I am biting the bullet and hiring a consultant. I feel confident enough to get myself in trouble with the food plot stuff. My biggest issues are TSI etc...I want to actually manage the woods to make them better...Ive never been a property owner before and never allowed to cut trees etc. Any suggestions on questions you would ask etc... Please throw them all out there. Even food plot stuff. I have a list myself but cannot hurt to have fresh eyes. Open to anything.
Questions you would ask a habitat consultant?
- Thread starter bzb_1
- Start date
I would ask:
Tell me about your experience in this eco habitat
Tell me your experience with wildlife
Tell me about similar properties to this you have worked with
I will want a long term written plan dividing the property into mgt. units
Tell me about your logging contractor, how long you have worked with them as well as experience selling timber
How do you charge
References
Starter list
Tell me about your experience in this eco habitat
Tell me your experience with wildlife
Tell me about similar properties to this you have worked with
I will want a long term written plan dividing the property into mgt. units
Tell me about your logging contractor, how long you have worked with them as well as experience selling timber
How do you charge
References
Starter list
Native Hunter
5 year old buck +
How do I go about increasing my doe factory?
Native Hunter
5 year old buck +
How much will you sue me for when you claim I stole your deer-hunting secrets?
Oh my...how did I miss that one???
on a more constructive note I would also ask to see a previous logging contract. Loggers can sure tear up stuff but protections can be had
Native Hunter
5 year old buck +
That's for sure Rusty.....
Someday isle
5 year old buck +
What state do you live in? I’m asking you this question, not you asking the consultant. In my state (Missouri) you can get a conservation agent to come out and walk your property and help you map out a habitat plan for free. I’ve not done this but I know others have had good results from professionally educated conservationists. I know there are obviously some great consultants you can hire, and you’ve been a member of this forum probably much longer than I have, so you know what you’re doing. Personally, I’m not sure you’ll get any more benefit from hiring a consultant than you would from members on this forum. You know by now there’s lots of knowledgeable guys here. Maybe there are even guys in your home state who are members here and you could do a property walk with each other and share ideas. It’s of course your time and money and you’ve obviously considered your options. I’d just be super cautious and get plenty of references. I watch all these YouTube videos from lots of “experts“ who aren’t sharing anything I haven’t learned here or from other Resources that won’t cost an arm and a leg. If you do go that route and hire someone please share your experience with us when the time comes If the moderators are okay with that.
Chainsaw
5 year old buck +
I would ask to see some sample of plans the consultant made for people having property with similar terrains and neighborhoods as you to help you determine if they would be the right consultant for you and so you will know what you are buying. Hiring the RIGHT consultant for your property could save you years of trial and error and would likely save you money as well.
Bill
Administrator
On the flip side pay attention to what they ask you. They should be evaluating you also and finding out what you are looking to accomplish. They should also be honest with their ability to meet your goals. Anyone who says they can get 150 inch bucks on your place when one hasn’t been killed within 3 miles isn’t the one to hire.
Native Hunter
5 year old buck +
That's a great point Bill.
Natty Bumppo
5 year old buck +
I agree. You see some of these professional consultants with their habitat maps that look like a 2nd grade art project.....
This stuff isn't rocket science. There is a ton of knowledge here on this forum. If this is new property that you've never hunted before I'd recommend taking a year or two to hunt and scout and see what the deer are doing naturally before you do anything. "Look before you leap" so to speak.
If you're going a consultant please just be sure to get somebody who is going to get boots on the ground and do the dirty work with you. The yahoos who charge $1000 for a "virtual consultation" based on Google Earth pics are a joke.
Thank you all for the suggestions so far.
I have had this property 2 years now. I am in Delaware. When I bought the property the second thing I did was reach out to our states conservation office. A forester came out and we discussed my goals etc...Make it attractive as possible for wildlife...The plan he gave me is a joke...basically do nothing, wait 5-7 years and do a select timber harvest...Wait another 5-7 years and do the rest...Then in 20-30 do a more intense timber harvest...I told him until I was blue in the face I want to do some serious TSI. I would like to manage the woods etc.
The person I book is going to be for boots on the ground but I want to do the dirty work with my dad and kids (Not the major timbering itself) that's why I bought this to begin with spend more time with family....I am not unrealistic...If we cannot handle it we will get someone who can to do it...I farm and do have some equipment...
I have had this property 2 years now. I am in Delaware. When I bought the property the second thing I did was reach out to our states conservation office. A forester came out and we discussed my goals etc...Make it attractive as possible for wildlife...The plan he gave me is a joke...basically do nothing, wait 5-7 years and do a select timber harvest...Wait another 5-7 years and do the rest...Then in 20-30 do a more intense timber harvest...I told him until I was blue in the face I want to do some serious TSI. I would like to manage the woods etc.
The person I book is going to be for boots on the ground but I want to do the dirty work with my dad and kids (Not the major timbering itself) that's why I bought this to begin with spend more time with family....I am not unrealistic...If we cannot handle it we will get someone who can to do it...I farm and do have some equipment...
Tree Spud
5 year old buck +
Make sure you ask him to throw in his ... "Big Buck Bedding Secrets" he'll probably charge you more but he will say it's worth it 
Seriously, you'll be wasting your money to hire one of these guys. All they have done is scan sights like this to take others ideas and make them their own. Sturgis is a great example, not an originally idea.
If you want a test run, post an aerial of your property and detail the boundaries and any important features. You will get some very good feed back from folks here on assessing potential improvements or changes. Most important you will get some good insight from guys who know how to read a property for deer hunting.
Seriously, you'll be wasting your money to hire one of these guys. All they have done is scan sights like this to take others ideas and make them their own. Sturgis is a great example, not an originally idea.
If you want a test run, post an aerial of your property and detail the boundaries and any important features. You will get some very good feed back from folks here on assessing potential improvements or changes. Most important you will get some good insight from guys who know how to read a property for deer hunting.
j-bird
Moderator
This process needs to be as much about their ability to listen to you and understand what YOU want and what the property already has.....as much as it is about what their plan looks like. It's sort of like picking a doctor....it's just a doctor for your land and YOU have to help speak for the patient!
Dukslayr
5 year old buck +
This is exactly what I was going to say. It’s almost more about what they ask you (at least initially) than what you ask them in my opinion. Hard part is knowing what you should expect them to ask you.
Spoke with one...I like his approach so far...While on the phone he pulled my land up online and immediately mentioned all the big AG that is around me... without seeing my land but going by what I have told him he thinks some thinning of the woods is necessary along with spraying and getting the good stuff that we want to grow to grow...He is on top of grants available to help me pay for all of this and told me I should be able to make a little money just by thinning...We shall see.
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