Danny Snyder's Outdoor Column

Charleston, WV getting a Cabelas in the summer of 2012

2012-01-23T19:12:00.000-08:00

Cabela's Incorporated (NYSE: CAB) announced plans to bring the Cabela's® retail experience to customers in Charleston, W.Va., and the surrounding area.

Cabela's expects to open the Charleston store in summer of 2012. The 80,000-square-foot store will be located in the Southridge Centre shopping area off U.S. Highway 119, and will be Cabela's second retail store in West Virginia, joining the Wheeling location.

The building's exterior will reflect Cabela's traditional store model with log construction, stonework, wood siding and metal roofing. A large glass storefront will allow customers to view much of the store's interior as they approach the building.

The inside will highlight the Company's next-generation layout, which is designed to immerse customers in the outdoor experience and includes conservation-themed wildlife displays and trophy animal mounts displayed on a mountain with a built-in aquarium. The store will also feature a Gun Library, Bargain Cave and Fudge Shop. Construction is expected to start in early 2012.

"West Virginians are dedicated outdoorspeople and loyal Cabela's customers," said Cabela's Chief Executive Officer Tommy Millner. "People throughout the state have been Cabela's customers for decades and it's because of their passion for outdoor recreation that we're able to make our goods and services even more accessible to the area's hunters, anglers and campers."

Celebrating its 50th anniversary this year, Cabela's opened stores in Allen, Texas, April 14 and Springfield, Ore., May 4. In August, the Company will open a store in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. Cabela's has also announced plans to build stores in Wichita, Kan., and Tulalip, Wash., as well as Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Canada, all expected to open in 2012.

Showcasing thousands of products, including hunting, fishing, camping, hiking, boating and wildlife-watching gear, as well as outdoor clothing and outdoor-themed gifts and furnishings, Cabela's is famous for its strong brand and world-renowned reputation for delivering quality merchandise, value and legendary customer service.

Cabela's typically attracts experienced outdoor recreationalists as employees, who join the Cabela's family of employees known for their excellent customer service skills and detailed knowledge of outdoor products.

Southridge Centre shopping area also includes Walmart, Sam's Club and The Home Depot as well as several restaurants, a post office and AAA Travel Services.

About Cabela's Incorporated
Cabela's Incorporated, headquartered in Sidney, Nebraska, is the world's largest direct marketer, and a leading specialty retailer, of hunting, fishing, camping and related outdoor merchandise. Since the Company's founding in 1961, Cabela's® has grown to become one of the most well-known outdoor recreation brands in the world, and has long been recognized as the World's Foremost Outfitter®. Through Cabela's well-established direct business and its growing number of destination retail stores, it offers a wide and distinctive selection of high-quality outdoor products at competitive prices while providing superior customer service. Cabela's also issues the Cabela's Club® VISA credit card, which serves as its primary customer-loyalty rewards program.

Caution Concerning Forward-Looking Statements
Statements in this press release that are not historical or current fact are "forward-looking statements" that are based on the Company's beliefs, assumptions and expectations of future events, taking into account the information currently available to the Company. Such forward-looking statements include, but are not limited to, the Company's statements regarding the construction and anticipated opening date of a destination retail store in Scarborough, Maine, and the Company's plans to open seven additional new stores in 2007. Forward-looking statements involve risks and uncertainties that may cause actual results to differ materially from the expectations of future results that the Company expresses or implies in any forward-looking statements. These risks and uncertainties include, but are not limited to: the ability to negotiate favorable purchase, lease, and/or economic development arrangements for new destination retail store locations; increasing competition in the outdoor segment of the sporting goods industry; supply and delivery shortages or interruptions; delays in traffic planning and/or road construction around new destination retail stores; the ability to secure required governmental permits and approvals, adverse weather conditions; adverse economic conditions causing a decline in discretionary consumer spending; labor shortages or increased labor costs; the acceleration of new destination retail store openings; the cost of fuel increasing; increased government regulation; other factors that the Company may not have currently identified or quantified; and other risks, relevant factors and uncertainties identified in the Company's filings with the SEC (including the information set forth in the "Risk Factors" section of the Company's Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended December 30, 2006), which filings are available at the Company's website at www.cabelas.com and the SEC's website at www.sec.gov. Given the risks and uncertainties surrounding forward-looking statements, you should not place undue reliance on these statements. The Company's forward-looking statements speak only as of the date they are made. Other than as required by law, the Company undertakes no obligation to update or revise forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.

A great buck caught on camera gets killed by car.

2012-01-18T09:12:00.000-08:00

It's a shame a great buck buck like this one makes it through all the hunting seasons of Ohio and gets killed last week by a car. This buck was hanging around the farms near where I hunt in Ohio. Next hunting season this buck would have been a special deer.

Eric Vangilder 2011-12 Ohio buck.

2012-01-10T09:34:00.000-08:00

Eric Vangilder 2011-12 Ohio Muzzleloader buck. A sweet 8 point in the 160 inch range.

Ron Stevens 2011 bow kills.

2011-12-14T13:57:00.000-08:00

These buck was killed by Ron in Iowa and Illinois this past season.

Angelo Manzo with the first deer he has killed

2011-12-10T05:04:00.000-08:00

This is Angelo Manzo with the first deer he has killed. He was hunting in Rhymer Park near Mannington. He used his Dad's first gun, a 33 year old Harrington and Richardson .410. Angelo is 9 years old and in the 4th grade at Pleasant Valley Elementry School. This was the first time he had ever gone deer hunting.

(I don't know how much information you want.) He is the son of Dave and Shauna Manzo of Fairmont.

Ralph Wright Gilmore County buck.

2011-12-08T08:28:00.000-08:00

Ralph Wright with his 2011 bow kill. This nice buck was killed in Gilmore County WV.

West Virginia County Considering Mandatory Spay/Neuter for Dog Owners

2011-12-07T13:19:00.000-08:00

West Virginia County Considering Mandatory Spay/Neuter for Dog Owners
Sportsmen's Calls Needed to Help Stop Unwarranted OrdinanceCommissioners in Mercer County, West Virginia, are considering a proposal that would require all dogs over six months of age be sterilized unless the dog's owner obtains a '50 unaltered dog permit for every dog that is not spayed/neutered. An unaltered dog permit will only be issued if the County Clerk determines the permit is for "a proper purpose," that the dog is examined by a veterinarian regularly, the dog is vaccinated annually, the dog is housed "properly," and that the owner does not have more than one violation of the animal code within the last 24 months. The ordinance does not state what a "proper purpose" for owning an intact dog is or what "proper" housing might be. "The terms 'proper purpose' and 'proper housing' aren't defined and could mean sporting dog owners could face different requirements if they want to keep intact dogs depending on who the County Clerk is," said Jeremy Rine, U.S. Sportsmen's Alliance associate director of state services. "Sporting dog owners deserve to know what standards they are being held to and they certainly can't follow standards that are undefined and could change from day-to-day." Additionally, dog owners who wish to breed a dog must also purchase a yearly '30 breeder permit for each dog the owner will breed. The ordinance will generally prohibit breeders from breeding a licensed dog more than once per year, prohibit them from selling or transferring a dog until it is seven weeks of age or older, and will require breeders to register with the county the name, address, and telephone number of any person who a dog is transferred to - even if the dog is simply given away. "This ordinance will only serve to hurt responsible dog breeders within the county and could force sporting dog owners to sterilize their prize hunting dogs," said Rine. "Sporting and other dog owners that live in or train or hunt their dogs in Mercer County should contact the Commissioners and ask them to vote this overreaching ordinance down." Take Action! Sportsmen are encouraged to attend a Tuesday, December 13th hearing on the ordinance and express their opposition. The hearing will start at 10:00 a.m. and will be held at the Mercer County Commission, 1501 W. Main Street in Princeton. Sportsmen should also contact County Commissioners Joe Coburn, Jay Mills, and Mike Vinciguerra and ask them to oppose the ordinance. They can be contacted at: Mercer County Commission
1501 W. Main St, Suite 210
Princeton, WV 24740 Phone: (304) 487-8308
Fax: (304) 487-8370

Melanie Stevenski 2011 Marion County bow kill.

2011-11-30T13:42:00.000-08:00

Melanie Stevenski's correction first bow kill was a real good one to say the least. This really nice 10 pointer was taken my Melanie near Mannington with her Bowtech Heartbreaker.

Dean Bower buck killed in Ohio.

2011-11-30T06:16:00.000-08:00

Dean Bower killed this heavy racked Ohio buck with a bow and thats not Dean holding the head its a friend of Deans.

Mark Malone buck.

2011-11-30T06:13:00.000-08:00

This buck was killed by Mark Malone in Marion County and I think with a gun.

A real nice trail camera buck taken on the adjacent farm I hunt.

2011-11-29T07:57:00.000-08:00

A real good Ohio buck that was caught on a trail camera on the farm next to the one I hunt in November 2011.

Lori Byers 2011 Ohio buck

2011-11-29T07:54:00.000-08:00

Another good buck killed by Lori Byers!

Trail camera photo of an Ohio buck during the my 2011 hunt.

2011-11-26T08:42:00.000-08:00

A nice mature Ohio whitetail buck I caught on camera during my hunt in November. I put this camera up behind me to catch any bucks that might slip past me during my hunt and it worked it caught this good buck just 40 yards away from me.

If you have a photo of an animal you have harvested or a trail camera photo you would like share send them to my email thanks! dannysnyderphoto@gmail.com

Tanner Woods 2011 Marion County bow kill.

2011-11-26T08:34:00.000-08:00

A crazy type of a rack it has lots of character for sure.

Ron Sheets Marion County bow kill..

2011-11-26T08:30:00.000-08:00

Sheets killed this nice WV buck with his bow in Marion County in 2011.

Jimmy Bledsoe 2011 Ohio buck

2011-11-26T08:23:00.000-08:00

Jimmy bledsoe with his 2011 Ohio whitetail buck killed with a bow. Grossed 161 5/8.

Snyder Ohio buck bow kill

2011-11-17T12:15:00.001-08:00

My 2011 Ohio bow kill. A main frame 10 with a couple extras on the right side.

Nice antelope killed by David Lester

2011-11-17T12:10:00.000-08:00

A real nice Wyoming antelope bow kill by Marion Countian David Lester.

Ohio buck killed by friend Jon Byers of Ohio

2011-11-15T14:19:00.001-08:00

A real nice Ohio buck killed by Jon with a bow a few weeks ago...

John Knoll buck killed in Marion County.

2011-11-15T14:13:00.000-08:00

This 14 point Marion County buck was killed by John Knoll of Fairmont. The green scored 175!!! Killed with a bow.

Some real nice Marion County bucks caught on camera.

2011-10-14T14:52:00.001-07:00

2011-10-14T14:33:00.000-07:00

John Bennington Of Fairmont, Wv with a real nice Marion County bow kill Killed on October 12, 2011

Coyote caught by Jimmy

2010-12-30T13:52:00.001-08:00

A Fisher trapped in Maine.

2010-12-30T13:49:00.000-08:00

Jimmy Eddy caught this martin top and fisher bottom in Maine.

Ron Sheets Wadestown buck.

2010-12-30T13:34:00.000-08:00

Ron Sheets II with his 11 point from Wadestown, WV killed on November 22, 2010.

Lori Byer's nice Ohio buck.

2010-12-17T18:36:00.000-08:00

A real nice Ohio buck killed with a crossbow by Lori Byers. Last year Lori killed a real good buck.

Big Iowa buck

2010-12-17T07:24:00.000-08:00

A muzzleloader buck killed in Iowa.

Finch and cardinal taking a break.

2010-12-16T11:24:00.001-08:00

A male cardinal taking a rest.

2010-12-16T11:08:00.001-08:00

With the snow on the ground it's a great time to feed the wild birds more than ever. I really enjoy sitting back and watching the birds feed.

Huge Kansas buck k

2010-12-13T13:47:00.000-08:00

Huge Kansas buck.

Jon Byers Ohio buck

2010-12-13T11:42:00.001-08:00

Jon Byers killed this Ohio whitetail with a bow during the 2010 Ohio archery season.

Sargent buck killed in Logan County WV

2010-12-09T07:17:00.000-08:00

Bucky Sargent killed this big Logan County, WV buck with a bow. The buck gross green scored at 172 6/8.

Barry Kern PA Buck

2010-12-08T06:09:00.000-08:00

An awesome buck killed in PA by Barry Kern. Maybe the second largest typical every killed in the state of PA.

Vanessa Byers Buck

2010-12-08T06:01:00.000-08:00

A great buck killed by 14 year Vanessa Byers with a crossbow this past year in Ohio. The buck should score in the 180's.

Gary Nichols buck

2010-12-08T05:55:00.000-08:00

Gary Nichols and cousin Jeff Morgan on the right with a six point killed during the first week of gun season near Saltwell.

Harisson County non-typical

2010-12-08T05:48:00.000-08:00

Not sure of the hunters name but this was sent to me via email. Buck is said to be killed in Harrison County, WV this year by a unnamed bow hunter.

John Jezioro Elk

2010-12-03T07:43:00.001-08:00

A real nice Colorado Elk killed with a bow by John Jezioro back in October on public land.

John Jezioro buck

2010-12-03T07:33:00.000-08:00

John Jezioro killed this nice Ohio buck during the 2010 archery season.

Walter buck

2010-12-03T05:32:00.000-08:00

Tyler Walters first buck a nice eight point killed in Wetzel County, WV.

Bower buck

2010-12-03T05:27:00.001-08:00

Dean Bower killed this nice buck in Marion County during our 2010 gun season.

Vangilder buck

2010-12-03T05:24:00.000-08:00

A huge buck killed by Ernie Vangilder on a ranch near Petersburg, WV. The looks to be around the 300 inch range my guess.

Eddy Buck

2010-12-03T05:20:00.000-08:00

A real nice buck killed near Fairview WV, during our 2010 gun season.

Kansas buck

2010-12-01T13:15:00.000-08:00

A Kansas bow kill from this past October. He hunted with Dr. Dave Samuel.

Jimmy Bledsoe Ohio buck

2010-11-16T07:26:00.000-08:00

This Ohio buck was taken by Marion County resident Jimmy Bedshoe using archery equipment. Jimmy shot it during the second week of November. The buck should gross close to 170.

Brian Chapman Ohio buck

2010-11-16T07:09:00.000-08:00

This 12 point was taken by Brian Chapman of Ohio with his bow on November 10th, 2010. Brian and I have been hunting for a long time on his farm.

Troy Johnson buck

2010-11-16T06:28:00.000-08:00

A great buck Troy Johnson killed with a bow October 30th, 2010 in northern, Ohio. Green scored last week grossed 234 6/8 and netted 220 3/8 after deductions.

Dr. Dave Samuel

2010-11-16T06:25:00.000-08:00

Dr. Dave with a Nebraska bow kill November. 2010

Larry Williams buck

2010-09-02T18:45:00.001-07:00

2010-08-31T08:24:00.001-07:00

2010-08-31T08:18:00.000-07:00

In the company of brown bats

2010-08-31T08:12:00.000-07:00

In the company of brown bats I was sitting in my yard relaxing one evening just before dark when my daughter and girlfriend noticed some thing flying close by. I started to look around and here it came again whizzing by. Turns out, it was a couple of bats. I thought it was kind of neat but the girls weren’t as thrilled, to say the least. A few days later I had to get some boards so I headed out to my barn and climbed up into the loft. After I got into the loft I noticed a lot of feces lying on the floor. At first I thought it may have been mice or rats, then I looked up and I found the source of the problem — brown bats. I have a family or two big brown bats living in my barn, or at least that’s what I think they are anyway. They look to be big brown bats from all the information I found. Most of the bats that live in West Virginia are little and big brown bats and these ones look to be the big brown bat. For some reason I think they are neat and I have shown them to just about anyone brave enough to go look at them. I finally talked my girl friend into looking at them and even her granddaughter thought the bats were cool, but at a distance of course. My daughter, Tori, even went with me to look at them but I’m not sure she thought as much of them as I did. I know bats are not a very cute mam mal, but they get a bad rap by most people, mainly because of their looks. Did you know there are 1,000 bat species worldwide? Amazingly, bats make up almost a quarter of all mammal species on earth. You may already have bats around your house and not know it! The big brown bat, the little brown bat, the pallid bat, the Brazilian free tailed bat, and the northern long eared bat are common species of bats in North America. Here’s some quick informa tion about big brown bats, so if you build a bat house, you'll know who’s moving into it: Big brown bats, like the ones in my barn, have fur that is shiny brown and wing membranes, ears, feet and face that are dark brown to blackish in color. They navigate as they fly, using ultrasonic sound waves and listening to the echo to locate objects, a process known as echolocation. And big brown bats are noc turnal insectivores, eating many night flying insects such as beetles and wasps. E-mail Danny Snyder at dsnyder@timeswv.com.

Lead ammo important to hunting

2010-08-31T08:01:00.000-07:00

Lead ammo important to hunting There have been relentless attempts to stop the use of tradi tional ammunition for hunting and shooting. Well, guess what? It’s back. In 1991, the attempt to ban lead worked somewhat when they were capable of outlawing the use of lead while hunting waterfowl. From what I can remember there argument was two parts: • Lead was dangerous to wounded birds. • The lead shot that ended up in the water and its effect on the environment was dangerous as well. The ban was passed 1991 as we all know and to this day I’m pretty sure there never has been a page of real factual evidence to prove this argument. In 1994, the Environmental Protection Agency EPA proposed a nation wide ban on all lead but it failed. It’s pretty sad that the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) can ban the use of anything without having evi dence or proof that what they say is true. If what they say is true and it does hurt the animals and environment, then great, by all means eliminate lead from hunt ing. However, first show us the scientific evidence and move on. And with the hunting season fast approaching, the EPA under Lisa Jackson, who was responsi ble for banning bear hunting in New Jersey, is now considering a petition by the Center for Biological Diversity (CBD) —a leading anti-hunting organization - to ban all traditional ammuni tion under the Toxic Substance Control Act of 1976, a law in which Congress expressly exempted ammunition. If the EPA approves the peti tion, the result will be a total ban on all ammunition containing lead-core components, including hunting and target-shooting rounds. The EPA must decide to accept or reject this petition by November 1, the day before the midterm elections. The cost of non-lead ammuni tion is substantial compared to regular lead shot, besides it’s not as effective as lead. If you enjoy hunting and shooting, I would urge you to write or email your senator and congressman and voice your opinion on the matter. Here are just a few points you can use if you would like: There is no scientific evidence that the use of traditional ammu nition is having an adverse impact on wildlife populations. And a 2008 study by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on blood lead levels of North Dakota hunters con firmed that consuming game harvested with traditional ammunition does not pose a human health risk. Recent statistics from the United States Fish and Wildlife Service show that from 1981 to 2006 the number of breeding pairs of bald eagles in the United States increased 724 percent. And much like the bald eagle, raptor populations throughout the United States are soaring. • Are you looking for some thing to do? Then visit West Virginia as the state is having specials at some State Parks. Check it out. September Cabin Specials Mid-week rentals are excel lent times to enjoy the peace and quiet found at a park or forest. There is more opportunity to enjoy facilities and services. Several parks and forests are offering a 20 percent discount for two or more nights in a cabin or cottage, Sunday-Thursday from Sept. 7-30. They include:Beech Fork State Park, Bluestone State Park, Cabwaylingo State Forest, Greenbrier State Forest, Holly River State Park, Kumbrabow State Forest, North Bend State Park, Pipestem Resort State Park, Twin Falls State Park, and Watoga State Park. Advance reservations are encouraged. For information about the September Cabin Special. visit www.wvstateparks .com. E-mail Danny Snyder at dsny der@times.com.

Handle carbon arrows with care

2009-01-27T16:26:00.000-08:00

During a conversation I had with a friend last week about hunting and other topics, he mentioned that someone he knew was injured while shoot ing his bow. My friend went on to say how the carbon arrow the guy had been using exploded when he was shooting at a buck. The broken arrow went through his wrist and hand, leaving him with a very severe injury. He’s still in rehab trying to get his wrist and hand back in shape. I guess we take things for granted like picking up an arrow and shooting it over and over without complications. I searched the Internet for infor mation on carbon arrows and accidents resulting from them exploding. I did find accounts of people being injured by carbon arrows, but not many. It seems this only happens when the arrows have been damaged and not examined by the archer. If you shoot carbon arrows make sure you check them out as often as you can. The type of injuries that occur are not pretty and it seems like they all affect the wrist and hand area. Most of the arrows in these type of accidents seem to be affected around the fletching area of the arrow, resulting in the arrow penetrating through the wrist, hand and forearm areas. Archers, we need to start inspecting ours bows on a reg ular basis. We know to inspect the string and serving for fray ing and then the limbs on a recurve and compound for cracks and splits. But we also need to check the other hard ware such as sight screws, rest, limb bolts, string loops, peep sites and stabilizers. Finger tabs and release aids need to be checked to make sure their mechanical integrity is still good. You should do this every time you take the bow out of its case. What is often overlooked by the archer is inspection of arrows, arguably the most important part of your equip ment and the most likely to influence your score and your safety. I remember one archer telling me that during the National Target Championships one year he shot three consecu tive ends at 90 meters with five arrows being an eight or better and the sixth being a miss. After the third miss, he took a close look at the missed arrow and noticed it was cracked. This is not a case isolated to just one brand of arrow — any arrow by any manufacturer can suffer damage in normal use over time. In addition, just so you don't think this can only occur with carbon arrows, here is another arrow from the archer's aluminum shafts. He noticed this split near the nock after destroying the nock. The nock was replaced to highlight the crack, but was wisely never shot again. So, what is a good archer to do? After shooting an end, it should be part of the routine to pull arrows and inspect them on the way back to the shoot ing line. Clean off any residue that might affect how the arrow slides under the clicker or comes off the rest and look at the arrow closely from point to nock. On carbon arrows, flex the shaft slightly and listen for 'Rice Crispy' sounds: snap, crackle, pop. Anything that hints of a reduction in mechanical integrity means that arrow doesn't get to play anymore and it becomes as one person put it, a tomato stake, because at best it can affect your score and at worst it can injure you or someone else. Record bear harvest in state West Virginia hunters har vested a record 2,064 black bears during the combined 2008 archery and firearms seasons, according to Chris Ryan, Black Bear Project Leader for the West Virginia Division of Natural Resources. The preliminary harvest data for the combined seasons in 2008 was 14 per cent higher than the previous record of 1,804 established in 2007. “Numerous factors con tributed to this record bear harvest,” Ryan said. “West Virginia has a tremendous bear population that allows for a variety of different hunting opportunities. The expansion and increase in the bear popu lation has led to the extension of hunting seasons designed to keep counties in line with their management objectives. With the cooperation of hunters, wildlife managers can maintain and/or adjust bear populations to desired man agement levels by implement ing appropriate hunting regu lations.” Hunters took 477 bears during the 2008 archery sea son. The top five counties were Randolph (56), Nicholas (37), Preston (36), Webster (32), and McDowell (24). Firearms hunters took a record harvest of 1,587 bears during 2008. Hunters took 670 bears during the September season. Top five counties were Pendleton (72), Randolph (66), Hardy (62), Pocahontas (60) and Greenbrier (52). Hunters took 109 bears during the concur rent buck gun season. Top five counties were Kanawha (32), Raleigh (27), Boone (25), Fayette (24) and Monongalia (1). Hunters took 808 during the traditional December season. The top five counties were Pocahontas (128), Greenbrier (105), Pendleton (102), Randolph (76), and Webster (68). E-mail Danny Snyder at dsnyder@timeswv.com.

Nothing to back up lion sightings

2009-01-27T16:25:00.000-08:00

Back in October 2008, a Lancaster County, Pennsylvania man claimed he had shot and injured a mountain lion and while tracking it he was attacked by a second cat. The man even went a step further and said he had blood from the mountain lion on his knife from the one that attacked him. The Pennsylvania Game Commission says there’s no evidence to support a Lancaster County man’s report that he shot a mountain lion and was injured by a second cat while tracking it. The agency said that state police crime lab tests showed a supposed blood trail wasn’t blood. A search turned up no evidence of mountain lion hair, feces or tracks in the vicinity. A knife the man says he used to fight with the animal near his Quarryville farm has deer hair on it. Further tests are being done on blood on the knife. There hasn’t been a con firmed sighting of a wild moun tain lion in Pennsylvania for more than a century. Here in West Virginia, back in late December 2008, a Lewis County family is claiming their horse was attacked and killed by mountain lions. The family found their horse dead on December 28 when they went to feed it. The horse was found with deep claw marks and gap ing puncture wounds with mas sive blood loss, says the family. The family also goes on to say family dogs have been came up missing over the past six months or so. The problems of proving all of this started when the family buried the horse before the Department of Natural Resources had a chance to examine the horse. When the DNR officer went to investigate the horse he was told it had been buried and sadly any evi dence that could prove their story went down the hole with the dead horse. There was some photographs taken of the tracks that were found around the dead horse, but there hasn’t been any for mal conclusion that they were mountain lion tracks. This seems to be another hoax, not a mountain lion attack, and there’s nothing to back it up. Maybe one day they can prove we have mountain lions in West Virginia. To be honest, I’m not real sure if that would be a good thing because the mountain lions hunt by stalking and ambushing prey. It uses its large front paws and heavy claws to clutch and slash. Knotts said the mountain lion is an apex predator, which means it is on the top of the food chain, but the cat tends to prefer smaller prey such as deer, rab bits, raccoons and foxes. According to Knotts, it would not typically attack such a large animal as an 800-pound horse. While the state DNR may deny the presence of mountain lions in West Virginia, A family member said there is something out there and she intends to find out what it is. In the meantime, the Eastern Puma Research Network has placed trail cam eras in Pendleton, Pocahontas and Randolph counties hoping to capture physical proof that the mountain lion does in fact live amongst us here in West Virginia. For more information on the Eastern Puma Research Network, or to report a moun tain lion sighting, visit www.easternpumaresearch.com or call the 24-hour hotline at (304) 749-7778. Banquet to be held The Pricketts Fort Limb Hangers Chapter of the National Wild Turkey Federation will host its annual banquet on Friday, Feb. 6 at the Westchester Village. Ticket prices for the various categories are listed on the enclosed ticket order form. Doors will open at 6 p.m. and dinner is at 7:30 p.m. The event is expected to conclude around 9:30 p.m. The NWTF Hunting Heritage Banquets reflect our Mission Statement: The Conservation of the Wild Turkey and The Preservation of the Hunting Tradition. The money raised at these banquets help support wild turkey habitat in our area and across the state, along with the JAKES, Women in the Outdoors, and Wheelin’ Sportsmen’s outreach pro grams. For more information call Mike Tarley at 363-8730 or Phil Tarley at 365-0623 Harvest numbers released Preliminary counts of game checking tags indicate West Virginia hunters harvested a total of 162,371 white-tailed deer during the recently com pleted bucks-only, antlerless, muzzleloader, bow and youth/Class Q deer seasons, according to Division of Natural Resources Director Frank Jezioro. This year’s total harvest was 11 percent above the 2007 deer harvest of 145,937 and ranks as the 15th highest total on record. Hunters killed 68,540 bucks, 54,704 antlerless season deer, 30,749 archery season deer and 8,378 muzzleloader season deer during the 2008 season. The West Virginia Division of Natural Resources (DNR) encourages hunters and anglers to attend the 2009 West Virginia Hunting and Fishing Show sponsored by the West Virginia Trophy Hunters Association, according to DNR Director Frank Jezioro. This year’s show will take place at the Charleston Civic Center and will run from Friday, Jan. 30 through Sunday, Feb. 1. The West Virginia Hunting and Fishing Show is the largest indoor hunting and fishing event in the state, with more than 15,000 attending. “Staff will be available at the DNR booth to answer questions about the state’s wildlife resources, hunting and fishing and state parks, and will be scoring deer antlers for those hunters who bring their racks to the show at the listed times,” Jezioro said. Biologists will score deer racks only at the following times: Friday, Jan. 30, 5 p.m. to 8 p.m.; Saturday, Jan. 31, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.; and Sunday, Feb. 1, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. “Visitors attending the show are encouraged to visit the DNR booth,” said Jezioro. “This is a good opportunity to meet DNR staff members and learn more about the fish and wildlife recreational opportuni ties in West Virginia. We extend our thanks to the show spon sors, the West Virginia Trophy Hunters Association, for providing us the opportunity to participate in this year’s show.” E-mail Danny Snyder at dsnyder@timeswv.com.

Plenty to see, try out at the ATA Trade Show

2009-01-14T18:49:00.000-08:00

I’m sitting in the middle of among the archery industry’s biggest events, the Archery Trade Association Trade Show, held this year in Indianapolis. The show introduces most of the new products that will be for sale this upcoming year to dealers and outdoor writers. Wherever I look, various outdoor celebrities stroll by, headed to and from their sponsor’s booths. Chuck Adams, the legendary bow hunter, just walked by wearing his toboggan that seems to be his trademark symbol. It’s much like bass fisherman and TV personality Bill Dance, who is usually wearing his Tennessee ball cap. Adams was inducted into the Archers Hall of Fame during the 25th Annual Archery Hall of Fame inductee ceremony held Thursday night that hundreds attended. On January 4, 1990, he became the first archer in history to harvest all recognized varieties of North American big game, and, at last count, had more than 120 entries in the Pope and Young Club bow hunting records. Five of Adams’ largest animals — Sitka blacktail, Coues whitetail, mountain caribou, American bison and American elk — have been recognized as bow hunting World Records. His giant elk also earned the Ishi Award, Pope and Young’s highest honor. Meanwhile, over the past three decades, he has written more than 5,000 magazine articles and 10 full-length books. As I walked through the show floor, passing by hundreds of archery dealers and a few celebrities, I wondered just how much new stuff can be invented at this stage of the game. Really, how much further can a compound bow be pushed? What more can really be done to improve archery equipment? Walking around and looking at tree stands and all of the other equipment just makes me curious. Are the companies improving their products or just changing it in some way so they can use the term new and improved? The one section off to itself at the show is the featured products area, This includes all the new or improved items to be introduced. Honestly, I saw nothing that really excited me. It was pretty much the same old song and dance. With the interest in coyote hunting in our area rising, I did put effort in locating some electronic game calls. Phantom Game Calls seems to have a real good product and is in the middle in price. They offer a wireless system that lets your fingers do the talking with the all-new mini Phantom Digital call. This call is chock full of advanced features not normally found in an affordable compact call. The mini Phantom is the smallest call in its class, with undistorted 8-bit sound quality and up to 110db of volume. And, of course, it can play two sounds simultaneously and overlap the same sound. The mini Phantom is the size of a flashlight with a built-in, forward facing speaker, and boasts interchangeable sound sticks. Each sound stick holds five sounds and even has a mute button. The mini Phantom Whitetail, Predator, Gobbler, Moose, Crow and Duck are sold as complete units. All sound sticks are sold as accessories; Whitetail, Predator, Gobbler, Moose, Elk, Bear, Snow Goose, Deer 2, Predator 2, Predator 3, Moose 2, Duck and Crow. Pull one sound stick out and slip in another; one call unit can be used for a variety of game species. Cass Creek game calls may have the best-priced game calling system I saw at the show. For around $50, you can get a single unit that will handle your coyote hunting needs. Two-speaker units, meanwhile, are priced around $70. That will allow you to place two speakers in different areas, making it seem the distressed animal is moving to the coyote. Also, if you’re looking for a new target for you bow or crossbow, take a look at the Spyderweb target. I shot a couple arrows into the target at a testing area and it’s awesome. The arrow penetration and target recovery is amazing. I think you will like this one; it’s not cheap but it seems to be a winner. As I’ve mentioned before, don’t forget to check out my Web site and my blog for photos from the ATA show at www.dannysnyderphoto.com. E-mail Danny Snyder at dsnyder@timeswv.com.

Archery Trade Show 2009

2009-01-09T19:33:00.000-08:00

With all the bad economic news the Archery Trade Show seemed to be going well so far. Lee and Tiffany Lakosky sign autographs for fans.

It’s a great time for small game hunting

2009-01-05T19:21:00.000-08:00

It’s a great time for small game hunting If you enjoy small game hunting, this is your time of the year. My rabbit-hunting companions say that there are plenty of rabbits again this year, and the weather has been great for pretty much any outdoor activity. Rabbit hunting is fun and great exercise, for both the dog and the hunter. The briars you go through will keep your mind off your problems that’s for sure, because if you don’t pay attention to what’s in front of you could loose your nose to a briar. Well, that’s if you hunt with the crazy guys I hunt with. They think rabbits only live in the most uninhabitable, impenetrable parts of the land. For the most part, they are exactly right. I haven’t heard too much from the grouse hunters in the area yet. I know from my own adventures that I didn’t see a single grouse in the woods of West Virginia or Ohio this year. My area of Marion County never really had a lot of grouse to speak of anyway. I used to hunt for grouse over the hill toward the Mon River but I haven’t been near there in a long time. Last week I wrote about lyme disease in humans. Not long after, I received an e-mail from a local vet pointing out that lyme disease can also infect your family pet as well as humans. That was a great point and want to thank him for e-mailing me. Lyme disease in dogs differ from those in people, and usually occur much later after the tick bite. Clinical illness in dogs usually occurs two to five months after initial exposure and the likelihood of disease and the severity of the disease seems to vary with the animal's age and immune status. Cats can develop lyme disease, but it occurs rarely in them, even in endemic areas. Other domestic animals such as horses have contracted lyme disease, but it does not appear to be a significant problem. Dogs show several different forms of the disease, but by far, the most common symptoms are a fever of between 103 and 105°, shifting leg lameness, swelling in the joints, lethargy, inappetence, and maybe most importantly, response to appropriate antibiotics. Arthritis may be a result of both short- and long-term infections. Most dogs that are promptly diagnosed and treated do not appear to develop arthritis, but a few dogs who do not respond completely to treatment or were not treated will develop progressive degeneration of the infected joints. A few dogs have developed severe progressive renal disease as sequelae to lyme disease. This severe kidney failure is non-responsive to treatment and death is often the outcome. Fortunately, this form appears to be rare. Usually, dogs will not develop any rash or the circular area of redness around the bite (erythema migrans) which is seen in people. Blood tests are available to assist in the diagnosis of lyme disease. The standard blood test detects antibodies made by the dog in response to infection with B. burgdorferi. Because of the lack of sensitivity of the blood test, many dogs show positive test results, but are not actually infected with the disease. Many animals are exposed to the organism, but fight the infection off on their own. These animals will have antibodies to B. burgdorferi but not have the disease. In an endemic area, almost 90% of all dogs will have a positive antibody test, so a single positive result means very little. As we mentioned earlier, only around 10% of the exposed dogs actually contract the infection. Tests must be used with several other criteria to gain a positive diagnosis. Suspected animals should have a history of tick exposure, compatible clinical signs, and have a rapid response to antibiotic therapy. In fact, clinical signs and rapid response to antibiotic therapy is how many diagnoses of lyme disease are made. If an animal that is suspected of having lyme disease does not clinically improve within 48 hours of starting antibiotic therapy, it is best to assume that it is not lyme disease and begin to do other diagnostic tests to find the source of the problem. Treatment for lyme disease is very straightforward and consists of using either a tetracycline or penicillin-based antibiotic. The two most commonly used are oral Doxycycline or Amoxicillin. A recent study showed that both antibiotics worked equally well. The antibiotics must be given a minimum of 14 days, but 30 days is recommended. Deer season has pretty much come to an end, but there’s plenty of stories about big bucks that have been killed recently. I found one really big buck that was killed in Wisconsin by a bowhunter on Nov. 1. At first, it was thought the buck would surpass the Milo Hanson buck but it was determined to be a non-typical. The so-called Field & Stream buck scored 233 2/8 non-typical, making it the number one bow killed non-typical of all time in Wisconsin. If you’re interested in seeing more on the buck, I have a photo and a some additional information on the blog section of my website

www.dannysnyderphoto.com.

Wisconsin Bowhunter takes new state record buck.

2009-01-03T06:46:00.000-08:00

Questions regarding whether the so-called 'Field & Stream' buck taken by Wisconsin bowhunter Bob Decker Nov. 1 would surpass Milo Hansen's world record typical whitetail were answered yesterday, when the deer was officially scored by Pope & Young Club measurers, who declared the rack non-typical. Nonetheless, at 233 2/8 NT, it bested the current Wisconsin bow record. "I didn't get the world record, but I got the most popular buck this year," Decker told the Eau Clair Leader-Telegram. No doubt about that.

Maybe a new way to rattle?

2008-12-26T11:20:00.000-08:00

Submitted by Jim Schlender, Publisher/Community Leader Knives & Firearms - F+W Media. Honestly, how do you come up with a new way to rattle? More than 25 years ago when rattling a set of antlers together to call deer caught on, we used the real thing. Then we graduated to synthetic “rattling horns.” Then came the still-popular rattle boxes and rattling bags. Done, right? Well, not so fast. On a recent hunt in Alabama, Knight & Hale Game Calls’ engineering manager Greg Burcham told me he wanted to show me a new rattling system he’d patented. I was prepared to be underwhelmed, but after playing around with the company’s new-for-2009 Pack Rack for couple minutes, all I could say was this: Cool! The Rack Pack comprises two pieces of a super-tough polymer. With the halves nested together, the Rack Pack is completely silent and takes up no more space in your pack than a softball. Pull the two halves apart, grab the handles and you’re ready to rattle. Look at the pictures and you’ll get the idea. What’s really neat about the Rack Pack is how easy it is to change the tone and volume. Grip the halves tightly with cupped hands and crack them together to produce the sounds of large, heavy antlers. Loosen your grip and gently clink the ridged half against the rounded half and you can imitate the sounds of light sparring. Burcham said it took a lot of trial and error to come up with the consistency of polymer that would make the most realistic sounds, but finally he was satisfied. I think it’s safe to say that if you like to rattle, you too will be pleased with his effort.

Gene Wensel 2006 Buck

2008-12-25T10:33:00.000-08:00

Gene Wensel with a real nice long bow kill.

My trail camera photo's.

2008-12-25T09:30:00.000-08:00

Here are a couple nice bucks that was captured by my trail camera's during November 2008.

Some thoughts about hunting trend

2008-12-23T14:58:00.000-08:00

Some thoughts about hunting trend I was curious how the hunting trend was going up or down here in West Virginia. As we all know, hunting has been on a downward slide over the last 10 years or so in the United States. West Virginia hasn't been hit as hard with declining hunters as other states have been. It1s interesting to me because it seems the more we tend to manage out our own deer herds, we eliminate hunters from hunting areas they used to hunt. It's not because hunters that are landowners are any less friendly. It's because some are spending large sums of money trying to grow larger deer. Planting food plots and some just feeding their deer herd. Some people are spending thousands of dollars to grow larger-antlered deer and healthy deer as well. Most of these challenges have to include some type of a management program, and some hunters just don1t or won1t abide them. It's not too hard to understand if a landowner is dropping thousands of dollars on the deer herd, he1s not going to let just anyone hunt there. So with the increase of self-deer management, landowners get tougher on who they let hunt therefore eliminating possible young hunters stepping in and getting hooked. Not saying it1s a good or bad thing. If you own and pay taxes on your property, you can do as you please. But the more this trend continues, the more people will give up hunting, and their kids will never be introduced to it. My opinion is that people will see food plots only help if the deer live long enough to get nice racks. Planting and maintaining food plots is a costly and time-consuming adventure, and I think it will fall by the wayside soon. You can plant all the protein you can afford. If the deer don1t live, they don1t grow. My favorite saying is dead deer don't grow. If hunters would let two- and three-year-old bucks walk, they would see the benefits the next year. You can try and manage 10,000 acres plant all kinds of food plots, but if all the hunters don1t have the same idea of what a big buck is, you1re wasting your time. You cannot have 20 guys hunting and killing all of the two- and three-year-old bucks. It will not work. Everyone has to be on the same page for the idea to work. This, too, will be the demise of hunting leases for the serious hunter. Not very many individuals have the money to do it alone, so they recruit more hunters, and this is when the problem starts. More hunters with different ideas on what a big deer is. You cannot get big deer bucks unless they live. You have to everyone on the same page. Let the young bucks walk and the nice two- and three-years-olds. It1s hard to do, but you have to do it to get what you1re after. Here is some of the information on deer hunting participation in West Virginia. Overall participation rate of West Virginia, 13 percent of all residents aged 15 years and older have either deer hunted in the past 12 months or have a household member who has deer hunted in the past 12 months. NUMBER OF HUNTERS IN HOUSEHOLD Statewide, the mean number of deer hunters in households in which somebody hunted deer is 1.53 people. The mean ranges from a high of 1.74 in Region 9 (Clay, Nicholas, Webster) to a low of 1.42 in Region 5 (Jefferson, Berkeley) and Region 16 (Mason, Putnam). LICENSE PURCHASING The most common source for hunting license purchases for the 2006 season was an electronic purchase at a store or business, referred to as a 3point-of-sale at license agent,2 the source for 37 percent of 2006 license holders. Lifetime licenses accounted for 17 percent of 2006 license holders, and paper licenses from a license agent. The mean number of days that hunters spent hunting deer is 11.0 days, for a total of 1,977,000 hunter-days. The most avidity for deer hunting, as measured by the mean number of days hunting, was in Region 5 (Jefferson and Berkeley counties) at 14.8 mean days and Region 15 (McDowell and Wyoming counties) at 14.3 mean days. Participation in the first day of buck firearms season was quite high: 80 percent hunted on the first day of the buck firearm season. Indeed, at least 86 percent of those who hunted deer with a firearm did so within one of more of the first three days of the season. Preliminary figures for the 2008 fall turkey hunting season indicate that 1,128 birds were harvested this fall. This represents a 25 percent decline from last year1s fall harvest of 1,511. The largest harvest declines were reported in the western counties of District 6 (down 62 percent) and the southeastern counties of District 4 (down 61 percent). More moderate harvest declines were reported in the central and eastern counties of District 3 (down 20 percent) and the eastern-panhandle counties of District 2 (down 10 percent). District 1, located in the North Central and Northern Panhandle regions of the state, reported an overall harvest increase of 15 percent. Mason County, the only county open to fall turkey hunting in District 5, reported a 48 percent harvest increase. The counties reporting the highest turkey harvests this fall include: Randolph (108), Mason (99), Preston (89), Greenbrier (79) and Pocahontas (74). Wildlife Biologists had forecast a lower fall turkey harvest based upon poor poult production in the spring and abundant food sources this fall, which tend to scatter flocks and make them less accessible to hunters. Prior to the season, it was predicted the fall wild turkey harvest might drop as much as 15 percent, noted Paul Johansen, assistant chief in charge of game management. Wet, windy weather during the first week of the season, particularly in our southeastern counties, probably reduced hunter turnout and hampered those who did venture forth, causing a larger than expected decrease in our fall turkey harvest.