Jimmy Houston - High Fence Hunt

[Rutnut]

Only commenting on what I saw in the video....Jimmy Houston should be ashamed of himself. He put himself out there by taping this hunt, so if this clip is posted from an anti source, then Jimmy as a hunter is to blame for the propaganda. It puts a bad light on all hunting.

[Deebz]

Don't forget that Jimmy Houston is actually a professional FISHERMAN... This video and this specific situation sucks, but I wouldn't think Jimmy Houston was doing anything other than trying to get some good footage for his television shows... TV shows are only profitable if you get footage people want to see...

I do agree with BigIron that the real travesty is the fact that this is being billed as the norm for hunting behind big fences. Like it or hate it, high fences exist. I don't like them. I tend to agree more with the idea that an animal that can't escape a fence will eventually be easier to kill, simply because you have more of a guarantee about whether or not an animal is going to show up. That doesn't mean it's easier to get close and pull off a good shot. (BigIron: Your deer you thought were gone for 2 years, but eventually showed up... in the wild, those deer could very likely have left the area and NOT shown up again due to getting shot by other hunters, predation, or crossing road dangers... The deer in a fenced environment cannot get past a certain range, so they are always going to be within a certain area, regardless of how big it is)

But again, this is simply a case of 2 different viewpoints and hunting styles with very different backgrounds and traditions... trying to change one or the other's mind is like trying to convince someone who prefers grape jelly that strawberry jam is better

[Rutnut]

... trying to change one or the other's mind is like trying to convince someone who prefers grape jelly that strawberry jam is better

That's not really a good debate..Everyone knows Strawberry is better.

[Deebz]

touche....

[Big Horse]

Fruit is good but everyone has their preferences.

Whether you want to grow your own, pick it wild, or buy it in a store makes no difference to me.

Eat it fresh, make preserves or bake it in a pie, I could care less.

I'll support one's right to fruit.

[BigIron]

Exactly Bighorse! And Deebs u just have to experience hunting south Texas brush (where deer can walk three feet and disappear) to understand the difficulty of hunting here I guess. Nuge made 4 hunts with me on this place last year (over feeders and strown corn) and never got a shot. If anything, deer behind fences get smarter and more difficult to kill. I think that's why most Texas hunters are rifle snipers.

[Jslotter]

I launched one fatal arrow this last season, and I didnt need a feeder or fences to keep "my" deer from moving off the property so I wouldnt have to worry if someone else killed "my" deer. I actually spent time scouting, and studying the lay of the land how the animals move. I could have just as easily said screw it, and illegally put up a feeder. But, I like to feel as though I earned my kill and not cut corners and make it way to easy. Sorry your season sucked. Better check for holes in the fence, the deer might have snuck out.

I'll bet you used scent killers and scents and other bait like things. And you probably hunted the only cover the poor deer had to go to from their night time feeding grounds. And you're a better hunter because of that and you denigrate feeder hunters when we hunt thousands of square miles of brush that you can't pattern deer in.

Yup. You're a real gem attacking others for doing what they can to enhance their opportunities. And the ONLY fair chase is if you run the deer down and kill it with your bare hands. But I'll bet you don't do that do you? But you can look down on others from your lofty BS self image.

Yeah. You're a real piece of work.

I do practice some scent control. Bait? absolutely not. I set up on private and public grounds without a high fence. Come up here to Wisconsin and hunt some farmland Bigiron. Your comments on how hard deer are to kill on fenced land and how texas hunters are "snipers" is BS. I dont like your style of hunting because guys like you think you are something special and come on here thinking we all should respect your methods regardless. Its not hunting when you sit next to a feeder with a high fence. Once again. Sorry to ruffle your feathers.

[buckhunter21]

Wow. So that's it? You folks agree with the putz that put that piece of trash together and published it? So you agree that high fenced operations and breeding facilities are all that way? All because he found some that are the lowest common denominator?

Because that was his purpose. To paint all high fenced operations with the same brush. Now THAT'S pathetic. Canniballism run amok. I don't know anyone who drugs deer or "hunts" them in pens. And I know hundreds of breeders and high fenced operations.

Like was stated, I was just talking about the video that was attached as well. I DO NOT believe that all high fenced operations and breeding facilities are that way, just talking about the video, and someone that is supposed to be a role model...someone who is supposed to be 'America's Favorite Fisherman,' goes about his business.

[buckhunter21]

deer + high fence = bad or lazy hunter. Sorry if that hurts your feelings.

Your ignorance hurt my feelings? Why? I have high fenced deer that you'd never see. I love you farm deer hunters who think high fenced hunting is easy. I love it when my high fenced deer on 1200 and 1400 acres send you home empty handed. It's fun watching someone who's used to shooting "wild" deer comes down and goes home empty handed after trying to shoot my "tame" deer.

My opinion is my opinion I guess. Doesn't mean that I'm right or someone else is right. As far as high fenced hunts go, I really don't care if it's 4 acres, 40 acres, 400, or 4,000. High fence is high fence. Yes, I get it...the larger the property that is fenced in, the more it's like 'the real thing,' but nothing beats the real thing regardless.

[kellory]

In fact my eyes are brown, but not from being full of it. It's from many miles of close, careful tracking, wind blown dust, and long sun burnt days. And of course, genetics. Different lands have different challenges. That is true anywhere. And how we hunt them, varies with the conditions we face. but if I screw up, and that deer winds me, he's gone, gone, gone! You deer, if he winds you, can still be backed into a fence, a corner, or even left to settle down, and hunted again in a few hours or days. You could reek and use it to herd deer into a corner, you could make as many mistakes as there are to make, and you will still have another shot at your deer. That for me is the difference. My deer can keep his freedom if he outsmarts me. Your deer has a life sentence, without the possibility of parole. It may be a big cage, but it's still a cage. And yes, they say the same thing about zoos.

Thanks for making my point. Your assumptions are perfect evidence of someone talking trash about something they've never seen or done in person. I have deer on my ranches that disappear for one or two years before they walk in front of a camera again and I then find out that what I thought the yotes had gotten were actually still alive. On my ranches I don't have the only source of food cornered or the only source of cover cornered like you do.

The difference is I never attack your method until you attack mine. The hypocrisy and ignorance of people who take your position is astounding and I must say somewhat entertaining. But it really does endanger hunting by driving rifts in a group that really should be locking arms in the fight agains anti's.

And you may have genetically brown eyes. But they've got a rock solid backup.

...........................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................Now here's where it gets funny. I said I would need to know alot more about the subject before I would debate it with you. I know what I learned in high school about genetics, and I said I would listen close while you regaled us with the pros of high fence hunting. I bowed to your Superior knowledge of deer breeding, additives, processes, and animal husbandry. So far, all I have heard is trash talk. I gave you the podium, feel free to use it. However, I would bet I know fences better than you do. I have installed more than a few miles of it, in many styles, and functions. electric, automated, ground sensors, loop detectors, variable voltage, prison style, dead man traps, interlocks, (it's part of what I do for a living) barb-wire, and any device to make them move, or prevent them from moving. Controlled access is what I do. So I do know how to use a fence as a weapon, a barrier, a deterant and a funnel. I know a fence prevents exit. I know it can be used to entrap, or box in an animal. or a man. That is the whole point of a fence. That is why prisons use them. Your deer can elude you for years, like cat and mouse, but he can not leave, no matter how badly you screw up you scent control, or how badly the wind is blowing, you will have another shot at him later. You said yourself, that the caged deer get real smart real fast. Of course he does, you have crippled his main line defense (the ability to flee danger) and unless you maintain scent control while feeding, your scent will become more common to them. They will learn where you go, and where you do not. They will learn it much better than if they roamed free. Ask anyone who has spent time in a cell, they learned every crack and crevice because that was the limit of their world. Your buck must get cagey, or die. On the other hand, you are under a few mis-impressions yourself. Slots would not be hunting the only cover, or the only food source. There is cover everywhere, and food is everywhere for deer up here. There are few things a deer can not eat here if he is hungry enough. That is why they must thin out the parks here. The deer were eating the bark off the trees and killing the trees. The hard part is how to figure where in this lushness, the deer will choose to go. and to try to intercept him in route, or wait for him. He will not be dragged by his stomach, but may be lured by his taste buds.if what he thinks you have is a bit tastier than what he has already. Now, other than referring to high fence hunting as hunting in a cage (which it is) I don't believe I have insulted you. I, on the other hand suffer from neither anal-optica, nor optical-defecation, so do try to stay on subject. You have the lectern professor, educate us as to the good sides of high fence hunting, if you can. However, don't tell me the fence plays no role in the hunt, I know better. . .