very nutritious. I hope you feed your family better than that.

[PolarBear]

I raise beef cattle so yes, I do feed my family better than that.  And to me tag soup is much more rewarding than shooting a deer over bait.  I hunt for the challenge not just to fill a tag or "the freezer".  These guys that spend hundreds or thousands of dollars on feed for wild game and claim it is all in the name of "feeding their family" are kidding themselves.  If it is legal and you thing, knock your self out just call it what it is and stop kidding yourself and stop telling everyone how hard you "worked" for that animal.

[buck man]

I raise beef cattle so yes, I do feed my family better than that.

Save the beef for guests and feed the family elk and venison

[huntnnw]

beef no thanks..thousands of dollars in feed and work for not so healthy meat ..Ill pass

[PolarBear]

 

[500 long]

So feeding something inside the fence is OK but feeding outside is immoral. That's interesting.  If you want challenge lets fix our government.  I am not trying to rough the hair on you polarbear. This post ask about the legality of feeding deer. I've had a legal deer under my apple tree a couple times over the last couple weeks and only shot it with my camera.

[huntnnw]

u will never be right 500...polar is an elitest and u probably cheat when u hunt in his eyes...

[PolarBear]

To answer your original question, yes it is legal, knock your socks off.

[NWBREW]

Yes...legal. And just for the record, I love elk and deer meat but sometimes a nice big fat juicy beef ribeye is DAMN good too.

[DBHAWTHORNE]

I raise beef cattle so yes, I do feed my family better than that.  And to me tag soup is much more rewarding than shooting a deer over bait.  I hunt for the challenge not just to fill a tag or "the freezer".  These guys that spend hundreds or thousands of dollars on feed for wild game and claim it is all in the name of "feeding their family" are kidding themselves.  If it is legal and you thing, knock your self out just call it what it is and stop kidding yourself and stop telling everyone how hard you "worked" for that animal.

Do you hunt from a treestand? How you feel about bait is how many hunters feel about "ambushing" those poor helpless animals from treestands. Afterall its not natural to the environment and success more often than not relies more on the efforts of good scouting than the hunt itself. There are some people in the NE United States who follow the Benoit family methods who believe tracking a deer is the purest method of hunting the animal. They see it like this:

Treestand: Scouting/Ambush
Baiting: Scouting/Ambush
Stillhunting: Scouting/Walking Slowly
Spot & Stalk: Scouting/Optics/A light foot
Driving: Scouting for Knowledge of escape routes
Tracking: Hunting the animal down

Of course they do recognize there is some degree of skill in each of these things. Some more so than others. I can't disagree with that.

Do I agree with them as a whole? No...but I can't argue that there is probably no purer way for a man to truely hunt an animal than cutting a track and following it to conclusion himself.

PB by now we all realize that you are the bowhunting master and hunt in the purest since of the tradition. We are mere mortals who bait and don't do any "work" for our animals. Yours is the truest form.                 

[BULLBLASTER]

  awesome post.

[Hyde]

I couldn't care less either way... but is baiting any different than posting up on a water hole, or hunting animals in the rut and using scents and other commercial trickery on them?  Is a bow hunter who uses a compound bow that can zing an arrow 80 yards a "true" primitive hunter?  This debate could go on and on for ever.  As long as it's legal, do what floats your boat, and leave others alone who do the same. 

[h20hunter]

Yes....baiting is VERY different than sitting over a water hole. It takes a ton more work and effort.

I'm all for any legal means of hunting and try and support those that follow the rules and guidelines.

[CedarPants]

I wonder how many people who look at baiting deer as "cheating" would themselves be sitting over a bait pile as soon as possible if WDFW announced baiting bears was now legal

[buckfvr]

I still get a kick that so many people think baiting deer and elk equals sure success.  More like certain frustation.....SO many deer eat where stock is being fed, it would probably be easier to hunt  near wintered up cattle.......

SO, if one was to hunt a private ranch where stock is being fed.......wouldnt that amount to the same thing ?  I think so........  Deer and elk that you see on the farms and ranches are there for the feed........take away the alfalfa, and the animals move.

Given the option, I'd take baited venison over  beef  every day of the week.   Venison is healthier and  far more of a challenge than cattle, even if its baited.

[PolarBear]

Apparently you fans of baiting are the only ones allowed to have an opinion on hunting methods and anyone who disagrees is an "elitist".  I guess that I enjoy the thrill of using outdoors skills such as tracking, reading and deciphering sign, knowing how to read the land and where the critters are more likely to be, etc over artificially drawing them into an area.  But hey, I guess I am an elitist tearing apart the fabric of the brotherhood of hunters for wanting to be more of a traditionalist.     As I have said time and time again. if baiting is your thing, knock yourself out and long as it is legal.  It just ain't for me and yes, I am entitled to my opinion on the subject.

[Wile E. Hunter]

I have no problem with Polar bear's attitude of holding out for the deer he wants, or not filling his tag. I also have no problem with people baiting deer since it's legal here in Washington. If you want to hold out for the deer you want it doesn't make you an elitist, it makes you disciplined. Does that mean that a guy that shoots a legal doe, or a "dink" buck over bait undisciplined? No. It just means that different people have different goals. Some hunters' goals are to fill the freezer, and a year old "dink" buck does nicely for that, and he/she should be proud of it. Other hunters want to pursue a different class of animal for the challenge, and are going to work harder, and will potentially go home without an animal at all. Neither one is wrong. Neither is necessarily an elitist nor undisciplined. As long as it's legal, both are well within reason for me.

Wile E.

[PolarBear]

 
Very well said! 
You said what I believe but apparently am not able to convey.

[bearpaw]

I have no problem with Polar bear's attitude of holding out for the deer he wants, or not filling his tag. I also have no problem with people baiting deer since it's legal here in Washington. If you want to hold out for the deer you want it doesn't make you an elitist, it makes you disciplined. Does that mean that a guy that shoots a legal doe, or a "dink" buck over bait undisciplined? No. It just means that different people have different goals. Some hunters' goals are to fill the freezer, and a year old "dink" buck does nicely for that, and he/she should be proud of it. Other hunters want to pursue a different class of animal for the challenge, and are going to work harder, and will potentially go home without an animal at all. Neither one is wrong. Neither is necessarily an elitist nor undisciplined. As long as it's legal, both are well within reason for me.

Wile E.

An extremely well defined post... I totally agree....

[sirmissalot]

I like to bait in deer to an area I can easily access from my atv with heated seat and grips. With a windshield and turn signals.  (sarcasm)

I don't really care how other people want to hunt. If I kill a 2 point blacktail I've worked my tail off and pack it out in pieces on my back, and you kill a 4 point in your apple trees and haul it to the barn with a tractor, who is going to have a better sense of accomplishment? Thats up to the hunter I guess, I know which one I'd choose.

[DBHAWTHORNE]

Apparently you fans of baiting are the only ones allowed to have an opinion on hunting methods and anyone who disagrees is an "elitist".  I guess that I enjoy the thrill of using outdoors skills such as tracking, reading and deciphering sign, knowing how to read the land and where the critters are more likely to be, etc over artificially drawing them into an area.  But hey, I guess I am an elitist tearing apart the fabric of the brotherhood of hunters for wanting to be more of a traditionalist.     As I have said time and time again. if baiting is your thing, knock yourself out and long as it is legal.  It just ain't for me and yes, I am entitled to my opinion on the subject.

It's  statements like this that result in you being called an elitit:  "just call it what it is and stop kidding yourself and stop telling everyone how hard you "worked" for that animal"

We realize that you are the hardest working hunter in WA and respect that.

The fact that you don't personally don't prefer baiting as a hunting method does not make you an elistist. The fact that you have an opinion on baiting doesn't make you an elitist. However the fact that you put yourself out there as above fellow hunters that do bait makes you an elitist. Oh praise the mighty PB and his mad hunting prowess: 

[PolarBear]

   Hypersensitive much?   

[DBHAWTHORNE]

I have no problem with Polar bear's attitude of holding out for the deer he wants, or not filling his tag. I also have no problem with people baiting deer since it's legal here in Washington. If you want to hold out for the deer you want it doesn't make you an elitist, it makes you disciplined. Does that mean that a guy that shoots a legal doe, or a "dink" buck over bait undisciplined? No. It just means that different people have different goals. Some hunters' goals are to fill the freezer, and a year old "dink" buck does nicely for that, and he/she should be proud of it. Other hunters want to pursue a different class of animal for the challenge, and are going to work harder, and will potentially go home without an animal at all. Neither one is wrong. Neither is necessarily an elitist nor undisciplined. As long as it's legal, both are well within reason for me.

Wile E.

  I agree too.

[DBHAWTHORNE]

  Hypersensitive much?   

Haha...no..just explaining that your assessment that one is called an elitist simply for having a differing opinion is not the case. You and I have  on this many times... It looks like its that time of year again. 

[Bard Skye]

Of course, if one were to go in for *truly* primitive hunting, guns would go away, so would any bow more than a tree limb.  Likewise, other methods would be used that a modern hunter would consider *highly* unethical, as well as illegal.  Such as pit traps, stampeding animals over cliffs, etc.  And you can bet your tail that high lookouts (treestands) and baiting was used whenever possible.

So, just what's the "purest" form of hunting?

I don't have an answer for that. 

Just the legal definition.

If anyone wants to get riled up, let's go after the dude that, after letting off a half dozen shots, says, "I *think* I got him in the ass." 

And I'll admit, I haven't taken very many bucks in my life, over bait or otherwise.  My personal hunting ethic requires one shot, one kill.  If I don't think I can get that, I pass on that buck.

Just my 2 cents.

Skye