One County Looking At Problems With Deer Hunting With Dogs
January 12, 2009
Pasquotank County has spent a year reviewing the problems between dog hunters and land owners. Hunting deer with hounds has been a southern tradition for a long time but with development and fewer landowners participating in the tradition conflicts are more pronounced between hunters and landowners.
After describing damage caused by dogs chasing deer through his cattle farm over more than 40 years, he called for a ban on the practice in Pasquotank County.
“The majority of these hunters have no regard for the rights and property of others,” Jackson said.
Hunter Bobby Harris, president of the Albemarle Houndsmen Association, responded.
“Most of the deer hunters I know of try their best to stay out of those areas,” he said. “We’re trying to clean up our acts.”
Over the next 90 minutes, three county commissioners; Jackson and a small group of landowners; hunters who use dogs; and two wildlife enforcement officers discussed the issue.
Pilot On Line
The use of hounds for deer hunting is regulated by the local county and not the North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission so many counties have already banned the practice with counties in the eastern part of the state still allowing dog hunting. (Page 51 of the current Regulation Digest has a map showing the dog line)
If using dogs to hunt deer is banned, then much of the deer hunting will stop and populations will get out of control, Harris said. An overabundance of deer will damage crops and cause more traffic accidents, he said.
While much of the land in the eastern part of the state is thick with brush and swampy hunting without hounds will be difficult but not impossible. I’m not sure one could jump to the conclusion that has been drawn that deer hunting will stop. While I don’t hunt deer with hounds I see no reason that the tradition needs to be ended. I would hope that hunters that enjoy that method of hunting will work to be part of the solution. Land Owners and farmers need to be respected and hunting in only areas one has permission to hunt should be the standard for all hunters.
What’s next
Six options, ranging from a total ban to taking no action, will be sent to the full board in February. A public hearing will be held soon.
We’ll follow this story as it develops to see what happens.
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