Hunting Exotics on high fenced game ranches. Is it really hunting?

[jjaimes]

The Day hunt high fence ranches are tougher than a lot of low fence places.

[Larryf250]

I have hunted large high fence and very small. To me the smaller places are more about the experience with friends and family. Look at Thompson temples place. Can be about the easiest hunt ever but stay in the A frame with your friends throwing something at the one that snores too loud. Sit outside listening to Thompson telling stories around the fire pit and drinking an adult beverage while doing so... you almost can’t beat it. Yes it was more kill than hunt but I will never forget that trip and neither will my friends that went.

[HoustonHunter94]

Freezer filling or collecting wall art. Nothing wrong with either of them. I wouldn't exactly call it hunting.

[RattlesnakeDan]

Everyone has a different life style and grow up a certain way. I started climbing up trees with a recurve 40 years ago and ground stalking deer and elk. I still stalk and shoot and 55 and did that this morning to kill some hogs. It is just the way I grew up. I will sit in a blind but that is not hunting it is shooting, but I am fine with it. Everything has it's place and purpose. Someone that has little time and money to spend...go do what you like, if you have more time than money you probably are going to spend more time playing out there in the woods.

[TX_Hoghunter]

Like has been said above it depends on the place but as a general rule if someone shoots something on a small high fence place I equate it to shooting a cow. I am not mad about it but you don't really earn any respect for it either. You shot a big animal on a low fence "true" hunting situation then you earn some respect in my book.

-john

[CEO]

I've been to quite a few of these but only one where the animals were pretty much tame. Once I figured that out I decided to just hang out and not shoot anything.

The last few I've been on I'm the guy in the group who only hunts pigs while everyone else is after axis, blackbuck, etc.

[JONES45LC]

my low fence deer in Rocksprings are way more tame than any of my high fence exotics and deer, ask my hunters if they just show up and shoot!

[BrandonA]

There are so many different places ran by so many different people that it is hard to lump them all together.

I owned a small heavily wooded place up until a couple of years ago.
If someone came wanting just to shoot anything that showed up, it was a silly easy hunt.
If they were after one particular animal things got tough.

We had a really good Axis one year. I had a local doctor that hunted him a dozen times and several groups that came multipe times hoping to get him in bow range with no success.
I finally killed him myself one afternoon while setting on a trail hunting hogs.

This happened several times throughout the years with other animals.

The easiest hunting I have ever done was on a deer lease in Mason. 20 deer at every feeder, every time they went off. Folks would shoot at deer and have them come right back to the feeder.

[ATTACH]969364[/ATTACH]

Very well said. I have hunted a high fence only once and it was for one particular deer. It was 4 days and all day sits. Finally killed him on the last morning around lunch time. Didn't see all that many deer either. Easiest hunt was ex inlaws ranch in S. Texas. Deer weren't scared of any ranch truck and you literally could hit the feed horn and they would to you.

[Bryan2014]

Often asked myself, because i'm such a tightwad, whats the difference between killing here in Texas out of a blind under a feeder or out of a blind watching over a waterhole in Africa ?
I can save some serious coin by not having to travel all the way to Africa.
Like mentioned above if they eat out of your hand, not so much.
Would love to go to Africa though even if its just to see the wildlife.

Once you price it all out you get a lot more bang for your buck in Africa. I killed an impala and a kudu and with all expenses included spent around $8000. A kudu hunt in Texas will run you $12,000 at least.

[SHSU18]

Ive hunted 250 acre place that had a separate 2000 acres. The 250 acre place had 25-30 axis on it. Only saw them once at 300 plus yards. It wasn't even very wooded. They knew the drill when some pulled in the gate, they would go in to hiding.

[ColinR]

I've hunted some high fence places that were much tougher hunts than some low fence places and visa versa. As others said it just depends on the ranch.


I have no problem with either. To me its all about getting outside and enjoying the time with family and friends. i could care less what the fence is made of. I will also say my experience has been most people that I come across personally that talk bad about high fence hunts have never actually done it themselves.

[Capt.Brown]

I own 50 ac that I raise exotics on and sell to bigger operations. I have several people wanting to come “hunt” I tell them it’s not really a hunt but if you want to come kill come on. To each there own it’s not for me at all but if it makes them happy then good for them.

[BackwoodzHank]

I don't think it is, but that being said if some one gave me a hunt or if I won it in a raffle for a good cause I wouldnt turn it down. Don't have anything against the guys that do it. Its just kinda like Barry Bonds(*).

[Mexico]

x1,000,000

Kinda like croaker fishing

[critter69]

I have absolutely no interest in shooting any thing behind a high fence. I don’t care if others enjoy it, but it does bug me when they act like they are the greatest hunter in world after shooting an animal that way tough. To each his own.