Deer hunting method question - Alberta/Sask

[buckchaser]

It seems as though every time I watch Jim Shockey/Dean Partridge/Cody Robbins/etc hunting for whitetails they appear to be stand hunting over bait. It's often not clearly shown, but it appears the deer are coming in for alfalfa, etc.

Is baiting the predominate method in the big woods of northern Alberta/Saskatchewan?

No judgement on my part - just a curious Ontario hunter.

[saskwhitey]

Not allowed in alberta, very common in Sask.

[openfire]

yup what he said, Illegal to hunt over bait here…and poor sport.

[pseelk]

Originally Posted by openfire

yup what he said, Illegal to hunt over bait here…and poor sport.

No worse than hunting bear over bait,however is not legal here.

[The Flint&Fly Guy]

while it is illegal and looked down on to hunt over a bait in alberta. it is a fact that a large part of the hunting is done over a natural food source. or a farmers alfalfa hay field. its not bait hunting, just utilizing the whitetails natural need to feed!

[snowman160]

I do not believe hunting over bait for deer is poor sport..they target a mature animal..time can be taken to make an ethical shot..an most important that feed gets a lot of deer through the winter..I was skeptical until I read Garry Donald's article in his editors section for Big Buck Magaizine that changed my perspectives on it..most are just jelous I think.and if ya think big bucks just come running into bait sites,from what I've heard from friends an people that hunt regularly in sask over bait..that's is so not the case..

[reddeerhunter]

As stated.
People hunt over corn fields.
In the south my buddies have pivots. Holy cwd. But if Input a pail of molasses oats along red deer river it will be a tarnation.
Yikes. Different strokes.

[Ranch11]

The one thing that ticks me off about bait hunting is that, in most cases, once the season is done, the food source goes away. Not many outfitters, or baiters, continue to feed the deer. The deer are then forced to find a quick food source, after they've depended on it for a month or more. Now, I know some guys do, and Gary is one of the good guys. Kudos to the guys who do.

[walking buffalo]

The decision for banning the baiting of ungulates for the purpose of hunting in Alberta is Not based on ethics, it is based on limiting a vector for disease transmission.

[expmler]

Originally Posted by buckchaser

It seems as though every time I watch Jim Shockey/Dean Partridge/Cody Robbins/etc hunting for whitetails they appear to be stand hunting over bait. It's often not clearly shown, but it appears the deer are coming in for alfalfa, etc.

Is baiting the predominate method in the big woods of northern Alberta/Saskatchewan?

No judgement on my part - just a curious Ontario hunter.

A lot easier to video a hunt over bait.

[colroggal]

Originally Posted by walking buffalo

The decision for banning the baiting of ungulates for the purpose of hunting in Alberta is Not based on ethics, it is based on limiting a vector for disease transmission.

Agreed. Kinda like why I can't do buffets or movie theaters.

Colin

[waterhawk]

Calling yourself a hunter when you hunt over bait is the same as calling yourself a pick up artist when you hire a prostitute.

[heretohunt]

Originally Posted by waterhawk

Calling yourself a hunter when you hunt over bait is the same as calling yourself a pick up artist when you hire a prostitute.

So,... If you hunted over bait you would have a line up of boomers on your wall? Show me the way.

[waterhawk]

[QUOTE=heretohunt;2866183]So,... If you hunted over bait you would have a line up of boomers on your wall? Show me the way.[/Q

Hunting over bait is like hiring a hooker, some of us may not have the skills to do anything else but I can't see it as anything to brag about.

[waterhawk]

Originally Posted by heretohunt

So,... If you hunted over bait you would have a line up of boomers on your wall? Show me the way.

Heretohunt: I have been thinking about your post. Why bother going to the work of baiting, sitting in a heated deer blind and pocking you rifle out the window to shoot a boomer. For a price, you can make arrangements with hunt ranches in Saskatchewan where in one afternoon you can shoot a 200B&C whitetail and a 400B&C Elk. You would not even have to get out of the truck. The scores would be exact because the ranch would run the animals into a chute and measure them before you arrived. Just think how proud you would be when you lined up those boomers on your wall.

[JD848]

Do you think that the odd farmer in alberta by accident off coarse,doesn.t drop nice half ton piles of feed every odd place where he see the big boys hangout.Farmers across Canada have spillage why not alberta.

[waterhawk]

Originally Posted by JD 848

Do you think that the odd farmer in alberta by accident off coarse,doesn.t drop nice half ton piles of feed every odd place where he see the big boys hangout.Farmers across Canada have spillage why not alberta.

Because it is illegal in Alberta and I am proud that it is. Hunting on baits is flat unethical. If you want to hunt, put on your boots and go hunting. If farmers or anyone else want to engage in the illegal act of baiting, that is their choice and there should be harsh consequences if they are caught.

[pseelk]

Tipical,So called hunters bashing other hunters cause they dont agree with the way they hunt.Huntinstuff was right ,dont worry about the anti's ,We'll wreck it for ourselves.

[snowman160]

Originally Posted by waterhawk

Because it is illegal in Alberta and I am proud that it is. Hunting on baits is flat unethical. If you want to hunt, put on your boots and go hunting. If farmers or anyone else want to engage in the illegal act of baiting, that is their choice and there should be harsh consequences if they are caught.

Have you ever hunted black bears over bait??

[Battle Rat]

Originally Posted by pseelk

Tipical,So called hunters bashing other hunters cause they dont agree with the way they hunt.Huntinstuff was right ,dont worry about the anti's ,We'll wreck it for ourselves.

No kidding.
The anti bait pro rifle guys could be called unethical by some compound bow hunters who could be looked down upon by the long bow guys.
I hunt the way you like and it's none of my business how others prefer to hunt.
We should hold all hunters in higher regard than other sportsman.

[Lefty-Canuck]

Hunting a game farm and using bait are two completely different things....not the same at all.

LC

[openfire]

I regret my comment and the way off course road this thread has taken.

[waterhawk]

Originally Posted by pseelk

Tipical,So called hunters bashing other hunters cause they dont agree with the way they hunt.Huntinstuff was right ,dont worry about the anti's ,We'll wreck it for ourselves.

Let me get this strait. If I am a hunter and you are a hunter, it is not appropriate for me to comment whether I believe your method of hunting is, for example, cruel to animals. If you post that you had a great day shooting gophers with an underpowered pellet gun, I am not supposed to point out that this is cruel in that many of the animals will not be cleanly killed and will suffer. If we are going to be a group of ethical hunters we need to be able to debate these things.

[hal53]

Originally Posted by waterhawk

Let me get this strait. If I am a hunter and you are a hunter, it is not appropriate for me to comment whether I believe your method of hunting is, for example, cruel to animals. If you post that you had a great day shooting gophers with an underpowered pellet gun, I am not supposed to point out that this is cruel in that many of the animals will not be cleanly killed and will suffer. If we are going to be a group of ethical hunters we need to be able to debate these things.

Huge difference between an open debate and slamming hunters who are using a tool to hunt that is legal. Hunting undulates over bait is not my cup of tea, but I won't condemn anyone who does it where it's legal.

[super7mag]

I plan on putting a tree stand on my nieghbors land between his hay and a dug out! I guess that makes me a lazy unethical hunter. To me that's where the deer are, not much sense putting a stand where they don't travel.

[waterhawk]

Originally Posted by hal53

Huge difference between an open debate and slamming hunters who are using a tool to hunt that is legal. Hunting undulates over bait is not my cup of tea, but I won't condemn anyone who does it where it's legal.

I think using a underpowered pellet gun to shoot gophers is legal. Just because something is legal does not make it something that ethical sportsmen should partake in. What about an average archery hunter winging an arrow at a moose that is 80 yards away. It would be legal but not something that I would be prepared to see or hear of without making a comment about how wrong it was.

[waterhawk]

Originally Posted by super7mag

I plan on putting a tree stand on my nieghbors land between his hay and a dug out! I guess that makes me a lazy unethical hunter. To me that's where the deer are, not much sense putting a stand where they don't travel.

Not the same at all. You have done your scouting and are placing yourself in what you consider to be the best spot to harvest a deer. This to me is what hunting is all about. I would consider this to be a completely fair chase hunt.

[Lefty-Canuck]

Comparing using bait to taking unethical shots or longer shots than one is proficient at ...AGAIN...is not the same thing.

Do you know why bear baiting is acceptable? Think about the reasons it might be a good thing.

Baiting for deer in Alberta is a moot point because here it is not allowed...other places it is allowed. We can't hunt with handguns here but other places it's allowed...are handgun hunters the scourge of the earth too?

In Australia they jack light rabbits and kangaroos....legally.

The booners are not automatically attracted to the bait....that's a huge misconception.

In some places you HAVE TO use a suppressor on your rifle to hunt, here that's illegal.

Different equipment and methods that are legal do not change the fact we are all Hunters.

LC

[catnthehat]

I've hunted behind hounds for deer and coyotes, hunted in provinces that allow .223 caliber rifles ,provinces that Allie baiting both bears and deer, and ivd even been called unethical and cruel because I told someone that I use a psyched round ball instead of inline muzzle loader , and that I shouldn't use a sub gauge shotgun because they wound too many birds .
I've also heard people say compound shooters aren't real archers .
I've also been called " lazy " because I don't scout as much as some or tend to shoot deer for the freezer instead of big racked bucks .
You "holier than thou" badgers that don't like the way others hunt need yo get over yourselves and shut it!

Cat

[huntinstuff]

Hunting over bait is as old as hunting.

Men hunted food and water sources because that is where the animals were.

When the food sources depleted, hunting big game was almost non existant. That's when people resorted to living off crows and gophers and porcupines for meat.

Baiting allows the hunter to be selective, as is the norm in this day and age. If you hunt horns, it allows you the opportunity to select the largest animal, leaving the younger ones to grow. You don't see many guys bait to shoot a fawn.

To hunt hard for days in the bush and harvest no animal is fine nowadays because it is uncommon that it is for necessity. Not unnecessary, just uncommon.

I doubt there is any hunter who will ignore a natural lick or food source when hunting. It would be like hunting a plowed field and ignoring the alfalfa field next to it. Makes no sense. Most everyone hunts "bait" no matter where they are. Natural or not. Just depends on your definition of bait. Seeding a crop or dumping a pile of grain. Difference? Spreading it out.

If you see deer, there is a reason for it. A food or water source is nearby. Deer have a mandate to feed. And if you see one, likely it is either headed to or coming from a food source. Bait.

Bear bait allows the hunter to do several things: He/she can assess bear numbers, view sow/cub numbers, and take the largest bear that comes in. That is a much more accurate bear number assessment tool than some 21 yr old biology student flying over Willmore in a helicopter doing a grizzly bear count that affects everyone.

There is an argument against deer bait as per CWD. I get that. That same bait method is also useful in exterminating CWD deer as we all know. The helicopter helps too.