How do you approach a farmer for hunting permission

[Aged]

Hi everyone,
I'm new to the forum and this is my first post. I've taken up shooting again now that I've retired and would like to start small game hunting. I have a magnum air rifle, 22lr and a shotgun. Until the hunting season opens for rabbit, squirrel and other small game I thought I'd like to hunt pigeons and possibly crow.
Unfortunately I live in Essex county at the far south west end of Ontario. The county is totally farmed and private property. Many of the farmers here are fed up with irresponsible hunters on their property without permission and deny them that permission when asked out of spite.
I think they wouldn't mind if I were shooting their crop eaters but don't know how to approach them.
Are there certain things I should or shouldn't say that will give me a better chance of using their property? Should I leave a card in case they change their minds?
Thanks,
Ed.

[Bluebulldog]

1. Polite, honest, forthright.
2. Being retired, you're going to have an easier go than some younger folks.
3. Don't leave a card, salesmen do that.
4. If the answer is a "no", then be gracious.
5. If you have grandkids, or small children in the family, bring one along.....most folks appreciate if you're doing something to get kids away from the Xbox.

[Gregoire1960]

Hopefully you're a member of the OFAH. Remember to use the landowner's form from their website: http://www.ofah.org/wp-content/uploa...wnersForm1.pdf and explain that you're covered for $5,000,000 liability coverage as a member. Leave the camo clothing at home & see if they will allow small game as a door opener if they're a bit apprehensive, since most guys are trying to lock up turkey & deer right off the bat. I had luck offering to help mend fences or split firewood as a token of good will. Sometimes offering to share the harvest (cleaned and ready to cook) can help too. Good luck, the hardest part is summoning the courage to walk up the laneway and ask.....

[mrb]

1. Don't wear camo
2. Don't show up during dinner time
3. Be polite
4. If they say no say thank you and leave (if they are nice you could maybe ask them for a recommendation for another farm to hit)
5. If you get permission - always always let them know before you hunt until you have built up a rapport and they trust you

I've had good luck with this and always bring beer/scotch/part of the harvest as a thank you.

Good luck.

[Doug]

1.
3. Don't leave a card, salesmen do that.

When speaking with the landowner, I do give them a card made especially for hunting, has my name (and my waterfowl partner's name) our numbers on the front and on the back a 'thank you'. When handing them out, I have been given permission, then told thanks, they now have my name and number. The OFAH form is handy, been thanked for it as well; but more for the card with name and number. Plus when they have your contact info you may get calls for problem animals that they want dealt with.

[fratri]

Hi my name is ______________________ and I am a retired ________________________ that lives in ______________________... I have a few hobbies and one of them is hunting.... I was wondering if I might be able to do some small game hunting (insert game animals here) .
In exchange for some hunting privileges (since I am retired) I can help out with some chores....
.....then take it from there....
I too always leave a card encase they change their mind....

[ihunt]

there are many great ways to ask and get permission. The secret is to get out and do it. Get your first no out of the way and shake it off. Then get right back to it. Ask, ask ask and you shall receive......

[GrouseWhisperer]

Really...very little to add here, all great advice. If I hadn't read all the replies, I would have said;

1. No camo
2. Don't expect to hunt the day you're there asking
3. I wouldn't do the door knocking thing on a Sunday, a good number of the farms (near where I hunt) are Mennonite
4. I'd have a piece of paper with your name, address, phone number ready to leave with them IF they're receptive to having you. If not, I'd simply say "thanks for considering, perhaps I'll stop in this time next year to say hello"
5. Weave into the conversation your experience level, your intentions, the fact that you know to close gates behind you, will report anything you see that seems out of place, etc. I also tell them that I'll stop in when I arrive, and when I leave. I often leave a note if they're not there when I leave.
6. Since I'm terrible at remembering names, I personally ask for their name...then enter it in my GPS as a way point when I'm leaving. Whenever I've asked for a phone number, I always hear back; "aaahh, don't worry about it~come any time!"

Where I hunt, farmers tend to be chatty...so don't be (and don't act) impatient. I've had plenty of hour-long chats in gravel lane ways, trust me! It's no hardship either, and I sit and chat each and every time if I'm able.

Lastly~in the week or two leading up to Christmas, I make a "Santa" run to all the farms I hunt, dropping off a bottle, baked goods from the over-priced bakery in my town (pre-order pies specifically)...that sort of thing. It's a great day that I look forward to, and you'd be surprised at how many more doors this is likely to open for you.

Once you have a farm or two in a given area, "getting" surrounding farms gets way easier. When you introduce yourself, mention that you hunt farms belonging to ___________ and __________, hunt small game, etc. Good luck, and remember~stories about responsible, appreciative hunters spread almost as fast as the stories about the bad guys. From farmers I speak to, they're mostly receptive to hunters unless they have a friend or family member already hunting their property. They resent guys who hunt property without asking, but tend to be very receptive to hunters who ask politely.

[3Wheelerdude]

I always show up with the right clothes and right attitude, expecting to shovel for 2 straight hours. Because that's what I am willing to trade for a hunting permission.
Most places that have allowed me to hunt for years now, don't require I shovel , but they call during crop season and I give them a few hours of driving tractors to haul the crops back to the farm from the fields.
I also get the odd requests, from shooting Yotes that wander to close to the farm, climbing in silo's to assists with broken unloaders, to shooting a half dead cows.

[mbhunter]

I always mention pest control as part of my repitoire. Comment on crow control, pigeons in the barn, yotes, etc. One farm I hunt I hunted pests for a full season before getting the nod for deer and turkey