Ontario Elk Hunt this Fall
- Thread starter Millar
- Start date
-They have devastated the crops of every farm in the bancroft area taking away many families livelihood.
-They have lived for 10yrs with no pressure from humans its kind of like hunting a caged animal that you have hand raised for 10yrs.
-Increase in Auto/Elk accidents
-Larger game attracts larger numbers of predators which also has a negative effect on Deer herds which are already suffering from a few consecutively harsh winters 2007/2008.
I was talking to my Tenant yesterday about this he said his friend has a Cattle farm in Bancroft they put in 65 acres of feed corn this year. When they went to combine it they only got 15tonnes of corn off the entire property. My 45acre farm produced 3tonnes per acre for a total of 135 tonnes. They counted between 50-75 Elk in the fields when they were taking the corn off. He now has to buy feed for the cows at 10x the cost of growing it your self.
Sure reintroducing a species is great but at what cost?
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I agree that the first year..maybe the second as well will be a slaughter...but they'll smarten up. As far as crop damage...there are LOTS of farmers across the west that are able to deal with elk and still make a very good living.
I for one am all for governments and NGO's creating more hunting opportunity.
I for one am all for governments and NGO's creating more hunting opportunity.
Your comparing farms that span 1000s of acres to hobby size farms in Ontario not the same at all. Sure loosing 65acres of corn when you have 1500 acres is not a huge deal and you can claim a loss. But loosing 65 acres when all you have is 65acres is a little bit different how do you suggest Ontario farmers who loose their entire crop "make a very good living"?....Not sure you grasp the concept that farms in this area are 1/24th the size of the crop farms out west the average farm size in the Bancroft area is 100acres with 40-75 acres of crop land a herd of 150elk can clean that out in a couple months or less. Sure you get to claim a loss but it would be better to have the cash in your pocket then a huge loss each year people need money to live they can't live off tax write off's.
Farmers here are not allowed to "deal" with the elk like farmers in the west can. All they can do here is sit and watch a herd gorge them self on their lively hood until its all gone. No nuisance tags are issued to farmers here and the farmers are not allowed to protect their crops some tried fences but a bull Elk will destroy a chain link fence in 2.5 seconds.
I am part-owner of a hunt property in Bancroft Area (20 minutes drive from the city). I regularly hunt/hike in the area. Very surprised to hear that Bancroft is refered to, as a farming community. Bancroft sits on the top of the Canadian Shield. Not the best place for crop farming. you will be hard pressed to find a few acres of crop land North of Apsley. Probably, why it was chosen to re-introduce Elk to Ontario. Lamber and hunt camps are by far largest business's in the area and Elk is good for both (at least for hunting).
There are a large number of hobby sized farms in the Bancroft area. Most people that farm crops there do it to feed cattle making it even more devastating when the elk destroy what little they have.
You think seasonal hunt cams are the biggest business in Bancrfot ahahahaha. How much do you contribute to the community while your there hunting?...I'm sure a fraction of a fraction of what land owners and farmers who live there year round do so sorry when I agree people's needs who make permanent residence in the area should trump the needs/wants of seasonal hunters.
I grew up in ON, and am aware that farms there are considerably smaller than farms in the west. There are alot of farmers here that raise beef without a huge land base.
I don't know what you are referring to when you say "deal" with elk. Destroy a fence in 2.5 seconds....come on...I live in the country out here and own land (I do not farm it myself however) and many of my friends are farmers. They routinely use fences, stack bales or feed close to their house, and some of the fellas even chase elk out of their alfalfa stands in the winter months with pick-ups, quads, sleds, etc...rather than just watch them eat their crop... I know elk can cause farmers alot of grief but I also know enough guys, work with enough guys, and have spent enough time on farms to know that it is a manage-able situation.
Hoo-ray for ON hunters! I am glad there is some new, unique opportunity for folks there.
Lots of farms east and south of Bancroft. You can often see elk along hwy 7 if driving from Ottawa to Peterborough.
They have migrated down to the Kingston/Napanee area now and are enjoying quite a feast of corn, soy beans, and grain down here, and they will never be hunted (legally) this far south.
Part of the farmer issue here is, a lot of them are hobby farmers with day jobs, and cannot watch over their crops all day.
There was an issue here a few years back, where the deer population was exploding and they were damaging crops. After no help from the Gov, some land owner associations decided to cull the deer themselves. Was a shame to have 100's of deer shot and buried, but the gov took the hint and increased the tags in the those areas. One of the association presidents is now our MPP...
Give the man a prize he grew up in Ontario when there were no elk here so he must be an expert.
Do your friends routinely have 75+ elk in one 20acre field at a given time? some times up to 150?....I highly doubt it my friend and your ignorance is showing we are here we see what is happening right now. The elk are devastating the crops in the area and ruining peoples livelihood. We are talking a herd of 600+ animals with in a hundred square miles or less there is no density of elk like that out west period so your comparisons don't hold any weight.
Farmers have erected 12ft fences just to have them destroyed by the elk have you seen a 1500lb bull elk?. I'm guessing not if your skeptical about one destroying a fence.
Never heard about elk in Peterborough as far as I know they go north from bancroft not west. Even if that's the case its still only 100km from Ptbo to Bancroft.
Will do It only takes one to open a hole in a fence and they get huge when they only eat corn, soy, wheat and peas oh and farmers alfalfa hay that is supposed to be for their cows in the winter.
lazyfarmer
CGN Regular
- Location
- S.W.Ontario
srt4u2nv, I have been reading about your problems for several years through various articles in farming magazines and cannot believe the amount and extent of damage they have caused. At the same time OFAH has ignored all negative coverage in their publication Ontario Out of Doors, only commenting from time to time on the steady growth of the herd. Much like the turkeys, which they helped reintroduce, they ignore the negative aspects of their actions and the financial burden it places on the landowner. I guess you actually have to BE a farmer to apperciate this problem. I give you guys a lot of credit for patience, cause I have to admit from the time I first read about this i have been expecting a story where somebody finally lost it and plugged one just to make a statement. I like hunting as much as the next guy but to justify the elk reintroduction in this area by saying it was former habitat is ludicrous. There are probably a lot of back yards in T.O. that were former habitat several hundred years ago too but times change and they no more fit there than in the farmyards of Bancroft
Hmm not sure what the real problem here is ? Is it that semi domesticated elk were transplanted from places like Banf and moved into cottage country Ontario where they (elk) could be unharmed , or un hunted like Banf.
If a wild animal has no fear of humans it will dominate.
I see the problem with this being government oriented and in Alberta we just deal with life as it comes,because here we think for ourselves and deal with the problems!!
PS. Elk don't just eat! They piss and nothing else will eat the feed. For me 1800 TONS of feed wrecked on the family farm and ranch, so I think I understand you Ont boys.
If a wild animal has no fear of humans it will dominate.
I see the problem with this being government oriented and in Alberta we just deal with life as it comes,because here we think for ourselves and deal with the problems!!
PS. Elk don't just eat! They piss and nothing else will eat the feed. For me 1800 TONS of feed wrecked on the family farm and ranch, so I think I understand you Ont boys.
NolanOsborn
Regular
- Location
- British Columbia
I hope that once we can start hunting them it will help things out for the farmers. It still doesn't seem as bad as the MNR re-introing cougars in our area, and then denying that they exist in Ontario...
Who really cares out of everything said you pick that to hold on to?... yawn...
Fine a 750lb bull elk with a full grown rack will make mince meat of any fence it wants to get threw!. Cows do it all the time and they don't have a huge set of tools on their head to make the job easier.
