What to do about persistent poachers?

[arathol]

Not reading all 14 pages, but did the OP resolve his problem?
Just my two cents.
Gates and fences make good neighbors.
As much as I hate to, you have to involve the man. Game wardens around here love this stuff. Local sheriff also. Carry your cell phone and have them or 911 on speed dial. If that doesn’t work, say looks like he’s got a gun pointing my way. That will get their butt in gear.

Maybe you should have at least read some of the thread......

 

[Campbellcontractlogging]

Hi there,
Bought 440 acres of farm (fallow for 75 years and needs tons of rehab) and forest in the Adirondack park, NY and moved my family up here 4 years ago. I don’t hunt. Every year during deer hunting season the neighbor clan and their friends take to poaching my property. Put up camera? They steal it. Posted signs? Torn down. Night (spotlighting) hunting, shooting from the road on thanksgiving; check. Rutting up my field picking up a buck they poached; check. Allow others to hunt, hasn’t changed anything.

Well, I found one of their cameras on my land with some of the usual suspects’ faces on it from where they set it up beginning of November. Turned it in. Filed charges. Then Wednesday before thanksgiving my “dog of a lifetime” defends my chickens against a fox with two others, running the fox into the woods… and I hear a close gunshot. Only two of my dogs return. Have not turned up a body despite extensive searching in an organized pattern across the property with help of my remaining dogs. Nothing. Posted fliers, took out google and Facebook ads, went door to door in a 30 mile radius without a sign or a single lead. So realistically shot by a poacher on my land.
Then this morning I hear another shot on my property with fresh snow down. Track it to offending family next door with tracks walking past my no trespassing sign onto my property and shooting a coyote, and then proceeding deeper into my land….

So what to do? I’m sure some of you have dealt with stuff like this before. I’m upset, non violent, and mainly sad about this dog that was truly my best friend, and would appreciate thoughts on how to solve this.

Bear traps is all I can say well hidden you will get one eventually other than that you’ll hafto hunt them to stop it sorry. People are awful and think that what you got is there’s.

 

[chanteoiseaux]

Hi there,
Bought 440 acres of farm (fallow for 75 years and needs tons of rehab) and forest in the Adirondack park, NY and moved my family up here 4 years ago. I don’t hunt. Every year during deer hunting season the neighbor clan and their friends take to poaching my property. Put up camera? They steal it. Posted signs? Torn down. Night (spotlighting) hunting, shooting from the road on thanksgiving; check. Rutting up my field picking up a buck they poached; check. Allow others to hunt, hasn’t changed anything.

Well, I found one of their cameras on my land with some of the usual suspects’ faces on it from where they set it up beginning of November. Turned it in. Filed charges. Then Wednesday before thanksgiving my “dog of a lifetime” defends my chickens against a fox with two others, running the fox into the woods… and I hear a close gunshot. Only two of my dogs return. Have not turned up a body despite extensive searching in an organized pattern across the property with help of my remaining dogs. Nothing. Posted fliers, took out google and Facebook ads, went door to door in a 30 mile radius without a sign or a single lead. So realistically shot by a poacher on my land.
Then this morning I hear another shot on my property with fresh snow down. Track it to offending family next door with tracks walking past my no trespassing sign onto my property and shooting a coyote, and then proceeding deeper into my land….

So what to do? I’m sure some of you have dealt with stuff like this before. I’m upset, non violent, and mainly sad about this dog that was truly my best friend, and would appreciate thoughts on how to solve this.

Sorry to hear.
I'm in very rural France. Real big on hunting here where I am.
I was seen as an outsider which I am and alot of the people who move up here are very anti the hunters.
I dont hunt but I went and passed my license and then went and bought some nice guns and loads of ammo. Took myself up to the hunters cabin which is the only other building apart from my house on this mountain. I took a bottle of pastis with Me and went and told them I had my license and that one day I may hunt with them. They were very surprised as an english man passing his license I france is unheard of. I told them that I was the outsider and that I respected that they had hunted here for generations and that they were free to hunt on my land as long as I received meat in return, they stay away from the house and made it very clear how much I love my dogs and donkeys.
I also made it clear that I work the forest and I would not tolerate and baits or traps on my land.
They have treated me well ever since.
Someone I know had his dog killed by the same hunters . He made it clear from the outset he didn't like them.

Not suggesting your situation is at all like mine but I think me going into their cabin that day and spelling things out earned their respect.
I'm not anti them but I don't respect the way they hunt around here or treat their dogs however I am the outsider.

Very sad to hear about your dog. I lost one of my three this year and it still hurts bad.
If the hunters touched my dogs there would be a war on this mountain. I think they know that.

Hope you Sort things out . Sounds like a crap situation

 

[psc1947]

Hi there,
Bought 440 acres of farm (fallow for 75 years and needs tons of rehab) and forest in the Adirondack park, NY and moved my family up here 4 years ago. I don’t hunt. Every year during deer hunting season the neighbor clan and their friends take to poaching my property. Put up camera? They steal it. Posted signs? Torn down. Night (spotlighting) hunting, shooting from the road on thanksgiving; check. Rutting up my field picking up a buck they poached; check. Allow others to hunt, hasn’t changed anything.

Well, I found one of their cameras on my land with some of the usual suspects’ faces on it from where they set it up beginning of November. Turned it in. Filed charges. Then Wednesday before thanksgiving my “dog of a lifetime” defends my chickens against a fox with two others, running the fox into the woods… and I hear a close gunshot. Only two of my dogs return. Have not turned up a body despite extensive searching in an organized pattern across the property with help of my remaining dogs. Nothing. Posted fliers, took out google and Facebook ads,went door to door in a 30 mile radius without a sign or a single lead. So realistically shot by a poacher on my land.
Then this morning I hear another shot on my property with fresh snow down. Track it to offending family next door with tracks walking past my no trespassing sign onto my property and shooting a coyote, and then proceeding deeper into my land….

So what to do? I’m sure some of you have dealt with stuff like this before. I’m upset, non violent, and mainly sad about this dog that was truly my best friend, and would appreciate thoughts on how to

Hi there,
Bought 440 acres of farm (fallow for 75 years and needs tons of rehab) and forest in the Adirondack park, NY and moved my family up here 4 years ago. I don’t hunt. Every year during deer hunting season the neighbor clan and their friends take to poaching my property. Put up camera? They steal it. Posted signs? Torn down. Night (spotlighting) hunting, shooting from the road on thanksgiving; check. Rutting up my field picking up a buck they poached; check. Allow others to hunt, hasn’t changed anything.

Well, I found one of their cameras on my land with some of the usual suspects’ faces on it from where they set it up beginning of November. Turned it in. Filed charges. Then Wednesday before thanksgiving my “dog of a lifetime” defends my chickens against a fox with two others, running the fox into the woods… and I hear a close gunshot. Only two of my dogs return. Have not turned up a body despite extensive searching in an organized pattern across the property with help of my remaining dogs. Nothing. Posted fliers, took out google and Facebook ads, went door to door in a 30 mile radius without a sign or a single lead. So realistically shot by a poacher on my land.
Then this morning I hear another shot on my property with fresh snow down. Track it to offending family next door with tracks walking past my no trespassing sign onto my property and shooting a coyote, and then proceeding deeper into my land….

So what to do? I’m sure some of you have dealt with stuff like this before. I’m upset, non violent, and mainly sad about this dog that was truly my best friend, and would appreciate thoughts on how to solve this.

Trash is trash. Here's what I have done that works. Every time you hear a shot empty a 30 round mag in that direction. aim a little high but not too high. You want to make sure they hear the shot go by. They won't quit poaching but they'll give you a wide berth. Traps and ****y traps can expose you to legal and personal liabilities. Harmless fire from an unseen source gives you plausible deniability,

 

[arathol]

Trash is trash. Here's what I have done that works. Every time you hear a shot empty a 30 round mag in that direction. aim a little high but not too high. You want to make sure they hear the shot go by. They won't quit poaching but they'll give you a wide berth. Traps and ****y traps can expose you to legal and personal liabilities. Harmless fire from an unseen source gives you plausible deniability,

Some of the worst advice I've ever heard.......just plain stupid.....

 

[psc1947]

Worked for me here in East Tennessee. Fire off a 30 round clip "Safely but low enough they may hear the Zing" in their direction every time you hear a shot. No harm done. Plausible deniability.

(75 year old curmudgeon who's heard a few thousand "Zings". They always get your attention.)

 

[The Shooters Apprentice]

I think you handled this very well. If someone came onto my property and shot my dog, it would make more then the local news.

 

[GrizG]

Currently you have NYS law working in your favor... unless the gun toting poachers have specific permission from you, the property owner, they can be charged with felonies under NY's recently passed gun laws. Regarding hunting, DEC has a short paper on it at https://www.dec.ny.gov/docs/wildlife_pdf/gunfaq2022.pdf -- Be aware however that there is a high probability that NYS is going to loose in court and this private property thing may go away... They made pretty much everywhere a sensitive place despite SCOTUS explicitly saying in NYSRPA v Bruen that they cannot do that. In the short run take advantage of the law... A felony arrest and conviction in NYS will strip them of their guns... which in cases like this doesn't bother me at all, though it otherwise does bother me.

The following is from https://www.dec.ny.gov/docs/wildlife_pdf/gunfaq2022.pdf

Q: How does the new gun law affect hunting? A: The new law does NOT affect how lawful hunting may occur in New York. The law provides exemptions to allow for lawful hunting in areas otherwise restricted as a result of their listing as “sensitive” or “restricted” locations, but it may affect other activities such as transportation and storage of your hunting guns.​

​

Q: Does the new gun law affect where I can hunt? A: Hunting is still allowed on DEC lands. DEC Wildlife Management Areas and State Forests remain open to hunting, as are many areas of the Adirondack and Catskill Forest Preserves including Wilderness and Wild Forest areas. State Parks will continue to offer hunting opportunities; check their website (https://parks.ny.gov/recreation/hunting) for further information. For state lands managed by other agencies and other public lands, you should check with the public agency or municipality in control of the property to confirm which activities are allowed prior to hunting there.​

​

On private lands, you must obtain personal permission from every property owner of lands you intend to hunt prior to going afield.​

Also, if you do grant permission to hunt to someone, under NYS general obligation law you are held harmless from liability unless you charge them a fee. https://newyork.public.law/laws/n.y._general_obligations_law_section_9-103

As appealing as it might be, don't shoot at them or set ****y traps!

Keep an eye on changes in the laws that will be occurring... lots of lawsuits will be having an influence!

 

[Bill G]

Worked for me here in East Tennessee. Fire off a 30 round clip "Safely but low enough they may hear the Zing" in their direction every time you hear a shot. No harm done.

You must live on flat land with no hills, valleys, or bluffs. You must not have anyone that hunts out of tree stands.

Sir with all due respect your comment above makes zero sense and shows a complete lack of safety.

 

[psc1947]

You must live on flat land with no hills, valleys, or bluffs. You must not have anyone that hunts out of tree stands.

Sir with all due respect your comment above makes zero sense and shows a complete lack of safety.

No substitute for knowing your own land, being able to tell where the sot came from and knowing the terrain in that area, makes sense if you're sensible.

 

[schreib69]

Can you name one? This one is Spypoint's best at about $300.
One has to be careful shopping for them as some don't do Verizon- some are only on third tier carriers such as T-mobile- which is non-existant in the area I need it in. Same for ATT- no good there.

I bought a cheaper Moultrie ($90) and live within sight of a cell tower. It works terribly. Decommissioned it and selling it for next to nothing. . . Eats up batteries, seems to take pictures continuously and has poor signal strength ability. I am back to standard trail cams.

 

[Mad Professor]

Currently you have NYS law working in your favor... unless the gun toting poachers have specific permission from you, the property owner, they can be charged with felonies under NY's recently passed gun laws. Regarding hunting, DEC has a short paper on it at https://www.dec.ny.gov/docs/wildlife_pdf/gunfaq2022.pdf -- Be aware however that there is a high probability that NYS is going to loose in court and this private property thing may go away... They made pretty much everywhere a sensitive place despite SCOTUS explicitly saying in NYSRPA v Bruen that they cannot do that. In the short run take advantage of the law... A felony arrest and conviction in NYS will strip them of their guns... which in cases like this doesn't bother me at all, though it otherwise does bother me.

The following is from https://www.dec.ny.gov/docs/wildlife_pdf/gunfaq2022.pdf

Q: How does the new gun law affect hunting? A: The new law does NOT affect how lawful hunting may occur in New York. The law provides exemptions to allow for lawful hunting in areas otherwise restricted as a result of their listing as “sensitive” or “restricted” locations, but it may affect other activities such as transportation and storage of your hunting guns.​

​

Q: Does the new gun law affect where I can hunt? A: Hunting is still allowed on DEC lands. DEC Wildlife Management Areas and State Forests remain open to hunting, as are many areas of the Adirondack and Catskill Forest Preserves including Wilderness and Wild Forest areas. State Parks will continue to offer hunting opportunities; check their website (https://parks.ny.gov/recreation/hunting) for further information. For state lands managed by other agencies and other public lands, you should check with the public agency or municipality in control of the property to confirm which activities are allowed prior to hunting there.​

​

On private lands, you must obtain personal permission from every property owner of lands you intend to hunt prior to going afield.​

Also, if you do grant permission to hunt to someone, under NYS general obligation law you are held harmless from liability unless you charge them a fee. https://newyork.public.law/laws/n.y._general_obligations_law_section_9-103

As appealing as it might be, don't shoot at them or set ****y traps!

Keep an eye on changes in the laws that will be occurring... lots of lawsuits will be having an influence!

F Kathy Hockel!!!

 

[schreib69]

Hi there,
Bought 440 acres of farm (fallow for 75 years and needs tons of rehab) and forest in the Adirondack park, NY and moved my family up here 4 years ago. I don’t hunt. Every year during deer hunting season the neighbor clan and their friends take to poaching my property. Put up camera? They steal it. Posted signs? Torn down. Night (spotlighting) hunting, shooting from the road on thanksgiving; check. Rutting up my field picking up a buck they poached; check. Allow others to hunt, hasn’t changed anything.

Well, I found one of their cameras on my land with some of the usual suspects’ faces on it from where they set it up beginning of November. Turned it in. Filed charges. Then Wednesday before thanksgiving my “dog of a lifetime” defends my chickens against a fox with two others, running the fox into the woods… and I hear a close gunshot. Only two of my dogs return. Have not turned up a body despite extensive searching in an organized pattern across the property with help of my remaining dogs. Nothing. Posted fliers, took out google and Facebook ads, went door to door in a 30 mile radius without a sign or a single lead. So realistically shot by a poacher on my land.
Then this morning I hear another shot on my property with fresh snow down. Track it to offending family next door with tracks walking past my no trespassing sign onto my property and shooting a coyote, and then proceeding deeper into my land….

So what to do? I’m sure some of you have dealt with stuff like this before. I’m upset, non violent, and mainly sad about this dog that was truly my best friend, and would appreciate thoughts on how to solve this.

There is no answer that will work for people like that. Damned if you do, and damned if you don't.
These people are the type that believe that since they have always used the property while inattentive owners failed to enforce they STILL have that false "right". Killing your dog indicates absence of frontal lobe conscience. You can tweak them by putting up signs and throwing down nails but until they are jailed you will see no respite.
I, like others have posted here, would be in trouble because I would over react(think that 338 Lapua). . . somehow. I would think the most reasonable way to approach this is to have a face to face meeting with both the local sherriff and Game Wardens and work as a team to put them in jail and fined significantly.

Good luck, people like that are hard to control.

 

[cookies]

If you have officers walking freely without reason onto and through your land and do nothing to stop it and refuse to fight it in court then its your own fault they will continue to do so and tell the other officers this guy does not know his rights or refuses to enforce them. You tarnish one or two officers records in court and none of them will want to come near your area without real proof and reason to be there. Making excuses gets nothing but more bad behavior.

 

[arathol]

No substitute for knowing your own land, being able to tell where the sot came from and knowing the terrain in that area, makes sense if you're sensible.

Makes sense if you're an idiot you mean. That kind if behavior is just asking for trouble. Thats how you kill people.

 

[michael j]

Drying your fish hooks out in the woods works wonders.

 

[psc1947]

Makes sense if you're an idiot you mean. That kind if behavior is just asking for trouble. Thats how you kill people.

If being critical and abusive gives you comfort I'm glad I could help.

 

[psc1947]

Makes sense if you're an idiot you mean. That kind if behavior is just asking for trouble. Thats how you kill people.

Actually I have killed a few people. That wasn't the way

I hope I haven't carried this too far. If I have, my apologies to you sir and my sympathies to your family.

 

[schreib69]

Actually I have killed a few people. That wasn't the way

thank you for your service!

 

[TXPitmaster]

Game camera well hidden with locking cable. A second camera hidden pointing at the 1st. Send pictures to game warden and post on social media asking if anyone knows who they are. Depending on where you live and how pissed you, see if they have a time they like to show up and get there earlier. Confront, or shoot a shotgun not at them but near them... or at tannerite in front of them or behind (but on your land). In Texas and a few other states (Illinois, Missouri, North Carolina, Florida, Arkansas) painting trees/posts etc with purple paint says keep out.

Trespassing​

How can I properly post my property?
Section 30.05, Texas Penal Code, provides that a person commits an offense if the person enters or remains on property of another without effective consent, and the person:

• had notice that the entry was forbidden, or
• received notice to depart, but failed to do so.

"Notice" means: an oral or written communication by the owner or someone with apparent authority to act for the owner; or fencing or other enclosure obviously designed to exclude intruders or to contain livestock; or a sign or signs posted on the property reasonably likely to come to the attention of intruders, indicating that entry is forbidden; or the placement of identifying purple paint marks on trees or posts on the property. If purple paint is used, then the purple paint must be vertical lines of not less than eight inches in length and not less than one inch in width; placed so that the bottom of the mark is not less than three feet from the ground or more than five feet from the ground; and placed at locations that are readily visible to any person approaching the property and no more than: 100 feet apart on forest land or 1,000 feet apart on land other than forest land.

Additionally, the visible presence on the property of a crop grown for human consumption that is under cultivation, in the process of being harvested, or marketable if harvested at the time of entry is considered "notice" that entry is forbidden.

If the trespasser is armed, the fine jumps to $4k for 1st offense!