Baiting Report from DNR

[SkunkedAgain]

Saw this on the DNR HSOforum. Interesting numbers:

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News Releases

DNR releases baiting numbers

(Released January 5, 2010)

The Minnesota Department of Natural Resources (DNR) has finalized information related to baiting violations that were investigated by Minnesota conservation officers during the 2009 deer seasons.

* Conservation officers received 545 baiting complaints during the 2009 deer seasons (archery, firearms, muzzleloader), resulting in 129 citations being issued and 140 firearms seized.

* Half of the conservation officers encountered other hunting violations while conducting baiting investigations, including tagging/validation violations, 52 percent; no license, 27 percent; and trespass, 25 percent.

* Apples, corn and sugar beets dispersed in open areas figured in 87 percent of deer baiting cases this season.

* Officers reported that nearly 60 percent of the hunters who were cited for violations admitted to conservation officers that they knew baiting was illegal, but chose to do it anyway.

* Nearly 50 percent of the persons cited offered that they were aware of baiting regulations through DNR Enforcement Division news releases, media reports, or the Minnesota Hunting and Trapping Regulations Handbook.

Deer baiting is strategically placing a pile of food near deer stands or clearings in hopes of luring a deer into close range. Nationally, 28 states ban the practice in any form, while 22 allow it (eight with significant restrictions).

[jlm]

I am actually surprised that is all the complaints they got and all the citations that were issued. There is much more baiting going on out there than that! Just a thought out loud I guess

[rcook72]

What got me was the second week of bow someone puts a ladder stand, saltlick and a pile of grapes on a treeline of public WMA and doesn't think someone was going to report it. I thought about taking the bottom half of the ladder and hidding it in the woods but left it alone. I just called the TIP line.

[tybo]

I like the No License 27% and Tresspassing 25%. That's classy.

[Mr.690]

What is the rule on baiting during the off season....for deer in particular?

[Code-Man]

You may hunt but you can't hunt over food for 2 weeks after food is gone...something like that. I know I used apples to help with trail cam pictures and once they were gone and time passed I could hunt.

[jigginjim]

I have heard of guys having bait out in fields, But these guys are hunt trails 150 yds away from the baited areas. Thats is still not legal, even though they can not see the bait, it causes animals to act unnaturally.

[schmoe147]

I think the DNR needs to make baiting illegal year around. I think hunting has changed alot from years back. People are getting lazier and lazier. Do a little work before the hunt and scout instead of putting out corn

[lungdeflator]

lazy is exactly the word for it. But the DNR needs to do a better job. 545 complaints and only 129 citations? Holy cow! so 416 baiters got off with a slap on the wrist? how can you expect people to take these laws seriouisly if you cannot enforce them seriously? Also the punishment for those citations needs to be serious enough for people not to ever want to do it

[hockeybc69]

Quote:

But the DNR needs to do a better job. 545 complaints and only 129 citations? Holy cow!

How many CO's do we have in this state????

You want more citations? Well, go call Nobama and have some Stimulus money sent here to hire another 500 CO's to cover the acres better.

Blame the DNR.... Laughable.

[Scoot]

I would like to keep more deer on my mother-in-law's small property this coming hunting season. It's basically a piece of woods about 400 yards long and 40-100 yards wide, with a little wider spot on one end. It consistently holds deer, but they get run out of there each year when poachers drive out the woods. My hope is that I can keep the poachers out this year.

I'd like to plant a food plot, but there's no reasonable place for one. So, I'm considering a corn feeder to help keep deer in the area. This might not be a popular approach given some of the sentiment above. The logical place for the feeder is about 150 yards from where I usually put a stand. I don't want to hunt "over the feeder" and don't care to try really change any behavior of the deer by putting the feeder out, other than to keep them in the general area so they don't get pushed all over the country during the gun season.

How far from the feeder would I need to put a stand so I don't run into problems with baiting?

[fivebucks]

My take on the law is you would have to remove the feeder and all feed on the ground 10 days before season to be legal to hunt. If the feeder is on your property during a season you are hunting, you are baiting. You can be 400 yards away but if the deer go past your stand to get to the feeder you can be pinched.

[DonBo]

545 complaints and only 129 citations? Holy cow! so 416 baiters got off with a slap on the wrist?

Not all complaints lead to a citation for several reasons.

I called the TIP line last year on a guy that was baiting, a CO came to check it out, but the bait was alraedy gone. Nothing he could do.

[Musky Buck]

My suggestion Scoot is it sounds like you wouldn't need a feeder if the poachers would stay out. Wouldn't you worry that the poachers would likely just steal your feeder ? I'd take care of problem # 1 before I would crank up the corn machine or that will just allow the poachers to drive out more or shoot more whatever the case may be. It would be nice if we all could have food water and shelter to hunt, but that's not the case for a lot of us. Scoot sounds like mom-in-law has about 20 acres roughly, what is the carrying capacity of 20 acres ? 10 deer or so ? Good luck with the poachers which sounds more like a trespass issue.

[BobT]

Quote:

I have heard of guys having bait out in fields, But these guys are hunt trails 150 yds away from the baited areas. Thats is still not legal, even though they can not see the bait, it causes animals to act unnaturally.

Is there a defined distance here? 150 yards is a long way away if you're talking the north woods. I don't think we have more distance between our farthest deer stands and we have probably a half-dozen stands in the area.

Quote:

I think the DNR needs to make baiting illegal year around. I think hunting has changed alot from years back. People are getting lazier and lazier. Do a little work before the hunt and scout instead of putting out corn

Are we confusing baiting with feeding? Baiting is used with the expressed intention to lure animals for the kill. Feeding would have the same effect with a different result. So do you mean you want to outlaw feeding?

[Musky Buck]

All I can figure is baiting must be pretty effective for people to risk the weapon they are using. I think it's like big deal so what that I bait for a couple weeks in November. My party is buying our tags and everyone else is doing it anyways. Not sure how they justify it, anyone willing to step up and admit you do it and the reasons for it and successes or failures with it in MN only ?

[Scoot]

My suggestion Scoot is it sounds like you wouldn't need a feeder if the poachers would stay out. Wouldn't you worry that the poachers would likely just steal your feeder ? I'd take care of problem # 1 before I would crank up the corn machine or that will just allow the poachers to drive out more or shoot more whatever the case may be. It would be nice if we all could have food water and shelter to hunt, but that's not the case for a lot of us. Scoot sounds like mom-in-law has about 20 acres roughly, what is the carrying capacity of 20 acres ? 10 deer or so ? Good luck with the poachers which sounds more like a trespass issue.

Musky Buck, I think you are exactly right- the much bigger issue is people who don't know how to abide by the law. I've taken some steps to (hopefully) assure that I won't have the same problems again next year, but we'll see...

I do think that if I can provide a place where the deer won't get pushed, will have water and cover, and will have pretty easy access to food, I'll be able to keep quite a few around there. Musky Buck, I'm guessing you're typically right regarding the number of deer I could expect to be around there. However, during the gun season I think I could keep a ton of deer there if I could keep the poachers out. I'm still not sure I can do that though because it's tough for me to be there during the week. I do have several locals keeping an eye on it for me though and they will call the CO and sherrif if I'm not there.

My cousin has a six acre farmstead, about half of which is wooded. He typically has between zero and two deer in his yard. About two weeks before gun season he cranks up a feeder. It's not uncommon to see three dozen deer in his yard during the gun season! They don't get bothered in there and they have access to food and water. Point is, when everywhere else is getting lots of pressure, small and safe little hidey holes can provide a home to a lot of deer. Hopefully I can make that be the case in my mother-in-law's piece of woods.

But, like I mentioned in my initial post- I'm not trying to bait deer so I can shoot them over a feed pile. I'd just like them to be around her woods so I can get a crack at them.

[deerminator]

I dont think there is a defined distance from feeders is there? It's just knowingly hunting in the vicinity of one. It's a smell test I believe. If there's any hint that it might be against the rules, it likely is. I think the DNR could cite you if you were 100 yards or a mile away if the situation smelled fishy enough. And almost for certain if the feeder was anywhere on the property you hunt.

This is exactly the reason all of our bird feeders come down from around the house during hunting season on our property. Because since they elminated the birdfeeder loophole, I can see some Yahoo calling the DNR if I were ever to take a really big buck off of it. Point being, I'd rather be safe than sorry, even if I don't believe having birdfeeders in our backyard is technically baiting. Say the buck eats out of the feeder in the early morning hours and then heads over to our woods where my stand is. Bam, possible baiting citation, even though I hadn't intended it. And even though we've never had deer at the feeders except in the dead of winter when there's nothing left to eat. Still, rather be safe than sorry.

[Musky Buck]

Hey Scoot I agree, you can keep a bunch in there if those bozo's will stay away, in my area once a smaller like area is scented up the deer high tail for the next undisturbed area, it is unreal how they can find a 5 acre willow patch and have a dozen bedded in there. I used to think deer sniffing around so much on the ground and tree limbs etc. that that was just part of the rut and knowing what deer are around etc. I'm sure that still goes on a lot but now opening day when I see this some I'm thinking they are figuring out where the people and pressure are and where they need to go to find a safe zone.

[Musky Buck]

Oh no, just took a big kick in the face, deer and bait and etc. mean zero to me as my grandma just had a stroke and likely nothing can be done. Oh no. She always liked it when I'd drive to her house and show her a deer if I got one, reality check to the fullest. Tell your loved ones tonight you love em.

[96trigger]

Sorry Musky, hope your doing OK.

[Scoot]

MB, sorry to hear that- sounds like a definite reality check. I wish you and your family the best.

[Musky Buck]

Isn't life crazy, groundhog's day and everything, I'll never forget our trips walking through the woods, boy does it put hunting and it's related issues way on the back burner, got a feeling this one will really change my life, it already has, thanks guys and off to Fargo immediately.

[FCspringer]

Oh no, just took a big kick in the face, deer and bait and etc. mean zero to me as my grandma just had a stroke and likely nothing can be done. Oh no. She always liked it when I'd drive to her house and show her a deer if I got one, reality check to the fullest. Tell your loved ones tonight you love em.

Thoughts go out MB. To you and your family, I know how you feel. I lost both my Grandmas this year, both within 6 months. They were the last grandparents I had. It feels wierd not having them around. All one can do is remember all the good times, it is amazing how when my GP's are gone, how I can remember the times even way back, as a brat in diapers almost. Things and times I never thought of or remembered till they were gone. Kinda gets the eye fluid going once and a while. Hang in there

[FCspringer]

Sorry to hear that MB.