Things you wish you could say

[Ursuline Chick]

Don't get on the defensive when people from other states ask legitimate questions, so they are not ignorant about your state laws.
Not everyone is aware of all the laws in all 50 states and Canada, but that doesn't negate their interest in learning them, so that they don't remain ignorant.
Even if those laws are hard to understand how an animal's life is more important than a human's. Then I might ask a question, so that I can insure I understand.

 

[ryneaeiel]

Don't get offended when you find out you were breaking the law keeping, or attempting to keep, protected wild animals. No one is being mean to you. They are helping you avoid potential fines and jail time. Also, encouraging people to do the above mentioned things is even worse.

I'm in agreement with this except when it comes to rehabbing. I know people that have rehabbed animals they legally couldn't, and have personally done so myself as well.

Most game wardens will turn a blind eye to someone rehabbing an animal, especially one like a raccoon or opossum that aren't considered the "nice" kind of wildlife (unlike majestic deer or beautiful songbirds.)

Keeping an illegal animal for personal pleasure, however, will get you written up and charged, especially if you took that animal from the wild with the intent to make it a captive.

 

[Ursuline Chick]

I'm in agreement with this except when it comes to rehabbing. I know people that have rehabbed animals they legally couldn't, and have personally done so myself as well.

Most game wardens will turn a blind eye to someone rehabbing an animal, especially one like a raccoon or opossum that aren't considered the "nice" kind of wildlife (unlike majestic deer or beautiful songbirds.)

Keeping an illegal animal for personal pleasure, however, will get you written up and charged, especially if you took that animal from the wild with the intent to make it a captive.

I just wanted to understand CO law, regarding protecting my family and myself against Bears. I have no interest in keeping an illegal animal and don't know where this person got this idea in the first place. So I will now stop feeding the troll and go on my way.

 

[R2elk]

I'm in agreement with this except when it comes to rehabbing. I know people that have rehabbed animals they legally couldn't, and have personally done so myself as well.

Most game wardens will turn a blind eye to someone rehabbing an animal, especially one like a raccoon or opossum that aren't considered the "nice" kind of wildlife (unlike majestic deer or beautiful songbirds.)

Keeping an illegal animal for personal pleasure, however, will get you written up and charged, especially if you took that animal from the wild with the intent to make it a captive.

If you are doing something illegal, don't post about it on a public forum. Do not recommend to or praise others for doing things that are illegal.

 

[ryneaeiel]

I have no interest in keeping an illegal animal and don't know where this person got this idea in the first place. So I will now stop feeding the troll and go on my way.

This was in response to what MissE said. I'm not sure where you got the idea that I was referring to you, but I wasn't.

If you are doing something illegal, don't post about it on a public forum. Do not recommend to or praise others for doing things that are illegal.

I'm speaking from my own experience and from the experience of fellow Wardens. We'll rarely write you up for rehabbing an animal for release unless you're actively harming it. We will however write you up for keeping animals illegally just because you want to keep the animals.

Letter of the law VS spirit of the law is very common for us, at least with my department.

Edit: Of course it varies from Warden to Warden, but the above is the general consensus among us. Some Wardens are more stingy and strict than others.

 

[Ursuline Chick]

This was in response to what MissE said. I'm not sure where you got the idea that I was referring to you, but I wasn't.


I'm speaking from my own experience and from the experience of fellow Wardens. We'll rarely write you up for rehabbing an animal for release unless you're actively harming it. We will however write you up for keeping animals illegally just because you want to keep the animals.

Letter of the law VS spirit of the law is very common for us, at least with my department.

Thank you

 

[R2elk]

This was in response to what MissE said. I'm not sure where you got the idea that I was referring to you, but I wasn't.


I'm speaking from my own experience and from the experience of fellow Wardens. We'll rarely write you up for rehabbing an animal for release unless you're actively harming it. We will however write you up for keeping animals illegally just because you want to keep the animals.

Letter of the law VS spirit of the law is very common for us, at least with my department.

If you truly are a member of game management, you of all people should know better than to post encouragement about doing illegal activities on a public forum.

 

[MissE]

I just wanted to understand CO law, regarding protecting my family and myself against Bears. I have no interest in keeping an illegal animal and don't know where this person got this idea in the first place. So I will now stop feeding the troll and go on my way.

I don't recall your thread. If it was regarding bears, it had nothing to do with my post.

 

[ryneaeiel]

If you truly are a member of game management, you of all people should know better than to post encouragement about doing illegal activities on a public forum.

I'm not trying to get into an argument here, but where did I encourage it?

I simply stated that most Wardens won't cite you for rehabbing an animal for release.

That doesn't mean you should do it, especially if you're attempting to rehab animals like musteloids, where the risk of diseases like rabies is so high.

(Most of us Wardens get pre-rabies vaccines, and most health insurance agencies don't cover it.)

Again, most Wardens won't cite you, but some will. Rehabbing is of course best left to the professionals that are properly equipped for handling wildlife.

 

[R2elk]

I simply stated that most Wardens won't cite you for rehabbing an animal for release.

This alone is all that many people need to justify taking animals from the wild. If you are indeed a member of wildlife enforcement, I can guarantee that your employers would take a dim view of you publicly pointing out that people may not get prosecuted for breaking the law.

What you say or do privately is your business. When you post on a public forum and claim to be a wildlife agency representative, that is not being private about what they don't want to become public knowledge.