stubblejumper

In some locations it is actually illegal for a dog to chase deer.This is for good reason as dogs can chase a deer to exhaustion and it can die as a result.Do you think that it is right to allow a deer to be run to death?How would you feel if someone ran your dog to death?Where I hunt conservation officers shoot any dog seen chasing deer and tell hunters to do the same.I would not think of killing a dog just because it is in the woods but if it is seen actually chasing deer the situation changes.

slugman

Shooting a dog crosses the line of being a hunter with ethics to being just a neanderthal with a firearm.

registernow

Where I am, only law enforcement can shoot a dog if its harrassing deer or moose (this almost never happens as they tend to work through the owner first). However, they do not have the authority to extend that power to others.

adams

I'll take it one step further. If I were hunting and attacked or if my child was attacked I would not hesitate to defend myself or family. Feral and wild dogs can be real problems and if aggressive should be dealt with accordingly. Chasing a deer or wondering through the woods or even barking in the back yard as the dog in the article I posted was doing dose not deserve to be shot.

I don't want this to be an argument about shooting or not shooting dogs(there are already a couple of those going). My intension is to clearly point out that shooting dogs makes front page headlines and will turn the general public into antihunting activist.

stubblejumper

And how does it look when dogs are out loose and running deer to death?Certainly not good publicity either.The owner of a domestic animal is responsible to control his animal,plain and simple.A dog can get loose but when the owner lets this happen on a regular basis he obviously does not care much for the dog.

adams

It dosn't turn the general public against hunters. It cartainly may look very poorly for animal owners but the right to own animals isn't at jeopardy. If we as hunters in general continue to turn the average Joe against us by doing stupid things like shooting domestic dogs, Peoples pets, we will all feel the wrath of the antihunters.

Some of you may not see it but we need the general public on our side. Hunters are a minority and anti's can and if we don't stop it, will eventually get hunting abolished. If we keep putting headlines like the one in the link, on the front pages of the papers around the country we will feel their wrath.

VAhuntr

I guarantee hunters shooting dogs would cause much more criticism from the antis and the general public than a dog chasing a deer. Remember, the anti's would rather see a deer die from starvation than to be killed by a hunter.

stubblejumper

Perhaps it should be for the people that let their dogs run loose.After all it is those irresponsible people that are the real cause of this problem.If they controlled their animals,there wouldn't be a problem in the first place.Not only would the deer not be chased ,but loose dogs would not be attacking people or livestock either.

minnesotahunter

In response to an early comment, I've never read an article that was written with the intent to make dogs in general look bad because they were tormenting deer or other animals, where I can't say the same about hunter's who shoot dogs. Most media sources aren't going run the headline, "Developing Story... Dog Seen Chasing Deer." Why? Because the general public doesn't care, there's not any substance there. On the other hand, all it takes is one hunting incident or accident and the media is all over it.

adams

I agree 100% but that's not the issue at hand. The bigger issue is preserving the right to hunt for future generation and shooting dogs is a good way to fule the anti's and have that right revoked. Think about that the next time you settle your crosshairs on someones pet.

Minnesotahunter,
I agree with your post 100%. This is why I believe we must use better then common sense when we go afield with our weapons. The future of our sport depends on it!