Hoosier hunters saw both muzzleloader and late archery deer seasons start on Dec. 4. The muzzleloader season will run through Dec. 19 and late archery season will continue until Jan. 2.

“These seasons are a great way to extend your deer hunting season and are crucial in managing the state’s deer population,” said Chad Stewart, deer management biologist.

In 2009, muzzleloader hunters took 18,553 deer, 80 percent of which were antlerless deer, accounting for 14 percent of the total deer harvest. Last year, late archery season accounted for 1,598 deer, 1 percent of the total harvest. Eighty-one percent of the late archery season harvest was antlerless deer.
Crossbows are legal during late archery season without the use of a disabled permit. Crossbow hunters took 182 deer statewide during last year’s late archery season.

A muzzleloader and late archery license allows you to harvest one deer of either sex.

However, if you have already taken an antlered deer, you can only take an antlerless deer. If you purchased a bonus antlerless license during firearms or early archery season and didn’t use it, then you are able to use the license during muzzleloader and late archery season.

Find out more information at www.in.gov/dnr/fishwild

Deadly threesome

Every year, there are instances of bucks locking horns. Often, the animals will survive when one of the horns are sawn away by a Good Samaritan sportsman. Sometimes, the rutting combatants aren’t so lucky and one or both are found dead.

One of the most unique situations of “locked horns” I have ever seen was recently sent to me courtesy of the Ohio Department of Natural Resources. News of the threesome was widely circulated among sportsmen and conservation enforcement officers, and shows the extremes of a buck fight gone horribly wrong.

“This is the result of three bucks all fighting for one lady,” wrote Ohio State Wildlife Officer Joshua L. Shields. “They had the bank of this creek all tore up. Altogether, I estimated the deer to score well over 400 inches of antler. The biggest one was a massive 6 x 5, approx 165 inches. The other two were around 130 or so.”

Apparently the first two deer locked up while sparring and a third joined the group. Slamming its horns into the fray, its horns became hopelessly entangled as well. As the three deer struggled for dominance, they fell into the stream where they drowned.

Pepsi on verge of giving $250K to HSUS?

In an update from the U.S. Sportsmen’s Alliance (USSA), it seems the country’s largest anti-hunting group, the Humane Society of the United States (HSUS), may be on the verge of getting a $250,000 grant from Pepsi-Cola. The USSA and others are working to inform Pepsi about HSUS’ true animal rights agenda.
Pepsi will award $250,000 to the top two vote-getters in an online grant program it developed to provide funding to a variety of projects. Currently, HSUS is leading.

The program, called Pepsi Refresh, was started in January 2010. According to the rules, it is “an online grant program which makes available millions of dollars to be granted to projects which are intended to improve communities through an online, democratic voting process …”

Up to 1,000 ideas can be submitted each month by individuals, companies and nonprofit organizations. Thirty-two of the ideas will be approved for funding based upon the number of votes received from registered online users. Of the thirty-two, two will receive $250,000 and 10 each will receive grants of $5,000, $25,000 or $50,000.

The Pepsi Refresh program rules indicate no proposal seeking funding can involve lobbying for the changing of laws. Consequently, the HSUS proposal leads in the current round of voting claims its goal is to “rescue animals who are suffering from extreme neglect.” However, as the USSA has argued many times, this simply frees up existing resources for HSUS to continue engaging in public policy battles. That means more battles against sportsmen.

The USSA has drafted a letter to Pepsi describing HSUS’ history of standing against outdoor traditions and conservation funding. Another group, the Animal Agriculture Alliance, which represents many farmers, has also sent a letter to Pepsi. Its letter describes the attacks HSUS has leveled against it.

“We are very concerned that Pepsi, like many other companies, has been misled about the real mission of HSUS,” said Doug Jeanneret, USSA vice president of marketing. “They believe the money will be to help animals when, in reality, the grant will merely free up HSUS to deploy their already vast resources to attack hunting, farming and most animal use.

“It is important that Pepsi hears from sportsmen and other responsible citizens about this group.”

Take action! Sportsmen nationwide should do two things in response to the situation:

Register at the Pepsi Refresh Program website at www.refresheverything.com
and vote for a more worthy proposal. Sportsmen can also contact Pepsi through its consumer phone number at 800-433-2652 or send an e-mail by picking “Question or comment about the Pepsi Refresh Project” from the drop-down menu on its website.

Please ask PepsiCo not to support the HSUS. Explain HSUS is the number one anti-hunting organization in the United States and has opposed sportsmen on many issues for years.

Tell PepsiCo if HSUS is successful with its agenda, hunting would be a thing of the past. Additionally, billions of dollars in wildlife conservation would be placed at risk due to the loss of the funding provided through the taxes paid by sportsmen on their gear.

The views and opinions expressed in this column are those of the author and not necessarily those of Farm World. Readers with questions or comments for Jack Spaulding may contact him by e-mail at jackspaulding@hughes.net or by writing to him in care of this publication.