Game warden lessons learned

A few lessons learned as we approach dove season from a guy who has been visited on several occasions by game wardens. All experiences have been positive, so just sharing for any new hunters:

1) Always follow the game laws and assume you are being watched, they tend to show up out of nowhere, even on private property
2) If you are on private property and you leave a gate unlocked, there is a much greater chance you will receive a visitor. Game wardens will check gates and those left unlocked are much easier to drive their truck thru!
3) If you are on a dove lease, very good chance they will visit you - they know where the leases are at and they tend to be low hanging fruit
4) Always clean your birds separately. Don't clean them in one big pile
5) Federal Game Wardens seem to be much more thorny than state game wardens - they don't have to live in the communities they patrol. If they travel in pairs, you will see some good cop/bad cop stuff going on
6) Label your zip lock bags with your hunting license number
7) Always always always have a plug in your shotgun for dove season
8) If you hunt public land - SIGN IN AT THE BOX!
9) Having a copy of your hunters education card helps speed things along quickly. If you don't have a hunters safety card, the fact that you may be a military veteran and have served multiple tours in the Middle East is not applicably. Don't argue with them, take your poison and move on. I've seen a few guys try to make this case, and it just frustrates the game wardens. the law is the law.
10) If they check you in the morning and you have your limit, be ready for the "Where are hunting tonight" question!
11) If you drink a cold one after a hunt, don't be the idiot that is drinking it as he is driving off the property while behind the wheel.... They can pull up just as you are driving off....
12) Treat them with respect and demonstrate gun safety early and often - They are Great Americans doing their job....


Again: Most folks on this forum know and live this stuff, but figured I'd share in case some new folks are hunting for the first time....

I take it Lesson# 4 & 6 is when hunting with others?

I haven't been approached by a game warden when hunting, yet.
But I have many times when fishing. It's always quick, respectable, and courteous.

Thanks for posting.

One more thing game wardens like ---------- when he walks up to you, unload your gun----------- that goes a LONG WAY if there is some grey area that comes up.

I was checked 3 times last year in 3 different counties in one month. They like to visit the outiftters fields. Prior to that, it had been 10 years since I had seen one.

You left out a big one.
Don't shoot Dove from a motor driven land conveyance, Includes while sitting on your truck tailgate or sitting on an ATV. This is a common ticket from GWs.

Make sure your dog doesn't pick up someone else's cripples on the way out if the field if you're already limited the game warden doesn't discriminate

Curious on #10 - if you say you are hunting that evening, they can't give you a ticket for saying it and not doing it?

Ok, I have seen this, and slight variations, mentioned many times over the years. What is this statement based on?

4) Always clean your birds separately. Don't clean them in one big pile

We have been doing this for years and never had an issue. As long as all the hunters are present, have guns unloaded/put up, and the total birds is under the limit for the number of hunters, what would be the issue? We all pitch in on cleaning, then split the birds up into separate plastic bags (with name/Lic).

There is nothing I can find on the TPWD website that mentions this, even on the page about processing game. Am I missing something, or is this based upon the fear that someone in the group might be over or have illegal birds?

Any First Person reports of being ticketed for cleaning birds as a group, without some other violation taking place?

Thanks

You cannot co-mingle your birds with others. Limits are specific to each hunter.

I still see people sitting on their tailgates or 4 wheelers even as the game warden is approaching them

And lock the gates, Warden will move on to another opportunity

7) Always always always have a plug in your shotgun for dove season

I learned this one when my gun malfunctioned and I borrowed an extra from a buddy - no plug, and I never even thought to check. $186 - and that was 10 years ago, so probably gone up a tad.

two follow ups:

NAK: We were once scolded by a federal game warden for cleaning birds in a pile. He said that they could not discriminate who's birds were who's. We were accused of allowing some hunters to shoot over their limits to offset others who had not. "Kinda odd that all of ya'll got your limit and finished at the same time!"

Regarding the "where are you hunting tonight" question: Lots of folks limit out in the AM and then hunt somewhere else in the evening. This is illegal. If you have reached your limit or are close to reaching your limit but will be hunting again that night, expect a second visit by the game wardens.

I know two groups personally that were cited for this.....total birds isn't relevant....limits are individual....

If they hear a lot of shooting you can bet that are willing to take a stroll to check things out.....

Might also add that if shooting collared dove and not counting them in your limit, make sure the GW can easily identify them.

where I dove hunt its 7 miles from the gate to the hunting spot, that's a heck of a stroll haha

I'm calling racism on this one...

Just be respectful if you want it in return.....

Good information.

Or, do like we do, and just invite the game warden with you to hunt! We know ours well, and he's hunted dove, duck and deer with us. We are in Stephens County.

I've seen Game Wardens glassing folks from a long while off and then showing up at the end of the hunt when you are most likely to exceeded your limit.... Bottom Line: Follow the game laws and all will be ok...

Have a great season,

JR

this will be my first dove season. good info here, thanks for putting the thread out there.

I don't understand why they want you to have your hunters ed card on you when the number is listed on your license.

There is no law against cleaning birds in a pile. He can scold all he wants to. But can't write you a ticket for anything.

How do you handle the who's birds are who's question?

Judd,

Years ago, we were approached by a Federal and State Game Warden while cleaning birds. They told us they could cite us for cleaning birds in a big pile. They would cite for over limits and let us go "explain it to the judge".

I don't know what the letter of the law states, but I recommend you clean them separately if you are hunting with an outfitter or an area known for Game Wardens dropping by.

The place we were at was right next to I-10 in West Texas. We hunted there two years, and were checked on both times.

They don't. If the HE is on there, you are fine. Been checked over 5 times and no issue ever.

Anyone reading this, just don't mix birds. Same story every year. Outfitters that do that are very stupid if they show up. It ain't Argentina, it's Texas. Every outfitter I have hunted with says the same thing. They know the law.

I save my grocery bags from Bucees (which are stronger than bags from HEB). We clean our birds separately and the breasts of each man's birds go in separate bag and then in the cooler for the ride home.

If you put all of your birds in a pile and the total number exceeds the limit for the number of hunters by a couple, who's going to get the ticket? Probably everybody. Like somebody said, let the Judge figure it out. That's why you're not supposed to mingle birds.

I got checked one morning around 10am, had 6 or so birds no problem. I got checked that afternoon around 3 or 4 and when I told him I only had 8 or 9, he commented "You had 6 this morning, things must have slowed down". That was on a corporate hunt with about 100 hunters in 3 or 4 fields. The fact he recalled that was shocking.

Number one rule, be nice and don't make your group or yourself a target. The GW will visit you every time he sees your truck. One of our hunting party , had no plug, no hunter ed, and no HIP. Made for a long weekend. We got checked on every hunt and even had 2 trucks block the driveway at the house and check even our guests that weren't hunting. That's a lesson learned for sure. Know your hunters and don't just trust they are completely legal.

easy all my birds were head shots

I got pulled over one Sunday late afternoon driving home from West TX. In between Colman and Brady. Trooper came to my window and told me he was pulling me over for driving in a passing lane but it's just a slap on the wrist.....sit tight while I ran your DL.
Mind you I'm pulling a UTV with a feeder strapped down to the bed on it.

Out of the passenger side on the troopers car out steps a game warden. He asks me how my hunt went and how many birds I shot..,lots of questions about the feeder. He wanted to see the birds I shot. I had all the breasts neatly placed in ziplocks and frozen.
He really liked that and thanked me for it. He counted the breasts in twos and sent me on my way.

They defiantly profiled me and pulled me over really just to check me. He was going to check my guns but when he saw the breasts stored so clean he just stopped asking questions and sent me along.

I think if you make it easy on them to check you and stay calm and easy it goes much better.