CALF News Aug./Sept 2018

10 CALF News • August | September 2018 • www.calfnews.net this article, but it’s too long, and applies specifically to Nebraska landowners. Let me give you a general overview of some commonsense rules in Nebraska. I encourage each of you to contact your state’s Game and Parks Commission for laws specific to your state. 1. Posting private property is lawful 2. Posting covers hunting, trapping, fishing, swimming, hiking or any recreational activity. 3. There are two ways to post your property – “Hunting by Written Permission Only,” and “No Hunt- ing” signs. “Hunting withWritten Permis- sion Only” signs must bear the contact information of the land owner, and trees or fenceposts on these properties must bear red marks. There’s a considerable amount of detail regulating sign and lettering size, paint color and placement of paint on posts. For example, the paint must be red, placed in vertical lines of at least eight inches in length and three inches in width. Metal fence posts need to be painted all the way around and extend down at least eight inches from the top of the metal post. Game wardens catching anyone on these properties will ask for legal papers granting written consent by the land- owner. These papers contain details concerning times and dates permitted to access the area. It appears that immedi- ate family members of the landowner may not have to carry papers, but how would you prove you’re related? Consult your own state regulations. Anyone caught under this circumstance without appropriate papers will be arrested and prosecuted without com- plaint of the landowner. The second way of posting property is simply to hang No Hunting signs, which means anyone caught trespassing is simply under arrest. Fines begin at $200 in either instance. How to post Signs are required to be posted in drives and on corners of properties. Let- ters on signs should be at least 1.5 inches tall. There is an additional requirement to post every 440 yards, which is nearly impossible, in my opinion. I set upon my mission to post our property seven months ago and am only half done. We decided to use old tires as signs; they are hard to destroy by hunt- ers with bad attitudes. Finding old tires to paint may seem like a slide on the ice. It’s not. I have perused three farmsteads, bothered neighbors, been attacked by wasps and chased by angry mice. Dirty tires need to be washed, and old radials will tear your hands with errant wire. Oil paint must be used; it’s messy and seems to take for- ever to dry. Tires are heavy and unhandy to maneuver. Still, the end product can be pretty nice. Perhaps the easiest part of the whole project is hanging the signs. The smaller tires work best, because they fit nicely over fenceposts and won’t pull the posts over with excess weight. We secure them GUARDYOUR LIVELIHOOD Continued from page 6 with two pole barn screws to discourage nasty hunters from removing them and throwing them in the ditch. My biggest problem is electric fence wire. I must be careful not to disturb hot wires, brace posts, gates or other objects that need annual upkeep. Almost all our fences are electrified high tensile wire, making it difficult to follow all the state requirements for posting, so we are doing the best we can. As of this writing, I am still scrubbing dirt off the last set of tires in an effort to finish the job properly; it has taken twice as many signs as I’d anticipated. You can expect the same. In the end, we will have taken the necessary steps to protect our livestock and crops. We will find out in the future whether our efforts have paid off.  Make sure signs follow your respective state requirements.