Elderly Georgia Woman And Man Attacked And Killed By Feral Dogs

65-year-old Sherry Schweder and her 77-year-old husband Lothar Karl Schweder died of multiple dog bites last week. Mrs. Schweder evidently was out for a walk when she was attacked and killed. Her husband it appears went looking for her and became a victim himself.

More on the story here.

Tom Remington

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The Upside Of Wildlife Management

We sometimes spend far too much time with our noses stuck in the middle of all that is wrong with game and wildlife management that we forget (maybe I should just say I forget) to take a look at the successes of what we have accomplished, even to a point where in some cases it might just be too good.

Harold Brown, an agricultural scientist and professor emeritus at the University of Georgia and author of “The Greening of Georgia: The Improvement of the Environment in the Twentieth Century”, authored a commentary at Online Athens about the growth and success of recovering the black bear populations, specifically in Georgia and more generally in nearly all parts of the U.S.

He presents some interesting facts, numbers and observations. A good read.

Tom Remington

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Georgia Hunter Shoots Cougar From Treestand

It appears that a mountain lion, rare to Georgia, that a hunter shot and killed from his tree stand while feeling threatened for his life, was somebody’s captured cougar that may have escaped or was intentionally released.

But that may not be stopping authorities from charging the hunter for violations of killing an endangered species. According to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, initial necropsy results indicate the cat was living in a pen, was well fed and healthy. Genetics tests are being performed to determine the type of cat and it could make a difference as to whether to charge the hunter with a crime.

State biologists do not yet know if the large cat was an Eastern cougar, which is protected under the federal Endangered Species Act, or the more common Western variety, WRD spokeswoman Jennifer Barnes said. A genetics test is being performed.

The answer may determine whether the hunter is charged with a crime, she said. The hunter, who was hunting from a tree at the time, told state biologists the cougar approached him and he was concerned for his life.

Authorities need to figure out where the cat came from for sure but it would seem reasonable to think that the first determination should be as to whether the hunter was justified in shooting the cat. If he was justified, the talk of charging the guy is a moot point.

Tom Remington

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Six-Legged Deer

Okay! I’ve avoided writing about this little six-legged deer found in Northern Georgia after it had been attacked by dogs but I guess I can’t avoid it any longer. Enough of you have asked for a picture, etc. so here is a video I found on YouTube.

BTW – Do you all remember the photo and short story I posted back in November of 2006 about the five-legged deer? I still have readers leaving comments on that story.

Tom Remington

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Georgia 15-Year Old Takes State Record Bear

Many of you may or may not have already heard about a 15-year old Valdosta, Georgia boy taking a state record black bear back in October. Ed Gliddens, a student at Lowndes High School, shot a 574-pound black during the bear season. You can read all about the hunt and see a picture here.

Tom Remington

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Georgia Governor Declares State Of Emergency

Georgia Gov. Sonny Perdue on Saturday declared the northern part of Georgia a disaster because of drought and is asking President Bush to also declare that area a federal disaster. Drought has stricken this area for some time leaving Lake Lanier at its lowest levels ever.

Last week I told you about the problem stating that much of the problem of Lake Lanier being so low was the requirement to keep water flowing out of the damn at a prescribed release amount in order to protect some endangered species. There are also issues with water power plants downstream on the Chattahoochee River. Gov. Perdue would like in his declaration to change the law and reduce the amount of water being released from the lake in order to conserve it for the 5 million customers it supplies.

The Army Corps of Engineers reached an agreement with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service in the 80s to release 5,000 cubic feet of water per second in order to supply power plants and assist in the protection of certain mussels and sturgeon, considered endangered species. One U.S. congressman has come out publicly in opposition to this requirement.

“What we’ve learned from this is what a blunt weapon the Endangered Species Act has become, where some obscure bureaucrat in Fish and Wildlife and some obscure judge can decide that mussels are more important than our children and grandchildren,” said U.S. Rep. John Linder, R-Georgia, who spoke after Perdue at Saturday’s news conference.

Governor Perdue thinks it’s a bureaucratic mess.

“We are also mired in a frustrating manmade disaster of federal bureaucracy,” Perdue said. “The actions of the Army Corps of Engineers and the Fish and Wildlife Services are downright dangerous, and Georgia cannot stand for this negligence.”

Tom Remington

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Georgia Big Buck Bow Kill?

The below photo seems to be making its way around the Internet saying this buck was taken in Georgia by bow. Can anyone confirm or refute this picture? Any information?

Tom Remington

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EHD A Bit “Ho-Hum” In The Deep South

We are at a point where it would be safe to say that this year’s outbreak of Epizootic Hemorrhagic Disease (EHD) is quite widespread. Here’s a list of states that have confirmed cases of the virus that is carried to deer by biting midges or no-see-ums: Virginia, West Virginia, Indiana, Kentucky, North Carolina, Tennessee, Alabama, Pennsylvania, Ohio, Illinois, New Jersey, Montana, Mississippi and Georgia. In addition, some states are waiting for test results to confirm what they already suspect – South Carolina is one such state.

To confirm the presence of the disease, blood and certain tissue has to be analyzed.

According to both the South Carolina Department of Natural Resources and the Alabama Department of Conservation, dealing with EHD is quite routine. Charles Ruth, Deer/Turkey Project supervisor for the South Carolina DNR says flair-ups in that state seem to run in cycles of 3-5 years and there’s a reasonable explanation.

“This is probably related to the fact that once deer are exposed to the disease they are more resistant to it. Therefore, if you have disease one year the deer become exposed or inoculated to the disease and you do not see much disease activity until there is turnover in the deer population. After several years you are dealing with another cohort of deer and their systems are ‘naïve’ to the disease. The last time there was significant hemorrhagic disease activity in South Carolina was in 2002, therefore, disease activity could be relatively high this year.”

This theory is confirmed by a spokesman for the Alabama Department of Conservation and Natural Resources.

“We have some cases every year,” said Keith Guyse, a whitetail specialist with the Wildlife and Freshwater Fisheries Division in the Alabama Department of Conservation and Natural Resources. “In the Coastal Plain, the virus is there frequently enough that deer have been exposed to it and have some resistance to it.

Both representatives indicate that EHD in their respective states is pretty much routine only because of the build up of a certain degree of immunity. Therefore, these southern states don’t see wide outbreaks of the disease that often. When EHD hits the more northern climes, EHD seems to grab harder. Ruth explains.

Deer likely die in South Carolina each year from hemorrhagic disease, however, there is no indication that a major outbreak has occurred in the state since the mid 1970s. The disease is part of life for deer in the Southeast and fortunately it appears that Southern deer have acquired some immunity to the disease, said Ruth. Northern deer, on the other hand, are not exposed to the disease as frequently since the insect vector is not as common in cooler climates. For this reason, significant outbreaks and mortality from hemorrhagic disease are more likely in northern deer populations.

Guyse from Alabama makes reference to the same theory.

“Typically in North Alabama and above the fall line, they’re not exposed to it as often. So over a period of time you have a population that doesn’t have much resistance. When you have (outbreaks) up there, it tends to be more noticeable.”

This helps us understand why some states may have more severe outbreaks, killing larger numbers of deer, than others but why this year are outbreaks so widespread across the landscape of the country? Some have related it to the summer heat and drought. That may be true, I don’t know. It would be logical to assume that being that the virus is carried and spread by tiny midges or gnats, a larger than normal population of that insect would be directly proportional to the spread of the disease. Of course science isn’t that simplistic and we know that there are probably many more factors to consider or it could be just merely a coincidence.

However, Guyse from Alabama eludes to the theory of increased numbers of midges, somewhat.

“Auburn (researchers) had traps out to catch the flies and they might catch a few every once in a while, and then all of a sudden they catch hundreds,” Guyse said. “Much of that still is a mystery.”

Obviously, they don’t have a good handle on it either.

Hunters and others should be aware of the symptoms they may find on deer suffering from the disease.

Symptoms of hemorrhagic disease include poor physical condition, sloughing hooves, abrasions or sores on the brisket and legs, and ulcerations on the mouth, tongue, and rumen (stomach).

As I said earlier, verification of the disease has to be done in the lab.

If you see sick or dead deer in your travels, please report it to the appropriate authorities. It is highly recommended that nobody eats any of the meat from deer sickened by EHD.

Tom Remington

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Georgia Man Kills Bear To Protect Kids

A Georgia dad and his three sons were on a camping trip to the Chattahoochee National Forest when a bear tried to carry away a cooler full of food. The youngest son, 6, picked up a shovel and tried to scare the bear away. That’s when it turned on them. The father fought back with a piece of firewood killing the bear.

Read the whole story here.

Tom Remington

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Sanford, Perdue Went Hunting Weeks Before Port Deal Announced

Would this even be in the press if the two Governors, one from South Carolina and one from Georgia, had played golf?

The two governors met to go hunting quail before a deal was reached about the port of Savannah. Is this really about who paid for the trip or is it more about the fact they went hunting instead of doing what most politicians do, play golf.

Tom Remington

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Baiting Should Be About Science Not Ethics

Hunting ethics seems to creep into just about every conversation about hunting, particularly big game. In Georgia, once again they are debating the deer baiting issue. Current law allows baiting but not shooting any animal unless it is at lease 200 yards away. A new proposal would allow shooting over the bait. Some don’t like that.

AccessNorthGeorgia.com has an article about the deer baiting debate in which the writer talks with Glenn Dowling, executive vice president of the Georgia Wildlife Federation. Dowling doesn’t like the new proposal that would allow shooting over bait but not entirely for the right reasons in my opinion.

There’s the faintest hint of a deer track in the muddy trail outside Glenn Dowling’s office, and the sight of it sets him off.

For 10 minutes, he rattles off the steps he’d take if he were on a hunt, finishing with tips on the ideal spot to set up a deer stand.

“I hunt animals on its terms,” he says, a hint of disgust in his voice. “I use information about animals that I learned instead of conforming animals to my schedule.”

Dowling goes on to say that he finds shooting deer over bait as killing not hunting, something he considers unethical. Before Mr. Dowling throws too many stones at the unethical hunters he sees, he should consider his own situation. To Dowling, hunting over bait is unethical. For me, I would never hunt over bait as a form of food. This is something I’ve never done and the only way I might consider doing so was a matter of survival.

Dowling says he hunts animals on its terms while at the same time talks of using information he’s learned about animals in order to best locate a tree stand. If hunting from a tree stand is hunting on a deer’s terms, we can assume that deer also climb trees and regularly scan the tree tops before entering an area. I wonder if he uses calls, rattles antlers, uses scent-free clothing, a scope on his gun and a myriad of other items, methods and tactics that some hunter somewhere would find unethical?

Personally, I don’t care how Mr. Dowling hunts provided that he is hunting within the laws. I hunt according to what I have learned over the years and what I find enjoyable. I’ll have to be honest and say I have never hunted from a tree stand. This season was the first time ever I hunted from inside a portable blind. I found a game trail that had a few buck pawings on it, applied a little bit of buck lure – also considered bait – to the scrape and went and sat in the blind. Was that ethical? Most would say it was. Some would say it wasn’t. Whose right?

Ethics are an individual’s choice. Laws are made to protect the game, create the safest hunting environment and limit abuses. Laws that deal almost entirely with ethics should be made based on science and safety not human emotion or personal conviction.

“The sport is called hunting, not killing,” says Dowling, the federation’s executive vice president. “They want to guarantee a kill for some fat cat from up north or out west. And if you teach a kid that, you don’t teach them all the ethic to hunt. It’s dumbing down a generation of hunters.”

I couldn’t agree more with Dowling on this issue. Every kid should be taught about hunting ethics. I learned from my father. More than likely Dowling learned from his. Making laws about ethics won’t teach good ethics.

The article states that Dowling spent an hour and a half opposing this new proposal to a group at a meeting.

He’s upset. He just spent an hour and a half shooting holes through a proposal to allow hunters in Georgia to put grain, apples or any other type of bait in a feeder to lure game animals to a killing ground.

I wasn’t at this meeting and have no idea what Mr. Dowling said to try to convince those in attendance that allowing hunting over bait should not be legal. Hopefully, he spent more time talking about scientific or safety reasons why it is wrong than ethical ones.

If science proves to us that baiting deer spreads disease, maybe that’s reason enough to stop the practice completely. If science proves there are too many deer and regular hunting isn’t accomplishing harvesting goals, then maybe that’s reason enough to pass the bill. It may be for the good of the deer herd. If science proves that some of the kinds of baits being used can physically harm a deer, again maybe that’s reason enough to disallow it.

The article states that the Georgia Department of Natural Resources opposes the bill but doesn’t really give a reason why. The writer lumped all opponents together saying they considered it blasphemy. I have my reservations as to whether or not the Georgia DNR would call shooting deer over bait blasphemy. I would hope that the DNR would have its sights set on science and law enforcement rather than ethics and make it’s position based on such. After all, I think that is their job.

Tom Remington

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30-Point Buck Taken In Georgia?

This must be Monday surprises as my mailbox is filling up with photos and no stories to go with them. Rod Davis sent me these photos of a 30-point buck supposedly taken in Morgan, Georgia. Does anybody no the story, can verify its authenticity and who the hunter is so we can give him the credit?

View more photos of this magnificent buck here.

Tom Remington

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Could It Be The Mother Of All Wild “Hawgs”?

Reports out of Georgia are saying that William Coursey has killed a hog that might just surpass the near mythical dimensions of “Hogzilla” – 8 feet and 800 plus pounds.

This link will get you a video of the animal.

Tom Remington

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Gators In Georgia Better Watch Out

September 9th marks the opening day of alligator hunting in Georgia. The state estimates somewhere around 250,000 gators reside there and that’s too many. Landowners are happy about the hunt.

By lottery, 500 permits were issued out of more than 3,000 applicants from 29 states. In Florida, where their gator season is in full swing, when licenses went on sale June 15th it took only 4 hours to sell out. Florida estimates well over one million gators roam that state.

Tom Remington

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Deer Baiting Bill in Georgia Appears Dead

House Bill 1285, a bill that would allow hunting and shooting over baited deer in Georgia appears as though it will never make it past the Rules Committee! Committee Chair Earl Erhart, Marietta (R), took a show of hands and it appeared split right down the middle. Not wanting to tie up the Rules Committee with extensive debate, Erhart removed the bill with only 5 days remaining to get bills on the schedule.

This doesn’t necessarily kill the bill but it’s chances of survival are slim.

Previous post about this bill.

Tom Remington

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