How do the fish cops do it?

[travishunter3006]

If you are a local fish and game warden, and you enjoy hunting as well, how do you do it? Do you have regualr hunting dates as the general public? Are you on or off duty if you are hunting during the general season? Anybody a fishy cop on here?

 

[mntman]

I am not one but during school one of my friends dad was a MN game warden. He was always working during the hunting seasons and if he wasn't working during hunting hours he was sleeping cause he would be catching poachers in the middle of the night.
The only thing I could see that he would be able to do was fish and that was because it was basically year round.
I thought of doing that as a job but after I thought about it, I was not willing to sacrifice my own outdoor activities to patrol others in the outdoors.


Mntman

"Hunting is where you prove yourself"

 

[Flint]

LAST EDITED ON Mar-02-11 AT 02:38PM (MST)[p]My grandpa was a game warden for several years and during those years, he rarely got to hunt. If he did get a day to go, however, he knew where to find the animals.

I also used to work with a guy from a rural area in Idaho who had never been hunting. I asked him how that happened. He said his dad was a butcher so every year during deer season his dad was working and he had to help.

 

[AWHOLELOTTABULL]

I don't think they get to hunt near as much as they want to. I know of a couple that hunt but they are never "off duty". Most of the wardens I know hunt out of state because they are pretty busy during our hunting seasons.


It's always an adventure!!!

 

[foundation]

I know a few of them , and they all say the same thing about not being able to hunt as much as they would like . I thought about that job when I was younger , and after talking with a bunch of them , and realizing I wouldn't be able to hunt as much as I wanted I changed my career ambitions .

 

[justr_86]

I know that some officers don't even want to hunt anymore after patrolling for a few years. Ruined it for them.

2 close friends come to mind.

 

[elkster9]

I wanted to be a Game Warden until my father told me that I would be working long hours during hunting season. That was enough for me to say No Thanks. Its a tough job, that is undermanned/underpaid in most states and I appreciate the work they do.

 

[longshooter338]

>I know that some officers don't
>even want to hunt anymore
>after patrolling for a few
>years. Ruined it for them.
>
>
>2 close friends come to mind.
>
>
>

Doug was verry good at his job in his day if he is who you are refering to !




'IT AINT EASY BEING ME'

 

[woodruffhunter]

Its hard to think of many jobs that could be worse...

If you were a Game Warden that was 100% dedicated to upholding the law, you would still have a lot of people mad at you for doing your job, work a lot of hours during hunting season, listen to everyone complain about how bad the hunting is and also the pay would be terrible. It doesn't sound like a lot of fun...

 

[dillon]

I am 15 credits from graduation and then if I don't get into graduate school I will be a conservation officer. I do bow hunting for the most part so my seasons are a little longer. But I like everyone else realize that the job requires a lot of sacrifice. My dad used to say that if I ever became a fish and game officer he would give me a hug and say, "well it has been nice having you in the family."

 

[Shotgun59]

LAST EDITED ON Mar-02-11 AT 10:00PM (MST)[p]LAST EDITED ON Mar-02-11 AT 09:59?PM (MST)

Wardens hunt 365 days a year, they just pursue different game.

 

[Hardway]

We used to have a warden here till rus ran him off.

"A well regulated militia, being necessary to the security of a free state, the right of the people to keep and bear arms shall not be infringed."

 

[gaetz]

This year while on the last day of the youth hunt, my daughter and nephew shot their bucks at the same time (they were actually sparring). Well, about an hour later, a CO came riding up on his ATV to check us. While we were sitting there shooting the breeze, he mentioned to us that his son hated father's job as a CO because it took him away from hunting with him.

When the CO heard the shots of my daughter/nephew, he and his son were putting the stalk on a deer. At that point, the CO quit the hunt with his son to come up and check us. The CO spent at least 2 hours helping us out - all in the waning hours of the youth hunt.

Even when hunting themselves or with their families, they are always on the job and very dedicated. I don't know if I would have abandoned the hunt with my son with only 4 hours remaining on the last day. But he did and he was a big help to us!

I never did hear if his son bagged the deer they were stalking but I hope he did and was able to share in the same experience I got to have with my daughter/nephew just hours earlier.

TRH

 

[newbaby]

I am a game warden. I became one because I loved to hunt and fish. I still hunt every day. The game just changed from animal to Human. I don't get to hunt nearly as much as I did before I became a warden. I still get to hunt but it is usually by myself and for only a half day or one day a the most. It is hard to hunt with this job. The job is my dream job, but frustrating when it comes to my personal hunting time.
It seems that no matter how you treat people you are always deamed the bad guy. I treat people very well. It just seems that the ignorant guys are the loudest around. The people that respect game wardens are not as vocal as those that are against us. I wish it was the other way around.
Look at it from our shoes. Wardens have to have at least a 4 year degree, we are very underpaid, we are seen as the bad guys for protecting what we all love, our families are looked upon sometimes negatively, and we don't get to hunt very much. There are not many people out there that are willing to endure the above for what we get paid.
But I love what I do. It would be nice if all our suporters could be more vocal. In my knowledge it is only around 5 percent of the outdoor public that are causing all the problems. If the rest of us 95 percent all got on the same page and helped each other out the end product would be healthier huntable resource in utah.
If you don't know your local game warden get to know them if you would like to help them make a difference. Remember there are only a few of us. But there are many of you. If anyone thinks that poaching is getting less and less by the year, you need to wake up. It is getting worse every year.

 

[Hardway]

>I am a game warden. I
>became one because I loved
>to hunt and fish. I
>still hunt every day. The
>game just changed from animal
>to Human. I don't get
>to hunt nearly as much
>as I did before I
>became a warden. I still
>get to hunt but it
>is usually by myself
>and for only a half
>day or one day a
>the most. It is hard
>to hunt with this job.
>The job is my dream
>job, but frustrating when it
>comes to my personal hunting
>time.
>It seems that no matter how
>you treat people you are
>always deamed the bad guy.
>I treat people very well.
>It just seems that the
>ignorant guys are the loudest
>around. The people that respect
>game wardens are not as
>vocal as those that are
>against us. I wish it
>was the other way around.
>
>Look at it from our shoes.
>Wardens have to have at
>least a 4 year degree,
>we are very underpaid, we
>are seen as the bad
>guys for protecting what we
>all love, our families are
>looked upon sometimes negatively, and
>we don't get to hunt
>very much. There are not
>many people out there that
>are willing to endure the
>above for what we get
>paid.
>But I love what I do.
>It would be nice if
>all our suporters could be
>more vocal. In my knowledge
>it is only around 5
>percent of the outdoor public
>that are causing all the
>problems. If the rest of
>us 95 percent all got
>on the same page and
>helped each other out the
>end product would be healthier
>huntable resource in utah.
>If you don't know your local
>game warden get to know
>them if you would like
>to help them make a
>difference. Remember there are only
>a few of us. But
>there are many of you.
>If anyone thinks that poaching
>is getting less and less
>by the year, you need
>to wake up. It is
>getting worse every year.

Sounds like a country tune.



"A well regulated militia, being necessary to the security of a free state, the right of the people to keep and bear arms shall not be infringed."

 

[CAelknuts]

A good buddy of mine is a game warden here in California. He loves to hunt and fish, and hunts more than he fishes. He hunts for himself plenty, but that might be because our department limits them on overtime due to budget constraints. He hunts deer here in CA, and usually does one or two out of state hunts per year. We duck hunt together at least 2-4 times per season and occasionally get out to chase spring gobblers together. I've never thought about it, but I don't notice that he hunts less than any other avid outdoorsman.

 

[newbaby]

Sweet, I'm headen for Nashville.
I'll write em and you sing em Hardway.

 

[Cornhusker]

I have a great deal of respect for game wardens and in all the states I've hunted have never ran into one who wasn't professional, polite and a nice guy.( A woman in South Dakota was the only one who wasn't totally professional and pleasant.) But that's another story. The two I know well in my area hunt very little anymore not enough time during the season. A real shame since one used to be a hunting partner of mine. I wish states could pay them more because IMO they do a tremendous job in most cases.

 

[hank4elk]

I have a great friend who retired from DFG two years ago. We only got to hunt together a few times til retirement.Then I moved to NM and hopefully he will come elk hunting and maybe deer now. But he's still dedicated to helping folks in CA. He's on the local sheriff's posse/search and rescue teams and teaches hunters ed. And I still know some that give him a hard time for doing his job. I retired from being a Park Ranger for those reasons.

 

[tuleelk]

LAST EDITED ON Mar-24-11 AT 09:29AM (MST)[p]You can check how much California Wardens and other state workers make here http://www.sacbee.com/statepay/ I think you may be surprised by what you find or maybe not. Just need there name and Fish and Game.

 

[newbaby]

What you find for salary is not take home. They add about 30-35 thousand for the benefits. So take what it says they make and minus the above and that will be what they take home before taxes are taken out. That should put it into a more accurate perspective.

 

[tuleelk]

It is not take home but Gross pay like any other paycheck, taxes are taken out, employee portion of health care, etc. It also includes any over time they make so it is not base pay. What is not included is the states portion of health care or taxes.

 

[dillon]

In Utah from what I can see they start at $15.22 an hour and then after one year they jump you up to $16.95. They also work 171 hours every 28 day pay period. So they do make a little more than the standard (2080*hourly rate). The benefits are great. You can find this info on utahsright.com, under the salary link. Utah is also going to a 25 year retirement for anyone hired after June 2011. It has been 20 years and a lot of guys can not afford to retire.

I am graduating from USU in Wildlife Science in May 2012 and am seriously considering this job in Utah. Other states pay a little better in the beginning at least, but my whole family is in Utah, so we want to be here. Also, our cost of living in Utah is lower than in a lot of other states.

 

[justr_86]

LAST EDITED ON Mar-25-11 AT 09:27AM (MST)[p]>>I know that some officers don't
>>even want to hunt anymore
>>after patrolling for a few
>>years. Ruined it for them.
>>
>>
>>2 close friends come to mind.
>>
>>
>>

>
>
> Doug was verry good at
>his job in his day
>if he is who you
>are refering to !
>
>
>
>
>'IT AINT EASY BEING ME'


No, not Doug he still loves to go. Losing his sight is whats hard for him..... And ya he was/still is very good at his job!