201K: The scenario you describe makes me sick also!
That is NOT Hunting!
Whether gorge says so or not.
Sad!
ALL... of the Big Game I have harvested in 58 years of Hunting have been fair chase - I would NOT even consider "high fence" type Hunts as "sporting".
Shame on those who put on and shame on those who partake of such crap!
Hold into the wind
VarmintGuy
VG,
I value a lot of what you say on the Fire, but you are off base when you spout off about high fence operations not being sporting.
Perhaps the confusion on high fence operations is that there are so many different types for so many different species on many different sizes of operations.
I primarily hunt deer and antelope at home here in Alberta. In 2014, I was fortunate enough to hunt a number of different plains game in the Eastern Cape of South Africa. Most of the properties are game fenced. The wildlife belong to the property owners. Not only are they trying to keep their stock at home, they also want to maintain their range conditions by having a known quantity of game units on their range. The fences also help keep the local poachers out. I found that most farms/ranches that we went to fail to keep a totally secure game fence. Found a number of holes. The scale of the properties were quite large. After crossing a fence line to access a property, a fence NEVER! played a role in preventing the game I pursued from escaping. I am VERY! comfortable that the hunting was fairchase, it was just different from North America. In 2015 I hunted hogs in Florida on a night time hunt. There were fences, but nothing I considered as effectively pig proof. Another Hunter went there based on my hunt report and claims the pigs were in small pastures. I don't know, it was night time in the Florida swamps. We were using Starlight scopes. I come from a farming background and I was comfortable that the pigs were not confined.
Now coming from Montana, you probably have hunted antelope. I have seen more panicked antelope restricted from escape by four and five strand cattle fencing, than I did see plains game in Africa or hogs in Florida. As you know, antelope seldom will jump a fence, but they will crawl under where they are able to. I have seen hunters push antelope along fence lines to shooters posted near crossing points. Tell me which is more sporting!? Which is fair chase? Not a lot of difference in my opinion.
I think that North Americans need to get off their high horse about high fences. You may or may not choose to hunt a high fence operation, that is your option, but to exclude a legal form of hunting, is foolhardy. The antis are out to shut hunting down. Hunters need to stick together and not fracture over bow/rifle/hound/bait lines.
Just to finish off, since I saw my first add for this ranch, it was apparent to me it was a high fence, put and take operation. How the OP was confused, I'm not sure. Now if there is any semblance of veracity to his report, the operation is despicable. I have followed Jorge1, Hatari, and Pugs since I have been on the Fire. Some are ex military officers. I have a high degree of respect for them, and do not doubt their report. The question is, how can the OP's experience be so vastly different?
