There are changes to a popular Collin County hunting location to help protect deer from poachers.
For the first time, hunting for feral hogs has been prohibited at the U.S. Army Corp of Engineers Lavon Lake location during deer season.
"We're talking about the criminals out here going out there on the Army Corp property and stealing their deer,” game warden Capt. Tony Norton said.
Norton said some claimed to hunt wild hogs but instead hunted white tail deer which is not allowed at the location.
“They are getting world class deer coming out of these places and naturally they are going to use whatever means they can to get in there and take that deer,” Norton said.
The remedy was to outlaw the hog hunting during deer season at Lake Lavon.
“They can't use the excuse that they were hog hunting anymore,” he said.
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There are 11,500 acres for hunting filled with wildlife. It is open to the public for hunting seasons with permits.
The deer population at the Lavon Lake location is not large, but the deer are considered some the largest in North Texas.
“You're not getting a typical small eight or ten point that you normally see throughout the state you are getting these trophy free-ranging deer that have been there for years and have not been hunted,” Norton said.
Hog hunting will return to the location in January 2018 at the conclusion of deer season.
