Hunting And Killing

Status
Not open for further replies.
Yes. Possibly more than a hundred thousand of them. Courtesy of about a dozen whitetails shipped from Minnesota in mid 30's and late 40's. They bred like proverbial rabbits and now they're everywhere.

Interesting, the yearly harvest in my state Virginia is typically around 200,000. Right after WW2 they were close to instinct. They had to have them transplanted from Pa. to restart the herd. That and good game management has developed a very healthy herd. However always threatened by Chronic Wasting Disease.
 
I went hunting as a kid but, since my Dad wasn't a hunter, I had to rely on books, magazines and listening to other dads to learn. And while I was a good shot, I wasn't very good at the hunting part. There were not many chances or places to hunt when I was a kid in the North Bay Area of California but me and my buddy managed to get out and get a few quail, ducks or pheasant. Deer hunting was pretty much invitation only at a deer camp/club but I did get asked along a couple times. Those days there were not many deer but it was fun for me to be with these guys, mostly WW2 vets, and listen to the talk. Then there was a long time when I did not hunt, or shoot either, but I took up the sport again in the 1990's down in Ok..
There it was quail and ducks and I had dogs for both. Also, with the large tracts of public land the chance to deer hunt was available and I did. Now, in rural Ks., with the dogs gone, I'm still deer hunting out back. Me and the wife like venison and, like my home garden, the do it yourself part appeals to me. A friend comes over if I get one and we split the meat as she helps with the processing.

As somebody once said, I don't hunt to "kill" but I kill to know that I hunted...
So I guess, for now, that's what I'll try to keep doing.
 
No need to kill them if your not going to use them, hunt with a camera. There are people that have made careers out of that, no shame in making it a hobby.
That was my thought too.
I nice DSLR with a 80-400mm lens can get you some outstanding results.
I am away from my desk, and don't have any of deer pics with me, but this hawk was taken with the above mentioned setup.

IMG_0907.JPG
 
That was my thought too.
I nice DSLR with a 80-400mm lens can get you some outstanding results.
I am away from my desk, and don't have any of deer pics with me, but this hawk was taken with the above mentioned setup.

View attachment 868344

Now I really like that!! And as I said, was just going to buy another handgun I do not need, but put the cash into a new camera. Will be a Newbie now.
 
I've never hunted to "kill" or the thrill of killing something. My Dad taught us the joy of being outdoors hunting and fishing and to respect nature and it's creatures. He also taught us how good wild game can be at the dinner table and to strive for clean quick kills and eat what we hunt. The meat we eat whether it's wild game or bought in the grocery store has to be killed by someone. I choose to do some of the killing myself in order to enjoy the meat I love.
Anyone who gets a "thrill" from killing is a little off in my opinion.
 
I've never enjoyed killing. There was a brief period in my youth where I enjoyed the self-image and persona of a hunter, sportsman, outdoorsmen, that entailed killing fish and game animals etc., but that passed and it has long been absent as part of my identity. I'm not criticizing that image or persona, just saying that I don't feel a need to possess it. I do continue to spend time outdoors, and in the wilderness specifically, every day. I just don't identify with the hunter or fisherman persona, nor do I identify with the northface/patagonia/rei outdoor recreationist consumer persona, or the hippy/tie-die/birkenstock/granola/organic/boiled-wool pocket mulchers.

Because killing game gives me no pleasure, and because it does nothing to serve my identity, does not mean I will not do it. I recognize that game species produce a seasonal surplus that would put pressure on scarce resources if their population was not reduced. Without hunters harvesting a portion of that surplus, many more would succumb to great suffering. Harvesting the game ethically and consuming it to nourish people is moral. I will both do it and teach the life skills required to do it properly to others like my children. It does not thrill me. I don't get excited. It doesn't boost my ego or reinforce my self-image. I'm not a shooter. I'm not looking to limit-out. I don't covet trophies. I've used different methods like archery, but I don't have anything to prove by it. I do enjoy and appreciate the animals. I am very determined to be effective in all the tasks involved. I enjoy sharing the experiences with others, especially kids.

So my advice to Steve, who is evidently a mature hunter who has managed to outgrow or has avoided altogether some of the foolishness and cruelty that some hunters go through stages of, is to mentor others so that they can arrive there too. There is no substitute for a mentor who isn't eager to use all their latest gear and gadgets, and doesn't get giddy and yippee when they get to pull the trigger on a trophy or a bag limit, who is cunning and skillful, but has nothing to boast of. Your accomplishment can be that a young person will say what they love most about hunting is not the killing, but their mentor.
The mentor definitely makes or breaks the experience. My older brothers helped form my skill and the enjoyment of the hunt. I've always felt a small sadness at killing, but it's part of being alive. I'll never turn into an anti hunter.
 
I've never been a hunter, as I grew up in a city and non-hunting family. I love living things. I also love eating them though, so I am all in favor of the responsible management of wildlife.
Same here, grew up just south of Detroit. I hunted a bit in my youth, only small game, pests and varmints. Now, I have a hard time culling pesty chipmunks. Just not in me much anymore. But, now I live in the Huron National Forest. I love being here, and explore it to my heart's content. I'm always armed, and I'll kill to save my life, or someone else's, or even a pet, but that's about it.

No need to kill them if your not going to use them, hunt with a camera. There are people that have made careers out of that, no shame in making it a hobby.
I'd even join a hunting party if asked, but would come armed with a camera.
 
Why is it a "better place"? Better than what? :scrutiny:

I've been hunting for 43 years. The only time that I feel bad, is when I'm in the woods and see zero critters.


With dwindling numbers of hunters, I also wonder that while we may be thinking twice about going out, or taking the shot..., do we not, with our skills and our opportunities, owe it to the game populations to perform the task of population management? I'm not sure that I can, as a regular behavior, abdicate my role as a "steward of the land " by habitually neglecting to go to the woods, or habitually not harvesting game. Eventually infirmity will stop me..., that will be the signal for me to stop....

But that's just me.

LD

I've been hunting for over 50. Only time I feel bad is when I'm in the woods, but should be home doing something else. Being in the woods itself, many times, is enough. Kinda why hikers and cross-country skiers enjoy the woods, even tho they are not in pursuit of game. Even on those days I don't see anything, I generally learn something or see something I never saw before.

The name of this thread is hunting and killing. Two different things that are associated with each other, but do not need the other to be what they are. One can certainly hunt without killing and one can certainly kill without really hunting. While I agree, keeping wildlife populations within valid numbers is important, I don't feel it is my priority, as long as there are others out there willing to. So far in my area, other deer and small game hunters, are doing exactly what the DNR wants when it comes to keeping those populations in check. So me lettin' a few walk is not hurting anything, much less be considered a dereliction of duty. Not killing does not mean not hunting. Letting some animals pass to improve overall herd health and balance is performing the role of "steward of the land. If I see an unusually high amount of deer in an area, I don't have an issue with taking a doe, but I also don't have a issue with eating a tag when I see few deer. I like taking mature bucks, but if I see a high number of small pencil horns in an area, I don't have a problem thinning them either and burning a tag. While I don't actively hunt every animal available to me, I still buy a Patron's license with the idea, even if I don't hunt certain species this year, at least I support them with money, which aids in habitat and enforcement. While I don't feel the need to kill some animals, in some cases I still help the state monitor them. Sometimes in the case of grouse, while I love to hunt and eat them, I'll give the extra effort to take blood and feather samples along with the heart, and send it in to the state for West Nile testing. Not killing does not mean one is neglecting the woods......not when you are still out there in it, and enjoying it. Not killing does not make you a poor hunter, if you don't kill by choice. Sometimes I wish hunting was more like fishing where one could "catch and release".

But that's just me.
 
20190809_084858.jpg 20190809_084814.jpg 20190809_085220.jpg The neighbors came by a month or so ago one day. On MDI deer hunting is prohibited as one of these deer might have come from Acadia..and our population density outside the park.:confused: They are overpopulated and many residents are getting lyme disease it 20190809_084546.jpg seems. The deer are so tame you sometimes have to honk your horn to get them to move out of your parking spot as they munch on your flower garden.:eek: These pictures are taken by me sitting at the picnic table on the front lawn of the fire station in SW harbor ME one day this August.
 
I grew up poor; so we hunted for meat; deer, upland birds and small game. After Vietnam, I lost interest in hunting which is not to say I don't shoot squirrels which chew up our bird feeders or raccoons which destroy them.
However, I still love being in the forest and we both do. As a result, we live in the Chattahoochee NF where our nearest neighbor is about a mile away. The neighbors are 4 legged which is fine with us.

 
As far as hunting deer goes, I don't see much point in taking any old minimum qualification deer
which wanders under my stand. IF I ever see an exceptional trophy, and have the chance for an
ethical shot, I wouldn't mind taking it.
 
Sounds like the OP might trade his gun for a good camera. Serves the same purpose but you don't have to field dress anything or pack a 150 lb. carcass back to the truck.

I have no "need" to kill anything any more, although I still love hunting and eating what I kill, whether fish, fowl, or red meat. I also find my brother in law's statement one day as we stood looking at a dead moose in a bad spot to be much more relevant to whether or not I actually shoot the gun, "Yeah, nothing can ruin a moose hunt quite as much as actually shooting one."
 
I like to make my own meat. That bloodlust I used to have is long gone, but I still eat meat. And would rather make my own. When I do, I know where it came from and how it's been handled and I know the animal providing it has not been abused. Store bought meat - who knows the answers to any of those considerations.
 
Yeah, me too. Well, I never did think much of the dragging out either, and the cutting and wrapping is just okay - not something I really look forward to though.
My dad always used to say, "The fun's all over the second you pull the trigger.";)
My Grandfather said the same thing, and added, "Now that it's down the work begins."
 
I have several friends near my age (73) who have quit hunting entirely and other friends who have changed how they hunt because of physical limitations. But, I love to hunt and shoot. Killing deer successfully with a good clean one-shot kill after a successful plan comes together is a rush. Same with turkeys and even squirrels when I make that perfect head shot with one of my favorite rimfires. I love eating wild game. Just put a bunch of prime venison in my freezer this week and have been eating the summer sausage as a snack. It is no longer about feeding myself or family...we grew up dirt poor and lived on squirrels and rabbits. It's about the excitement, which still rushes through my veins when I hunt. I've enjoyed hunting even more lately because I have better guns and better equipment. I still love watching the sun rise and set while toting a really good firearm. Can't wait to go to the Tulsa Gun Show in a few days to see what else I can find to shoot with or trade for. If and when that excitement wanes, I'll do something else, but I can't imagine anything more fun.
 
I am now an old hunter that is very conflicted. I love to be in the woods, I love to hunt deer but, I could not care less about killing an animal.
Last year, I let all the deer I could have killed walk telling myself that I would take the next animal; I never did and none of my tags were filled. I loved walking thru the wood and fields with my favorite tack-driving rifle, I tell myself that I cannot miss which within reason is probably true. All of the youthful excitement of seeing a deer, placing the crosshairs and making the shot is all gone. All of the excitement leading up to that moment is still there.
Last year, I spotted many deer (including some very nice bucks) moving in and out of a cornfield. It was a managed muzzleloader hunt and I had the entire property to myself (provably due to the 18” of fresh snow on the ground). I could have easily moved into a shooting position and killed one of those animals but I talked myself out of the long haul with a dead carcass in the deep snow - I was very happy passing on the deer and walking to my truck to head home empty-handed.
In my youth, if any legal deer walked into my shooting range, it was killed with great excitement - I felt accomplished. Now I let them walk and I feel accomplished. Maybe I am not conflicted - maybe I am just in a better place - I now just enjoy my time on the hunt, I still carry a rifle and I still chase deer but something has grandly changed when it is time to pull the trigger - very strange to me.

I'm sort of there where deer hunting is concerned. I love to hunt them, but shoot them mostly for meat, and the wife and I need a couple a year.

35W
 
Anymore, before I pull the trigger on a white tail a vivid mental image of the deer hanging on my gambrill with my nose about 2 inches from its tail burns in my mind. It helps keep you selective. I have no urge to kill per se but we live on venison as red meat. Between my son and I 4 to 5 of these southern white tails feed our family nicely.

I just see things a little with a different eye at times. When a medium sized plump doe walks out and I see the well muscled hams that is what I want. You can keep you 6.5 year old buck. I am a meat hunter through and through. Not a killer.
 
I would recommend the following book to the OP and anyone in a similar place in life. Its goal is not to change your mind but its a collection of essays about hunting from those that still hunt and from those that have chosen to stop. Some of the essays will resonate with you, some will have you questioning the author, and some might even make you mad/annoyed but its an excellent collection of essays of how a bunch of different people have tackled the OP's question or similar questions related to hunting. It's a challenging reading but as a whole a good one.

https://www.amazon.com/Hunters-Hear...words=the+hunters+heart&qid=1572614545&sr=8-3
 
You can keep you 6.5 year old buck. I am a meat hunter through and through. Not a killer.
Big bucks also mean a lot of meat. I don't discern, one way or the other. Like I said earlier: if you eat, you kill. Either yourself and face the reality of the foodchain up close and personal or outsource the killing to someone else and try not to think about it. This applies to everything, from game and wild plants to USDA beef and vegetables.

Everything.
 
A lot of conversation about getting the meat and killing it to eat it, and of course everyone's situation is different. I envy those of you that go hunting and kill a deer and have little money invested.
Venison costs me several times over what buying beef in the store does.
This year is the first I've hunted since taking the last 2 years off to focus on my studies. The last year I hunted, killed 4 deer. When you add up all the money I spent in lease dues, fuel to and from camp, food, drinks and adult beverages at camp, corn and rice bran for the deer, and a new deer stand, I invested over $3k total.
That's $750 per deer, and I gave one away to family members (happily) who were unable to hunt (one because of illness and one because of an insane work schedule).
It would be so much cheaper for me to just go buy beef.

But I cherish time outdoors. It is better than any therapy could ever be. Watching the sun rise and listening to the woods come alive at dawn is a near spiritual experience for me.
I also love the late hours around the campfire with friends. For some reason it is so much better than sitting indoors on a couch.
Any deer taken home is a bonus. I honestly think I'd go if I knew I wouldn't kill anything.
 
It would be so much cheaper for me to just go buy beef.

But I cherish time outdoors. It is better than any therapy could ever be. Watching the sun rise and listening to the woods come alive at dawn is a near spiritual experience for me.
I also love the late hours around the campfire with friends. For some reason it is so much better than sitting indoors on a couch.
Any deer taken home is a bonus. I honestly think I'd go if I knew I wouldn't kill anything.

^^^Best answer yet.

Kinda the same boat most of us are in. Very few folks in the lower 48 are coming out ahead by hunting deer and using the meat as a replacement for other meats. Not when one can buy boneless chicken breasts/thighs for less than $2 a pound. Just bought 40 pounds of boneless Pork Butts to grind for sausage....paid $1.79 a pound on sale. A deer will yield about 40% of it's carcass weight(skinned with head and intestines removed) of boneless meat. This is if there is no meat loss due to shot placement. Around here, it takes a pretty good size buck to get 150# carcass hanging. Young bucks and does of same year class produce similar amounts of meat. Only very large and mature bucks have significantly more meat on them.

So even when justifying our hunt with food for our table, we are lying not only to others, but to ourselves. We hunt cause we enjoy the hunt. Just this morning I drove 20 miles one way to hunt pheasants. Limited out with two nice roosters. Just figuring the cost of gas and not including things like licenses, the 4 shells I shot up, after breasting the birds out and removing the blood meat, I probably ended up with 1 #s of meat. So....figure two gallons of gas for the jeep and I'm looking at over $5 a pound. But.........the thrill of watching my dog work half a dozen different birds in the corn? Priceless. Even after limiting out, and knowing dang well she ain't gettin' none of the birds, my dog continued to hunt. Still pointed birds, still flushed them. She didn't do it for food, she didn't do it for more praise, but because she lives to hunt. Like many of us here. It's a instinct we can't explain.
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Back
Top