Offseason access to WIHA?

sigav8r

sigav8r

New member
This may be a stupid question, so please forgive me if it is. I hunted in KS last year (All WIHA properties). Are you permitted to walk the properties in the offseason? I had thought about letting the dog out on a roadtrip to sniff around and possibly learn from wild birds a little more before the season. I know some trainers (like the perfection kennels people) go to SD every summer and get dogs on wild birds out of season. Just wondering if it's permitted to let the dogs "hunt" in the offseason on WiHA property or if you have to get permission from the landowner. Thanks.
 
No. There are dates on the signs. Some open September 1, others open November 1. Some close January 31 and others close after the light goose season/turkey season (sorry, don't remember those dates). The difference in colors of the plot squares indicate the dates they're open and the dates are listed next to their respective colors in the guide.
 
KB is right, outside the season dates listed on the signs or in the atals, the area can only be accessed with the permission of the owner. Also, there are prohibited activities as well when they are open. They aren't everthing to everybody.
 
Thanks PD,

I was mainly looking to get the dog on a few more wild birds before the season in the hopes she learns a little more. That was my main objective.
 
Most of the big lakes in KS have public wildlife areas around them. If your goal is just to wander around and let the dog run in areas that might hold birds, you could probably do it there. They are probably fairly deserted between the end of turkey season and the start of dove season. Just don't let your dog eat the baby birds.:eek:
 
Imo you need to be careful running dogs until the chicks are big enough to get away. The dogs could also break up a nest.
 
Very true. Wouldn't want my dog catching any birds...especially the chicks. Was just curious in case I go on a road trip and was in the vacinity of a public hunting area.
 
Pro trainers have been going to the northern plains, primarily North and South Dakota, and the canadian prairies for 60 or 70 years to train in the late summer, August and September, to run trial dogs. The practice has led to a crackdown of regulations in recent years, due to the perception that the practice is hard on young sharptails and pheasants. It may well be. None the less the training season is regulated to allow the young birds a certain amount of maturity before training. Prior to that a favorite training area was the eastern Oklahoma prairie, summer training on prairie chickens and quail, in the area centered on Big Cabin, Oklahoma. Alas I doubt you could scare up a chicken and darn few quail these days in that area.
 
sigav8r said:
I know some trainers (like the perfection kennels people) go to SD every summer and get dogs on wild birds out of season.
Click to expand...

Here's what the SD regs say:

Dog Training
No person may kill or capture any wild game birds
while training or running a dog except during open
seasons. Using pen-raised birds to train dogs is
permitted with certain restrictions:
•No person may train dogs on wild game birds
from Apr. 15-July 31 statewide
From Aug. 1 through the Friday preceding the third
Saturday in September, a person may train a dog
for the purpose of locating, pursuing or pointing
wild game birds on publicly-owned land or on public
road rights of way with the following restrictions:
•No more than four dogs may be trained in any
one day. In addition, a person may not use or
carry a shotgun or rifle during training
•The dog(s) must be owned by the person
conducting the training and not offered for sale
•The owner of the dog may be assisted in the
training if the owner is present
•No motor vehicle, horse or any other conveyance
may be used
•However, a person who otherwise qualifies to
train dogs on public lands may use a horse for
dog training on public lands until Noon central
time on Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays from
the first Friday of August to the first Sunday of
September, inclusive, with authorization of the
government agency that manages the public
land.
•For complete rules write to Game, Fish and
Parks Permits; 20641 SD Hwy 1806; Fort Pierre,
SD 57532
•In addition to state rules, federal rules prohibit
dog training year-round on federal refuges and
Waterfowl Production Areas
Dog Requirements
Dogs being brought into South Dakota are
 
Dakotazeb said:
Here's what the SD regs say:

Dog Training
No person may kill or capture any wild game birds
while training or running a dog except during open
seasons. Using pen-raised birds to train dogs is
permitted with certain restrictions:
•No person may train dogs on wild game birds
from Apr. 15-July 31 statewide
From Aug. 1 through the Friday preceding the third
Saturday in September, a person may train a dog
for the purpose of locating, pursuing or pointing
wild game birds on publicly-owned land or on public
road rights of way with the following restrictions:
•The dog(s) must be owned by the person
conducting the training and not offered for sale
•The owner of the dog may be assisted in the
training if the owner is present
•However, a person who otherwise qualifies to
train dogs on public lands may use a horse for
dog training on public lands until Noon central
time on Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays from
the first Friday of August to the first Sunday of
September, inclusive, with authorization of the
government agency that manages the public
land.
Click to expand...

Thanks DZ! The highlighted portions answered my questions for SO Dak! Now i understand how the trainers can go to So Dak in late summer. I was just wondering if KS had a similar program/arrangement. I wouldn't be shooting the birds (or capturing for that matter), just letting the dog get more wild bird experience. However, if only the dogs owner is allowed to "handle" the dog, then how do the pro trainers get away with taking peoples dogs up? Or do the owners have to be present too?
 
I have had at least 4 dogs in South Dakota myself, with a pro in years past, before the rules changed. A lot of pro's co-own the dog with the client, so I'm sure this allows for some fudging. I'm also equally sure that most of the pros operate on private ranches, with relationships that go back a couple of decades or more, sometimes a couple of generations! So I think in those cases the rules are largely ignored, to be blunt. Some are now bringing or buying pen raised birds to supplement the wild bird opportunities. These dogs are not expected to retrieve anyway, so open country and working on ground race from horseback and hunting objectives in a cooler enviornment is the goal. Open all-age, and open shooting dog stakes are 1 hour - 3 hour stakes, with dogs to the front, seeking game at the verge of lost from contact, at best, actually lost off the course, at worst. They sometimes cover 12-15 miles and have 10-20 finds along the way. As you see it has nothing to do with actual hunting as we practice it today, merely an entertaining anachronism to a world of endless bird cover, and huge plantations. Don't think those dogs can't hunt though!!!! I have had many that would adjust their range to hunting distance, and retrieve as well. Actually hunting the dogs seems to sharpen up a dog that is a little sour to the game. I think the average Joe using public grasslands as a training ground has a much better chance of running afoul of the new regs.
 
sigav8r said:
Very true. Wouldn't want my dog catching any birds...especially the chicks. Was just curious in case I go on a road trip and was in the vacinity of a public hunting area.
Click to expand...
I never had this experience, but I try to anticipate it and have trained my dog accordingly.
____________________________________
Alexandra from training program
 
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