Anti-Poaching PR Campaign

[grizzly]

An IDFG warden told me that for every 1 trophy buck killed legally in Idaho, IDFG estimates 7 are poached. That is ridiculous.

I know a kid that brags about driving around shooting deer with a .22 for fun. The local game warden occasionally knocks on his door to try and scare him straight, but they don't have any proof and the kid has never been arrested.

I think very few poachers can keep their mouths shut when they shoot a big deer. It is just that their buddies don't want to be a snitch and turn them in.

I would like to see Utah DWR pull tags from SFW/MDF and have "Poacher Tags". And make them very good tags (OIL, San Juan, or Henry Mtn). Then have a separate drawing only for those that turned in poachers in the previous year. I just wonder if the possibility of a San Juan Elk tag would be enough incentive to get people to turn in their neighbor. The reward of the tag might be enough that it becomes "cool" to turn in poachers because, "Hey, I got an elk tag from it."

We need to find something to get these people caught. I think they do far more damage to OUR herds than most people think. You could maybe argue that no poachers would help herds more than what SFW does currently.

Any thoughts?

 

[Cornhusker]

Why is an incentive needed to do what is right? I've turned in several poachers that were found or plead guilty. I bet many perhaps most on MM have. I have nothing against taking tags from SFW (not trying to turn it into that kind of thread.) Hell yes I've turned in my neighbor for intentionally poaching an animal and will again. I don't think you should need a bribe for doing the right thing.

 

[huntinfanatic]

As far as I know Utah does do something similar. When you turn in a poacher and they are convicted you get a permit the following year for the same species and unit the animal was poached in. I think thats how Founder got his Paunsaugant tag.

 

[TOPGUN]

IMHO a person that knows and doesn't turn the poacher in is as bad as the poacher himself. There should not need to be any incentive to do what is right!

 

[Zeke]

YES. Utah has just such a program.

The issue was succinctly addressed by a previou poster. "why do we need an incentive to do the right thing?"

I'd turn in anyone and everyone for poaching and I think most posters on here would too!

The fines need to be stiffer for the blatant trophy poacher. ie; lifetime hunting rights revoked for the entire Western Hemisphere! NO JOKE! That would get their attention.

Zeke

 

[justr_86]

I turned then i'm before I knew I could get a tag... Had a fun hunt with my reward tag!

 

[grizzly]

So maybe a big PR campaign saying, "Turn in a Poacher, get a tag!"

 

[SMOKESTICK]

Grizzly,

You introduced this as an Idaho issue. Perhaps, you should be asking if Idaho has any kind of program to curtail poaching. I don't know of any program over there, but I haven't followed a lot of Idaho's laws either. Might already have something.

 

[grizzly]

I don't think it is a utah or idaho issue. I think it is a poaching issue. I was just using idfg as an example since that is the warden I spoke with. The fact that we don't know the reward programs tells me a PR campaign could be helpful.

 

[Trammer]

I agree with TopGun and Cornhusker. Poaching rewards are problematic because they offer witness an incentive to lie. People tend to embellish facts when they have a $10,000. incentive to do so and sportsman should be turning poachers in anyway.

 

[grizzly]

I agree the sportsman should turn in poachers, and I always will. But many people don't.

Look at the numbers of poached animals according to dwr estimates and the large poaching ring busts made recently. Are you telling me that nobody else knew about those poachers? I don't buy it. People aren't reporting their buddies, neighbors, family, etc...

We need self-reporting, whether incentivised or not. Fish cops can't do half the good that the public can do to stop this problem.