Fine line between law and lawless

[300win.]

Last summer my buddy calls me at work and says
hey I just shot a six by six with my bow. I said, say what?
being that it was july and no where near hunting season.
He said this bull had been hit by a train going into a corn field of his dads. It had broken it's back legs and was stumbling around when he ran into it. He got the game and fish on the phone and told them of the situation and asked if he should put the animal down. They told him to go ahead so being that it was in town and next to the highway he got his bow and put the elk down. I was just about done at work so I told him I'll be there in a minute. I got there and took a look at the elk it was a nice looking six by. He told me they called him back and told him not to touch it till the warden got there. So we waited and waited close to three hours before a warden showed. We thought this was B.S. there going to let the meat go to waste. My buddy put up a lean tube with a tarp to keep the sun off, but it was still pretty hot.
The warden got there and took a look at the elk and where
it had been hit. My buddy asks if he can keep the rack and the meat. Warden says sorry can't do that. Buddy asks are you going to take the meat? Warden says no. Buddy says come on your just going to let it lay? Warden says thats all I can do. So warden pulls out a saw wacks the head off and loads it in his truck. My buddy asks what are you going to do with that rack? Warden says it will be auctioned off to raise money. My buddy says well I want to buy it so let me know when this auction is. The warden then drove off down the road and waited for us to leave. We had taken photos of the elk before the warden got there and we took photos after he left. Looking at this elk laying there to rot with his head wacked off I thought what's the difference between him and a poacher the sceen looks the same. We were petty mad, not that we didn't get the meat but that it was just left to rot. Like Jeff Foxworthy says "this is the most expensive meat in the world" (speaking of game meat)how can you let it go to waste. Also the game and fish later called my friend back and told him oh man sorry I forgot to call you that rack was auctioned at the big game exbo. He said gee thanks for the call.

 

[SoTX]

Your Tax Dollars at work.


"We must HUNT"

 

[supersider34]

Your friend did the right thing about trying to find out about the animal. That is all he could of done. I have packed out elk heads and deer heads before and took them to F&G to find out about keeping them. I would rather be safe than sorry. Ones I have found dead or half eaten.
To bad he didnt get the meat instead of wasting it. But then again I have seen F&G read the laws to there own needs. The laws are to who wants to interpret them. They are vague and when you ask one it will be different from others.
Just glad your friend was there to put it down instead of it suffer. That would be a hard death. I have put down a few animals along the roads that where hit and drove on without horns or ivories out of elk. Here again safe than sorry.

 

[TheHunt]

The reason why they do not allow you to take the meat or the horns are the low class people, who breath the same air we do, would do some stupid things. If the F&G people allowed you to take the meat and rack or even the rack. Low class people would buy a 200 dollar car to hit an animal so they could get a nice rack. People also would hit the front end of an animal so they could harvest the backend of the animal.

So there is some logic. Here in Washington State the older G&F people would skin/gut quarter and deliver the quarters to local people in need or to the old solders home. This is nice... But they still did not allow anyone to take the rack... The newer out of the class room F&G officers do not do this. They are still working through the "you must respect my authority" attitude...

TheHunt

 

[300win.]

Here in Arizona they will give you the rack and meat if you are
the one that hit the animal. The game and fish will issue a salvage permit or highway patrol can also issue a permit. The
person hitting the animal can sign over the animal to another person if they wish.

I lived in alaska for five years and the game and fish up there would be out there in the middle of winter skinning hit moose so that the meat could go to the needy or the soup kitchens. Skinning and loading a moose is a lot of work but they didn't
let them go to waste. Here for the most part they won't show
up to a auto hit if a patrolman is there unless a big rack or a bear is down.

 

[MartinHunter]

That is dumb letting the meat go to waste, but I have heard stories of people here in Wyoming that were told that they could not put a wounded animal down by our g and f!
Michael