The Issues At Hand No pens, no fences, only 100 percent fair chase hunting…oh, urp! By Dr. James C. Kroll Editor’s note: This previous column is still have anything on me. I also have hunted ing, as it exists today, pure and simple, timely, so we thought we would dust it off whitetails in every habitat in which they is a ritualistic return to our roots. It and share it with our readers once again. reside, including the tropics and New rightly should be called “recreational Zealand. In saying this, it is not my hunting,” which better describes what very year or so, an ar- intent to be boastful, rather to assure it does for us. It allows us to re-create ticle comes out in which the you I have “walked in your boots.” ourselves annually. It is a reconnect E author asserts he is going It is hard to imagine two cavemen, with our genetic tendency to hunt and to cover the “controversial Muck Muck and Tamud, sitting around gather. issues” of fair chase. He goes on to the campfire, engaged in a spirited dis- The word “sport” is defined as (1) that give a rehash of the same old material, cussion of what is fair chase. These folks which diverts and makes mirth; pas- presented in such a way not to offend would, and regularly did, kill more than time; amusement or (2) mock; mockery; anyone. In so doing, he deftly sidesteps they needed—and never worried about contemptuous mirth; derision. In regard the real issues we are facing as deer how fair their tactics were to the game. to hunting, it is defined as: “Diversion hunting and deer management come North America is covered with evidence of the field, as fowling, hunting, fishing, into the 21st century. This column, I of mass over-kills. Hunting to these racing, games, and the like, especially promise you, will deal with the most folks simply was the way to survival. It when money is staked.” Obviously, if we important issues. In doing so, I probably was not play. view hunting as sport, we look at this will step on a few toes in the process, Subsistence hunting persisted in one activity in a much different way than but it is time someone steps up to the form or another until the early part of when we consider it to be recreation. plate on this critical issue. the 20th century for many peoples. By Sports must have rules, and in- As a caveat, let me assure you I the mid-20th century, hunting (and tuitively there must be a winner of the have broad experience in deer hunt- often fishing) had become a recreational game. The purpose of rules in sport is to ing. Of the several hundred bucks I rather than a subsistence activity. assure all sides play fairly. The focus is have killed—some of which have been Although I still hear folks talking about on the participants, not the game itself record-book animals—only a handful “getting their venison,” countless tons or the object of the game. No one ever have come from high-fenced proper- of venison lay in freezers around the concerns himself with the welfare of ties; not because I am opposed to them, country, slowly getting freezer burn. For the ball or bat, only whether or not all but I prefer to hunt the wild, far away many people today, hunting no longer participants are being treated fairly and and challenging places. I also want to is a means of bringing meat to the table, obeying the rules of the game. assure you bowhunters I have indeed other than as a novel treat. It was not until hunting became a killed lots of bucks with a bow (recurve, One of my pet peeves is the persistent “sport” that rules became important. compound, etc.), so do not think you use of the term “sport hunting.” Hunt- What are the rules of hunting? Unfor- 20 ❙ January/February 2010 The Journal of the Texas Trophy Hunters - The Voice of Texas HuntingTM www.ttha.com tunately, in North America, other than warfare in American society. Politicians tan areas. Bottom line: give up blaming game laws and a few rules associated tend to use this to generate support for the cost of hunting for the loss of hunt- with record books, there are none! their particular political agendas, and ers! The federal data clearly support less A friend of mine collects very old nowhere do we see this more than in than 10 percent of the hunter’s dollar books. Not long ago, he showed me his modern hunting. The NRA published goes to hunting rights and privileges. latest acquisition. It was a book pub- an article (in American Hunter) detail- Nowhere is this class warfare world lished in Europe some time in the 1500 ing how the periodic study by the U.S. more obvious than in the issues related to 1600 timeframe. It was entitled “The Fish and Wildlife Service, on hunt- to high fences, on which some politi- Rules of Hunting.” It was a fascinating ing, fishing and outdoor recreation cians, game agencies and academicians read. in America, revealed three important have tried to focus growing hunter frus- If we are to make hunting a sport, rather than recreation, it is time to write the rules. But, I would be opposed to making it a sport. Animals should not be the object of sport. If, however, hunting is to be considered a ritualistic opportunity to retrace our past, and if we really care for the animals, the rules have to be written by each of us individually. In it were discussed how hunters things: 1) hunters are getting older; 2) tration in regard to poor quality hunting should purport themselves, especially in the number of hunters is declining; and, opportunities. regard to proper pursuit. The focus was 3) the annual expenditures and income It is similar to what we are seeing in more on a hunter being an important of hunters is going up. the Middle East where theocratic dicta- part of management than deciding what From these “scientific” facts, they tors are selling the idea America is the was “fair.” concluded the “little man” is being cause for the misery and poverty of their Although written hundreds of years priced out of hunting. Yet, they failed people. So, today we see an effort— ago, it informed the reader on how to to consider every time we conduct such whether on purpose or accidentally—to age live deer, a topic only recently “dis- a demographic analysis on hunters, not divide hunters based on class warfare. covered” by American wildlife managers surprisingly they have gotten older by Texas is a unique state. I do not have and the outdoor press. To date, however, the number of years since the last study. to tell you that. And, deer hunting, no one in America has written such a Baby Boomers (of which I am a especially trophy deer hunting, is an book. member) are the largest segment in our integral part of our hunting heritage. We conducted a study here at the population. Further, our fathers are In the past, access to big bucks pretty Institute for White-tailed Deer Manage- passing away or no longer hunting. It is much was the privilege of folks with ment and Research on what people con- a real fact that baby boomers make more large ranches or properties. That does sider the definition of fair chase. To our money than their fathers, even if they not mean the poor hunter could not surprise, two totally different interpreta- are hourly wage earners. So, yes, the have a chance at a big buck, rather there tions appeared between hunters and average income is indeed rising for every is more abundance of big deer on large non-hunters (and anti-hunters). When it recreational segment. The same can be properties. was all said and done, hunters consider said for golf, fishing or even ping-pong! Then, along came high fences, which fair as being related to each hunter The number of hunters indeed is created access to trophy bucks on having “fair access to the game.” To the declining, but for what reason? Ev- relatively small properties. This did not non-hunter, fair was having consider- ery credible study suggests a lifestyle fit well into the minds of the landed ation for the animal and its welfare. So, change, rather than the cost of hunting gentry. One landowner told me, “I don’t it turns out the vast majority of hunters is causing this to happen. It is no longer understand all the fuss about high really could not care about whether they convenient to hunt; and, the amount of fences. There are plenty of large ranches are being fair to the animals, provided discretionary leisure time in America is for people to hunt.” This “let them eat some other guy does not have unfair at an all-time low. cake” mentality really describes how access to the game. As Shakespeare said, The fact is, the average American no large landowners and the wealthy think “Therein lies the rub!” longer has time to hunt, especially for about trophy deer hunting. They do not Today, we see a great deal of class the majority who live in large metropoli- live in the real world. www.ttha.com The Journal of the Texas Trophy Hunters - The Voice of Texas HuntingTM January/February 2010 ❙ 21 By the turn of this century, these high-fenced ranch.