# Found on a deer drive...:!



## Phish_4_Bass (Sep 18, 2008)

I found this on a deer drive 2 days ago... Don't know what happened to him but I think that someone out there is mad


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## ostbucks98 (Apr 14, 2004)

man that one is in great shape.Usually the mice chew up over time.Great find.


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## Fishstix (Aug 16, 2005)

That's a nice buck! I bet someone is upset over losing that one.


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## kevsworld (Nov 30, 2007)

Thats Crazy!


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## Phish_4_Bass (Sep 18, 2008)

It was laying face down, and mice chewed up a wee little bit on the back of his brow tine, and one other spot but it is hardly noticable.


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## CRAPPIE LOVER (Feb 11, 2007)

What a great find for you...For the skull to look like it does and the antlers like they do...Great Find.....C.L....:!


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## bkr43050 (Apr 5, 2004)

A few years ago during the hunting season I found one that although it was not nearly as big as that buck it was in as good of condition as that one. Cool find!


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## big_mike (Aug 2, 2006)

It is ILLEGAL in the state of ohio to have antlers without the signed slip from the ODNR stating that the deer was killed by accident or by legal means. I am not saying you a poacher by any means, but how does the ODNR know that you didn't shoot that deer with a 30/30 back in august and just now are showing the skull off? Just something to consider the next time you pick up a head. Techanically sheds are to be registered with the ODNR as well, but you can definetly tell when a deer has shed the antlers. I found a buck last year that died from natural causes, called the ODNR, they came out and looked at the deer and gave me a slip to take the antlers to use as rattling antlers. Just trying to keep you out of trouble.


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## bkr43050 (Apr 5, 2004)

big_mike said:


> It is ILLEGAL in the state of ohio to have antlers without the signed slip from the ODNR stating that the deer was killed by accident or by legal means. I am not saying you a poacher by any means, but how does the ODNR know that you didn't shoot that deer with a 30/30 back in august and just now are showing the skull off? Just something to consider the next time you pick up a head. Techanically sheds are to be registered with the ODNR as well, but you can definetly tell when a deer has shed the antlers. I found a buck last year that died from natural causes, called the ODNR, they came out and looked at the deer and gave me a slip to take the antlers to use as rattling antlers. Just trying to keep you out of trouble.


Good point! I left that part out but I knew someone would point it out.

I have never heard the part about sheds needing to be registered though.


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## Procraftboats21 (Apr 6, 2004)

who really cares??  

nice horns!! awesome find


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## bkr43050 (Apr 5, 2004)

Procraftboats21 said:


> who really cares??
> 
> nice horns!! awesome find


The authorities would if they wanted to. He is merely letting him know what the law states. It is up to the individual how to handle it. I think I would at least want to know the law if id were me.


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## BassBlaster (Jun 8, 2006)

Procraftboats21 said:


> who really cares??
> 
> nice horns!! awesome find


This is a public forum, you dont think someone who has ties with officials or even the officials themselves visit this site periodically?


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## Phish_4_Bass (Sep 18, 2008)

If i poached it, don't you think i'd be smart enough to not show it off on the freakin internet where everyone and their brother can see it...
I was unaware of the regs but I see what you mean.


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## CasualFisherman (May 21, 2004)

bkr43050 said:


> The authorities would if they wanted to. He is merely letting him know what the law states. It is up to the individual how to handle it. I think I would at least want to know the law if id were me.


What specific law would he be breaking? Could you post it or at least the code section so we can all see what it says?


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## bgpark1 (Apr 23, 2004)

while rabbit hunting at ohio power 10 years ago... 2 weeks after gun season we found a nice 10 pt in the thickets dead and frozen... i shot the base of the horns to free them from the animal and they hang in my garage as a reminder of the one i hope to get one day.

did i break the law... i suspect not.


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## jason454ci (Dec 27, 2005)

CasualFisherman said:


> What specific law would he be breaking? Could you post it or at least the code section so we can all see what it says?



#15 under the list of things you CANNOT do in the hunting handbook

http://www.ohiodnr.com/wildlife/dow/regulations/hunting_deer.aspx#tagging

Receive or possess a deer or parts of a deer unless such deer or deer part is tagged as required or unless the deer or part of a deer has a statement showing when and where legally taken, the date received, and from whom received; or a Division of Wildlife tag, seal, or certificate or other proof of ownership which shows the deer was killed by a motor vehicle in Ohio; or an official tag or seal and valid nonresident license issued by another state if taken from outside Ohio; or certificate of ownership or receipt issued by a wildlife officer.


Also alot more can be found in the Ohio Revised Code

Scroll down to section F then read #22

http://codes.ohio.gov/oac/1501:31-15-11


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## big_mike (Aug 2, 2006)

bgpark1 said:


> while rabbit hunting at ohio power 10 years ago... 2 weeks after gun season we found a nice 10 pt in the thickets dead and frozen... i shot the base of the horns to free them from the animal and they hang in my garage as a reminder of the one i hope to get one day.
> 
> did i break the law... i suspect not.


Make sure you read your regs next time.


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## Papascott (Apr 22, 2004)

bgpark1 said:


> while rabbit hunting at ohio power 10 years ago... 2 weeks after gun season we found a nice 10 pt in the thickets dead and frozen... i shot the base of the horns to free them from the animal and they hang in my garage as a reminder of the one i hope to get one day.
> 
> did i break the law... i suspect not.


ABSOLUTLY! Did you intentionally break the law, doubt it but yes it was illegal to do so.


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## fishingful (Apr 5, 2004)

Waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah


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## monsterKAT11 (Jun 20, 2004)

i'm ok with funding the dnr with tag money and license money. but come on. how much more could you limit an individuals rights? geeze. thats a little ridiculous. the ratchet of stupid laws is cranking tighter and tighter on society...


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## Moonlighter (Jun 20, 2006)

Seems a bit of reading into things to me. All the regs/rules are written for "taking" deer. None of them purposely address natural occurences such as dying of old age and sheds purposely I feel. Sure some gamie will come give ya a certificate if you call, they have to. But finders keepers in nature if ya ask me. Anyone that would call I'd call a bit paranoid about something else. How many cities give roadkill to food kitchens or residents on lists without all the hoopla or BS paperwork mentioned? Finders keepers I'd say. Would still have to be proven a set of horns was taken illegal to make anthing stick to anyone as possession isn't a crime without proof. Maybe a guy could lose a set if he couldn't prove he found em, but no loss in that case it would seem. Even if you get a tag or letter on a rack, yet separate them to rattle with em, how do you prove each side is legal if found in the woods rattling later? Everyone's carrying the cards or tags they got, I'm sure. As the last poster said, waaaaaaaaaaaaaa and nice find!

Sorry, had to add to this. For those that would call an officer to register a shed. Let's say I find a shed but don't want to bother with the BS mentioned. Should I call an ODNR officer and say it didn't interest me, but if you walk out to XXX tree, in XXX woods, you'll find a shed, so better go and get it to ensure it isn't poached or an innocent citizen, maybe one not a hunter can avoid being accused of poaching? If it was a big deal whatsover, the gamies would have to go an recover the sheds. Think they will? Maybe if they had a market for them in China I'd guess.


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## jlamson (Oct 18, 2006)

good point there!!!! i believe in the same if i find something like that im sure not going to bother calling the DNR just for a rack, we use to find some nice racks along the tracks after being hit by a train


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## Bigun (Jun 20, 2006)

Legal to posess antlers without a permit. Probably not. However I would hope that any game warden with any common sense would not push this issue. Beyond that, without issuing some kind of serial number or some kind of permanently attached identification, There would be no way for an officer or warden to determine if the antlers were in fact the ones you have a tag for, or another set that you don't have a tag for. Long story short, I don't think there is any reasonable way a warden would cite someone for having a set of sheds, a skull they found or a pair of rattling antlers. But then again I have seen many things that defied any form of reasonableness.


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## falcon2082 (Jun 16, 2008)

CasualFisherman said:


> What specific law would he be breaking? Could you post it or at least the code section so we can all see what it says?


I think it was about 6 years ago here in NW Ohio and the infamous "Side Cut Sam" buck that turned up missing from Side Cut Park. The carcass was found with the head missing and a guy was prosecuted for having the antlers without registering them. He didn't get prosecuted for poaching the deer because it could not be proved, but yes he got fined for having pocession of the antlers.


Speaking of another Side Cut Park buck, two 20 year olds were recently arrested for poaching "Big Boy" about a month ago. These guys were caught after sending pictures of themselves with the deer to the ODNR and the DNR posted it on their website! They also went to the Bass Pro in Rossford to show off their kill and take pictures with it. Well needless to say people recognized this 8 1/2 - 9 1/2 year old deer and they have since been arrested for poaching and numerous other charges.


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## wildman (Sep 3, 2008)

Well Good, they should of been. I hate poachers I hunt inside the 275 lope.
I went to Athens for Wayne national for 5 days and I came back. Went to my stand this morning and then is mud all over my latter stand. I am the only one with permission to hunt the land. A new guy moved in 2 houses down and he has told me that he has shot more than 2 bucks. I just haven't seen the deer or remains, no proof. I know he's been poaching them just can't prove it. What do you do? It just tick me off I have hunted this land for 20 years. Never had very many problems till now. Same people that poach seen to be the same people that break the law and or steal. It shows the kind of character people have or lack of.


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## BassBlaster (Jun 8, 2006)

Moonlighter said:


> Seems a bit of reading into things to me. All the regs/rules are written for "taking" deer. None of them purposely address natural occurences such as dying of old age and sheds purposely I feel. Sure some gamie will come give ya a certificate if you call, they have to. But finders keepers in nature if ya ask me. Anyone that would call I'd call a bit paranoid about something else. How many cities give roadkill to food kitchens or residents on lists without all the hoopla or BS paperwork mentioned? Finders keepers I'd say. Would still have to be proven a set of horns was taken illegal to make anthing stick to anyone as possession isn't a crime without proof. Maybe a guy could lose a set if he couldn't prove he found em, but no loss in that case it would seem. Even if you get a tag or letter on a rack, yet separate them to rattle with em, how do you prove each side is legal if found in the woods rattling later? Everyone's carrying the cards or tags they got, I'm sure. As the last poster said, waaaaaaaaaaaaaa and nice find!
> 
> Sorry, had to add to this. For those that would call an officer to register a shed. Let's say I find a shed but don't want to bother with the BS mentioned. Should I call an ODNR officer and say it didn't interest me, but if you walk out to XXX tree, in XXX woods, you'll find a shed, so better go and get it to ensure it isn't poached or an innocent citizen, maybe one not a hunter can avoid being accused of poaching? If it was a big deal whatsover, the gamies would have to go an recover the sheds. Think they will? Maybe if they had a market for them in China I'd guess.


So based on this post, I can go out and poach as many big bucks as I want and as long as I skull mount them all, I can say I found them dead and all should be well. There is a reason for every law in the book even if you and others dont get it.


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## Moonlighter (Jun 20, 2006)

I get it and you're right, seems they write a law for just about every idiot or circumstance on the planet because common sense seldom suffices with all the watchdogs we have these days. Arkansas still has laws on the books about how often it's permitted to beat your wife, but just cuz it's written it don't always make for finite jurisprudence or applicable to everything we can imagine. Using all the above wisdom, my son became a criminal at age seven I guess. NOT! He walked into our own backyard, in the city no less and found a shed sticking straight up in the air in our horseshoe pit. Dang deer even used the pin to snap it off. Never occured to him to call a gamie I guess as it still sits on his dresser. My point is laws are just words, just guidelines that have to also be coupled with motive and intent to be worth anything, which I do believe is the case with most of what's been discussed so far.


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## big_mike (Aug 2, 2006)

The reason the law is there is simple, how do we know that this deer was not shot in August, left to lay, then the poacher picks up the antlers and says it was from a natural death. Come guys, it is simple, if you want the antlers just call it in. If you are legal it shouldn't matter. I just wouldn't be on the internet showing off a head of a deer that I picked up illegally. I wasn't trying to start anything, just giving the guy an FYI before he goes around bragging too much. You can tell when a deer sheds the antlers versus having them cut off. Lets get real people, if you don't have a slip and can prove that you DIDN'T poach the deer then you are good, but how do we know whether or not a deer is poached if you don't have a slip from the ODNR and how do they know whether or not it was poached. It really is that simple.


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## Phish_4_Bass (Sep 18, 2008)

big_mike said:


> how do we know that this deer was not shot in August, left to lay, then the poacher picks up the antlers and says it was from a natural death.I just wouldn't be on the internet showing off a head of a deer that I picked up illegally.


So you think I poached it? Jeez I just wanted to show everyone what I found, not open myself up to PMs calling me everything under the sun. Forget I posted anything about it, damn. As I said before, I didn't know it was illegal, nor did I think anything was wrong with picking up something found in the woods.


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## bkr43050 (Apr 5, 2004)

As far as whether it should be a law for possessing antlers still on the skull or at least a skull plate I think if folks can't see the reasoning behind it they are very narrow minded. Will it eliminate every illegal possession incident? Certainly not. But it does give the DNR a leg to stand on when someone is knowingly breaking the law. Without a law such as this then they could pull up on someone with a truckload of skull plates that are running a jacklighting poaching operation and would not be able to do a thing about it. The guys would be allowed to have as many racks as they want right? We are not talking about a law that was instituted in the stone age and still exists out of ignorance. It has a purpose with the DNR. You can choose to do whatever you want with the racks that you collect from deer in the field. But if the DNR were to ever take a look I am sure that at the very least you would no longer have the antlers once they were done. So to me I can't figure out why one wouldn't just have them tagged to make them legal.

As far as collecting sheds I can honestly say that I have not read the regulations that prohibit this. It is easy to identify a shed versus one taken directly from a deer by the base. I would suspect that many folks do collect the sheds without doing anything about them.


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## Lundy (Apr 5, 2004)

Getting a little hot.

I don't think you did anything intentionally to violate anything, you were just sharing a cool find while hunting.

I think some became over zealous in pointing out that there are laws for possessing antlers whether they be drops, complete skulls or cut from dead deer. These laws are in place to serve as a deterrent to those that would try and illegally kill bucks and later claim they found them.

These types of laws are necessary to control the lawless unfortunately many other honest hunters get caught up in the mix unknowingly.


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## MinnKota (Jul 24, 2007)

Nice find. By the looks looks of it the deer either died of old age or was miss shot and never found. It is too bad that we live in a world of distrust. I however am not sure that the post was written to attack you, but more or less just inform you of the written rule that was written because of this world of distrust. Beautiful find. ENJOY!


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## big_mike (Aug 2, 2006)

Phish_4_Bass said:


> So you think I poached it? Jeez I just wanted to show everyone what I found, not open myself up to PMs calling me everything under the sun. Forget I posted anything about it, damn. As I said before, I didn't know it was illegal, nor did I think anything was wrong with picking up something found in the woods.


I am not calling you a poacher. I am simply trying to let you know what the laws were. Putting your picture on the internet of some antlers is not the end of the world, but would by any means really suck if the DNR came to your house and ticketed you for illegal possesion of a wild animal part. I am sure you are a law abiding citizen and seem to be pretty straight forward. As I stated before, I do NOT think you are a poacher. I just wanted to let you know the law. So I am SORRY if you misunderstood what I was trying to do. Good luck in the future.


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## big_mike (Aug 2, 2006)

Lundy said:


> Getting a little hot.
> 
> I don't think you did anything intentionally to violate anything, you were just sharing a cool find while hunting.
> 
> ...


Can we just take this post down. I am sure he has seen enough and I for one have caused enough issues over this. All I was trying to do was to let him know there are certian laws out there. I wasn't trying to call the guy a Poacher, or a criminal. Don't PM the guy and call him names. People pick up antlers all the time, you just normally don't see an entire skull in that good of shape. Sorry that I ever brought it up.

Big_MIke


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## Lundy (Apr 5, 2004)

Too many take way too much way too personally.

Another case and point.


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## c. j. stone (Sep 24, 2006)

I'm sure no harm was intended, nor was it when we learned the law in kind of a hard way. Maybe twenty years ago, several of us were gathered around a campfire(tipping a few) in front of a barndoor, twenty feet up on a hill above a Harrison cty. township road, on Wed. night of gun week. On the door was nailed fresh antlers cut off a buck that was probably shot early Monday and accidentally found on Wed. afternoon(having been a warm week, the meat was tainted so it was not tagged but left in the field). 
TWO carloads of guys stop abruptly on the road, run up to us and SURROUND us! All gamewardens with their hands on their sidearms!! One of them says in a gruff voice, "Who shot the deer on the barndoor"? The property owner(who cut the rack off), says "we have no idea but found the deer spoiled in the woods". The warden says, "all the deer in OHIO BELONG TO THE STATE" and it's illegal to take any part out of the woods unless tagged-or you are authorized to do so by possessing a DNR release form. He says you have two choices, give up the rack, or they would cite the owner!(Some choice?) The owner said he didn't know it was illegal to take them, pulls the rack off the door, hands it to them, and off they go! Apparently, one of them had driven by earlier, saw the horns in the firelight and rounded up their posse-or perhaps had seen it earlier when noone was in camp. Lesson learned!


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## falcon2082 (Jun 16, 2008)

A buddy of mine just came into work 2 weeks ago with half a rack from a deer he found in the woods (the other half was gone). He said the deer had obviously been laying there a while but he took his tree saw and cut the rack off to bring into work to show us and I asked him if he realized it was illegal to do what he did with out notifying the GW. He had no idea and learned something. I really believe that was the intent of these post's, to make us all more aware of our game laws so we don't get into trouble one day. 
For the people that were PMing some unpleasantries I hope they got reported to the administrators of this site because that type of behavior is completely unwarranted to someone that made a simple mistake and was trying to share something with the rest of us. 
Boy do I wish a deer like that walks by my stand one day though and thanks for sharing!!!!!!


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## fishintechnician (Jul 20, 2007)

so by law if someone were to have poached this deer in august as mentioned(not saying it was just trying to make a point) and left it lay they could always call the gamie have them come out and tag it then it would be leagal to poses, so these theorecticall peoeple with " truck loads of racks" would simply have to call the gw and have them taged and theyed be good to go?!
doesn't make much sense to me, the gw need to go after poacher not HUNTERS. with all the idiots out there doing dumb **** you think they would be a little busy to deal with a skull FOUND in the woods. no harm no foul in my opinion


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## Ohiobowhunter (Jul 9, 2007)

[url said:


> http://www.ohiodnr.com/wildlife/dow/regulations/hunting_deer.aspx#tagging[/url]
> 
> ...or an official tag or seal and valid nonresident license issued by another state if taken from outside Ohio; or certificate of ownership or receipt issued by a wildlife officer.


I moved back to Ohio after 20 years in Colorado. I brought with me several mounts including several whitetails. THERE ARE NO TAGS, CERTIFS, ETC... so I guess according to Ohio law, these are illegal? If so, they can kiss my junk. 

And while I'm at it. Ohio law does not allow for halfing/quartering a deer. Many times I hunt by myself so guess what...I'm older now and if the deer is very large, it will be cut in half. They can match the pieces together, but I'm not going to have a heart attack because these idiots have written bad laws.


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## bkr43050 (Apr 5, 2004)

Ohiobowhunter said:


> I moved back to Ohio after 20 years in Colorado. I brought with me several mounts including several whitetails. THERE ARE NO TAGS, CERTIFS, ETC... so I guess according to Ohio law, these are illegal? If so, they can kiss my junk.
> 
> And while I'm at it. Ohio law does not allow for halfing/quartering a deer. Many times I hunt by myself so guess what...I'm older now and if the deer is very large, it will be cut in half. They can match the pieces together, but I'm not going to have a heart attack because these idiots have written bad laws.


I know this does not help you right now but in a couple of years they are switching to a call-in system to check your deer in. That would obviously eliminate the problem. As for now I would suspect that if a checking station is doing things the way they are supposed to then they would indeed have a problem with a deer showing up at their checkstation in multiple pieces. Personally I would check with them ahead of time on it before I showed up for checking one in and got a rude awakening.


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## Phish_4_Bass (Sep 18, 2008)

big_mike said:


> Can we just take this post down. I am sure he has seen enough and I for one have caused enough issues over this. All I was trying to do was to let him know there are certian laws out there. I wasn't trying to call the guy a Poacher, or a criminal. Don't PM the guy and call him names. People pick up antlers all the time, you just normally don't see an entire skull in that good of shape. Sorry that I ever brought it up.
> 
> Big_MIke


Understood, I sent you a PM going further in depth. Sorry I flew off the handle everyone.


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## Fishstix (Aug 16, 2005)

Regardless of the situation, one thing I absolutley hate about this site is how quick other are to point the finger and tell others how they are wrong.


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## GOTEM' (Apr 1, 2007)

Here's one for you people that want to get on this kids case, Can you tell the difference between a OH/Pa/WV deer. I think not, so if he didn't share his story with you people, you would never know where the deer is from. Right, right who cares, everyday in Pa people shoot deer and they dont have to tag them, y is Ohio so elite. its an honor system in most states so y the big deal. I would mont the horns and title it found in PA. Rules are made to be broken and I feel this is one of them.


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## Phish_4_Bass (Sep 18, 2008)

GOTEM' said:


> 2008 Fish Ohio Awards:
> 14' White Crappie (04/03/08):
> 
> 14 foot White Crappie! DAMN, wha't you catch him on?


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## bkr43050 (Apr 5, 2004)

GOTEM' said:


> Right, right who cares, everyday in Pa people shoot deer and they dont have to tag them, y is Ohio so elite. its an honor system in most states so y the big deal.


I am not sure where you are getting your information but the last I checked Pennsylvania required a deer permit to kill deer and limited the number that any one person could obtain. I don't know enough about their method of checking in the deer but I am sure that they either still have a checking station method or at least a call-in method. You make it sound as if PA residents can do like the wild west and go shoot deer whenever and wherever they please. They have some very remote areas which I am sure allow some folks to institute their own laws but in the end they have regulations to protect the herd the same as Ohio does.



GOTEM' said:


> Rules are made to be broken and I feel this is one of them.


That is great advice to be giving to everyone. I guess I can go out every day of the winter and kill a few deer. After all I feel that rule is made to be broken.

This thread has really gone way out of hand simply because a few people overreacted to a word of caution from another member. The original mention of the law was done in a polite manner and the post was even finished off by saying "Just trying to keep you out of trouble". The true intent of the thread was to show a nice rack that was found and I believe by now everyone has gotten a chance to see it. There is really nothing more to discuss on this thread.


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