Quess you were right GB

[the lone gunman]

No one seems to want to use this Thread.  I am disabled with COPD and back problems, toss in diabetes also. Wish we could get more people to look and post here.

[The Gamemaster]

Where do you live and what do you want to hunt.

I was involved in several auto accidents.

1 I broke several ribs, my sternum, punctured a lung other internal injuries.

The other one I was hit from behind, It ruptured 4 discs.

One day at work I strained my back.  Took 6 months to heal.

So I have been disabled for the most part for 10 out of the last 11 years.

My daughter is 13 and due to family problems and also financial difficulties that were caused by my disability's I do not have a good relationship with her.  All she can remember is me being sick.

The first couple of years after my first auto accident, I couldn't go up hills very well.  I wheezed a lot and had problems getting enough air in my lungs.

After the second auto accident, I laid down in the middle of the woods.  Walked out of the woods at 9 AM. due to the fact that even if I did get a deer.  There was no one to drag it for me.

My girlfriends brothers were supposed to go with me, but I took them small game hunting in the same place we were going to hunt deer and they bailed out on me at the last minute - because I walk too far.

They wanted to go with their buddies that only goes 100 yards into the woods and after a hour or two - goes road hunting.

So I dumped my girlfriend - because I was mad at her family for bailing out on me.

Since that time, I don't think that I have shot 4 bucks in the last 9 years.

I'm always putting on drives for my family members and taking them to my honey holes in return for some help - dragging and lifting into the back of the truck.  Only most of the time when I do get a deer, I am by myself - because they don't want to hunt as hard as I do.

I don't have to put drives on - or leave after 2 hours when they get cold or bored or hungry.

About the only thing that it leaves would be for me to fabricate a winch system that would attach to the tow ball receiver on the rear of the truck that would pick the deer up for me.

If you had someone that owned land, you could ask for permission to build a permanent stand and hunt from there.

I built two, one for me and one for my brother and all I hear is how he doesn't want to go up there because his stand stinks.

Every time he was in it this year and I called him on the Walkie -Talkie he asked me to be quiet because he was watching a buck / bucks!

Sometimes you just can't beat hunting by yourself or at a camp - where the other members of your hunting group can come and go as they pleased.

That is what is wrong with my gang.

They want to sleep in till seven and go back to the camp at noon like they did when we had a camp.

When they are riding with me, I want to leave at 5 AM and go home at 5 PM!

Being beholding to other people stinks!

[Graybeard]

I'd like to see it go but didn't really expect it to. We've set this forum up under different names now at least three times I think maybe more and it's never yet gone anywhere and eventually got canned in the past.

I guess with all the old farts around this site probably 25% or more of the folks here have some kinda disability or handicap or call it what ya will that limits us in what we can do. It just seems no one wants to discuss them here on a forum such as this. They mention things on the other forums all the time that would be appropriate here not to say they are not there as well but it seems folks just don't want a special forum like this to talk about the problems we have that affect our lives and our hunting/shooting.

[Davemuzz]

There is a certain "Psychology" about men discussing their "limitations". Most men for most of their lives have pretty much been able to do what they want to do, when they want to do it. Then, either thru a health issue, or an accident, whether it became sudden, or progressed over a period of time, when a man's physical abilities begin to decline, some men (not all but some) refuse to ask for help. It's my amateur opinion (as one who has been diagnosed with MS and has watched my physical health decline over the last 5 years) that men refuse to ask for help and refuse to accept offered help, as this shows an "outward" sign of a "weakness". And believe me, no man want's to be perceived as having any type of weakness when he is out in his "neighborhood".

I refused to use a cane to assist me in walking for almost a year when I should have. I remember walking up a hill in muzzleloader season....got near the top.....was very exhausted (this MS stuff will kick the stuffing out of you right quick), my leg gave out and I went #$% over tin cups down the hill. I threw my gun away from me hoping it would not go off (it was not cocked but had pan powder) and when it was all over, my ram rod snapped in half, my bore was jammed full of mud, and my pride was hurt again. More importantly I realized that it was one of the most stupidest things I've ever done.

Anyway, IMHO, forums like this are tough because men don't like to come and boo-hoo (ahh...so too speak) about their physical issues. 

That's what I think, but then, I could all wet on this.

Dave

[deltecs]

There is a certain "Psychology" about men discussing their "limitations". Most men for most of their lives have pretty much been able to do what they want to do, when they want to do it. Then, either thru a health issue, or an accident, whether it became sudden, or progressed over a period of time, when a man's physical abilities begin to decline, some men (not all but some) refuse to ask for help. It's my amateur opinion (as one who has been diagnosed with MS and has watched my physical health decline over the last 5 years) that men refuse to ask for help and refuse to accept offered help, as this shows an "outward" sign of a "weakness". And believe me, no man want's to be perceived as having any type of weakness when he is out in his "neighborhood".

I refused to use a cane to assist me in walking for almost a year when I should have. I remember walking up a hill in muzzleloader season....got near the top.....was very exhausted (this MS stuff will kick the stuffing out of you right quick), my leg gave out and I went #$% over tin cups down the hill. I threw my gun away from me hoping it would not go off (it was not cocked but had pan powder) and when it was all over, my ram rod snapped in half, my bore was jammed full of mud, and my pride was hurt again. More importantly I realized that it was one of the most stupidest things I've ever done.

Anyway, IMHO, forums like this are tough because men don't like to come and boo-hoo (ahh...so too speak) about their physical issues. 

That's what I think, but then, I could all wet on this.

Dave

I was diagnosed with MS in 1980 and have had to use canes to walk.  I used 2 canes for over a decade and obviously my hunting conditions changed too.  I did more still hunting and road hunting from a boat in Alaska.  Now for the last decade I do not use canes but cannot walk far or on too rough of terrain as severe fatigue sets in.  So walk a while, sit and rest.  The difficult part is getting any game back to the camp or boat.  So, I carry a plastic tarp and siwash it if needed overnight.  I always carry an old style canteen with metal cup and dry soup mixes with a bit of bisquick in a plastic sack for a meal or 2 and have used it on occasion.   A bowl of soup, twist, and either heart and liver over a small campfire is mighty tasty.  As for the unplanned over nighter, I just enjoy the success of the hunt, the opportunity to still be able to hunt, and be part of the great outdoors is all the more memorable since time is getting shorter and shorter.

[Graybeard]

I've used hiking staffs as opposed to canes for a great many years to keep me from busting my butt out in the woods. They have saved me many a time too. I do at times when the back is really hurting badly resort to a cane to aid me in walking and around my yard almost always at least use a staff.

I can no longer go far and am not at all sure I could pull a deer out if I shot one especially if I were out of site of where I could drive to. It has made me rethink my hunting and has severely limited the amount of deer hunting I do. My shortness of breath issue and low blood oxygen level definetly have changed my life for the worst.

[deltecs]

I've used hiking staffs as opposed to canes for a great many years to keep me from busting my butt out in the woods. They have saved me many a time too. I do at times when the back is really hurting badly resort to a cane to aid me in walking and around my yard almost always at least use a staff.

I can no longer go far and am not at all sure I could pull a deer out if I shot one especially if I were out of site of where I could drive to. It has made me rethink my hunting and has severely limited the amount of deer hunting I do. My shortness of breath issue and low blood oxygen level definetly have changed my life for the worst.

As we get older and sometimes wiser, most of us have had to revise our hobbies and sports to comply with limiting physical conditions.  This is only a change in direction and not submission of our habits.  I too use a walking stick on the shoreline in front of my house.  I made it from a piece of old air cured ash 5/4 X 8 ripped down into 5/4x2 and rough turned round.  Tipped the end with a piece of soft copper pipe to fit and fitted a small lanyard near the hand on the 6' staff.  Handy and I couldn't agree with you more.  I don't try and use both for hunting with a rifle though.  It is much too awkward.

[buffermop]

I too had to revise my outdoor activities with copd and a weak heart. Hunting on flat ground, I cannot walk too far, as oxygen levels bottom out. The same predicament as GB. One the bright side, I still can do my other hobby ,girl watching.

[the lone gunman]

I too had to revise my outdoor activities with copd and a weak heart. Hunting on flat ground, I cannot walk too far, as oxygen levels bottom out. The same predicament as GB. One the bright side, I still can do my other hobby ,girl watching.

I want to write a bit more later , dont have time now, but just got kick out of your "girl Watching " was something I also enjoyed until about 2 years ago,,, The old buddy wont rise to the occasion anymore. And doubt I could breath long enough to complete the mission anyway,

[Davemuzz]

I still girl watch. I've discussed this with friends of mine and have wondered if I'm just a "dirty middle-aged man". Well, we have all agreed that we are either normal.....or all dirty middle aged men. In either case, we are going to continue to watch....from age 18 to 65. No harm, no foul.

If I'm deer hunting alone, (although I always have my cell phone with me) I am aware of the "deer drag" effort it will take. This year, I was hunting for a buck (although I had valid doe tags too) and I could have shot any one of ten or more doe in the area that I was watching. However, this would have required a 500 yard drag. Now, there was snow....but no doe is worth (to me) a 500 yard drag. A buck....yeah....I can drag, rest...drag,....rest. But not for a doe. Later that morning I went for coffee. Came back to a different spot.....a nice level one, took the 44 mag, and took a small doe, close to the truck.

GB, nothing wrong with shootin a deer and callin your buddies to drag it out. Actually, my huntin club buddies kind of expect me to call when I get in a situation where I can't do a short drag.

And yeah....I took the small doe 'cause I could do it "all myself". See......there is that pride thing again! That unwillingness to show a weakness. That thing of "I'll show you guys I can shoot, gut, drag, load and bring it back all by myself. (Even thought I'll be wiped out for the rest of the day and the next day).

Go figure.

Dave

[jjamna]

Graybeard- You do what you have to afterall it is your website, but leave this forum as long as you can. I think if you help just one person it will make it worthwhile.
Just my $.02 worth

[Graybeard]

Graybeard- You do what you have to afterall it is your website, but leave this forum as long as you can. I think if you help just one person it will make it worthwhile.
Just my $.02 worth

Didn't say I was about to remove it. What I said was we've tried this idea several times in the past over the years. Each time it got to where six months to a year would go with no posts and I removed it since no one wanted to participate. There is no set level of participation needed to maintain a forum in the index but when one goes six months to a year with no posts I figure it's time to drop it.

[jjamna]

I know you didn't say you were going to remove it. I just wanted to let you know people do read them. I am not much at typing so I try to make my post as short as possible and people sometimes take my meanings wrong. I guess I would be better off to shut up.

[Graybeard]

I guess I would be better off to shut up.

That's kinda what everyone is doing with regard to this forum. Sorta the reason this thread is here now folks are staying "shut up" instead of posting. 

[jjamna]

Why do you think that is? You think most people are afraid of offending a disabled person? I think a lot of people don't think they know what to say. I think if you ask any disabled person they would say to treat or talk to them just like you would any other person. I myself am on disability but I have all my limbs and can walk, my problem is my back I can't lift much but it doesn't bother me to talk about it. Maybe I can keep someone else from hurting themselves. This is just MY thoughts, I think most people are afraid of saying something wrong. Here I am just rambling on. If any one with a disability around west KY needs a place to hunt or fish let me know I think I may be able to fix you up. I will shut up for now.

[Graybeard]

Dunno really. I think some of it has to do with folks who do have some disability being too macho to admit they have a weakness or short coming. For those who don't and a lot of those who do tho I guess they really just have no interest indiscussing it and really only want to talk about shooting and hunting and we have a ton of other places here to do that.

[jjamna]

I never thought of it that way, you may be right.

[Davemuzz]

Yeah, when you have a "disability" it's something that you live with every day and every night. It's not like when you go to work,,,,at 5:00 o'clock you can put it away and not be concerned about it until tomorrow. It's also something that I don't really want or need to discuss on a daily, weekly or monthly basis. I don't want to "educate" others of the issues my disease create's. And frankly, most don't want to know anyway.

What I am interested in are products or services that will make my outdoor life easier. 

[coyote trapper1928]

A few things I have learned with being disabled:

1. People, no matter how far we have come , some people will still look at the disabled and say " Oh, here comes the Cripple."

2. Do the best you can with  what you got!!

3. Don't be afraid to ask for help or to use a 4wheel  ATV.   There are MANY people that use them and they are perfectly able to move around on their own. It just gives the rest of us tha ability to hunt, fish and trap in places where everyone else can on their own.

4. Check with your State to see where the areas are that are handicapped accessible. If you know of a place that would provide easy access to the disabled to hunt and or fish and they don't have a parking spot  for outdoorsmen to park their vehicles, ask your State's DNR to have one put in.  They are more receptive to these types of requests than you might think. The ADA  Act  is on our side!!!

[SharonAnne]

I broke my back (T12 compression fracture) while working on a 500# patient. I was an RN. This was March of 2007. I had a kyphoplasty, orthopedic cement is injected into the vertabrae to stabilize the fracture. One hour later and no more break. However, the small incision (2 sutures) allowed a MRSA infection to take hold in my spine.

 Two weeks later I had emergency surgery to drain the spinal abcess. 5 days later I had another surgery to drain the abcess again. I was in ICU for 2 weeks and nearly died from the infection. My infection was so bad the surgeon told my partner that "the next 48 hrs would tell".

By this time I had 4 vertabrae fused or fixed (surgical appliances). The third surgery they had to access the front of my spine so a thoracic surgeon cut my left side open, cut  my diaphragm loose so he could push my aorta and vena-cava aside. Only the two largest blood vessels in the body. By now I had a titanium cage replacing L1. They removed a rib to use as rebuild material for L1 while the titanium cage preserved the vertebral space. I did not do well in rehab and continued to decline. My ability to walk was about gone and I had bilateral foot drop.

8 weeks after the third surgery, I had dropped 90# from the date of the first surgery. I was loosing 5# a week. FINALLY they listened to me that something was wrong and I was returned to the ER. The next day I had another surgery, again for the abcess. So, I now have a total of 6 vertabrae fused into one long one. T10,T11,T12,L1,L2,L3. These are the vertabrae between the ribs and the pelvis,the most flexible part of the spine. Not anymore.

 5 weeks later I was discharged home. I had been in hospital or rehab for 5 months. 5 months without going home. My poor partner was a wreck. I had IV antibiotics morning and night for 6 weeks at home and must take oral antibiotics for 3 years.

9 months after the first surgery I was in for a post op check. My surgeon about fell out of HIS chair when I stood up from my wheelchair and hobbled across the exam room and back to the chair. He expected I would never STAND again, let alone walk. I can only stand/walk about 10 minutes and the back pain puts me down. I still have foot drop but it is much improved. Most days I can put  my heels on the floor. I can sit in my wheelchair or the computer chair for about 4hrs a day. They are the only two I can use. The rest are too low. I also have a raised toilet seat and a shower stool.

I wear braces on both feet and walk with a cane or walker. If we go anywhere we take my wheelchair as I do not have the stamina to even walk into a theatre or go shopping. I have not had my nails done in 14 months. Of course my IPSC/steel/ICORE shooting is non-existant. Forget deer hunting.

It is hard to "look at the bright side" when your life is trashed. My disability checks are  less than 1/2 of what I was making. With overtime I expected to make $100k in 2007. I made $85k in '06. "Bright side", what bright side?

[Dusty Wheeler]

Howdy all-
I've checked for posts here and haven't seen many...  I lurk alot and post little...

I broke my back in a woodcutting accident in 1980 and have used a wheelchair since.  I was hit by a car in 1989, in my wheelchair, and broke my back again.  I retired from the sheriff's department after earning a Master's degree and getting a license as a marriage and family therapist (going to school at night and working fulltime to support my family).

I haven't shot anything but varmints since my injury, ground squirrels in CA and prarrie dogs in northern AZ.  I now live in eastern Idaho and found a pard to help me get back into deer and elk hunting (over-the-counter tags!!).  I sat in a blind last December in a -10 wind chill holding a .50 Hawken and a cow elk tag...  I didn't score but had a good time.  I still waiting to find a wheelchair friendly area for rockchucks.

I'm going to the Quigley shoot Father's Day weekend in Montana.  It will be the first match I've shot since the late 80's (a field air rifle match that I was doing OK in until I got 2 flat tires from goatheads).  I've got my Marlin .45-70 dialed in from 100 to 500 yards with my Lyman peep and .404 globe front.  I'll have to wing it from there for elevation.  With any luck there won't be many wheelchair users shooting lever guns.  My darling wife has 'volunteered' to pull a wagon with gear and be my spotter.

Life is good (even in Idaho with ice covered roads for 5 months!).

[deltecs]

Howdy all-
I've checked for posts here and haven't seen many...  I lurk alot and post little...

I broke my back in a woodcutting accident in 1980 and have used a wheelchair since.  I was hit by a car in 1989, in my wheelchair, and broke my back again.  I retired from the sheriff's department after earning a Master's degree and getting a license as a marriage and family therapist (going to school at night and working fulltime to support my family).

I haven't shot anything but varmints since my injury, ground squirrels in CA and prarrie dogs in northern AZ.  I now live in eastern Idaho and found a pard to help me get back into deer and elk hunting (over-the-counter tags!!).  I sat in a blind last December in a -10 wind chill holding a .50 Hawken and a cow elk tag...  I didn't score but had a good time.  I still waiting to find a wheelchair friendly area for rockchucks.

I'm going to the Quigley shoot Father's Day weekend in Montana.  It will be the first match I've shot since the late 80's (a field air rifle match that I was doing OK in until I got 2 flat tires from goatheads).  I've got my Marlin .45-70 dialed in from 100 to 500 yards with my Lyman peep and .404 globe front.  I'll have to wing it from there for elevation.  With any luck there won't be many wheelchair users shooting lever guns.  My darling wife has 'volunteered' to pull a wagon with gear and be my spotter.

Life is good (even in Idaho with ice covered roads for 5 months!).

Way to think bud.  This is the attitude that really makes life.  I dread the day I'll have to use a chair, but with an attitude like yours expect to overcome most obstacles, even in Alaska with the same type of roads.  Hat's off to you.  I walked with 2 canes for over a decade before my MS went into remission.  Legs are still extremely weak and easily fatigued, so I know part of the problems.  Good wife sure helps too.  Keep you chin up.

[Davemuzz]

It is hard to "look at the bright side" when your life is trashed. My disability checks are  less than 1/2 of what I was making. With overtime I expected to make $100k in 2007. I make $85k in '06. "Bright side", what bright side?

SharonAnne,

That sucks. Big time. I don't know what to tell you that you probably haven't already heard. So I'd just be striking out there. I do hear you on the dollar issue though. When I was forced to quit by this damn disease 3 years ago, I was just at the beginning of my peak years of earnings. The next 10 years would have been thru the roof times.

I don't want to sound glib, but there is nothing I can do about it. I pushed myself to the point where my body simply revolted against me and caused me to physically collapse. There were several points in that time span where I was very much aware of my own mortality and what was once important no longer mattered, and what once angered me no longer was a priority.

At this point in my life I can't be concerned with what I can't do. There is nothing I can do to change it. I can only focus on what I can do and make the best of that. My disease will more than likely cut years off my stay here. So, my choice is to live as an angry person.....or live as calm and peacefully as I can. I am trying my best to do the latter.

Give it some thought on how you approach your outlook on life. Yeah, it's not what or where you wanted to be. But remember, you are in control of your future with what you can do.

I hope this helps.

Dave

[deltecs]

It is hard to "look at the bright side" when your life is trashed. My disability checks are  less than 1/2 of what I was making. With overtime I expected to make $100k in 2007. I make $85k in '06. "Bright side", what bright side?

SharonAnne,

That stinks. Big time. I don't know what to tell you that you probably haven't already heard. So I'd just be striking out there. I do hear you on the dollar issue though. When I was forced to quit by this damn disease 3 years ago, I was just at the beginning of my peak years of earnings. The next 10 years would have been thru the roof times.

I don't want to sound glib, but there is nothing I can do about it. I pushed myself to the point where my body simply revolted against me and caused me to physically collapse. There were several points in that time span where I was very much aware of my own mortality and what was once important no longer mattered, and what once angered me no longer was a priority.

At this point in my life I can't be concerned with what I can't do. There is nothing I can do to change it. I can only focus on what I can do and make the best of that. My disease will more than likely cut years off my stay here. So, my choice is to live as an angry person.....or live as calm and peacefully as I can. I am trying my best to do the latter.

Give it some thought on how you approach your outlook on life. Yeah, it's not what or where you wanted to be. But remember, you are in control of your future with what you can do.

I hope this helps.

Dave

I was diagnosed with MS in 1980, so have lived with the disease a long time now.  Much longer than I expected or the docs for that matter.  I coudln't agree with you more regarding the comment of a focus on what I can do, not what I wanted to do, that will make life interesting.  This is the attitude I woke with after depression for over a month when diagnosed.  After that morning, each day is something to enjoy to the best on my ability and plan for tomorrow.  It is the concept of "is the glass 1/2 full or 1/2 empty" that determines our outlook.  Also, a negative outlook on life increases stress, which is now recognized by the medical profession to substantially aggravate medical conditions.  I try to wake with a positive attitude.  SharonAnne, at least you can see better now.  That's my next project is eyes and teeth.

[pastorp]

Well I guess I'm disabled at least I can't walk very far(bad circulation in my legs) I am thankful for the handicap plackard for the truck though. There are some things I can't do anymore but I just try to enjoy what I can do. Sometimes A guy has to refocus. For instance I don't elk or moose hunt anymore. Can't get one out.

Have you noticed how much lighter a grouse is than a elk? Grouse are tasty too.  Regards, Byron

[Davemuzz]

Have you noticed how much lighter a grouse is than a elk? Grouse are tasty too.  Regards, Byron

Ha Ha Ha HA.....Thanks for the post and the laugh! I never looked at it quite like that!

Dave

[joebogey]

Well hell, I might as well play too.
May of 1994 I was struck with "Explosive Rhuematoid Arthritis".
Spent 3 months in a recliner while the family waited on me like a kid. With a good Dr and lots of drugs, I got back on my feet well enough to get around, but I still have lots of days that I don't do so well. I still hunt, but have to use my 4 wheeler to make big hills and such.
Course all those drugs have drawbacks. I have to go in the morning for a liver biopsy as the meds have my liver messed up. I get depressed about all of it at times, but I ain't about to give up. Ol Arthur will have to drap me away screamin and kickin. 

As for moving your deer, I don't know what size 4 wheeler you have, but here's something to think about. You've seen trucks with what looks like a engine hoist mounted on the back. Why couldn't something like that be installed on a 4 wheeler? You wouldn't want it stickin up all the time, so hinge it in 2 or 3 places and install pins to hold it in place when you're using it. You could winch it up and onto the rear of the 4 wheeler, pull the pins and fold the hoist up and be on your way.

[ms]

There is a certain "Psychology" about men discussing their "limitations". Most men for most of their lives have pretty much been able to do what they want to do, when they want to do it. Then, either thru a health issue, or an accident, whether it became sudden, or progressed over a period of time, when a man's physical abilities begin to decline, some men (not all but some) refuse to ask for help. It's my amateur opinion (as one who has been diagnosed with MS and has watched my physical health decline over the last 5 years) that men refuse to ask for help and refuse to accept offered help, as this shows an "outward" sign of a "weakness". And believe me, no man want's to be perceived as having any type of weakness when he is out in his "neighborhood".

I refused to use a cane to assist me in walking for almost a year when I should have. I remember walking up a hill in muzzleloader season....got near the top.....was very exhausted (this MS stuff will kick the stuffing out of you right quick), my leg gave out and I went #$% over tin cups down the hill. I threw my gun away from me hoping it would not go off (it was not cocked but had pan powder) and when it was all over, my ram rod snapped in half, my bore was jammed full of mud, and my pride was hurt again. More importantly I realized that it was one of the most stupidest things I've ever done.

Anyway, IMHO, forums like this are tough because men don't like to come and boo-hoo (ahh...so too speak) about their physical issues. 

That's what I think, but then, I could all wet on this.

Dave

I to have ms did my shot I feel sick today. But going black powder on Tuesday.

[Davemuzz]

I to have ms did my shot I feel sick today. But going black powder on Tuesday.

Avonex?? I'm guessin? Well...good luck in BP season. Keep your powder dry!!!

Dave

[ms]

I to have ms did my shot I feel sick today. But going black powder on Tuesday.

Avonex?? I'm guessin? Well...good luck in BP season. Keep your powder dry!!!

Dave

Yep 8 years now and other drugs I have miss alot of work & hunting because of ms. Thanks for the luck.