Alsatian

I do not give my land host (he leases the land to raise cattle and allows me and his son, who is my niece's husband, to hunt deer on the land) any venison because he doesn't care for it much. He has lost all his teeth and does not have false teeth -- thus making it difficult to chew venison. Last year I gave him a gift certificate to one of his favorite stores. I will probably try to do more gifting in the future. For some dumb reason in the past I felt beholden to my niece's husband and gave him gifts, but really it is the husband's father who is the numero-uno in this arrangement. Not to say I'm not happy to try to do good things and appreciative things for my niece's husband for getting me connected to his hunting ground, but it was a little blind not to include the his father -- who actually leases the land -- in my gifting.

Definitely, show appreciation to the land owner. If there is a way to provide substantive help -- mending fences, improving a dirt road, whatever -- this is a good idea too. If you have to lease hunting ground it is mighty expensive. Also, be on your very best behavior, also, on the hunting ground.