How Would You Respond?

[GSPHUNTER]

Accept it as as part of the learning curve.

 

[jblam]

I kinda want to hear the story from the new guy, I bet it’s great! “Oh man elk hunting is crazy. Went out with some guys, find myself alone with elk coming at me so I shoot once and think I miss, then turn around and another elk is limping away so I finish that one off, then spin back around to where I started and find the one I thought I missed, turns out I nailed that one too!”

 

[PredatorSlayer]

No sympathy here. You made some horrable shots then looking for justification. At least you cant blame the broadhead. Maybe you can blame the ammo or the gun. Do like i do. When on occasion i make a bad shot, chalk it up to making a bad shot without blame on anyone but you

Definitely need to blame the gun and kick it down the road. Likely need to move up to a magnum or bigger magnum to compensate for poor marksmanship

 

[packgoatguy]

I'm pretty surprised at the number of hunters on here suggesting that it is OK to shoot another hunter's animal. I'm fairly certain that all western "elk" states have a "party hunting" rule that makes it illegal. I know Idaho does, which as I posted earlier... probably would depend on the IDFG officer on whether they would ticket the newbie hunter here under the exact circumstances written here... but there are plenty of officers who would write the ticket, and almost all would at least write a warning.

If you plan to hunt big game in a western state, I would suggest you call a local fish and game office, review this and other similar scenarios with an officer over the phone, and learn where the lines are drawn.

Consider other similar circumstances;
1. You are in a muzzleloader only tag unit, you shoot the elk with the muzzleloader as required, but when you get to it it is still alive. In most states, it would be technically illegal for you or a buddy to dispatch the elk with a .22lr to the head, even though it might be the quickest way to end the suffering. (Same applies in a centerfire only unit, a rimfire would not be legal to dispatch the animal, so yes... you need to sacrifice another rifle bullet, or carry a center fire pistol for situations that might arise).
2. You are in an archery only unit... you shoot the elk with your bow as you are supposed to. It's not legal for you, your buddy, or whoever to dispatch the elk with a firearm... even to end its suffering quickly. (If anything... try explaining the bullet hole in the skull when you are at the check station.)
3. You are on a ridge with your 3 buddies. You don't have an elk tag but they do. You have your rifle in case you see a Coyote. An elk walks out, one of your buddies takes a shot. You think you saw it limping a bit, or maybe you saw a gut shot impact. It would be illegal for you to shoot at it in order to avoid a long blood tracking session. On the other hand, It would be plausibly legal for one of the other buddies to shoot at the same elk (assuming they had no yet filled their own tag or shot at another elk) if they intended to harvest and tag that elk themselves. However, it would not be legal for them to shoot at the elk on behalf of their buddy's tag... again, the definition of "party hunting".

I would also hope we are beyond the days of hunting... when groups of hunters all open up on the same deer or elk in the hopes that at least one of them will put it down... then draw straws later to decide who gets to tag it.

Whether we agree with the law or not, if we choose to engage in the activity... its on us to know the law and strictly abide by it, and teach the next generation to do so as well. If you don't like the laws as written, then work to change them. However, I for one believe that broad "party hunting" rules are on the books for good reason. But also keep this in mind... consider how many hunters are out there with 70 power spotting scopes and a phoneskope adapter, who might catch your illegal act with their phone camera from a mile away. With poaching rewards and general angst against those who try to bend the law to their own circumstances... you might have an officer knocking at your door the next day.

Sorry for the soap box.

 

[jreyna]

OP: I've read and reread and have a question (100% insignificant in context with the discussion, lol).....did you guys all shoot bulls?? It would be awesome if you did, but any hunt I've been on would have been UNBELIEVABLE to get a triple on cows! And a shipton of work without having to pack antlers!

Again, you only say "elk", and it definitely doesn't matter. Just curious.

Yessir. The third hunter in our group got his elk the morning after the other two of us got ours. We believe it was in the same herd we harvested the earlier elk from. It's was a long day of hiking them out the following day.
And pardon the lack of clarity, I was typing the op quickly. They were all three cows.

 

[Jethro]

To me, party hunting isn't helping a buddy put down a wounded bull. Its shooting 2 bulls and then having the buddy put his tag on it. If one of our gang had an animal hit and we were together looking for it and somebody other than the original shooter had a chance to end it - they would(provided they had a valid tag). And every person I hunt with would consider that animal to belong to the original shooter. That part would never be in question. None of us would shoot another persons animal without prior communication on what the plan is.

As for the OP, too many details missing for me to form an educated opinion. Doesn't sound like anything to get in a tiff over or even start a forum chat about.

 

[packgoatguy]

To me, party hunting isn't helping a buddy put down a wounded bull. Its shooting 2 bulls and then having the buddy put his tag on it. If one of our gang had an animal hit and we were together looking for it and somebody other than the original shooter had a chance to end it - they would(provided they had a valid tag). And every person I hunt with would consider that animal to belong to the original shooter. That part would never be in question. None of us would shoot another persons animal without prior communication on what the plan is.

As for the OP, too many details missing for me to form an educated opinion. Doesn't sound like anything to get in a tiff over or even start a forum chat about.

I agree with your definition of "party hunting" as "shooting two bulls and then having the buddy put his tag on it" as the primary action being outlawed. However, if you contact the fish and game department in the states you hunt, describe the scenario you have, you will find that having any another hunter shoot (even to end suffering) your animal... it would likely also come afoul of the law. It may be enough of a gray area (depending on the circumstances) that not every officer would ticket you, but many would. If the animal is still up and mobile (gut shot scenario) it would almost certainly result in a ticket. If it's laying on the ground, unable to move... taking its last breath... probably less likely to get a ticket... but still.

 

[idelkslayer]

I'm pretty surprised at the number of hunters on here suggesting that it is OK to shoot another hunter's animal. I'm fairly certain that all western "elk" states have a "party hunting" rule that makes it illegal. I know Idaho does, which as I posted earlier... probably would depend on the IDFG officer on whether they would ticket the newbie hunter here under the exact circumstances written here... but there are plenty of officers who would write the ticket, and almost all would at least write a warning.

If you plan to hunt big game in a western state, I would suggest you call a local fish and game office, review this and other similar scenarios with an officer over the phone, and learn where the lines are drawn.

Consider other similar circumstances;
1. You are in a muzzleloader only tag unit, you shoot the elk with the muzzleloader as required, but when you get to it it is still alive. In most states, it would be technically illegal for you or a buddy to dispatch the elk with a .22lr to the head, even though it might be the quickest way to end the suffering. (Same applies in a centerfire only unit, a rimfire would not be legal to dispatch the animal, so yes... you need to sacrifice another rifle bullet, or carry a center fire pistol for situations that might arise).
2. You are in an archery only unit... you shoot the elk with your bow as you are supposed to. It's not legal for you, your buddy, or whoever to dispatch the elk with a firearm... even to end its suffering quickly. (If anything... try explaining the bullet hole in the skull when you are at the check station.)
3. You are on a ridge with your 3 buddies. You don't have an elk tag but they do. You have your rifle in case you see a Coyote. An elk walks out, one of your buddies takes a shot. You think you saw it limping a bit, or maybe you saw a gut shot impact. It would be illegal for you to shoot at it in order to avoid a long blood tracking session. On the other hand, It would be plausibly legal for one of the other buddies to shoot at the same elk (assuming they had no yet filled their own tag or shot at another elk) if they intended to harvest and tag that elk themselves. However, it would not be legal for them to shoot at the elk on behalf of their buddy's tag... again, the definition of "party hunting".

I would also hope we are beyond the days of hunting... when groups of hunters all open up on the same deer or elk in the hopes that at least one of them will put it down... then draw straws later to decide who gets to tag it.

Whether we agree with the law or not, if we choose to engage in the activity... its on us to know the law and strictly abide by it, and teach the next generation to do so as well. If you don't like the laws as written, then work to change them. However, I for one believe that broad "party hunting" rules are on the books for good reason. But also keep this in mind... consider how many hunters are out there with 70 power spotting scopes and a phoneskope adapter, who might catch your illegal act with their phone camera from a mile away. With poaching rewards and general angst against those who try to bend the law to their own circumstances... you might have an officer knocking at your door the next day.

Sorry for the soap box.

100%, everyone else is flirting with a fine and potential loss of hunting privileges.

 

[AZ_Hunter_2000]

You and your friend made a conscious decision for all three of you to hunt separately. You're a big <insert pronoun of choice> so you own the results. If you don't like the results, you can only blame yourself.

The acquaintance should have been sitting with you or your friend 100% of the time. This way he could learn from "expert" hunters and things would have been safer, more productive, and less frustrating for all parties involved. It is easy enough to have him spend time with each you and your friend individually so as to still have "alone" time.

But for reasons unstated, you and your friend decided it was "best" to leave a brand new hunter all to himself to "learn" while within shooting distance and direction of you. This was 100% preventable and contains a ton of learning opportunities. Sad that the "teacher" is blind to the fact that he has the most to learn.

The acquaintance should find new hunting partners; ones that won't hang him out to dry and ones that will own their decisions.

 

[PredatorSlayer]

I agree with your definition of "party hunting" as "shooting two bulls and then having the buddy put his tag on it" as the primary action being outlawed. However, if you contact the fish and game department in the states you hunt, describe the scenario you have, you will find that having any another hunter shoot (even to end suffering) your animal... it would likely also come afoul of the law. It may be enough of a gray area (depending on the circumstances) that not every officer would ticket you, but many would. If the animal is still up and mobile (gut shot scenario) it would almost certainly result in a ticket. If it's laying on the ground, unable to move... taking its last breath... probably less likely to get a ticket... but still.

I think you are reaching here. I think this is a long way off from party hunting. It would be nice to get a game warden’s take on this.

 

[Jethro]

I agree with your definition of "party hunting" as "shooting two bulls and then having the buddy put his tag on it" as the primary action being outlawed. However, if you contact the fish and game department in the states you hunt, describe the scenario you have, you will find that having any another hunter shoot (even to end suffering) your animal... it would likely also come afoul of the law. It may be enough of a gray area (depending on the circumstances) that not every officer would ticket you, but many would. If the animal is still up and mobile (gut shot scenario) it would almost certainly result in a ticket. If it's laying on the ground, unable to move... taking its last breath... probably less likely to get a ticket... but still.

Yeah, lots of gray areas. Many animals get shot by 2 different people. 1 has to tag it, doesn’t make the other illegal. Happens all the time here in PA. Fist fights and family feuds have broken out over it. The 2nd shooter could simply be trying to harvest it for them self

 

[packgoatguy]

I think you are reaching here. I think this is a long way off from party hunting. It would be nice to get a game warden’s take on this.

I did. He had 20 years with IDFG, nearly half that in enforcement. He indicated he would likely have given the citation under the circumstances as the op described. I can't speak for other states, but a quick call to any western state's fish and game department would get a response.

 

[sndmn11]

I did. He had 20 years with IDFG, nearly half that in enforcement. He indicated he would likely have given the citation under the circumstances as the op described. I can't speak for other states, but a quick call to any western state's fish and game department would get a response.

I think there was two killed on one tag as well.

 

[realunlucky]

However, if you contact the fish and game department in the states you hunt, describe the scenario you have, you will find that having any another hunter shoot (even to end suffering) your animal... it would likely also come afoul of the law.

How is it "your" animal? It's not dead obviously and so no one has notched a tag yet.
I'm interested in seeing the verbiage of the actual law.




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[Dos Perros]

My first elk I buried an arrow up to the fletchings on a bull. It was further back than ideal, but I think front of the diaphragm and in the lungs, and certainly lethal. My buddy who also had a tag scrambled forward, and the bull had made his way behind a tree, taking away a shot angle for me, so my buddy dropped an arrow in there, which practically hit mine. The bull creeped forward a bit and I stuck a third in there tight to the shoulder. He ran and crashed just down the hill. We high fived and first pumped and howled and hugged! Which is probably what you should have done.

 

[Broomd]

I stopped reading after your use of radios.

Damned right, so did I! Illegal everywhere that I know of....tainted hunt.

 

[realunlucky]

Damned right, so did I! Illegal everywhere that I know of....tainted hunt.

While I personally don't use them there are states that do allow them. Utah for example

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[Travis907]

Sounds like too much of a headache to discuss! Ethics and laws both seemed to be broken!

 

[packgoatguy]

Damned right, so did I! Illegal everywhere that I know of....tainted hunt.

It's legal in Idaho, and I believe Colorado, Wyoming, Utah, etc...

 

[svivian]

While I personally don't use them there are states that do allow them. Utah for example

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Not to pick on you but I’m not surprised Utah allows it with the way those guys hunt out there