lovethebigguns

bpjeep,
I was just getting ready to say the same thing!!
I don't know if I could steay myself to take a shot at him!
And like you said I'd have to change my pants after it was all said and done!!!

Wow...

kshunter

Awesome Buck! You're lucky the GW let you keep it. I'm glad the GW did, just saying that I've heard plenty of stories where the KDWP took the deer away, in this type of situation of recovering this type of deer.

kd7mh5

Funny story about that. The guy who found it cut the head off with his pocket knife. He doesn't deer hunt but knew it was big. He showed his brother after he got home and they decided after showing it to a couple of people that they were going to get a lot of publicity. They weren't sure what to do so they decided to call the KDWP and inform them. They took the officer to the carcus and he investigated it for about 2 hours and decided that there was nothing illegal about the deer being dead. He said it died of natural causes and issued a salvage tag. After issuing the tag he asked if he could see the rack at the house. After showing the officer the rack they could tell that they were lucky to be able to keep it.

chiefks

Am I understanding this correctly?? If you come across a dead antlered deer in the woods you need a investigation and a salvage tag before you can keep it? IF the game warden will let you keep it?????? I always thought if you come across a dead buck in the woods, his rack belonged to you. Finders keepers, loosers weepers.

kd7mh5

Seems strange I know but if you find a dead deer and want to keep it for example roadkill, you need a salvage tag in order to keep it. The tag is issued by the KDWP. All deer must have a legal tag in order to keep the meat. It is a gray area when it comes to keeping the rack of a buck found dead. Technically you are not keeping the meat, the tag stays with the meat in KS and not with the rack. You would think that you would not need a tag to keep the rack but I'll tell you what, you don't want to get caught with a rack if you don't have a legal tag for it. And in this case where it was highly publicized. It just keeps the locals from accusing you of poaching.

chiefks

I am from kansas, spent every year of my life with the exception of the last few months. I know you need a salvage tag for the meat, and the tag stays with the meat. Thats how it should be.But when the meat is gone, the tag gets thrown away right? What about that deer thats on the wall, the racks kept in the shed or garage. Do we need to keep the tag for it to?If you come across a deer that appears that some one has tried to poach, I know you should call the Game Warden. They take care of the deer and it belongs to them. However if you find a deer in the woods and no evidence of poaching. Say coyotes killed it, or it was tangled in a fence and died. Do you still need a salvage tag to legally have possession of that rack?? Does not seem right to me. But I do agree with you about having the salvage tag for that huge non typical just for the fact that it proves they didn't poach it. I might email pratt and see what they say.

kd7mh5

In this case the animal was completely in tact (minus the head). It had only been dead about 2 or 3 days. I think he issued the salvage tag because it did have meat on it. It was not bare bones. I agree with you completely. You do not need to keep a tag for the racks that you find in the woods or have hanging on the wall. All I know is that is the way they handeled the situation and they weren't going to argue with the officer when he issued the tag. I think that in some cases the officer is unsure of the exact rules and to be on the safe side in this instance he did issue a salvage tag.

toadder

that thing is huge!!!

janesburg

Great looking deer.

chiefks

I emailed KDWP off thier web site. This is the reply that I got back. Thought you might be interested. This surprises me!!!



Yes, you would have to havea deer salvaged tagged to possess a deer that you find dead in the woods in order to keep the rack.Even deer found deadtangled in a fence would be required to be salvaged tagged. Shed antlers do not require a tag.You should also be able to provide a tag for a mounted deer head. This is to provide a paper trail on how the deer was legally acquired in case there is a question.
[/align]Marilyn Alberg
KS Dept. of Wildlife & Parks
L.E. Division
512 SE 25th Ave.
Pratt, KS 67124
(620)672-0707
[email protected]
[/align]