PA Game Commission

For the past two weeks Pennsylvania hunters have hit the woods to try to bag a white tail deer.  Before going out, most "good" hunters will scan over the PA Game regulations to check for any changes.  This is a good practice since over the years, the Game Commission has changed the regulations concerning the harvest of antlered deer.  Years ago, if it had antlers of any length it was good to shoot.  Then it changed to the antlers had to be 3 inches in length or more on what we call a spiker.  Now, there has to be at least 3 points on one side to harvest.  The exception to this rule is that a junior hunter can harvest a spiker during the hunting season and during the mentored youth hunt.  A child must be at least 11 years old for the youth hunt.  It is no longer as simple as pointing the gun and pulling the trigger.  I say this because it is not as simple for some, but ignored by others.

I am one of the hunters who hits the woods every year to try to bag the elusive white tail deer.  Me, my son and my good friend Bob W. are also hunters who abide by the rules.  We may not like all of the rules, but they are "Da Rules" and we honor that.  This past year, we encountered a situation where some schmuck hunter did not play by the rules.  As we approached Bob's van after several hours in the woods we noticed a deer lying down about 20 feet from our parking spot.  As we approached we noticed that it was a spiker that had been shot and dressed down or gutted and left there.  There were also two young hunters, maybe in their mid 20's who were standing by their vehicle smoking cigarettes.  They too had seen this "illegal" kill.  To us, the carcass appeared to be about 24 hours old.  Needless to say we were disgusted by the whole thing.  Who would kill a spiker, gut it, drag it to the parking spot and then just leave it there?

Since our day was over, we packed our gear and decided to stop by the Game Commission in Dallas to report the illegal kill.  The Game Warden there was very polite and shared our disgust with what we reported.  He assured us that a representative from Wyoming County would be notified about the illegal kill and that he would go to investigate and retrieve the dead animal.  We left feeling a tiny bit better that next time we go out that carcass would not be there.

With work getting in the way all week, Bob and I did not make it out to hunt until the last Saturday of the season.  After we parked we got out and immediately noticed that the dead deer was STILL THERE!  I believe Bob uttered the words, "Are you freakin kidding me"?  "No one came by to pick up the carcass."  Yep, the decomposing carcass was still there.  No one from the PA Game Commission went by to pick it up.  Now our disgust level just went to Defcon 1.  Those lazy son's of bitches gave us nothing but lip service.  They are just as bad as the hunter who illegally killed the deer and left it there.  As a hunter of 20+ years, I had little faith in the Game Commission and now it is lowered to 0.  These people are cop wanna-be's who love putting on a uniform to harass hunters and fisherman.  They are quick to write out a citation as long as it does not involve them getting their hands dirty.  I can only assume at this juncture that next year when we hit our hunting spot the remains of this illegal kill will still be there melting back into mother earth.  To the hunter who killed this deer and to the PA Game Commission I say, "Drop dead you filthy bastards".