Poachers

I run a security surveillance and alarm company where do you live?? if you would like a sign to post i have them and would give you one if you want. My business is in Springfield.

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Put a gate across your driveway and lock it at night.

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http://hickahala.blogspot.com/

I need more info. Are the walking to the pond or driving? Does it look like they are fishing in one spot or moving around? How far is if from your house to where it seems they are fishing? How much of your property do they have to move over to reach the pond? Lay out of the land? All of those factors will change how you deal with them.

With that said the first things I'd do would be contact the wildlife officer/game warden. In a lot of states poaching laws are a lot harsher than any law the sheriff can charge them under. I don't know about illegal fishing but for illegal hunting in a lot of states they can have ALL of the gear confiscated. And that ALL includes any vehicle (car, truck, ATV) they used to get to the location.

The pond is between our house and the highway with our driveway curling around the base of the dam - they're staying on the dam side of the pond (road side). They're probably walking from the highway - there's a gravel road about 400 yards from our driveway that they're probably parking the car in.
The first thing we are doing is putting up the "no trespassing" signs, next is a driveway monitor. Don't think they came back last night - no barking from either dog - skipperkee/aust.shephard/blue heeler cross inside and great pyr outside with the goats. Hubby went out last night at 1am to listen for activity, too.
We're just south of West Plains - outside city limits. I'm sure the sherriffs dept wouldn't be too keen to come out here for this. The neighbor is on guard too - he's got rights to the pond, too. I don't care if someone asks to fish in the pond - but can't stand thieves. Whoever this is is really bold and brazen with the house so close - hopefully they got feed and won't be back. Thanks for all your suggestions!

As a former bomb squad technician I recommend a infrared deer camera and set it up down at the pond where they have been fishing. Everytime there is movement there is a picture with a flash that cannot be seen by the human eye. Download the pics on the computer and get your evidence. Works great on driveways, homes,ponds, dark side of buildings, the inside of buildings, and of course, a power switch.

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My thought was if you had a firearm and a ball bat and still took a butt whuppin maybe you're out of your league and should just leave it to LEO.

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Seems like a lot of ruckus over some fish.
Spend money. Call the law. ---- off some
idiot you may have dealings with another
day. And you don't know who he is, but he
does know who you are!
BTW, in NC its illegal tresspass anytime you
enter anothers property without permission.
Signs are not needed.

Now did I say anything about shooting AT, or did I say in the general direction? There can and would be a safe margin. I once lived near an old woman who on occasion would shoot at withces. She never got any that I know of.

I am really enjoying this thread with answers on how to spend hundreds of dollars (or thousands) to protect ones own property. Should not be that way. I will take my chances with $1 worth of shotgun shells, on my own place. Who knows I may be shooting at witches.

Sure am glad I do not live anywhere near the Mass. border.

Set a string to fireworks that are legal in your state. Time it so they go off a few seconds a part. Conceal them well around the pond. Watch somehow to know when they're coming. Make sure fireworks can't be traced back to you. After they get settled in ignite the string and have noise and bright lights surrounding them as the fireworks go boom, boom, boom. Before you light them off and scare them slide under their vehicle and unscrew the oil drain valve. Make sure all oil is out of the motor before you scare them.

Take their license plate. Then you can report them to DNR and have definitive proof of who has been poaching and hopefully they get picked up by the police before they can get a replacement plate. Just don't tell DNR that you took the plate off, tell them the plate was laying there and you found it during a routine check of your property.

I guess to some it does seem like alot of ruckus over some fish - but we paid good money for this property - we did - not the ones fishing illegally on it. My thought is ... it's fish now - how about when it becomes our goats or our chickens? It's too bad that you can't trust people and do have to spend money to protect what's yours. I go to work everyday so we can have nice things - probably these idiots don't work at all. I'm probably supporting them with the taxes I pay and now with fish in our pond. Just my 5 cents worth!

The dogs you have should take care of the problem. A schipperke mix and a Great Pyernese? Heck, our skip female would have their balls for breakfast. I'd love to have a GP.

You have all the deterrent you need right there.

I think you have every right to protect you property, your fish and anything else that you own. I just don't want to hear that you are in legal trouble for protecting what you own.
Hillbillybob

It's the same as someone walking into your house and taking food out of your freezer. I know how horrible this is. When we lived with Grandpa I used to watch the fish being stocked in his pond. I saw how he let the woods grow up to attract deer and squirrels. I also know the heartbreak and anger you feel when you discover someone else has shot a deer on your place (out of season at that) or had a late night beer blast/ fish fry at your expense and left a mess for you to clean up. My brother once threatened a friend of a neighbor that he heard bragging about the wonderful fish he caught from some dumb old farmer's pond. And he has caught potential poachers scouting the woods. Once we found a deer carcass by the pond, out of season and missing it's head. It's a big deal to me too. I hope they choke to death on fish bones!

We never had such bad problems when the electric fence was around the pond.

I would sit out there in a lawn chair at night, armed, with a VERY bright light source at the ready and then politely but firmly challenge them. Their actions at that point dictate my actions.


Keep it peaceful if possible.

Might work in CT. In Missouri it would make you a good target.

I've got a well stocked small lake, and I'm always having people ask if they can come and fish. I say yeah, that's fine......... and oh, by the way, I'll be over later to pick up a nice fat calf or hog from their place!!! A lot of folks think just because you can fish out of public lakes or rivers and the fish are free, that the ones I raise and feed outta my waters are free too... Nope! Of course, they always say No, I'm not going to be able to take one of their critters out of their herd... then I explain it to em, the catfish are the same as the feeder hog they've got... it's just like food in the freezer...

I've had run in's with trespassers before... being nice don't work... being medieval does, and if you do it 'right', the word gets out, and it has even better effects, keeping other lowlifes away.

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Learning is not compulsory... neither is survival. W. Edwards Deming

I think you have every right to protect anything you have on your property including the pond which you have stocked with fish. Unless you give your permission no one has a right to be there period.
I think I'd camp out with a night vision camera, a shotgun and a very big bright spotlight. When they come, take their pictures, then turn the spotlight on them and fire my shotgun up in the air. That should scare the living daylights out of them. I'd also make sure I had No Trepassing, No Hunting and No Fishing signs up.
If they ever show up again, then you have their picture and can call the police.

In Missouri the theft of fish, at least farm raised trout, is a class D felony per Missouri Revised Statute. While I was still living in Missouri I had a neighbor who raised rainbow trout for restaurants. He was also open to fly using anglers and had posted in his visitors center a copy of the statute stating the penalty for stealing fish. You may want to look at state statutes and see if it also covers farm raised catfish, like those in your pond. If so, then you are confronting repeat felons and can legally use whatever force is necessary to stop the crime as a citizen. For trespassing, which is generally otherwise considered a misdemeanor, you as a citizen cannot use deadly force.

Second, figuring out where the vehicle is located and removing a license plate, putting sugar in the gas tank or removing the oil pan drain plug are all good ideas to figure out who is doing what. It also helps to slash the sidewalls of at least two tires so that the vehicle cannot be easily driven away.

Third, if you have other predator problems, say problems with raccoons eating your fish, how were you to know that there were human predators stealing your fish at the time? You were aiming at some coons depopulating your pond of fish and had no idea that someone was downrange.

Personally, I have found the best way to stop problems like these, from theft to vandalism to verbal harassment, was to talk to a few of the worst gossips in my area and tell them to let it be known that if there are any additional problems I would be using the offenders for live-fire target practice and feeding their carcasses to the buzzards. A reserve deputy friend of mine agreed that having information like that floating around, when backed up with occasional target practice on my property at paper targets or clay pigeons works wonders on keeping the chances down that you will actually have to carry through with what is rumored that you will do. This is because in addition to the rumor there was the regular sounds of large caliber rifles and large bore shotguns going off on my property, the sound of which carried and echoed off the surrounding ridges and valleys.

Another thing to consider is that if the offenders were fired upon, exactly who would they say was firing at them? How would they know that it was you who did the shooting? I mean, how exactly would they positively identify you if all the thieves know is that shots were fired at them out of the pitch black, especially if you were firing at what you thought were some four legged predators that were threatening your dogs and aquatic livestock?

SSS
when run through a woodchipper trespassers make good fish food
it's so fun to dream.