Dirt bag ruined the morning's hunt....!

B

bswiv

New member
Dirt bag ruined a perfectly good morning in the woods. And wasted the resource......intentionally!!!

I'll try and keep this short..............

About 10 this morning came upon a hog laying in the swamp. First thought is that he's resting. Get a little closer and realize that he's resting all-right......permanently.

So I start inspecting the situation. Had heard a shot about 2 1/2 hours earlier, thought it might be the one. Blood is still red and moist. Top of hog is cool but when I roll him up the bottom is still a little warm.

He's been shot in the left shoulder. Bullet broke both legs but did not exit. Whoever shot him hit him good. Don't see how he could have run with that kind of damage but looked about for blood trail anyway to see if I could follow it back.

While I'm doing this I realize that the whole area has been trimmed. Palmettos, small trees, limbs, palm fronds, it's cleared out real good. Seeing this I know there must be a stand, or at least a tree he climbed, close by. Takes me a few minutes ( He had it well hidden! ) but about 25 yards away I find his climber.

And leading right up to the climber is a nice clear trail with ribbons.

Now I'm getting aggravated. Fairly obvious this guy shot the hog and left it. It's a perfectly clear shot to the hog and he's laying in the middle of a game trail.

So I call the FWC, both Officer Wilcox who works the area and the Orlando office, just in case Officer Wilcox is off duty. Tell em' what I'm seeing.

After that I call the wife, who's already back to the truck, and fill her in. Tell her I'm coming out of the woods on the trail that went to the stand but don't know for sure where it comes out. She says she'll come down the road and find me.

Follow the trail out. Step out of the woods not a few yards from 2 guys standing at their trucks. Walk over and ask "Who shot the hog?"..............

One guy points to the other and says, "He did". A few more words were exchanged as I dialed the FWC and gave the license plates of both vehicles. The guy who had done the shooting looked ghost white at being caught. The other guy got belligerent.

After giving them a ear full about wasting what belonged to ALL of us (PUBLIC LAND!) I walked off down the road with the belligerent one following.

In a FLA WMA what he did is defined as "willful & wanton" waste of wildlife.

Now I know a lot of folks will say "It's just a hog!" And you'd be right as far as that goes. And truth too that in many places hogs are a problem, grant that.

But, and this is a BIG but, this was on a WMA where a lot of folks who pay good money to hunt would love to have harvested that hog. It was not his "right" to deprive those folks of the opportunity simply because he felt, for whatever reasons, like shooting that hog and leaving it.

Hope the FWC nails him. Also hope the beligerent one doesn't decide to take it out on my truck when he sees it in the woods. But then dirt bags will be dirt bags...................
 
Might want to cover your vehicle with a trail camera, just in case. it likely won't get you paid back, but it'll help get him prosecuted for criminal damage if it happens.

I won't say "it's just a hog". I hate wasting such things, and figure if I can use it, I will.

Some states define hogs as "feral" though, so they aren't covered under the law the same as a deer, antelope, bear, elk, etc. They're seen as an invasive species, so removal by killing them is generally accepted and encouraged...no matter whether the meat is wasted or utilized.

I don't disagree with your views, but be awware that the state may or may not seee it as a criminal act.

Daryl
 
You did the right thing. An all of us should'nt say 'Well it's just a Hog"! I would have done the same thing! That was a smart move an them sob's needa be punished good an big!! People like that put bad names on hunter's! We love to do what we do an people like that aint a real hunter, Their just no good dirtbags!! But GoodJob on the call an hope he get's what he deserves!!:mad:
 
Daryl, Florida does consider the "wild hogs" to be "feral domestic livestock" upon private land but they consider them to be "possession of the land owner" (them on WMA) so the state consideres them "nearly game" in that they put seasons and possible limits for WMA's. As much as I have ass shot hogs to let them lay and rot for landowners... I was doing a service on private land and would never consider doing the same on a WMA for the same reason bswiv declared... "Some one else would love to harvest it"...
bswiv... If you ever need my "chapter" of the "redneck mafia" to make an appearence... Keep that tag number and lemme know...:D Nothin' like lettin' mrs.hogdogs vent her frustration on an "internal cleansing device":eek:
Brent
 
I wish people like that could have their hunting license permanently revoked. I understand nuisance animal control, but other than that, if I shoot it, I eat it.
 
HOGDOGS:

Hopefully the "redneck mafia" will be unneeded........ but it's a comfort to know it's there should it be.

It was a really unpleasant way to end the morning...........
 
This does make my blood boil too. A few years back my hunting buddy and I were doing some spring scouting. We came across 3 or 4 deer carcasses that someone had dumped back on state land. The odor and flies were not good!:barf: All but one deer were boned out, some tossed about, but some in garbage bags. One deer was still completely intact; she had been skinned and the legs were disarticulated at the carpal and stifle joints, but otherwise none of the meat had been removed. We couldn't believe it.... but the moron that dumped the carcasses had actually forgot to remove the MN site tag with his name, address, etc. :D Needless to say, we contacted the local CO; he went out there and examined it and nailed the guy for the Will and Wanton waste of wildlife. People that do things like this aren't the sharpest tools in the shed, thankfully, their mistakes do eventually catch up w/ them.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top