I hunt both every year and absolutely love both ends of it. Just read my sig and it says it all!!!

Low Fence Family property in Llano Co. We are high fenced on two sides. It has defenantly hurt our hunting.

I've hunted property that was partially high fenced, and it does effect the way you hunt and what you see. It's true that a deer can and will jump a high fence, but they won't if they don't have to. I've seen them jump them with ease, but again it's either out of necessity like being chased by hunters riding a fence on a vehicle, or dogs, or either trying to get across because of a hot doe on the other side that a buck just can't resist, but just normally they prefer to take the path of least resistance rather than jump and make a nasty landing.

A high fence can direct deer by a stand if you put a blind in the right place, as it acts as a funnel in some cases, but if you have a high fence that takes in more than two sides, your chances of having deer on modest to small sized place deminish unless you have a big enough place, or your property is shaped in a way that it won't effect their natural travel routes to feeding, and bedding areas, where they have enough freedom to roam.

Low fence is naturally hunter friendly, and deer most of the time will elect to go under or through a few strands of wire rather than jump, and they can go through that kind of fence without missing a step or slowing down and that's without even jumping it.

Looking for a place to hunt that isn't around a ranch with a high fence is getting harder and harder to find, but it's not always a bad thing, and storms happen where trees fall on those fences, and floods happen and wash out sections of fence, and holes get put into those high fences from time to time by hogs and other game, so any big bucks with superior genes can and do end up in the adjoining property.

I've personally seen it happen, and there are a lot of free roaming exotics in the hill country that got out of high fenced places that prove that point.

Yes, high fences can even help the small places, so I say more power to them, and keep the country side well stocked!

I am available!!

I hunt low fence but what do you think happens to livestock in a bad wildfire.Lets keep this country free like it was intended. Theres anuff in washinton that dont think you have the right to hunt lowfence either. Just remember that.

Well said Dave...

As a non-Texan, I made my first hunt in Texas last year. I went with a co-worker to a ranch near Junction that he had hunted in the past. It happened to be HF, and I must admit I was very leary about hunting there. I hunt about 2600 acres in MS, and people barely even bother to put up fences there (actually they are there, just rarely maintained), so my first thoughts were of canned hunts everyone always hears of.

Turns out, we had 3 of us hunting a 6500 acre ranch. I quickly came to appreciate the fact that the owner wasn't going to make any money off of three guys hunting nearly 10 square miles of land after I saw an 18 Wheeler delivering feed pull out as we pulled up.

Now, was there an abundance of game....yes; but my hunting experience was what I made it to be. I had to put 4 long days in to ultimately be successful.

I wanted to see a mature animal, and I was prepared to leave empty handed if I did not encounter the type of animal I expected to see in Texas.

I left with the feeling that the owner of such a ranch has to really enjoy spending money to feed year round in order to produce outstanding animals knowing that whom ever he allows to hunt, no matter how much they are willing to pay, will not allow him to generate a profit from hunting alone. In my opinion, he is just as much a conservationist as a guy trudging through wetlands in North Dakota tagging ducks for Delta Waterfowl.

I'm just pointing out, that this owner was more than responsible and the only animals that were going to leave his ranch were ones that had reached their full potential. That fact was not debatable.

Futher more, it wasn't a shooting gallery. We had 3 days of 25+ mph winds, and the deer just were not moving; just like they wouldn't have moved in Mississippi if I were hunting there.

Low or High, you guys are blessed to live and hunt in Texas; it's a wonderful place to enjoy the outdoors.

We own the property so I get the same enjoyment as you do.(working on blinds,planting fields,filling feeders, watching the improvement of the property and the animals on it etc.) I still get buck fever even though its HF'ed. I killed my biggest buck this year and its the biggest we have ever had on the ranch since we have owned it(1989).

I guess people get the same enjoyment of hunting a HF place as I do hiring a guide for an out of state hunt. All I have to do is show up and most of the scouting is already done, I don't have to cook/clean etc. I get to enjoy the hunt without all the other odds and ends. I finally got drawn for a mule deer hunt in Nevada. It took 10 years to get that tag. $6000 later and 6 days of hunting, I came home empty handed. Thats the way the ball roles. The weather was terrible and the deer weren't moving. The same happens on a high fenced place also. The deer might be there but that doesn't mean they are going to move. By the way, just because a high fence is present doesn't mean there are MONSTER bucks behind every tree and all you have to do is show up,pick one out and shoot it.

I hunt no fence.

High Fences places are a joke and a black eye on hunting. No real hunter will hunt a high fence place.

Now there is an open mind....

seriously...the biggest problem hunting faces is the fact that hunters are too busy fussing and fighting amongst themselves to present a united front to the real enemy. In other words, you sir are part of the problem.

Anyone that thinks hunting animals enclosed in a pen is disturbed, and needs to re-evaluate their compass.

i would hardly call any thing over 640 acres a pen... unless its flat farm land with no trees.

But what ever... I guess you think everything is a pen whether its 640 or 21k...

Guess that depends on your definition of a pen...my definition of a pen is an enclosure from which an animal can not get out of sight. Lots of HF places are plenty big for that. I've never even been on a HF place, nor am I likely to, but I think it's ridiculous to paint every HF place as a purveyor of canned hunts. If you want to preserve our hunting heritage for future generations you may want to re-evaluate your compass, and stand together with all hunters.

This forum is always dissagreeing on what is and is not right. No matter what kind of hunting you do there will always be someone that comes behind you and says they work harder at it than you do so you're not really a hunter OR you didn't deserve whatever you harvested.

I hunt 7700 low fenced acres and wasn't able to hunt nearly as much as I'd have liked to this year so I wasn't able to put forth the effort that I intended to. I didn't see anything that I felt didn't need to live a couple more years before I would shoot it in my 1 buck county. Shot a doe and it sure tastes good ( thanks Joshua Deer Processing ).

I think/hope all here would agree that a pen raised ( pet deer ) buck or 20 acre hunt is not sporting but where is the cut-off as far as acres of high fence? That's up to the individual and nobody deserves to be berated unless they're trying to pass off their harvest from a canned hunt ( small acreage )as a trophy.

To some, the work involved obtaining a deer is more important than the actual harvest. To others, only the end result is important. If a guy/gal wants to impress his friends with a huge buck mounted on his wall he may be satisfied in taking that buck the easiest way possible. For me, that buck would be much, much better if I had a great hunting story to go with it.

To each their own. Whatever your decision, be sure it's right for you and don't worry about the other guys.

I would hunt a HF but would prefer it to be a "lease" even though I know that would be very expensive. At 51 years old I still get excited about " being there " and seeing game. If that excitement ever leaves, I'll quit hunting.

well said

Oh, please, mighty one, could you share with us what a "real hunter" is?

if you have to ask, then you really shouldn't be hunting.

Oh, I am so glad we have been blessed with your presence and knowledge...it is good that you are here to guide us with your omnipotence. We have been lacking a voice to decide who is worthy and who is not...we are saved!!

Well, I hunt the way my daddy tought me back in the '50's. And I'm sure my daddy could whip your daddy.

Now, do you have anything to contribute to the conversation? Or do you just enjoy taking pointless pot shots?

i guess you could say the same thing about fishing in a stock tank....that any 10 lb bass is somehow less than one caught at a reservoir?

I don't fish in ponds; the fish are trapped there and can't fairly escape my hook.

Wheres that mentality stop. I say it stops with the comfort level of each hunter or fishermen. I love catching big bass in tanks. But it donsnt mean much to me. These so called hunters that try to degrade the decision of hunters and land owners who choose HF places. Do they really think that hunting deer on low fence place the deer needs that low fence to avoid them. Sorry but the deer doent need all that rm to evade you in most cases. Same goes in the larger HF places. The deer you pursue on low fence ranch doesnt give up its home range because your there,he just does his best to avoid you. Sometimes he wins sometimes he dont. Those that downgrade HF hunting on here need a ego ck.