Drone Recovery Service
- Thread starter mattpatt
- Start date
yoderjac
Well-Known Member
I've read about it but never used it. It is still pretty new, so different folks will charge different fees. I don't think anything has standardized yet. I'm a tech guy. It can be pretty effective in open country, but if you have a closed canopy it is much less effective. Most use a combination of a thermal imaging camera and optical camera.
From a business perspective, it probably depends on what your time is worth. The equipment is not a huge expense and over time, you could make enough to pay for it. I would think about hunter demand for this service. Certainly, if most hunters shoot a big buck, and can't find it, they may be willing to pay for a recovery service if they can afford it. But, that is a small percentage of deer and hunters. Most deer harvested will be small bucks, does, and fawns. While many of us who have a passion for wildlife management have an ethos that requires us to make every reasonable effort to recover an animal we shot, I'm not sure how deep that ethos goes in the general hunting community. I think some folks have the perspective that as long as they look for the deer, it's "good enough". After all, a dead deer just goes back into the cycle of live and other wildlife will feed on it.
The second thing to consider is the competition...Dogs. A good deer tracking dog does not have the limitation of a closed canopy. I know many guys who just enjoy working with dogs. For them, deer recovery is as much personal enjoyment as it is a money maker.
This is all just food for thought. While I wouldn't quite my day job, it could be an interesting and fun side gig if you enjoy working with tech.
From a business perspective, it probably depends on what your time is worth. The equipment is not a huge expense and over time, you could make enough to pay for it. I would think about hunter demand for this service. Certainly, if most hunters shoot a big buck, and can't find it, they may be willing to pay for a recovery service if they can afford it. But, that is a small percentage of deer and hunters. Most deer harvested will be small bucks, does, and fawns. While many of us who have a passion for wildlife management have an ethos that requires us to make every reasonable effort to recover an animal we shot, I'm not sure how deep that ethos goes in the general hunting community. I think some folks have the perspective that as long as they look for the deer, it's "good enough". After all, a dead deer just goes back into the cycle of live and other wildlife will feed on it.
The second thing to consider is the competition...Dogs. A good deer tracking dog does not have the limitation of a closed canopy. I know many guys who just enjoy working with dogs. For them, deer recovery is as much personal enjoyment as it is a money maker.
This is all just food for thought. While I wouldn't quite my day job, it could be an interesting and fun side gig if you enjoy working with tech.
Fishman
Active Member
How hard would it be to get a permit from TPWD? It would be a nice service to have available if I ever needed it.
tpwd.texas.gov
Drones/UAVs — Texas Parks & Wildlife Department
mattpatt
Well-Known Member
Yes this is something I definitely hadn’t thought about.
It’s called Part 107 and is required when using a drone for business.Matt
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yoderjac
Well-Known Member
Personally, I think the combination of a tracking dog and a high quality handheld thermal imager are a much more economical solution to deer recovery. I wish I had access to a tracking dog. I just don't want to be died down by a dog in retirement. My wife wants to travel and I'm not a dog hotel kind of guy.Yes this is something I definitely hadn’t thought about.It’s called Part 107 and is required when using a drone for business.
Matt
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mattpatt
Well-Known Member
Most of the folks who offer a service like this do it as a side hussle to their day job i.e. they already have job that requires them to use a drone, are already certified, etc. so startup costs are minimal. This would indeed be a side hussle for me as well but I have none of the equipment or the certification. lol
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yoderjac
Well-Known Member
I have not read Part 107, but there may be away around licensing. Years ago, I got together with a handful of bow hunters and we started a non-profit called Suburban Whitetail Management of Northern VA. We started as a 501c(7) but soon moved to a 501c(3). We had an issues with an overpopulation of deer in the suburbs. We got insurance, trained and qualified bowhunters, and linked them up with private home owners who were having landscape damage by deer.
If you are not doing this to make money, starting a small non-profit may be an option. Since it is not a business, there may be a loophole in Part 107. You could take donations rather than charging for recovery service. This could cover cost of equipment and time. If you really just want to have fun with the and provide a service, this could be an option. Again, you would need to look into the details.
You better make sure it's even legal in Texas. For example, it's not legal in Michigan. Those drone deer guys are suing the state over it.
I'm assuming they charge a flat fee, plus mileage. Some of those hunters are hours away. I have to image 1-2 hours each way limits your profitability.
I'm assuming they charge a flat fee, plus mileage. Some of those hunters are hours away. I have to image 1-2 hours each way limits your profitability.
mattpatt
Well-Known Member
Well you’re such a Debbie Downer lol
Against the law end of discussion.. we’re in Texas and aside from traffic laws there isn’t much else down here so I just assumed if you could hunt and track hogs you could at least track a wounded animal. But no you’re not even supposed to be taking pictures. You can wear a gun on your hip but can’t fly a drone at night over your own field much less for someone else.
Matt
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yoderjac
Well-Known Member
Sounds like you might live in New York or perhaps the Peoples Republic of Maryland...
My guess is we could see game laws amended or clarified to allow for some sort of tracking/retrieval with drone technology.
Native Hunter
Well-Known Member
I’m all for that and hope it happens. But not unless the law states that when the drone gets to the property line that it can’t go any further. It wouldn’t be fair to spook deer on someone else’s property and ruin their hunting.
A drone should likely fly so high, it won't bother deer at all. There are FAA rules about how high recreational drones and commercial drones can fly. Also, legally, you don't really own the airspace above your property, so a drone isn't really "trespassing".
Personally, I'd be more worried about invasion of privacy near a home, than deer getting spooked.
Native Hunter
Well-Known Member
Yes, I'm very aware of the thing about not owning airspace and that it isn't trespassing. I researched it fully last year. However, that is a law I don't agree with, and I think should be changed. Also, you said it "should likely fly so high that it won't bother deer at all." You might be ethical enough to do that, but that doesn't mean that everyone would be that ethical.
Bottom line is that drones have opened up whole new possibilities for voyeurism, harassment, and a host of other unethical behaviors, and I'm not happy with the way everything currently stands. It's just another one of the many things that is wrong in this nation. I'm all for people flying drones on their own property - I may even buy one myself someday, but I won't be bothering other people with it, even if the law allows it.
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Native Hunter
Well-Known Member
A quote from the Fish and wildlife service:
Because of the uncertainty around the safety of drones, the Department of the Interior currently only uses drones for emergency situations. Additionally, due to concerns around harassment of wildlife, drone use is prohibited on national wildlife refuges.
The above statement is from the following web site:
www.fws.gov
I hope everyone can see the hypocrisy of this. They are too unsafe and may harass wildlife over a national wildlife refuge, but it's perfectly fine to do it to your neighbor. LOL, this reminds me of the gun control Nazis in Washington. You shouldn't be able to own a gun for your protection, but it's perfectly fine for their bodyguards to own guns to protect them.
Because of the uncertainty around the safety of drones, the Department of the Interior currently only uses drones for emergency situations. Additionally, due to concerns around harassment of wildlife, drone use is prohibited on national wildlife refuges.
The above statement is from the following web site:
Keeping Wildlife Safe From Drones | U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service
We at the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service know that eagles are fascinating and fun to watch. Sometimes eager wildlife enthusiasts take their observations a bit too far. One emerging threat to eagles and other wildlife is an increase in harassment from uncrewed aircraft systems, commonly referred...
I hope everyone can see the hypocrisy of this. They are too unsafe and may harass wildlife over a national wildlife refuge, but it's perfectly fine to do it to your neighbor. LOL, this reminds me of the gun control Nazis in Washington. You shouldn't be able to own a gun for your protection, but it's perfectly fine for their bodyguards to own guns to protect them.
mattpatt
Well-Known Member
I don’t really agree with some of this. We went through hell with a local helicopter who would take his clients pig hunting over our property. They would fly over and herd animals off of our land onto adjacent properties where they had permission then kill them. Of course there was nothing we could do because we don’t own the air space. Illegal no highly unethical yes! Luckily they got in trouble with fish and game and had to move on but folks like this are no different than an unethical drone user.
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A Small Munsterlander will track any game like a machine, retrieve anything from water and point birds all day long. AND be your best friend, to boot. No federal license required. Guaranteed finds a critter faster than a drone.
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