Colorado Prairie Dog hunting ban proposed

[BackCountry]

Hunting Ban Being Discussed in Colorado!

The Colorado Wildlife Commission will meet to discuss a complete ban on prairie dog hunting in the state of Colorado on May 1-2. While radical anti-hunting/animal rights groups are targeting prairie dog hunting as cruel, it is a traditional sporting activity and necessary management tool, especially for ranching interests in the state. Ban proponents like the Humane Society of the United States (HSUS) have boasted that they seek to ban all hunting in the United States "species by species" and this proposal is one more incremental step in their plan to end our hunting heritage.

Prairie dog hunting generates significant revenues used for general wildlife management as a result of hunting license sales and Pittman-Robertson excise taxes on ammunition, firearms and other equipment purchased by sportsmen. This ban will put an end to this essential stream of revenue and detrimentally affect the management of deer, elk and other species. In addition, Colorado attracts hunters from around the country who generate significant economic activity that benefits the rural communities that need it most.

The Colorado Wildlife Commission will be meeting at the Holiday Inn on 755 Horizon Drive, Grand Junction, CO 81506 on May 1 and May 2 starting each morning at 8:30am.

Please attend these meetings and voice your support of all hunting in Colorado. It is critical that sportsmen show that the radical anti-hunting lobby is in the minority by significantly out-numbering them at the meeting. If you are unable to attend, please call the Colorado Wildlife Commission at (303) 297-1192 and inform them that you are strongly opposed to any attempt to ban prairie dog hunting in Colorado.

If you are unable to attend, or are from out of state, please send a quick email to [email protected] and let them know that you are opposed to any ban on hunting in Colorado.

A flood of emails will go a long way to helping prevent hunting bans in Colorado and let the Wildlife Commission know that this sort of thing will not be tolerated by the hunting community.

 

[kmrcstintn]

if the legislators don't mind paying out more recovery funds to farmers that have destroyed crops, then more power to the idiots running Colorado ;

they're dense and don't realize that hunters help with population control that establishes a balance in the ecology & existence with farmers who farm the land that these critters occupy; they repopulate way too quickly to be considered in any danger of going extinct

 

[Art Eatman]

And hunters kill far fewer than do the government-sanctioned poisoners.

 

[jdc1244]

prairie dog hunting as cruel

As opposed to poisoning them? That would be a slow, painful death. Ranchers will have to poison as well to protect livestock. The poison could have an adverse effect on the environment.

Oh, brother.

 

[redneckrepairs]

Ranchers will have to poison as well to protect livestock. The poison could have an adverse effect on the environment.

I do for the first time this year , and it is hard on the environment . However since the incidents of the last couple of years i can no longer allow hunters inn. When i could i tended to take the " hit " in productivity to encourage hunting and even limited one town to rimfire only ( by request ) for the young hunters . Having cattle shot tho forced a change in policy and we are in the process of baiting the little suckers now .

 

[BackCountry]

Redneckrepairs, Sorry to hear some idiots shot your cattle. That will definitely sour your allowing hunters on your property. I help several local ranchers with prairie dog control, but never shoot on towns where cattle are in the same field.

I believe the people who want prairie dog hunting banned, also want to ban the use of poison on the prairie dog. They seem to think they will do just fine not being controlled and left to over populate. This issue is brought up every few years by the city folk/anti hunters. Last year they got a prairie dog season established - no hunting prairie dogs on public land March to June 15, some of the best times to hunt. They also managed to get all trapping (other than live traps) banned in Colorado a number of years ago. Now I have to spend my afternoons shooting Beaver on my pond so they don't destroy my irrigation ditches, water supplementation pond and culverts. I sometimes think people who live in the city think that their meet just naturally comes in styro-foam shrink wrapped packages. I wish they would just mind their own business and stay out of rural folks affairs.