Hunting Ethics Question

[maple]

Many good points given here Rage.

I feel hunters develop an affinity with nature more than city folk do. They have lost touch with reality. Some of them are only formed by what they hear on TV and the web, which is often not correct. Ther are many ill informed multimillion dollar businesses out there who make their money buy selling protect-the-animals idea. And many people buy into it blindly.

Stick to YOUR values and you'll do fine. Sooner or later you'll find yourself a hunting buddy or two who feels the same way you do about the woods, and with whom you can share your outdoor experiences. That's even more fun. Who knows. Might be a girl.

Maple

[Savagevervet]

Hey there, Rage -

First, let me say that you posted a great question. I couldn't answer it any better than the members who have already offered some great insight.

The only thing I might add is that whenever you're about to get into a debate with one of these anti-folks (anti-gun, anti-hunting, anti-meat, anti-, anti-, anti-), pin them down on what EXACTLY it is they object to. Don't let them start screaming hysterically about every little tiny thing they "feel" is wrong with hunting. Help them to frame their own debate and then keep them within those boundaries. Do that and you'll win every argument you have with these people. Who knows? You might even win a convert or two along the way.

Happy hunting!

TSV

[xeon]

Make sure you ask them if they think there better than you because they dont hunt. That is really the reason they will start up that crap with you anyways.

Watch out though, that one can work both ways.

[shurite44]

With my family they either like to eat venison or they do not like it. No one gives me any crap about hunting though.

I live in a rural area in a county that has a lot of hunters. Not to many anti's around here, but there are people that don't care for venison and the like.

One of my best friends is more of a city fellow, and he says things like, "What do want to kill bambi for". But he is joking basically. He is more of a non hunter than an anti hunter.

[TPM]

Stick to YOUR values and you'll do fine. Sooner or later you'll find yourself a hunting buddy or two who feels the same way you do about the woods, and with whom you can share your outdoor experiences. That's even more fun. Who knows. Might be a girl.

Worked for me. We've been married for 5 1/2 years now.

[Rage_A_Holic]

You guys are the best. I feel much better, and spoke to them 2x now. Things are looking up.

AND on the plus side, I got my 2 best friends into Excalibur since they got to shoot my Max. one is buying a Max, one is buying a Cet.

It's gonna be awesome going out with my 2 best friends, all of us with Excaliburs.

[xboman]

How can you kill animals and still say you love them?

Such a question is not easily answered. A quick and spontaneous reply might provide gasoline to the fire already brewing in anti-hunters, nature & animal lovers or the general non-hunting public.

When confronted with death, graphic images those mostly of a negative nature are conjured in our minds...Of men with guns, firearms, bows or other weapons. Ugly and bloody images can sway debate on an issue that’s hardly black and white. As humans, these things upset us. It batters our senses and our sentiments. Killing, no matter what animal, doesn’t look good. That doesn’t constitute making it inherently incorrect. When accompanied by drawings, photos or videos, it contributes in making it even more disturbing. Pictures are especially troublesome because they often elicit emotional, instead of intellectual responses. It is therefore not surprising to comprehend why anti-hunting activists choose to use photography in their attempts to get their message across.

How does one control the explicit meaning? When shown a picture of a dead and bloody animal, one’s emotional and immediate reaction might be: “That’s horrible”, while another might say “What we have here is a dead animal with a lot of blood covering the area”. If the intentions are to reach an audience with special interests, one can expect to see many more brutal photographs displayed. Education is the answer. When sorting through this subject, I believe it is best to focus on factual information.

The question above deals with ethics.
An ethical hunter has formulated a hunting ethic to measure and evaluate his conduct in the field. Mine personally, consists of 5 elements:

1) consideration that hunting is a privilege rather than a right
2) mandatory licensing through educational courses and subsequent examination
3) thorough knowledge & respect of hunting terrain and of the species being hunted
4) the respect and obedience of all associated game laws
5) personal restriction of modern technological advantages

Your conduct will answer many questions. Briefly stated, hunting is a test. Don’t be to hasty in your conclusion of what is being tested. It is not the animal pursued nor the equipment being used at the time that the hunter tests. He is profoundly examining himself and his values so that he may ascertain the true nature of what resides within him. An ethical hunter puts himself on trial.

[Horizontal Hunter]

My wife of 15 years (yes still happily married) was very anti-gun and mildly anti-huting. Just stand up for what you believe in and most of the hubub will die down. My wife not has a concealed carry permit, her own 20 guage shotgun, and refers to the .357 as "maggie", and loves venision meatloaf. She has even gone grouse hunting with me a few times. This didn't happen overnight but she saw my love and enthusisiam for hunting and the outdoors and some of it must have rubbed off.

Like I said just stand your ground, continue to hunt, and you might be surprised some of them may change their minds over time, but not overnight.

HH

[Rage_A_Holic]

Thanks guys. There has been some GREAT posts here; and I intend to follow advice from each of them. This Forum never fails to amaze me. One of the BEST online communities EVER!


One thing that helps; Sheena's family are hunters. She has it on both sides now

But they made a good point too. In the Wild, Deer will probably die a horribly slow and painful death, coming from a pack of wolves. They will be eaten alive, painfully and slowly. much like that video that was posted earlier.

When you hunt them; they die much quicker, and with much less overall pain. Therefore in some ways... you can even claim "You are doing the Deer a Favor"

[hatchet jack]

most younger people dont understand, that if it wasnt for hunters in america there probably wouldnt be any animals left,, my piont is, money that hunters spend for licens, guns, ammo, cloth, bows,crossbows goes to support wildlife, deer for instance there would be overabundance of them , eventually they would get desease & die off, car accidents by the millions ,insurance companys would have them shot by the millions. snow geese are a good example, there are millions lf them some day they will die off, disease will get some day. acording to the kansas fish & game there are less hunters every year. but they sell just as many tags.

have a nice day,,,,,,h,j,

[A.W]

AND on the plus side, I got my 2 best friends into Excalibur since they got to shoot my Max. one is buying a Max, one is buying a Cet.

Make sure that they read this forum so that they can learn safety, ethics and all round knowledge.

[Rich]

I'm sure some will disagree; but if the girlfriend is dead set against and is not going to come around, then cut your loses now. It's only going to get worse when you start spending every minute of free time in the woods and she feels you are neglecting her. Nothing worse than telling your hunting buddies you can't go because the wife/girlfriend won't let me. I made it perfectly clear to my wife I was going to hunt, she couldn't change me after 25 years so now she joins me. Some guys are going to say they balance their time between hunting and family, I hunt from day 1 till the last day, there are 9 other months of the year to stay home. Call me a cromagnon, but that's the way it is.

Rich

[shewe]

such good advice already given, it's tough to add anything. im fortunate to have grown up in the country. folks in the country have a bond with the land that most city folks lack. here the schools close for opening day....hehe. fortunate to have a wife that can shoot as well as i can. she carries a .38 in her purse. hang in there....remain firm yet loving and likely they will come to accept it. good luck.

[VixChix]

Being a woman I get flak from other women, my parents and even other hunters that don't think that women should be intruding on "their" sport (even though I usually hunt alone).

With the anti's I'm non-confrontational, but I point out how animals die in nature (as was mentioned already in several posts here). Nature isn't all "warm fuzzies" - it's often brutal and ugly and cruel. Often I find that people have just never thought about it.

I also make sure that I tell people that hunting helps cut the grocery bills - I'm amazed by how many people think that we just go out there and kill for the fun of it! I'm also very upfront about how often I come home disappointed - it's not like we just jump out of the car, lean up on a fence post and fire wildly into a herd of deer (again, I'm amazed that many people actually think that's the way we go about hunting!)

For my parents - well, I just make sure they can see how much better it is for me to get some time to myself outdoors than it would be to indulge in "retail therapy" or just sit in front of the TV. They have come to see that being outdoors is important to me, to my emotional & physical well-being.

My husband is wonderfully supportive, but some men I've met have been quite negative towards the idea of women out hunting. I just do my own thing and I've seen guys come around to the point where they'll even ask me along. They have come to see that I listen more than I talk, I'm very safety-aware, I'm just happy to be outdoors and I'm not a liability to their hunt.

I believe it's extremely important for us to be aware of our image and behaviour. I pride myself in being outdoorsy, but not casual or sloppy about what I do. I watch what I say and how I present myself around non-hunters in particular. I don't "cop attitude" although it's sure tempting sometimes! LOL

[GaryL]

Cool out look on the matter for sure and I like your attitude .... Kinda missed your posting the last week or so ....