I need consoling
 

I' ve been having some terrific luck lately. My wife gave birth to a bundle of joy (a boy) on October 2nd. The opener here was October 5th. So, I knew hunting opportunities were going to be at a premium since I would be the primary caregiver to my 3 year old daughter while my wife recovers from her caesarian and deals with a newborn.

Anyway, I' ll get to the point. I finally got a chance to get out this past saturday morning (October 18th). I was on stand by 6:30am and enjoyed the peace and quiet that the dark chilly morning offered. Don' t ever take that for granted. That is an awesome feeling.

The sun came up and I was astonished to see the number of rubs around my stand. I hung it in late August knowing that my wife could give birth at any time in September (my daughter was 3 weeks early). So obviously those rubs weren' t present when I hung the stand. These rubs were huge, too.

At 8am on the nose a young eight-pointer came in from behind me and gave me a broadside shot at 10 yards. I decided to take the shot and made what I thought was a good shot. He ran hard towards the cornfield that he came from. I waited about 45 minutes before sticking my nose out into the cornfield and of course he stood up and ran for the property line.

The neighbors aren' t the friendliest of people so I decided to return in the afternoon once I noticed one of them on stand. I returned to find him still there. As much as I hated to do it I waited to cross the property line until Sunday morning. He hadn' t gone far and would have been a real easy recovery. But he stunk to high heaven on Sunday. Needless-to-say, I left him be.

As much as I hate to think about possibly not getting out again for a few weeks, it sickens me to know that I " wasted" a deer. Anybody have a similar story that can help me deal with this? I' m not the only fool that would' ve waited until Sunday...or was I?

RE: I need consoling
 

There was no chance that the neighbors would' ve let you recover the deer on thier land at all? If the guy was on a stand obviously he was a hunter and you' d think they would have some sympathy and a better understand of the need to find a deer when it' s warm out.

If they were that big of jerks out it you could' ve either called a game warden and asked his advice, or just snuck back in as soon as it got dark and tried to get him out then.

It' s senseless to just waste a deer like that. :(

RE: I need consoling
 

I guess even if you knew the neighbors were not going to let you go recover the deer you probably should have done something. Let the neighbors know what happened and where the deer was so that they could have tagged the deer if they wanted to. Yes, it would suck but better than see a deer go to waste. Or call the game wardens and see what your options are. Maybe he/she would go talk to the other properety owners or help you recover your deer. You should have done something before it was too late. So you finally decide to trespass? If you were going to go that route you should have done it sooner.

RE: I need consoling
 

I' m new to the property (two years). Apparently this feud has been going on for quite a while. The property owners of the land I hunt don' t tolerate the neighbors either.

The problem with returning at night was that the deer crossed the property line right behind the neighbor' s living room window. I was afraid he would see my flashlight if I searched at night. I was also concerned with pissing off my property owner if I had been caught.

You are right - it is senseless to waste a deer like that.

RE: I need consoling
 

In most states, you have a legal right and responsibililty to retreave the deer. If your neighbors give you crap about retreaving your game call the game warden or police to assist you. There is no reason to let a deer go to waste.

RE: I need consoling
 

If I know I have a deer down........I am gonna get it. One way or the other. I would be going freaking crazy if I knew I had an 8 pt laying in a field instead of on my butcher table.

I know you did what you thought was right so I am not saying you did the wrong thing. I am just saying I would never have been able to leave him there.

Your decision, no matter how painful it is right now will most likely keep your situation from getting any worse though.........that is a pretty far reach looking for a positive here but it' s all I can come up with right now.

Did you take the rack??

RE: I need consoling
 

I would of had to go get it.Call the law and get them on your side.You did no wrong.And the Pa regs book does say youy have the obligation to retrieve a dead deer. According to the law you violated it.Not by shooting it legally ,but refusing to do all to recover it. I' m sorry it happened to you. I' m not busting you ,just letting you know you did have a option

RE: I need consoling
 

I would have gotten my deer one way or the other.

RE: I need consoling
 

I appreciate the kind words and I understand the harsh ones. I certainly deserve them. Perhaps part of my problem was that my understanding of PA law is that property owners are NOT required to allow anyone on their property even if they have law enforcement with them. And the contentious feelings between the local property owners led me to my course of action.

I know you all sympathize with me when I say I was sick to my stomach over this and had a difficult time sleeping on Saturday night. As much as I wanted to retrieve my trophy, my concern was more for the suffering of the deer and what turned out to be a senseless killing of it.

RE: I need consoling
 

I thought the law here in PA was that you have to do all in your power to recover the downed animal, and if the property owner refuses to let you on, then if you call the game commission, the officer will ****** you onto the property to recover the animal.