Survey - Do you count animals you couldn't retrieve in your bag limit?

Do you include lost game in your bag limit?

  • Never. I keep hunting until I harvest

    Votes: 31 32.3%
  • Only with small game and waterfowl

    Votes: 4 4.2%
  • Not with big game

    Votes: 2 2.1%
  • Yes, always! I shot it, I count it

    Votes: 30 31.3%
  • Depends on the situation

    Votes: 22 22.9%
  • Yes, because it forces me to only take clean, ethical shots

    Votes: 11 11.5%

  • Total voters
    96
  • Poll closed .
If you shoot a deer and it runs off and dies and you can't find it I really hope you would feel bad for killing that animal for nothing.
Not sure if everyone would stop hunting or not but just because you have a tag in your pocket doesn't mean you can go around and kill things. What if it happens a second or third time?
I'd hope most hunters would have respect for animals but with the way the world is going I dont rely heavily on people having good ethics anymore.
 
Define "lost" game.

Quite easy to determine when birds drop dead. Sometimes birds are lost because they can be difficult to see where they have fallen, sometimes in heavy cover or sometimes in a swamp. It can be difficult to locate a grouse or woodcock without the aid of a dog. Birds that fall into snow can also be challenging to find at times if they fall through said snow. Also hard to find waterfowl that fall in weed beds with thick cover. Dogs certainly improve your chance of recovery, but not all bird hunters hunt with dogs.

Also easy to see when waterfowl has been badly winged, which may not be immediately fatal, but a migratory bird with a broken wing(s) is as good as dead in my opinion
 
If you shoot a deer and it runs off and dies and you can't find it I really hope you would feel bad for killing that animal for nothing.
Not sure if everyone would stop hunting or not but just because you have a tag in your pocket doesn't mean you can go around and kill things. What if it happens a second or third time?
I'd hope most hunters would have respect for animals but with the way the world is going I dont rely heavily on people having good ethics anymore.

Actually a tag in your pocket does mean you can go around killing things(in a legal manner).

If you have hunted long enough there will be a time that you are someone you know hits and animal that isn't/can't be recovered, it happens.You didn't kill that animal for nothing , that is a very shrewd statement to make.Even by law you must make every reasonable attempt to retrieve it and are not at fault if you fail to recover the animal.

You should have a little more faith in people, also, if you are sensitive maybe those folks shouldn't hunt, after all you are killing an animal.

Sometimes things out of our control can happen , you cannot with 100% certainty say what is going to happen once that bullet leaves the end of the barrel, yes you can mitigate the factors but nothing is for sure.

So, if you can't handle the possibility of wounding or not recovering game, stick to paper targets.

Yes, this is turning into an "I'm better than you" thread.
 
I lost a doe 4 years ago, was the first big game animal I was unable to retrieve. I did continue to hunt the rest of that week, I did however feel like #### over it.

The worst part was we found it 2 weeks later........right where it was shot. We followed the blood trail for a couple hundred meters then lost it. Searched for hrs in the area where it dried up, never even considered it would go right back to where it was shot. Lesson learned for sure.
 
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Actually a tag in your pocket does mean you can go around killing things(in a legal manner).

If you have hunted long enough there will be a time that you are someone you know hits and animal that isn't/can't be recovered, it happens.You didn't kill that animal for nothing , that is a very shrewd statement to make.Even by law you must make every reasonable attempt to retrieve it and are not at fault if you fail to recover the animal.

You should have a little more faith in people, also, if you are sensitive maybe those folks shouldn't hunt, after all you are killing an animal.

Sometimes things out of our control can happen , you cannot with 100% certainty say what is going to happen once that bullet leaves the end of the barrel, yes you can mitigate the factors but nothing is for sure.

So, if you can't handle the possibility of wounding or not recovering game, stick to paper targets.

Yes, this is turning into an "I'm better than you" thread.

So just because you have a tag you can kill multiple deer?

Mistakes happen, bad shots happen, I get it but if people know they can't hit the side of a barn door at 300 yards and take the shot anyway then you are not a responsible hunter. If you think someone is "sensitive" for feeling bad for wounding an animal then maybe you are the irresponsible hunter.
 
So just because you have a tag you can kill multiple deer?

Mistakes happen, bad shots happen, I get it but if people know they can't hit the side of a barn door at 300 yards and take the shot anyway then you are not a responsible hunter. If you think someone is "sensitive" for feeling bad for wounding an animal then maybe you are the irresponsible hunter.

That's not how I read his post at all, maybe take a moment and reread it.
 
So just because you have a tag you can kill multiple deer?

Mistakes happen, bad shots happen, I get it but if people know they can't hit the side of a barn door at 300 yards and take the shot anyway then you are not a responsible hunter. If you think someone is "sensitive" for feeling bad for wounding an animal then maybe you are the irresponsible hunter.

Did I say that? You are projecting and taking words out of context.

Did you read anything I typed?

You totally missed the point of what I wrote and now you are adding factors of shooting ability to fit your narrative.

I did not say just keeping shooting until you get one you like.

Potentially losing game is part of hunting , if you can't handle that aspect , then maybe hunting isn't for you.

You are starting to troll looking for a reaction.
 
Did I say that? You are projecting and taking words out of context.

Did you read anything I typed?

You totally missed the point of what I wrote and now you are adding factors of shooting ability to fit your narrative.

I did not say just keeping shooting until you get one you like.

Potentially losing game is part of hunting , if you can't handle that aspect , then maybe hunting isn't for you.

You are starting to troll looking for a reaction.

I said what if it happens two or three times, just because you have a tag in your pocket doesn't mean you can just kill things.
You said yes it does. Then said people are "sensitive" and if they "can't handle it" and said it was turning into "I'm better than you" thread. So who's trolling?
 
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Its probably never going to happen two or three times to someone in one season but for the sake of this conversation I'm saying that if it does, it's on the hunter. That's not a mistake, and they should stop hunting for that season.
 
Just to derail this thread a bit more....... Talking about being sensitive........I always feel bad when I kill an animal...... be it a deer or a coyote.... but I also feel good about it too.... It's mixed emotions for me and I suspect for most as well.....

Knowing I hit something with a poor shot makes me feel only one way........................and that's..................bad/sh##ty........
 
Just to derail this thread a bit more....... Talking about being sensitive........I always feel bad when I kill an animal...... be it a deer or a coyote.... but I also feel good about it too.... It's mixed emotions for me and I suspect for most as well.....

Knowing I hit something with a poor shot makes me feel only one way........................and that's..................bad/sh##ty........

This is describes my experiences as well. I love the hunt and what it provides, but I do feel mixed emotions when I kill my game. Makes me reflect and be thankful, thats for sure.
 
Just to derail this thread a bit more....... Talking about being sensitive........I always feel bad when I kill an animal...... be it a deer or a coyote.... but I also feel good about it too.... It's mixed emotions for me and I suspect for most as well.....

Knowing I hit something with a poor shot makes me feel only one way........................and that's..................bad/sh##ty........

Same with me
 
Quite easy to determine when birds drop dead. Sometimes birds are lost because they can be difficult to see where they have fallen, sometimes in heavy cover or sometimes in a swamp. It can be difficult to locate a grouse or woodcock without the aid of a dog. Birds that fall into snow can also be challenging to find at times if they fall through said snow. Also hard to find waterfowl that fall in weed beds with thick cover. Dogs certainly improve your chance of recovery, but not all bird hunters hunt with dogs.

Also easy to see when waterfowl has been badly winged, which may not be immediately fatal, but a migratory bird with a broken wing(s) is as good as dead in my opinion

The poll isn't limited to winged animals,
 
I said what if it happens two or three times, just because you have a tag in your pocket doesn't mean you can just kill things.
You said yes it does. Then said people are "sensitive" and if they "can't handle it" and said it was turning into "I'm better than you" thread. So who's trolling?

If it happens two or three times and you still don't have a tag validated or used then you are likely going to be going without game meat and may be hungry.

And again, an unused tag means yes , you can just go kill things if you do it legally and made every reasonable effort to retrieve said previously hit/wounded game.

If your "feelers" come into play then maybe backgammon is a more suitable past time.I'm not trolling, I'm telling you how hunting is.Have respect for the game , the chase, the lifestyle , what it is.

Losing game is part of hunting , it isn't a condemn-able act.If you are a poor hunter/shot/stalker then it's upon you to improve your skill set.
 
I've been lucky, I guess, because I've never shot a big game animal that got away. That could be because I've never taken a shot at one that was over 100 yds.

Birds are another matter. Before I got my dog, I'd estimate that I lost probably one out of every eight or so upland birds that I shot. Those that hit the ground running are particularly hard to find. After getting the dog, it was more like one out of a hundred. I only hunted migratory birds for one season in my 20's and I don't recall losing any. That was primarily because our spot allowed us to shoot them as they came off the water and they fell on land.

Regardless of how many I or anyone else lost, I agree with the previous poster who pointed out that the law (here, at least) reads "possession" limit. There are also laws about how the carcass is treated and the use of the meat. So, my interpretation of these laws is that a hunter must make reasonable efforts to locate and retrieve any game he/she has shot. If those efforts fail to even find the animal, you are not at fault. Any bending of those laws, because the hunter wanted a more desirable animal for example, could and should (IMO) result in charges.

That's the legal side of things. Then, there's ethics. When we can't all agree on what's legal, we're not likely to agree on what's ethical. My personal standard is that I won't shoot anything I don't eat afterwards. That is, in fact, why I don't hunt migratory - don't want to have to eat them. If it were just a shooting exercise, I'd blast away at 'em. But it isn't. This may sound corny, but I see hunting as a survival skill. And, to me survival doesn't include killing for fun.
 
I've been lucky, I guess, because I've never shot a big game animal that got away. That could be because I've never taken a shot at one that was over 100 yds.

Birds are another matter. Before I got my dog, I'd estimate that I lost probably one out of every eight or so upland birds that I shot. Those that hit the ground running are particularly hard to find. After getting the dog, it was more like one out of a hundred. I only hunted migratory birds for one season in my 20's and I don't recall losing any. That was primarily because our spot allowed us to shoot them as they came off the water and they fell on land.

Regardless of how many I or anyone else lost, I agree with the previous poster who pointed out that the law (here, at least) reads "possession" limit. There are also laws about how the carcass is treated and the use of the meat. So, my interpretation of these laws is that a hunter must make reasonable efforts to locate and retrieve any game he/she has shot. If those efforts fail to even find the animal, you are not at fault. Any bending of those laws, because the hunter wanted a more desirable animal for example, could and should (IMO) result in charges.

That's the legal side of things. Then, there's ethics. When we can't all agree on what's legal, we're not likely to agree on what's ethical. My personal standard is that I won't shoot anything I don't eat afterwards. That is, in fact, why I don't hunt migratory - don't want to have to eat them. If it were just a shooting exercise, I'd blast away at 'em. But it isn't. This may sound corny, but I see hunting as a survival skill. And, to me survival doesn't include killing for fun.

Agreed. I don’t kill for fun. I love everything about hunting but the killing of an animal isn’t something that I’m proud of.
 
The poll isn't limited to winged animals,

You are correct and thats because hunting isn't limited to winged animals only. This is posted in the hunting thread so that all hunters can participate in the conversation regardless of what type of hunt they participate in. Also why I included options for small game/ waterfowl hunting only and big game hunting only...so those who participate in one but not both can response and share their thoughts
 
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