# Saskatchewan non-resident waterfowl changes



## duckhunter4life (Apr 2, 2007)

Saskatchewan Ministry of Environment is proposing a change for the 2012 waterfowl season for non-residents which can be found on page 2 of the hunters and trappers guide.

The change that is being proposed is that non-residents will only be allowed to purchase a 7 day waterfowl license instead of the season long license as in the past. Non-residents will also be allowed to purchase additional 7 day licenses. The catch is the cost of the first license will be what non-residents use to pay for the entire season and the cost of each additional 7 day license will be the same price as the first 7 day license so for those of us who hunt across the border several times in the season the cost will go up quite drastically and this will most likely include the spring snow goose season. I have already phoned the Regina Ministry of Environment office and this is how I found out about the cost for the future changes.

If you appose the changes for the 2012 season it is important that you write letters to Dustin Duncan Minister of Environment as soon as possible before it is put into place.

Mail to Ministry of Environment Regina Field Office Attention: Dustin Duncan. 3211 Albert Street Regina SK, S4S 5W6.

Tel (306) 787-2314 
Fax (306) 787-9544.

Thank you, a fellow Waterfowl Hunter.


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## headshot (Oct 26, 2006)

Please stay home if the license fee is too much for you.


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## Sasha and Abby (May 11, 2004)

Nice.

That will definitely put a slow down the amount of hunters venturing across the border.


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## Sask hunter (Sep 11, 2008)

Here is the link
http://www.environment.gov.sk.ca/Defaul ... 209c01a1e9


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## 6162rk (Dec 5, 2004)

this won't affect the guide business one bit. most of the people that use guides are there for about 3 - 5 days. this will affect some of us that like to go for 10 -14 days and freelance. i will buy the extra license and stay longer.


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## KEN W (Feb 22, 2002)

It's not the legal guides that are the problem.It's the guys who have people coming every week to hunt with them.Money changes hands on the side.they can still come,but you won't be shooting any after the first week unless you buy another license.Happening in Manitoba also.Wouldn't be surprised to see this there also.

Good for Sask.With them raising the black and duck limits to 3 days worth....1 week should be enough for anyone. :thumb:


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## Sask hunter (Sep 11, 2008)

This should also help with the guys who come up here and stay for weeks at a time shooting lots of birds. You can shoot all the snows you want but when I read people shooting over 100 ducks and over 100 canadas and specks thats getting a little out of hand.


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## 6162rk (Dec 5, 2004)

why the change? is it for revenue reasons or others.


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## headshot (Oct 26, 2006)

[quotewhy the change?][/quote]

Probly due to the fact that ppl willing to travel to another country to hunt can afford to pay more. I am happy that they are not gouging us wknd warriors that are residents. I'd say most of the money from licensing goes back into habitat and enforcement, so actually the increased fees will provide non-residents with waterfowling oppurtunities for years to come. Only short sighted ppl will complain. :beer:


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## BB (Jan 14, 2004)

> This should also help with the guys who come up here and stay for weeks at a time shooting lots of birds.


I doubt this will really influence guys like that. If your habitat and federal stamp or whatever it is is good all season it really only adds $100 or $15/day for a week. If a guy has the time off and can go up for 2-3 weeks an extra $100 is pretty minor compared to the gas it takes to get there, scout, lodging, beer, food, and so on. so an $1800 trip becomes $1900?


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## duckhunter4life (Apr 2, 2007)

Well headshot its just not the money, its about spending time with my friends doing something I love.

I actually made the suggestion to the Ministry of Environment instead of doing away with the season long license to raise the price to $200 for non-residents and also offer the 7 day license at a lesser amount.

I am not attacking Saskatchewan I happen to have a lot of very close friends that live there. I spent 8/3/2011 driving to several small towns ( Strasbourg, Govan, Nokomis, Lanigan and Watrous) speaking to small business owners and newspapers about this issue. Everyone I spoke with is concerned with what this might do to their communities that depend on the seasonal income to pay their bills.

Not all freelancers drive long distances a lot of us live along the border and have family on both sides and make several trips across to hunt with friends or family. I personally don't care about outfitters or how this may affect them. Outfitters make money hunting on other peoples land who can not legally charge. The outfitter is the only one who benefits.

Sorry you taken this so personal Headshot. There is a bigger picture its called a heritage, hunting shouldn't be about money.


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## fred ziffel (Aug 9, 2011)

Hello I have only recently been informed of the proposed changes for saskatchewan non-resident water fowl hunters for 2012 and we in our town are doing our part to make sure that the proposed changes are not brought in. I am the owner of the govan Inn and we depend on the hunters from state side for our fall income and most of the people we have come here to stay are for about 10 days or longer.
Some people here think the extra income will help with the wildlife programs and they should know by now that extra income will never find it's way back to the conservation end of things.Also what they make on one end we will lose on another end.
I am willing to get you any info you need to help so just call Jack at at the Govan Inn the home of fantastic water fowl hunting in Saskatchewan.
As a hotel owner we need to keep you coming here to hunt and do our part to make sure you don't feel as though you are being gouged.
Thanks


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## bluebird (Feb 28, 2008)

with all the effort put into going hunting in Sask and as good as the hunting is this wont chnage anything.


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## tilley (Jul 28, 2011)

This is a direct result of greedy,kill all we can,I got the biggest trailer and most decoys types that are going to be the end of free lance hunting in Sk and all of Canada in time. Farmers want 2 plucked and cleaned ducks or geese. They don't want 78 snows or a huge cooler full of breast meat so you can go out and shoot more. This has been festering for some time now and some guys just need to look in the mirror and they will see the cause of some of these proposals.


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## Dan Bueide (Jul 1, 2002)

Long overdue. As a long-time NR Sask hunter, I'd support limiting NR's to one 7-day license. I'd also support expanding their leg tag program to waterfowl. This would, hopefully, trim back some of the piggish activites of some NR's (preferably make them stay Stateside) and ensure that we NR's will always be welcome in Sask. I feel for some of the border hunters, but it'll take something like this to ensure Sask remains a waterfowlwer's paradise and doesn't go the way of ND.


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## snowgooselouie (Jun 14, 2009)

Lifes to short for only one week a year, having a couple of weeks north of the border is not only about killen birds its about good dog work and hanging out with friends,US and Canadian alike. Why would you be so willing to shorten this to only a week?


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## KEN W (Feb 22, 2002)

It's not shortened to a week.You can buy as many licenses as you want.


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## BB (Jan 14, 2004)

> I feel for some of the border hunters


I don't because you can still go up there for 3 weeks (or more) for around $300. The fact that you can hunt not only across state lines, but in a different country for that long and have world class hunting is a deal at that price. If I went up the last week of Sept and stayed through oct 7 and then went back the 14th-21st I think that would be enough shooting for me as it's not unrealistic to shoot 15-25 birds a day in Sask depending on what you target. 
The border jumpers are just going to have to scrounge up 100-200 more dollars this year to have the quality of hunting SK offers....oh well.


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## Dan Bueide (Jul 1, 2002)

snowgooselouie said:


> Lifes to short for only one week a year, having a couple of weeks north of the border is not only about killen birds its about good dog work and hanging out with friends,US and Canadian alike. Why would you be so willing to shorten this to only a week?


I look at it the other way - life's too long to see the quality experience of Sask reduced to something less. I'd like to share great hunting experiences there someday with my kids and their kids. It only gets harder, not easier, over time to preserve quality hunting opportunities. I'd much rather (and would gladly) limit maximum permitted time in Sask to 7 days if that's what it takes to maintain a super-quality experience for the indefinite future. And it will take something like that. Hunters are WAY more mobile today than they were a generation ago, and there's no reason to believe the Canadian prairies are much farther behind the Dakota prairies when it comes to the pressures and affects of commercialization.

7 days of quality is better than double or tripple that of mediocrity. Sask, get a lid on it while you can.


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## Traxion (Apr 16, 2004)

While I only need 7 days, I stay longer and scout, visit with friends, etc. I might be there 10 and only hunt 6. I have an honest question, what do you do with the birds if you stay for 10 days? I mean in my experience, with average hunting, you can hit your possession limit in much less than 7 days, even hunting only mornings. I'm happier than all get out with my possession limit, I don't need more. I don't have anyone who wants more than a bird or two, so gifting isn't an option, nor would I use it if it were. I know I will get flamed for this, but it is an honest question. I've always wondered when guys say we shot 393 snows with 4 guys, what happened to all the birds? That's 150 over possession, they have to go somewhere.

Licenses are a very small percentage of the cost. Add up travel costs, fuel, food, lodging, etc. and an extra $115 means nothing over the course of a trip. If I am able to travel there to hunt, and want to stay and extra week, an extra $115 sure isn't going to stop me.

I really don't know if it will do much to curb the illegal guiding. Maybe a few people will be watched a bit closer after buying six licenses a year, but really, what will it do in the whole scheme of things? Revenue could be the driver of the deal too, who knows. I just don't believe it will change anything.


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## SHOOTINGGREENHEADS (Sep 16, 2003)

KEN W said:


> It's not shortened to a week.You can buy as many licenses as you want.


This is what it used to be in Nodak right?

I would think you guys would be against this just on principle, but then again you only seem to want to restrict in your own backyard. Guys going to Canada are shooting excessive amounts of fowl, they should charge more, and they should also restrict more.


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## KEN W (Feb 22, 2002)

No....it was never less than 10 days here.And you never could buy more than 1 license.

Why would anyone here be opposed to this on principle??It is very similar to our NR upland license.


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