Dedicated Hunter Program

F

frustrated

Guest
What do you think about the program and the way it is ran. I was a DH the first 3 years it was started and was very disapointed in the way it was ran. So i never singed up again, but now i am a member just so i a can get a tag for the region i want to hunt. I did my hours like i should so i can get my tag.
But there is people who did not do or could not do there hours and being credited for them becuase someone had a piece of equipement (track hoe, back hoe or anything like that)and becuase of the work performed they can sign thier buddies up for as many hours as they need to get there tags. I think it is extremely unfair to the guy who signed up just so he can be garunteed a tag and hunt wit his kid or family. How can the DWR let this happen when this program was desinged to help the animals. This program has now become a way to get a tag (garunteed) instead of help the wildlife. It is a sad day when a guy who has spent his whole life in utah cant get a deer tag for the same region as his child. He has to jump thruogh hoops to get to hunt anymore!! We claim to be getting kids invovled but it is very difficult when the parents cant even get a permit.
I think this program has great potential but the loop holes need to be closed and the projects need to help the wildlife dierectly, so hunters will be more excited about helping (instead of feeling like they have to do the hours) and acually wanting to do the hours!!
This is just my personal opinion so if you disagree i respect and welcome your comments, i just want to know how another hunter feels about the program
Thanks
 
i think most people in the DH do it for PERSONAL BENEFIT! Who wants to just give free time and energy for nothing in return. I do it for Personal Benefit because i love to hunt deer and the more time i can spend in the hills, the better! I didnt sign up so i can do hours of service or attend a RAC meeting! But while i was doing my hours I really enjoyed it. I learned a little and got to be apart of the dwr for a few days. I am glad my hours are done and i cant say... man i really wish i could do more hours just for the fun of it. Ya there are some hunters that will get by the system but dont let it drag you down.

I think there are some great people in the DH and the program has done some great things for utah wildlife that the Dwr could not do alone.
In this day and age your not going to get a tag for you and your kid each and every year in utah, unless you come on up to good old Northern Utah. i have hunted each and every year of my life with my dad. but we hunt northern utah. Put in as a group so when you draw your kids draw.

The parents dont have to have a permit to get the kids involved! It should be about the kids not the parents!

Maybe instead of looking at all the NEGATIVE aspecs you can look at the positive! Look at what the program has done! it doesnt make a huge dent in the problems but it helps

I understand where your coming from and i am not trying to argue. you have some very good points but i think you make it seem worse than it is. but maybe i come from a sheltered life where its all good and dandy in happy valley!
 
The only thing I can see wrong is that the DH program was supposed to be geared more toward trophy hunters who were willing to only take two bucks in a 3 year period. But it seems like most of the people in the DH program now are in it just to make sure they have a tag for the region the want to hunt, and dont have to chance going through the general season draw.
 
I don't want to be a butthead or anything, but who says that some guys who "lend" their very expensive heavy equipment to the DWR for DH hours and the hours of acouple others in their party are breaking some kindof DH law! You may not realize how expensive heavy equipment is or to maintian, you may not know how much aparticular piece of machinery makes every day!, Im going to go out on a limb here and say you would have to trade 10 guys all 3years worth of hours a day that a trackhoe is used (which isnt happening by the way)not to even bring up transport by semi with feul going thru the roof! Look I fell your pain, It sucks to have to get into DH to get a tag in the area your family hunts and grew up in, but if you dont like it so much get out of the program and just put in as a group with your kids.
I think that the programs has a few flaws for my taste, but I also realize that the DWR is not EVER going to please everybody!
It sound like were on the same team here wanting to hunt with our kids and familys, but remember whos to say that guys lending out machinery didnt sign up for the same reasons that you did.
 
Frustrated,
You did your hours, got your tag, that's great. That is how it is supposed to work. But being jealous of a guy that owns a piece of equipment and volunteers it for use on a project is a little ridiculous. If a guy owns a piece of equipment like that, he is most likely a farmer or construction business owner, etc. and is probably pretty busy in his day job.
So I see nothing wrong with him pulling his equipment away from his business for a day to help wildlife and getting credit for it. With the price of diesel today, plus wear and tear on his machine, he probably would have been money ahead to just stay home and pay for his hours.
How much would it have cost the DWR to hire a contractor to come in and do the same thing with that equipment? $100.00 an hour, maybe more?
There just isn't enough deer out there to give everybody a deer tag anymore. We got to accept that and you may have to ?jump through some hoops? to help the herd to come back.
That is just the way it is.

Oakbrush
 
LAST EDITED ON Jul-02-08 AT 12:16PM (MST)[p]Great program with lots of hours and work done to help wildlife. It will be interesting to see where the program goes if we adopt a unit-by-unit deer management strategy with 25+ general season units.

Dax
 
<"It sucks to have to get into DH to get a tag in the area your family hunts and grew up in, but if you dont like it so much get out of the program and just put in as a group with your kids">.

So the people using the program as it was intended to be used should get out and put in with there kids? And the people using it just to get a tag to hunt with there family in there favorite spot should stay in? Wow that seems a little backwards to me
 
I think that if you have the resources or your friends have them, to do your hours quick and easy. Good for you. I think it is your problem that you dont have the equipement or the skills to do anything other then build fences. Some of us have the money and the smarts to get out of our hours.
 
I think a lot more people do more than their share of contributing to the DWR and to the wildlife of Utah, than get away with doing nothing. A small job with a trac-hoe or any piece of equipment would be at least a couple thousand, if the job gets done with no cost to the dwr then that's a steal if other people get some hours for that, o well the job got done and that's what counts. Quit being a whiner!
 
I'm in my third year now of my first go-around with the DH system. So far I think it is a really good program for me. I love to hunt and to be honest I became a DH so I could hunt more. Never have I felt cheated, or felt the program wasn't working. In fact I have dealt with a few people in the DWR that have really helped me with getting my service hours and taking care of things.

I actually wish that in our state it was mandatory to do some kind or amount of service to get a deer/elk tag. Maybe clean trash up in the canyons, build some fences, install some permanent feeding stations, something to make us all aware of how critical our wildlife is, and actually sacrifice some of our personal time and money to be able to hunt. I believe hunting is a right, but we should treat it like a priviledge. I think it would make it better for everyone.
 
I think this is the best thing that the DWR has ever done in my lifetime for the hunter. It is a win - win situation for everyone involved the DWR wins and the Hunter wins in every aspect.
 
I never said it was not a good program, I also signed up to be able to hunt more(and get my region). It just leaves a bad taste in my mouth when i hear of people getting credit without lifting a finger or by just signing a check becuase he is to busy. He sure aint busy when it is time to hunt. F&G is trying to do there part to hold up there end of the deal, to bad the hunters taking advantage of the loop holes dont hold up thiers
 
you will always have some bad apples taking advantage of the system, nothing we can do about it but be honest ourselves.
 
I think it is pretty clear that you are able to pay for your hours if you dont want to work them! or if your too busy! SO Who Cares! the DWR still benifits! Like i said a few days ago, Quit looking at the very small portion of bad and LOOK AT ALL THE GOOD! Be an optimist!!!!!
 
A backhoe or trackhoe would cut the job down by a few hundred hours, Now that looks like a good trade off by the DWR, I just want to know did you work extra hours because I know that the cost of those machines was way over what he would had to put out in hours or his buddies hours,
Here's some Cheese to go with that Whine.
 
I think you missed my point, i never said it was a bad program or never said that F&G are not benifiting from the program. It is a good deal for the hunters involved. They just need to tighten up loose ends and not award hours to people not even on the job site. I understand the gains of using heavy equipement ands the price involved Thats great they the jobs done. But think how many more jobs can be completed by the guys getting away with it. Read my last sentence in the original post and ask yourselves do you respect others opinion or are you here to take a cheap shot at a guy you cant see. I think the guys who are calling names and other things are the guys who spend more effort trying to get out of your hours than actually doing them. Again just my opinion i respect your comments andf you will not be called a whiner if you respond. Its great how a guy asks a simple question or comment on a issue and gets drug through the mud on this site. Way to stick together guys.
 
Alright buddy, we're with you, just enjoy life and take it easy, try setting tile or something to relive some stress!;)
 

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