Serving sportsmen, ranchers, farmers, timberland managers and others who own or lease rural land:
- We support the right of land owners and lease holders to use and manage their land without disruption from trespassing deer dogs and other nuisances.
- We support implementation of a three-pronged
strategy put forth by USFS that includes enhanced regulations assuring safety,
accountability and suitability for dog-deer hunting on National Forests in
Mississippi.
- We support a
state-wide permit system for dog-deer hunting on all private lands in MS that
includes minimum acres to run deer dogs, punative consequences for deer-dog
trespass when they get off the permitted property, and permit revocation for
habitual offenders.
(See our proposed permit system for private lands.)
- We support the use of dogs to hunt squirrel, coon, rabbit, duck, geese, quail, hogs, and other small game.
Mission Statement:
This organization is organized exclusively for protection and promotion of rural landowner and leaseholder rights to enjoy their land as they see fit. Does dog-deer hunting have an image problem?It is a unique dog sport unlike other dog-hunting sports because it: - requires very large acreage to minimize nuisance to others.
- can result in dangerous confrontations between dog-deer hunters and others.
- often results in ruined still hunts because of trespassing deer dogs.
- is perceived by some as a motorized sport.
- is considered by some to be an electronic roundup because tracking collars on dogs send location data to hunters in their trucks so they can position themselves to head the deer off.
Negative consequences associated with dog-deer huntingDid you know?
- Deer-dog trespassing is a problem that is not unique to Mississippi.
- Only nine states in the USA allow the use of dogs to hunt Whitetail deer; even in those states, some areas are closed to dog-deer hunting.
- There are 155 national forests in the USA. Of those, 127 (81%) are closed to dog-deer hunting for Whitetail deer.
- Mississippi has six national forests. There are some areas in all six forests that are closed to dog-deer hunting.
HNF permit system info
Excerpt pertaining to HNF permit system
What you can do now
- Tell
your senator and representative in your legislative district what you
are experiencing and that you want something done about it. Find their
contact information here: http://www.legislature.ms.gov/ then click on Legislators at the top of the page. If you are using your phone, you may have to tap the three-bar menu button in the upper right corner to find Legislators. We have handouts and videos available to help you educate legislators.
- Talk
with your MDWFP Commissioner since these are the people who authorized
the Homochitto Permit system and can approve additional permit systems in
other areas of the state. You cannot contact them directly but you can email Tara Yount and she will forward your email to
your commissioner: Tara.Yount@wfp.ms.gov
Find
your commissioner here: http://www.mdwfp.com/administration/commission/
Find your district here: http://www.mdwfp.com/media/2748/commission_districts_map_large.jpg
- Form
Neighborhood Watch groups in your area. Start by contacting neighboring
landowners, leaseholders, and interested still hunters in your area. We
can help by providing names of other nearby RPRAM members. Host a lunch
meeting (Saturday works best for most deer camp meetings) where
you get to know each other and exchange contact information. Notify
local game wardens about your watch group and invite them to your
meetings. Ask them how you can help them catch road hunters, poachers,
trespassers, and other violators.
- Document
incidents by using trail cameras, cell phone and other handheld cameras, and drones to photograph trespassers and
trespassing dogs.
Photograph or record on paper the permit number (if applicable) and
dog-collar information. You can download a printable form here:
Dog-Violation Form (3-up, PDF)
- Complete an Incident Report here on our website for every deer-dog trespass incident you experience.
- Call 1-800-BESMART (1-800-237-6278) to document your incidents.
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MDWFP 2016-2017 Deer Hunter Survey Results
- Less than 7% of the respondents hunted deer with dogs.
- Only 2.2% of the responding hunters said that hunting deer with dogs is their primary means of deer hunting.
- Only 4.5% said that both still hunting and hunting deer with dogs are their primary means.
- 88% said that still hunting is their primary means.
PDF
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Rural Property Rights