As a SC deer hunter I wanted to make all other SC deer hunters aware of this Bill that was introduced into the Senate on February 12 so that you can voice your opinion.  QDMA sent out an email regarding this and I'm simply re-sharing the info from that email below. Also see the direct link to their email campaign.

Deer Hunter:

NOW is the time to improve deer hunting in South Carolina and YOU are the key to the process.  The SC Deer Management Bill of 2015, S. 454, was introduced into the Senate on February 12, 2015. If it is passed, this bill will make the following two historic improvements to our South Carolina deer laws:

1. Bag limit of 4 Bucks and 4 Does statewide. The DNR retains the authority to limit the number of deer which can be taken in any given Game Zone.
2. Tagging program for every deer killed - bucks and does. This allows the DNR to enforce the bag limits and monitor our deer herd. This program is separate and independent of the existing Deer Quota Program, which is substantially unchanged by the Deer Bill.

Please follow these simple steps TODAY to show your support for the SC Deer Management Bill:

1. Go to http://www.scstatehouse.gov/legislatorssearch.php and enter your Address, City, and Zip, then click "Find Legislators."
2. Click on the name of your South Carolina State Senator (please focus your efforts on State Senators, not Representatives, because the Bill is currently in the Senate).
3. Click on "Send Message to Senator __" in the middle of the webpage.
4. Complete the required fields (shaded in red) and then cut and paste (Please do not change the letter) the following message into the Subject and Message fields:

SUBJECT: SC Deer Management Bill of 2015, S. 454

Dear Senator [ENTER SENATOR'S NAME HERE]:

As a resident of [ENTER YOUR COUNTY HERE], I encourage you to vote for SCDNR's Deer Management Bill (S. 454).

I am a voter and I have a great interest in deer hunting and management in South Carolina. I am also a member of the Quality Deer Management Association (QDMA). As your constituent, and as member of QDMA, I support S. 454 because it brings greatly needed deer management changes to South Carolina.

For years I have followed SCDNR's research of hunter opinions, deer harvest trends, and the impact of coyotes on recruitment of deer fawns. I support SCDNR's recommendations for a reasonable limit on antlered deer, a tagging program for all harvested deer to provide for enforcement, and a modest fee to support additional research and management efforts. It is time that South Carolina enters the mainstream of deer management and the recommendations proposed in this bill are a step in the right direction.

I hope that you will vote to pass S. 454 during this session, and that you will share my support of this bill with the other members of our county delegation.

Please contact me if you have any questions related to my support of SCDNR's Deer Management Bill.

Sincerely,

[ENTER YOUR NAME HERE]

Member, QDMA

Please join your QDMA leaders in bringing much-needed improvement to South Carolina's deer laws - be a part of history today!

Hello everyone my name is Conrad McCall and I’m going to attempt to post a blog series here on WeHuntSC.com about RAKS Big Game Supplements. Before we dive right in though I’d like to give you some background on myself…

I grew up in Honea Path SC which is where I still do the majority of my hunting. I moved to Mauldin SC about 7 years ago and am married with a 6 year old boy and 1 1/2 year old little girl. I enjoy any type of hunting, but my main passion is Whitetails. I also love turkey and predator hunting. I have had the opportunity to do some bear hunting and hog hunting but have not been successful in harvesting either one yet. Ever since SC legalized crossbows I have done 90% of my hunting with a crossbow. I have always enjoyed writing and have been fortunate enough to have had an article published in Crossbow Magazine and an upcoming article to be published in the October issue of Buckmasters. This is however my first attempt at a Blog series, so I hope everyone enjoys it and I look forward to your feedback.

This past year I had the opportunity to become a member of the RAKS Big Game Supplement Field Staff. I have been interested in improving the deer herd on our property for the past 7 years. I have tried several different products and found success with some, but they acted as more of an attractant during the summer months due to the high salt content. When season got into full motion the high activity on the site dropped quickly and the deer completely changed patterns. Even though South Carolina ruled to allow baiting state wide starting last season I still wanted to provide a product that would improve the overall deer herd and not just act as an attractant with little nutritional benefit.

Since I’ve had a positive experience with the RAKS products I’ve decided to share my experience with everyone through a blog series. I hope to share photos showing the use of the mineral site along with trail camera photos from the past few months. I am also going to try and provide info on a different RAKS product during each upcoming blog entry. I decided to start the series by asking the owner of RAKS, Chris Edwards, to answer a few questions and give everyone some background and basic info about the company.

1. What kind of Company is RAKS? Big Game Supplement company. Provides high quality mineral, feed and protein blocks for hunters/breeders to use for their deer, elk, antelope, etc.
2. Where is RAKS located? Our home offices are in Hartington, Nebraska.
3. What Separates RAKS from other companies, ingredients, process, etc? We keep our salt content low in the mineral and give them the minerals that they really need to grow. One thing we have that no one else does is Yucca Shidigera which works in the rumen/stomach to help the animal utilize more of the nutrients from the food it is eating. For example, a deer not using our mineral may only use 60% of the nutrients within the food they are consuming where a deer using RAKS mineral may use 70% or better.
4. What Minerals are important to whitetails and why/how? A deer’s antlers are made up of 35% of calcium and phosphorous so it is important to make sure that they are getting what they need. April-August are the key times for mineral use as that is when the bucks are growing their bone. The mineral also helps a doe stay healthy throughout the gestation period and also helps her produce more milk loaded with the nutrients young fawns need. Healthy does + healthy fawns = bigger, healthier bucks.
5. Is it important to keep mineral sites going year round or just during hunting season? Year round. If you are putting out mineral, the goal is for bigger, healthier bucks. So think of livestock…you don’t just feed your cattle part of the year do you?
6. Where can someone purchase your products? You can check our dealer locator on our website raksmineral.com for a dealer near you or order online.

Here are 2 pics from RAKS sites I've created

Thanks for tuning in to the series intro and we’ll be updating the series with more blogs. Let me know if you have any questions or thoughts here in the comments. I look forward to hearing for you.

Conrad