Amarillo, TX -- Thanksgiving is a time for family bonding, and some families bond through hunting. And that means gun sellers and game wardens alike are a little busier this time of year.
The Thanksgiving holiday always coincides with deer season in the panhandle, and hunting is an integral part of Texas heritage.
And that means Texans buy more guns around the holiday, as Bill Howell of Pro Shooters in Amarillo tells me, "We have seen an increase. It's historical of the time of year - hunting season. Ammunition, shotguns, rifles; don't see a lot of handguns particularly as an increase; but we do see rifles, shotguns, because it is hunting season."
And because most of Texas land is privately owned, what little public land there is sees a lot of use during key holidays when Texas families are together, as Potter-Randall Game Warden Steve Urben explains, "There's going to be a lot more traffic, especially with the families coming in from out of town, and things like that - you're going to have more hunters."
Urben says that in his five years in Amarillo, he has yet to see a single hunting accident, but that doesn't negate the need for safe practices.
Texas Parks & Wildlife also advises the traveling public to be aware of deer crossing the roadways, especially in the early morning and early evening hours.
