How would you confront a trespasser?

[Hunter Dan]

I would detain them with a gun to the head until authorities arrive. My place is high fence so if I caught them shooting it might be worse for them.

[dphillips62]

No need to call anyone or confront them I have alligators that appreciate a good meal every now and then

[Radar]

I had one a while back, he was about 16 or so. I walked up on him and I could tell he was scared, he started crying. I was real nice and asked him what he was doing and he said his dog was missing. The kid said he was worried someone might shoot his dog and he wanted to find it before it got hurt. He told me where he lived and we started walking toward his house which was a 1/4 mile away, we got to his driveway and his dad showed up on an ATV with his dog. The dog had ventured down to another neighbor and his dad caught him. Just a little old beagle dog that had got out of their yard.

I was polite but made it a point to give them my business card and to call me in the future if something like that happened again. They are new around here so I really do not know anything about them. I did explain where my property boundaries are, that there are trail cams and I did not want anyone out there. Hope they got the message, but you never know for sure.

[Farmdog]

Trash dumping is all the way out of control in RGV, that’s a different level, fisherman are allowed a pass if no guns are found, fourwheelers are tolerated sorta

[MASTERS]

I had the bird and turtle man wait for the trespasser to come back to his vehicle last turkey season. Cuffed him when I provided video footage of him trespassing with a firearm. **** turkeys will make a man break the law I guess.....

[Kelmat]

Agree w/ depends on the circumstances.

A long time ago i was on a lease out by Garden City. The first lease i was ever on. I and my partners had hunted public land up to that point. Doing so, you get used to having people walk up on you, etc. I'm in my blind one afternoon and hear a shot behind me. What? Who's shooting out here? Then it dawns on me that i'm not on public land anymore. I glass back and see a truck on the ranch road, with i kid walking down the road shooting. I'm probably a half mile away. So, i finish my hunt and tell my buddy what happened when he picked me up. We found the shell casings and a trash bag tied on a mesquite tree. Couldn't find the animal. Go to camp and tell the lease boss. He says the guy will be back at 8:00 to pick up his kill. So, a herd of armed hunters, at least half drunk, heads to the scene of the crime at 7:00. Scatter into the brush. At 7:45 we see headlights in the distance. The guy finally gets there. One helluva an argument breaks out. The guy has his kid in the truck. Kid crying like a banshee. Me, fearing a gun battle is about to break out, and being one of the few sober ones around, grabs one of my buddies two sons and gets behind a truck. (Call me a coward, i'm not getting shot in that situation.) The poacher puts the truck in reverse and leaves. Luckily no one does anything stupid. The next morning we find the antelope the kid shot. Call the Game Warden. Give description, etc. Don't know what happened after that. One of the scariest things i've ever been involved in. Poachers suck.

The lease boss knew the guy was hunting on the property?

[DirtyDave]

Start polite and go from there.

[Man]

I have a buddy who went up to his moms propety and had the neighbor jump over his fence with a .44 mag to question him about trspassing. If he wouldnt have had his kiddo with him...the neighbor would be dead.

[whakm]

Start polite and go from there.

Good advice. Always easier than the other way around. That never ends well.

[mikemorvan]

The lease boss knew the guy was hunting on the property?

The lease boss was an old timer who knew the habits of poachers. Supposedly the Game Wardens knew who the guy was based on our description. Never heard what happened.

[BrianL]

Start polite and go from there.

Works 99% of the time. Have the Game warden's cell in your phone contacts just in case. Unless they are trespassing in my home, guns aren't required.

[cwill]

25 year old me would be hostile, but the 42 year old me is way more layed back. At the end of the day things can escalate too darn quickly and it just isn't worth it most of the time. I'm doing everything I can to come home to my family at night!

[175gr7.62]

Observe and report.

I have always wondered about the folks that talk about detaining them. If you tell them to stay put because the po-po is on the way how do you plan on making them stay there? Shoot them in the leg? Whip him....what if he decides to do the whipping instead?

[retrieverman]

I would want to assess the situation before rushing in half cocked, but given that a trespasser during hunting season will more than likely be armed, so would I and preferably better armed.

[BrianL]

There could be more than the one or two you see. You may be in someone's scope, even if you think you are the one better armed.