Almost everyone enjoys viewing live wildlife, but few people, especially nonhunters, like to see dead animals. That’s why the Wyoming Game and Fish Department strongly urges all big game hunters to cover their animals on the way home.

“A deer or elk strapped to a vehicle with a cigar hanging out of its mouth may seem comical to a few, but it is simply crass to most everyone else — hunters and nonhunters alike,” said Walt Gasson, G&F planning director who researched strategies to promote hunting. “If hunters care about the future of their tradition, they will take steps not to alienate the majority of society who are nonhunters, but so far are ambivalent to the sport. Covering your game during transport is one of the most important steps.”

Gasson asks hunters to look beyond the outing they are on and to conduct themselves afield with their children and grandchildren in mind.

“If we want our hunting tradition to endure, we’ve got to use our heads afield and not do anything to fuel the anti-hunting movement,” Gasson said.

The G&F has published a brochure of recommendations on how to act if confronted by anti-hunters. For a copy, write: Information Section, Wyoming Game and Fish Department, Cheyenne, WY 82006.