solar panels to game feeders deliberately cut

Went out to my uncles place in Kaufman County to fill my two feeders for the season and found both solar panels to the feeders were cut. let me also add that this property has never been hunted for deer in literately around 50 to 60 years. The first time we hunted it about 3 years ago we had the game warden walk up on my father and my 13 year old son on opening day at around 8 am right in the middle of hunting. Seems very odd to me that the first deer hunt on this property in 50 to 60 years the game warden shows up in the middle of hunting on opening day to check my father and sons license. I am a very ethical hunter and respect Texas game wardens but this sure does seem like someone in the area doesn't want us hunting there and they might be just a little to good of friends with the game warden.

The game warden could have just gotten a call. Your uncle doesn't have any ideas who it might be?

I agree about someone calling the game warden. but i could be wrong but wouldn't any normal game warden wait till your done hunting on opening day of the season instead of ruining your hunt. And yes he has an idea who it might be and just by chance they are buddy buddy with the game warden. so what do you do.

Most folks who live around the area know the Wardens and the Wardens will tell them to give him a call when there is some suspecious activity.
This is common and it's how the GW has eyes and ears to the ground so to speak. They will most of the time even have locks to the gates on many ranches in the county.
Don't get too upset about it since nothing cries poachers more than someone spotting someone on property that hasn't been hunted in 50 or 60 years.
BTW on those feeders are you sure they were cut?
Lot of times those big coons will grab those wires and use them as a hold to get to the spin plate of the feeder and eventually they will break. I finally had to put a cage around mine to keep them from damaging the wires.

Maybe the gw is "one of those" we have been reading about? Have hidden TC out? I definitely would. AND, if you do report the vandalism, DO NOT TELL THE GW you have a tc out....

It could have been worse. I've heard stories of new land owners being approached by trespassing hunters claiming to own their property.

You have a good point there Jimbo, but now that my solar panels have been cut im putting two and two together and realizing that the guy that doesnt want use hunting has a high fence area with "pet" deer is buddy buddy with the warden.

Locals could have been hunting it the last 50-60 years too, odd thing is, they will see you as a "trespasser". I have had that problem once in the past, caught some trespassers and they where like "we been coming here for years"

Put some trail cameras out where they will most likely enter the property and place them so they can't be easily seen.
Once you get them on camera you can call the Warden and show him and see what he says.
Get some type of documentation saying that you are allowed on the property signed by the property owner.
It's always better to have signed permission and documentation. Giving him phone numbers and even tax info where he can call in and check to make sure the property is owned by who you say it is.

trail cams are back up and running for the season so if they do anything now i will catch them. again the only problem is if it is who i think it is he is best buds with the warden. this property is only around 100 acres so there is no locals hunting it. there's only one gate in and out and it can be seen from the house which they live there full time.

Was the warden's name Chris Fried?
For vandalism and trespassing it also couldn't hurt to call the sheriff.

Don't know his name. Why? never mind lol just looked him up

Given your suspicions I would call anything other than game violations into the sheriffs office.

Perhaps someone has been poaching off this property in years past and mad that "their" space has been occupied.

That's my guess.

Game Wardens should not be walking around hunting areas during "normal" hunting hours, especially since their uniforms are deer brown. LOL

I would have placed a call to TPWD to find out why my hunt was interrupted needlessly and reported him/her. We invest a lot of time / money for a few short windows each year.

Meet me at the truck, at camp or when you see me leaving my blind. Common sense should prevail.

ta HF.. Looks like that credit adviser of years past, was wiser than what i thought... Were i grew up, it was family's hunting tagether for ta & chill... Leases was on here, buck only... No AR, thought that was M-16 convertited for civilian, my hog hunts at WMA only carried 5 rounds, once did have ta use second round.. Let the trophy hunters fight over the ageing & points thing... A wise person said: ya cant eat the horns ... Yagh, like another old saying: very ones got an opinion, ogh, dang i stink ... Some can aford ta pay the big bucks.. i stood my ground years ago, in that tiny office... Yagh bust your butt at work in hot nasty stinken foundry, for that easy money, & have ta listen ta people up stairs say how bad times are... For less than a buck a day, it was nice ta breath fresh air, camp out on a family deer lease, with 24-7-365 hog hunten for en & chillen... Didnt need the NRA ta back me up, for hunting & dont today... Its like when they laughed an made fun about workmans comp... People do get hurt on the job... Best wishes, Hope ya'll get this settled peaceful like...

yep if one more thing happens i will call which ever authority necessary. I wish i would have called the TPWD at the time now that this other stuff has happened but at the time i though that it was maybe just a wild coincidence that we got checked opening day at 8 am the first time the land had been hunted in 50 years again because i believe in game wardens and the job they do. Im done messing around next incident the authoritys will get involved.

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"we been coming here for years. . ." that and " ol' mr. so-and-so always let us hunt this, an' we
niver hadta ast. . ."

done heard all this before. had to fix the spots in the fence where folks crossed. pick up the
drink bottles and food wrappers. pick up the spent shells and cases. pick up the bones the coyotes
drug out to the middle of the pasture. fix the ruts from the "off road heroes". etc. etc.

Hope it all works out for you.

Sounds to me like maybe coons/squirrels messing with the solar panel wire. Usually a poacher would cut the wire to the motor to stop it from working all together.

I will agree that what the GW did was uncalled for on opening morning of the season. He could easily just wait by the gate or until mid-day to come on the property.

I like the camera plan to hopefully find out who's messing with your stuff if they really are.

Not sure why someone would cut just the solar panel cables. My rechargeable 12V batteries will last several months without a charge, so I don't see sabotaging a solar panel as viable. As some have already said, could be coons, they jack with my solar panel wiring all the time. Don't get me started on woodpeckers and game cameras.

My experience is that squirrels and coons cut a lot more wires than trespassers. Just saying.

I've even had them rip off the flex conduit from using as a trapeze, then chew the wired into. To me if someone was jacking with a feeder, they would unplug the battery, steal the battery & timer, completely remove the motor/timer/battery box and let the corn dump out on the ground (yes I have had these happen before). But if merely wires cut or appeared cut, suspect coons or tree rats as a the culprit(s).

they cut the solar wires? that's hardcore

next time they will probably empty your feeder and fill it up with dirty corn

DONDONDOOOOOOONNNN

I've had 3 solar panels with cut wires in the last year. No doubt it's the coons. I've got them on camera doing it. They grab the wires as they climb up the feeder legs. Cameras don't lie

That's the reason I want put a solar panel on my 55 gallon drum feeder.

"cut" wires and "tore/stretched" wires look completely different.

squirrels will cut them with one bite...

Wardens buddy for sure - watch out, he's a Mean SOB:

Link

Any chance this is the warden you meet opening morning?

He's a little squirrely, but he's a snake in the grass, I tell ya' guys, he may look dumb but that's just a disguise, he's a mastermind in the ways of espionage.