salt licks?

nmelkman · Jul 17, 2017

I have a friend who runs trail cameras and he has recently put a salt block in front of one to help stop the animals as it's on a trail.

My question is, is it legal to put salt out in new mexico? Is it considered baiting?

BUGLEnmIN · Jul 17, 2017

I'm sure it is illegal, unless it's there for the cattle ??

bobby · Jul 17, 2017

>I'm sure it is illegal, unless
>it's there for the cattle
>??

im gona play devils advocate! here putting up a salt lick in front of a game cam? you must really like to keep track of the heifers lol ! chances a game warden walks by slim to none.... chances a fellow hunter walks by decent chance a hunter walks by and steals your cam high so you wont be caught anyway

BUGLEnmIN · Jul 17, 2017

>>I'm sure it is illegal, unless
>>it's there for the cattle
>>??
>
>
>im gona play devils advocate!
>here putting up a salt
>lick in front of a
>game cam? you must
>really like to keep track
>of the heifers lol !
>chances a game warden walks
>by slim to none.... chances
>a fellow hunter walks by
>decent chance a hunter
>walks by and steals your
>cam high so you wont
>be caught anyway

Damn dude nailed it...

bobby · Jul 17, 2017

But back to the legality of it . yes its considered baiting in some shape or form although in a court of law it would have a hell of a time holding the law states it is illegal to take or attempt to take game by baiting animals . By putting up a camera and a salt lick or even a dam corn feeder for that matter prior to the season you are technically not taking or attempting to take by baiting you are surveying or taking inventory no where is that listed as illegal in the proclamation. so if you move your salt lick that was for the cows of course the day before and a bull walks in to that space is it considered baiting ? I will let MM decide , Possibly RIo can chime in?

I must advise i do not condone the actions mentioned in my post nor would i do that i am just playing devils advocate as it relates to the verbiage of the law

mozey · Jul 17, 2017

LAST EDITED ON Jul-17-17 AT 06:16PM (MST)[p]It's been about nine years, but there used to be a G&F warden that posted regularly on this site, so I asked him this very question in a PM. His answer:

"Nah-you're alright with a salt lick. You'd probably be alright putting out ****** ****** unless you actually hunt over them-but we don't advertise that.

You'll have the best luck using the same spot every year with your salt, and animals will return their whole lives looking for salt. Lots of it will melt into the soil. I'm sure you know all this, but I'm just getting at the salt is more of a long term thing then putting out corn or whatever anyway."

I'll leave it to your imagination to determine what the "****** ****** was. I miss that guy, and I resent that some here felt compelled to run him off. Guy, if you still happen to be lurking around here, a big thanks from me for all the good info that you were willing to provide.

joesikora · Jul 17, 2017

Thanks for posting Mozey.
I did the same thing for whitetail in IL. The first year it wasn't touched but after it I quess melted into the ground they destroyed that area for years to come. Not sure why anyone know?

Joe

"Sometimes you do things wrong for so long you
think their right" - 2001
"I can't argue with honesty" - 2005
-Joe E Sikora

Gator · Jul 18, 2017

You are good to go for a trail cam. just can't hunt over them.
You can put "cow in heat" in a empty beer bottle next to your treestand either. GW told me that too.

"I have found if you go the extra mile it's Never crowded".
>[Font][Font color = "green"]Life member of
>the MM green signature club.[font/]

mozey · Jul 18, 2017

I used to put salt licks in front of my trailcams until the Los Conchas fire destroyed everything, shortly followed-up by a 100-year rain that caused a landslide to bury what was left of the waterhole that I'd built. It was awesome while it lasted though--probably got 10,000 pictures and 3,000 videos; but I haven't really been able to find another spot like that since.

But based on that experience, I'd say that the salt was bigger magnet for elk and deer than the water, and that's saying something for NM. The herbivores would come and go to water, but add a salt lick and they'd stay for a while...

Of course, if there is free roaming bovines in the area, you'll end up getting thousands of cattle pics on top of your dozen or so elk pics...

hunt1 · Jul 18, 2017

It's legal as long as you remove it within 10 days of the season you are hunting. Otherwise you are baiting.

Toro · Jul 20, 2017

I tried the trophy rocks with some deer cocaine raked into the dirt around the area last year and was impressed to see how well the mulies and elk used it. They found it fast and were pretty routine coming in.

WFGinNM · Jul 20, 2017

10 days? Where is this from? Do tell.

--Bill

mozey · Jul 20, 2017

The ten days is stated in the regs--pretty clear. Do a search on "10 days" in the G&F regs and you'll see it too. What is not clear, at least to me, is whether NMDGF considers salt to be bait. Unless something has changed in the nine years since I had that exchange with the warden referenced above, I'd say they don't consider salt to be bait. Nevertheless, I'd appreciate a definitive answer either way.

mozey · Jul 20, 2017

Check out page 14...

hunt1 · Jul 21, 2017

LAST EDITED ON Jul-21-17 AT 08:57AM (MST)[p]This^

It's in the proclamation and have heard it directly from the horse's mouth. Met up with a game warden several years ago because a neighboring property of a buddy had deer feeders up year round. He went and checked them out and took pictures, but there wasn't going to be any issue as long as they weren't operating prior to hunting season.