EHD in Ohio?
- Thread starter livetohunt228
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My buddy, Jason, works on a deer farm nearby. He texted me today to see if we have found any. I have not been in the woods looking, honestly. He's concerned. They have lost 30+ of their pen deer and have found 6 dead wild deer on the farm. All of the bucks he had on cam back in June have disappeared and he said the whole area smelled of rotting deer. Sad
Took a road scouting trip yesterday evening. You can smell them on the township roads.
Our tech guy at work owns a farm in Richmond (just north of me). He found 5 on his horseback riding around the farm this past weekend. His neighboring farm has one main watering hole on that farm, an old strip pond between some rolling spoil banks. They have found at least a dozen in that pond lately.
My neighbor, who is a real solid hunter and has the wall to prove it, put two feeders out a couple weeks ago with 100 pounds of corn in each. Two of his money spots. One camera didn't get a pic and corn was untouched. Other camera only had a doe and fawn. It was a 10 day camera soak.
I'm doing a cam check today with the cool down. It's been a 3 week soak. We shall see.
Our tech guy at work owns a farm in Richmond (just north of me). He found 5 on his horseback riding around the farm this past weekend. His neighboring farm has one main watering hole on that farm, an old strip pond between some rolling spoil banks. They have found at least a dozen in that pond lately.
My neighbor, who is a real solid hunter and has the wall to prove it, put two feeders out a couple weeks ago with 100 pounds of corn in each. Two of his money spots. One camera didn't get a pic and corn was untouched. Other camera only had a doe and fawn. It was a 10 day camera soak.
I'm doing a cam check today with the cool down. It's been a 3 week soak. We shall see.
I forgot to add... Hopedale Sportsman Club in Harrison County (near Cadiz) has been hit hard too.
Maxxis31
Junior Member
Wow, the devastation of the heard in these areas sucks, sorry to hear this, going to to take some time for them to rebound from this shit, its terrible.
I'm not known for getting monster bucks on camera but normally do get deer. At least action.
Since august 1, one camera has captured one shooter once. The same camera has gotten pics of the same doe and fawn over and over. That's it! Two months in one spot and that's it.
The second camera, out for the same period of time, has gotten on 6 point and a mama and baby.
That's it!!!! These cams are over mineral sites on two normally well used trails.
I'm now to the point where I have zero desire to hunt this year. Like most of you, im obsessed with bow hunting. I absolutely love it and this time of year normally feels like Christmas to me.
Between lack of pics and absolutely zero sightings while scouting the back roads, I just can't get my dander up.
Honestly, this is heartbreaking. It's nobody's fault. Mother Nature can be a bitch.
I'll end up out in the woods when the weather breaks and it gets closer to crunch time, but right now the hopes are very slim and I have never felt like this before.
Since august 1, one camera has captured one shooter once. The same camera has gotten pics of the same doe and fawn over and over. That's it! Two months in one spot and that's it.
The second camera, out for the same period of time, has gotten on 6 point and a mama and baby.
That's it!!!! These cams are over mineral sites on two normally well used trails.
I'm now to the point where I have zero desire to hunt this year. Like most of you, im obsessed with bow hunting. I absolutely love it and this time of year normally feels like Christmas to me.
Between lack of pics and absolutely zero sightings while scouting the back roads, I just can't get my dander up.
Honestly, this is heartbreaking. It's nobody's fault. Mother Nature can be a bitch.
I'll end up out in the woods when the weather breaks and it gets closer to crunch time, but right now the hopes are very slim and I have never felt like this before.
I don't even know what to say, Mike. I'd be crushed as well. This is something we all look forward to every year. Sorry brother 
The real shame is that the ODNR won't step in to reduce further harm. Hell, even a bit of educating on the harm already done would help. Sorry brother...I wish I had more property and deer to offer an opportunity.
Spencie
Senior Member
That really sucks! Maybe in a couple weeks something will move in. I have all but quit hunting close to the house for various reasons but I have heard the neighbor found 13 dead and others have found quite a few. I went for a walk on my place and found nothing dead.
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PA Bandit
Junior Member
I can relate to this feeling after this severe outbreak that has occured this summer. I haven't shot my bow in weeks due to spending most of my time scouting for dead deer and honestly have lost all motivation to even try so the bow will stay in the case for this season and I will focus on other things and might try some small game hunting. This will be the 1st year in 15 years I have not bow hunted and although as disheartening as that may be I cannot muster up the desire to try and shot one of the few deer alive after the devistation I have seen.
Similar to you I have run cameras for well over a month and the only deer I have captured is a small doe, 2 spotted fawns that seemed to have banned together which I assume there mothers died, a 6 point and spike who seem like the only leftover healthy buck, and the worst of which was 1 doe and 1 buck that you could tell on camera had EHD both of which I found 100 yards or so from my camera. I see these same 4 deer over and over and over at all 3 of my camera sites which were all good areas for capturing the majority of the deer in the area.
After finding 13+ dead on the 30 acres near me, finding one alive that was infected and suffering, hearing reports of at least 7 or 8 good buck found dead just right up the road, and after talking with many of the locals at least 50 dead within a mile radius of me (i.e. this just those that were found of which I am assuming is only a small portion of what the reality is) I have just become so disgusted by the whole thing that the passion and drive that I typically have has just washed away.
Not to go on and on about my story but more so just to let you know that your not alone in this thought/feelings and as you stated unfortunately it is just something mother nature will have to work out and hopefully things get better. I am trying to look at the bright side of things and hoping that I can find enjoyment in small game hunting and fall turkey hunting and other things that seemed to have got lost as my passion for archery hunting got more serious and lost time/ability to hunt more often.
Misery loves company... sorry to hear you are experiencing this as well.
There was a report on our local news that came out of West Virginia. EHD was reported in like 16 counties and the local herd in Northern WV (Brooke, Hancock, and Ohio counties) has been hammered. Those counties border the Ohio River from East Liverpool, Oh down past me to the Bellaire, Oh area. The river counties have been taking the brunt of this.
Hope it doesn't spread to far west to the rest of you guys before the frost hits.
Bigcountry40
Member
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Sorry for you guys big time. I texted my buddy this thread and said that this could be us one of these days. He's like what the hell would we do and I said hunt squirrels. Like Mike I have not missed a season for a lot of years and no deer to hunt would be devastating for sure.
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