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THIS IS POSTED ON HSUS WEBSITE. NOW IS THE TIME TO STAND UNITED AND JOIN THE VIRGINIA HUNTING DOG ALLIANCE FOR THE BATTLE THAT LAYS AHEAD. READ THE LETTER BY HSUS PRESIDENT WAYNE PARCELLE.
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Take Action to Restrict Hound Hunting in Virginia

Dear Friend,

A declining number of states still allow the hunting of wildlife with packs of dogs, and this inhumane and unsporting practice is currently under scrutiny in Virginia. Hound hunters chase bears, deer, raccoons, and other wildlife to exhaustion or corner them in a tree and shoot them down for sport or trophies. Many hunters fit the dogs with GPS collars, and simply follow the radio signal on a handheld device to locate a trapped animal after the dogs do all the work. And dogs who fail to hunt well are sometimes abandoned. The practice provokes the ire of landowners, outdoor enthusiasts, animal welfare advocates, and hunters alike. You can help!

The Virginia Department of Game and Inland Fisheries is considering stricter regulations and your voice is urgently needed.


TAKE ACTION
Take a moment to send a message to the members of the Hunting With Hounds Stakeholder Advisory Committee, letting them know that using large packs of dogs to chase, harass, and kill wildlife no longer has a place in Virginia and should be restricted. Please tell your friends and family in Virginia how they can help, too.

Thanks for all you do for animals!

Sincerely,

Wayne Pacelle
President & CEO
The Humane Society of the United States

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WE NEED ALL VIRGINIA SPORTSMEN AND SPORTSWOMEN TO GET INVOLVED AND JOIN US. SEND A DONATION AND TELL YOUR HUNT CLUB, FRIENDS, RELATIVES ETC. GET IN THE FIGHT OR LOOSE YOUR RIGHTS!

Help protect Virginia's Outdoor Sporting Heritage!

Send your Donation TODAY!

Checks can be made payable to VHDA and mailed to:

Virginia Hunting Dog Alliance
P.O. Box 657
Powhatan, Virginia 23139

Corporate donations are welcome and appreciated!

Hunting-dog owners try to keep opponents at bay
By STEVE SZKOTAK – 1 day ago

RICHMOND, Va. (AP) — In a state considered the American birthplace of hunting with hounds, George Washington's favorite sport has become a target for some Virginia landowners who say baying dogs and their owners are trampling property rights.

Even other hunters object to a Virginia right-to-retrieve law viewed as the most absolute in the nation: Hunters have free reign to chase after dogs that stray onto posted private property.

Proponents are rising to protect their right to hunt, mindful that other Southern states have already limited or eliminated certain forms of the sport because of complaints from property owners.

Courtly fox hunters and down-home bear and coon hunters — an unlikely coalition — contend their heritage is at stake.

"If we have a major defeat in Virginia, I think it would hurt hunting with hounds in every state. Therefore, we will fight it at every turn," vowed Kirby Burch of the Virginia Hunting Dog Alliance, an umbrella group for 450 hunt clubs claiming more than 30,000 members.

A big part of the friction involves loss of rural habitat due to development. In Virginia, land is being developed at more than three times the rate of population growth, according to "Hunting with Hounds in Virginia: A Way Forward," a state-commissioned report.

The upshot: More dogs are running on private lands, riling property owners.

Forms of hound hunting have been banned from Washington state to Massachusetts, and Southern states have followed suit — in part because of opposition from animal-rights groups, but also from landowners. Texas banned hunting deer with dogs in 1990, and Alabama, Georgia and Florida more recently have restricted the sport.

Those actions have prompted officials to examine the sport in Virginia, where approximately 180,000 hunters use dogs. Game officials here say they hope to deal with the issue before problems mount.

Some hunters say the criticism comes from outsiders unfamiliar with the sport's heritage, but that's not always the case.

"An awful lot of what we consider 'new people' are sons and daughters of Virginia but don't have the tradition of the land," said Rick Busch, assistant director of the wildlife division of the state Department of Game and Inland Fisheries. "It's not necessarily Yankees piling into our Southern states."

Hunting with hounds in Virginia dates nearly 400 years ago to the founding of Jamestown, America's first permanent English settlement. Dogs are used to hunt bears, deer, fox, raccoons and rabbits.

Washington and Thomas Jefferson were among its earliest enthusiasts. Congressman John Randolph, who represented Virginia in the early 19th century, was known to enter the House of Representatives with a pack of hounds at his heels. The sport flourished among the Southern plantation culture and spread to Appalachia with Scots-Irish immigrants.

That was back when the same land supported far fewer people. Hunting enthusiasts and opponents alike wonder whether there's still enough room for the specially bred, high-priced dogs to run.

On Oct. 23, the Board of Game and Inland Fisheries is to consider proposals that seem to satisfy neither side. The proposals do not, for instance, recommend changes to the right-to-retrieve law, disappointing property owners like Ben Jones.

He became so weary of hunters traipsing after their dogs on his 165 acres about 40 miles southwest of Richmond that he billed the state $4,750. The bill was ignored.

"The Constitution says government can't take property from the private sector and place it in the public sector without JUST COMPENSATION to the property owner," Jones, a self-employed contractor, wrote in an e-mail to The Associated Press.

The dog retrieval law is especially contentious when it comes to hunting deer, because such hunts can cover thousands of acres. Wildlife biologist Ben Fulton, a member of a state advisory committee that has studied hunting with hounds, said deer hunters with dogs disturb his own hunts on his 200 acres in Cumberland County. The right-to-retrieve law, he said, is an open invitation.

"All you have to do is go on somebody's property and just say, 'I'm looking for my dog,'" Fulton said. "I would like to see the law changed to where they had to gain permission."

Burch, of the Hunting Dog Alliance, said that alternative surely would be more irritating.

"Do you want me knocking on your door at 3 a.m. in the morning and saying I want my dog? C'mon," Burch said.

David Birdsall, 68, lives on a 500-acre farm in Gloucester County and has hunted deer since the 1960s. He also shows his Black and Tan Coonhounds.

"To hear these dogs run and chase is what it's all about," said Birdsall, a retired veterinarian.

When he hunts these days, he moves up Virginia's Middle Peninsula near Chesapeake Bay to a less populated county.

A little common courtesy, he said, goes a long way.

On the Net:
Virginia Department of Game and Inland Fisheries: http://www.dgif.virginia.gov/
Virginia Hunting Dog Alliance: http://www.vahda.org/

Smear tactics

http://www.fauquier.com/letter/535/

Submitted By: Jessica R. Swan
TUESDAY, OCTOBER 21 2008

Smear tactics

The Virginia Department of Game and Inland Fisheries recently completed its "Hunting with Hounds" Study.

Several people have been busy using the media as a bully pulpit, misrepresenting the purpose and issues, as well as making inaccurate statements regarding property rights and hunting.

They want to frighten you into believing that government is taking away your property rights, forcing you to allow ATV’s and recreation on your land, that all hunters are criminals, those that use dogs abuse or neglect them, and hunters deserve ridicule because they look or dress differently.

None of these claims is true.
It is time for facts.
There is no law permitting violation of property rights. To state otherwise is disingenuous.

Some editorials assert that 18.2-136 means a hunter's rights are superior to those of the landowner. This is a misreading of the wording and intent of the statute, as well as the state constitution.

Every state recognizes exceptions to trespass. In other states, similar laws permit farmers to retrieve loose livestock, permit retrieval of legally downed game, or permit collection of trash that has blown onto the land of another. Other states permit a person to retrieve a dog. There is nothing unusual or unconstitutional about these laws.
Exceptions to trespass involve exigencies — situations in which immediate action is required. To save a drowning child, to catch your dog that dashed out the door into your neighbor’s yard, to assist an animal in distress, to prevent an accident, to retrieve trash.

These are responsible and compassionate behavior, not criminal acts or recreation.

The exception need not be written into law to exist, though, like many other states, Virginia has a statute for one of them.

18.2-136 is an animal welfare law. It exists so a lawful hunter can immediately retrieve his hunting dog and prevent any harm to the dog, or annoyance to a landowner. The hunter must be unarmed, on foot, and must identify him or herself. Any other act is a crime.

The law is clear and is enforced, though some would have the public believe otherwise.
In Virginia, the landowner is protected from liability, and all civil remedies remain available to the landowner. No rights are infringed.

In a recent editorial, Mr. Don Marro asserted that the wildlife on his property belongs to him. He is incorrect.

In America, government holds wildlife in trust for the benefit of the public, not the wealthy elite.

Historically, wildlife was the sole property of the landowner. Since only the upper class owned land, they were the only ones that could legally hunt and fully participate in society and government.

English subjects, unable to improve their condition, became resentful of the upper classes. The class hatred exists to this day.

In the colonies, His Majesty’s policies were applied, creating discontent among colonists that resulted in the American Revolution.

Thanks to these men and women anyone can hunt in America. There is no class warfare, no "toffs,” no landed gentry. Bird watching, hiking, wildlife viewing, angling, and every form of hunting — the poor and rich are side by side as equals.

There are many peer-reviewed studies and literature on the use of dogs in hunting, hunting in general, and wildlife biology and management. The veterinary research on the care, behavior, feeding, training and welfare of the working dog is legion. Hunters gladly participate in this research and eagerly assist veterinarians and wildlife biologists. The results benefit all Americans.

The letters to the editor demonstrate ignorance of the ethics espoused by American sportsmen — by Theodore Roosevelt, Aldo Leopold, and other visionaries. Sportsmen created fair chase and modern conservation. They know what comes of unregulated, nonselective, unethical hunting.

The North American wildlife conservation model is unique. Among its tenets is that wildlife management be based in sound science, and ethical conduct is paramount.

Modern sportsmen have codes of ethics, standards of conduct, and are vociferous advocates for conservation and animal welfare. Though they comprise a small percentage of the population, they are responsible for more than 100 years of funding for restoring and protecting land and wildlife.

Not everyone understands, or is willing to accept, that a tremendous amount of effort and training is required to hunt with a dog. Hunting with a dog can be very subtle, the nuances and complexity are often unseen by those unacquainted with hunting.

Other hunters prefer different methods. Many people choose not to hunt, or disapprove of hunting. Those who use a dog, hound, or raptor merely prefer a traditional approach.

All viewpoints warrant respect, and all can be accommodated in modern society.

What is unpardonable is the jeering, mocking and denigration of beliefs and traditions.

Those who disparage rural cultures will be embarrassed to learn that the United Nations disagrees.

This fall, U.N. and researchers concluded that as traditional and rural cultures disappear, the health of the surrounding ecosystem plummets. Biodiversity is required in man and nature for either to flourish.

The U.N. is addressing this issue and asks the scientific community to reach across disciplines working together to prevent extinctions.

Chief Seattle was right. All things are connected.

It’s unfortunate that some are willing to compromise the welfare of working dogs to further their personal agenda. It is impossible to remain silent when some attempt to garner support by misleading the public and equating lawful hunters to poachers, animal abusers, or other criminals.

The truth is, the vast majority of sportsmen are decent, ethical, law-abiding citizens. They respect property rights, obey laws, and care for their dogs.

Those that disobey laws are criminals. Treat them as such. Never equate them with hunters.

As a landowner, I do not consider a hunter retrieving his hound to be a "taking" of my property rights; his retrieval demonstrates respect for my property rights, and his devotion and love for his hound.

For the thousands of ethical sportsmen, who hunt with or without hounds, thanks for your sportsmanship, ethics, and your steadfast commitment to conservation.

Jessica R. Swan
Catlett, Virginia
Email: info@vahda.org

October 23, 2008


RIGHT TO RETRIEVE: Va. hunters speak out for law

By STEVE SZKOTAK
Associated Press Writer

RICHMOND — Hunters defended a Virginia law Thursday allowing them unlimited access to pursue their hounds when the dogs run astray on private property.

A hearing on changes to the so-called “right-to-retrieve” law attracted nearly 150 people, many in hunter orange caps and camouflage. Several speakers forcefully spoke against any effort to soften the law, which has run afoul of landowners who object to uninvited hunters traipsing on their land.

Speakers accused the state Department of Game and Inland Fisheries of stacking the deck against hunting interests, hewing an animal rights agenda and conspiring to curtail or limit dog hunting, as several other Southern states have done in recent years.

“I am afraid we are witnessing the beginning of the end of hound hunting in Virginia,” said Warren Radford of the Virginia Bear Hunters Association.

The department’s board denied any hidden agenda and said hunters should recognize and attempt to correct the abuses of a few to preserve the rights of all hunters.

“To say I’d be a part of a conspiracy, it would be a lie,” board member Richard E. Railey Jr. said. “We’ll never accomplish anything if we don’t agree there is a problem.”

The board accepted a report on hunting with hounds but did not act on any of the proposals. The most contentious, the retrieval law, would require action by the General Assembly on what many consider to be the most absolute in the country.

The changes would require hunters to make a “reasonable attempt” to contact a landowner before retrieving their dogs; land that was not clearly posted as private property, however, would be presumed to be open.

A coalition of hound hunters — mounted fox hunters to sportsmen who tree bears with radio-collar dogs — has mounted a fierce campaign to blunt the proposals, which include ideas such as the hiring of additional enforcement officers and dog tagging.

They contend their heritage of dog hunting, which dates to Virginia’s founding fathers, is threatened.

“We organized to resist your efforts to destroy hunting with hounds in Virginia,” said Kirby Burch of the Virginia Hunting Dog Alliance, which claims 35,000 members.

Hunters who use dogs to track deer, bears, raccoons and other wildlife argue their dogs need to be retrieved for their own safety. A trained dog can cost hundreds or thousands of dollars.

But even fellow hunters have demanded action to amend the right-to-retrieve. Still hunters, for instance, contend their own stealth-based hunts are disturbed by the baying of hounds.

“If you want to know why people are upset, I’m here to tell you why,” said Bobby Smith, a hunter who said he owns 438 acres in Rockridge County. “I’m not against hunting with hounds. I’m against (hunters) going on my property.”

State wildlife officials, who described the issue as the most divisive in their memory, have said they want to deal head-on with complaints about the sport before they have to follow Texas, Alabama, Georgia and other states that have restricted hound hunting.

While animal rights activists have had a say in those battles, the loss of habitat has been a primary source of conflict between hunters and landowners.

The Humane Society of the United States and People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals spoke against the right-to-retrieve law, and the Humane Society placed ads in several newspapers to highlight what it said were abuses of hunting dogs.

“Is this the face of a time-honored tradition?” the ad asks under a photo of an emaciated hound.

Help protect Virginia's Outdoor Sporting Heritage!

Send your Donation TODAY!

Checks can be made payable to VHDA and mailed to:

Virginia Hunting Dog Alliance
P.O. Box 657
Powhatan, Virginia 23139

Corporate donations are welcome and appreciated!

All Sportsmen Must Become Ambassadors for Hunting

The Hound study has elevated all hunting in the public mind. DGIF has branded you as criminals in the eyes of many. The Humane Society of the United States in the letter to the Hound Study said, ”As the Department of Game and Inland Fisheries (VDGIF) points out, the public is opposed to the use of hounds for chasing and hunting wildlife and at the very least supports restriction of this practice, but these sentiment were ignored by the SAC.”

This ultra-radical organization, that has been linked to and endorses the terrorist organizations the Environmental Liberation Front (ELF) and the Animal Liberation Front (ALF), is trying to smear Virginia Hound Hunting.

We have proven that the Hound Hunting community is law-abiding. We also know that there are a few ‘bad actors’ in our midst. Every hunter must do three things:

1. Obey and Enforce the Law

Every hunter must not only obey the game laws, but must report violators in their midst. We cannot tolerate lawlessness among our ranks. The law applies to all who hunt, NO EXCEPTIONS! Make sure that the people you hunt with have a copy and have read the entire game regulation summary! VHDA took a small ad in the publication to show our support for following the law. Report violators! This study has inflamed many people, watch for people stealing dogs, removing tracking collars, shooting dogs and harassing hunters. You must politely demand that the law enforcement officers enforce the law!

The Code of Virginia allows you to retrieve your dog from private property that you are otherwise prohibited from entering. If you do so, get your dog(s) and get off the property as quickly and quietly as possible. After all the property does not belong to you. Leave no trash, close gates and if approached by a landowner, Be Polite! You have a right to retrieve your dog, but please ask permission first if you can.

Often you are in a hurry to catch a dog before he gets into the road or away from you, please remember to stop at the house and tell the landowner why you were there and thank them for being understanding. Do not get into arguments, while the law is on your side you need all the friends you can get!

Meeting the landowners around the area you hunt before the season begins is the best “scouting time” you can spend. Get to know the neighbors! Landowner relations are extremely important! It costs nothing to be polite and respectful of everyone you meet. Treat others as you would be treated is part of the moral code of every one of the
worlds major religions. We, as hunters, must do a better job of respecting people that disagree with us.

2. Educate Your Fellow Hunters

Make sure the folks you hunt with know the law and the rules, and have the correct attitude about exercising their rights! If you let those you hunt with know that you expect ethical behavior, they will either agree or hunt elsewhere. Conservation ethic has been passed down from father to son for centuries. Clubs and hunting groups need to be aware that we are the “original conservationists”, and they must teach the new guy and not just children, the right way (and why) of doing things. If we fail to do this our future in the outdoors we love may be bleak indeed.

The VHDA will begin to talk more about ethical hunting practices, not to preach to anyone, but to develop a consensus Code of Ethics. Remember that while some groups of hunters are not standing with you now, we must be ready to welcome them back into the Sportsmen’s fold because we must be united against a well funded foe.

3. Talk about hunting to the non-hunting public

Everyone who hunts must become an Ambassador for hunting and especially hunting with dogs. The non-hunting person that lives in an apartment or on a quarter acre in a sub-division has the same vote that you do on Election Day. The HSUS and P.E.T.A. are raising hundreds of millions of dollars by misleading folks to believe that they care about animal welfare, when they are radical vegans who want to end the domestication of animals and prevent you from eating meat. They don’t care that your animals are among the best treated and cared for animals in existence. They intentionally mislead the public into believing that what you do when you hunt or in the manner that you care for your dogs is cruel.

You are the best defense against their lies. Most of us love our dogs (my wife sometimes thinks too much) and our pride in them shows. Talk to non-hunters about the care of dogs, how much they love to run, tell them about the role that hunting plays in public safety. Most Virginians have either had an auto accident or know someone who has within the last year or two. Use the information about the economic impact of hunting with dogs on the Virginia economy.

All thinking Americans are concerned about the economic well being of our nation. Most Virginians who do not hunt, but have some knowledge of the controversy think it has to do with complaints. We have provided you with all the proof you need to dispel that. See our web site for the complaint number by county. Remember that DGIF has only obtained and average of 179 conviction per year for the last three years for trespassing statewide! Those convictions were not about hunting with dogs they were for All hunting, fishing and trapping. That is less than two per county per year! DGIF has tried to convince anybody who would listen that there are many un-recorded complaints or that local sheriff departments would not do their job and turn the complaint over to DGIF.

The statewide conviction record speaks for it self. With a THREE BILLION DOLLAR state budget shortfall they are asking for more wardens! The bureaucrats want more money, more authority. They grow like kudzu and consume everything. But they have forgotten that you the hunter and fisherman pay their salary! When they begin to remember who they are paid by, we will support them, but not before!

All VHDA Board members are real hunters who own dogs. The VHDA has no paid staff. We pay our own expenses because “We HAVE a dog in this fight!” If we sometimes sound angry, it is because we are! We would prefer to be hunting, teaching our children about the wonders that God has given us and training our dogs. We know that we must have a strong voice or we will lose to people, who not only disagree with you... but hate and revile you because you hunt.

Email: info@vahda.org