Something that will no doubt spark controversy....
 

As its a huge sport in North America and I haven't seen any discussion about it here I thought I would venture into the world of hunting.

It wasn't something that I was in the slightest bit interested in or tbh educated about in the UK so was in the - oh its cruel to just hunt for sport camp.

Now being here in Canada in the boonies, hunting is quite possibly the biggest thing that guys (and girls) partake in between August and April (various seasons for differing types of animal and weapon.

I can see the attraction, and tbh all the guys I know that hunt are very respectful of their surroundings and the limitations on their tags and don't go (too far) beyond the boundries (ok so making your own gate through a hedge with an old farm truck whilst chasing a big whitetail may be something I may have - ahem - seen on an occasion!)

You apply to shoot your animals, you don't just grab a gun and randomly blast away, you do not get 'drawn' for everything you apply for - sometimes it takes years to get drawn for something like a big horn sheep.

So this limits what is shot and keeps the population down which in turn makes for healthy herds in the future.

What are your thoughts on the subject, have any of you ever hunted proper as opposed to taking pot shots at gophers and suchlike, and would it be something that you would consider having a go at.

My personal stance is its exciting, takes a lot of skill and next year will be applying for my own tags if I am practised enough to take a deer with one shot - am currently practising with a bow too.

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I have never done it and I can't see the appeal. Shooting animals not for food and with massive advantages for the hunter seems a little wimpy to me. Animals can't shoot back.

Now, if all the hunters were placed in an area and told to hunt each other....:thumbsup:

Each to their own I guess

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Actually you will find that the hunters are normally drawn for doe / cow tags and in some states in the US you have to take a doe before you are allowed a buck. The female meat is by far and away the more tender and you will find most hunters freezers stocked with what they have shot. So they do eat what they shoot.

Also remember not everyone fills there tags, most hunters will pass up on something that is too young rather than kill for the sake of it, some are not lucky enough to even find what they are drawn for, I've also seen people use their tags on injured or wounded animals so that they don't die a slow painful death, rather than let it go so they can get their "trophy".

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I followed the hunt last year. I lack the nerve, skills and degree of commitment required to participate.

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Not really........ that's what they tell you

it does take a bit practise, but beyond that ?

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definition of skill

great ability or proficiency; expertness that comes from training, practice, etc.


Takes a lot of practice to do it properly, and not just from what i've been told, from what i've seen too. :thumbup:

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All noted. I guess I should have said that I can see the point if it's for the food and the hunter lives miles from a store. I can't see the point merely for the killing. If one wishes to demonstrate their prowess with a weapon, shoot targets (after all, isn't that what the live animal is?)

If they want to demonstrate manlihood, go face to face with a grizzly with a weapon, rather than shooting them with a high powered rifle from a perch up a tree.

If one wishes to show skill, guile and courage, join a mercenary unit in central Africa and put your skill, guile and courage to a real test.

I am sure it gives those that pursue such an activity a great deal of enjoyment. I am not a pacifist or a veggie I just don't see the point. Others, obviously, do. Each to their own;)

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Good post!

I don't have a problem with hunting as long as it is, for the most part controlled which it is here. Personally, I do not wish to partake in it - would rather spend my time with other leisure activities.

Is it a sport? Yes I think it as. As you said, it takes a great deal of skill (and patience) to be good at it.

I am a huge animal lover but I do understand both sides of the argument.

My dad used to hunt when I was younger - used to think nothing of hanging the pheasants and rabbits in the shed where my bike was:eek:!!!

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Mmmm absolutely agree with your points really I do. I suppose though you could equate that reasoning to any sport that involves an animal - there are always 'alternatives'. Take horseracing - if its something fast between your legs you are after - then try motorbikes. :)

FWIW most grizzly hunts are not done from up a tree and some are done with bows and you have to be quite close to them to use that, its the black bears that tend to be hunted from stands.

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That's my point of view too - I just don't get it. Maybe if I was exposed to it, or chatting with people who explained it to me more (like MMC has done anyway in her thread) I might understand it better, but I still don't get it.

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Wild venison tastes different from farmed venison and we pay a premium for the former. One might think it worth the bother of hunting for the better flavour.

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I have no axe to grind about the animal per se. If done properly, I am sure that there is little suffering to the animal. I just fail to see how the skill is demonstrated by the killing. If one accepts that killing the animal with a single shot is the epitome of the skill involved, one must assume that the animal was shot in the correct spot, ergo, why not shoot a target that will show the same.

If the "hunt", the stealth etc., is the skill, why shoot them from perches.

I have no real feelings one way or the other. I am glad that such activities enable truck driving, DPM loving people to feel good about themselves. Let's face it, there aren't many alternatives are there:rofl::p

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I enjoyed moose sausages for supper last night from an animal shot by one of my uncles-in-law last year. I have no desire to go shoot one myself (& moose hunting here is about trekking through the woods and across the bogs to hunt down your animal, shooting it, butchering it and hauling the carcass back out of the woods to take home.** This all sounds very much like hard work.) but have no problem in eating the fruits of someone else's labour.

** doubtless dbd33 will shortly come along with his 'shooting moose by the highway in NL story which I'm is true, just not the way my relatives do it.

Re: Something that will no doubt spark controversy....
 

I enjoyed moose sausages for supper last night from an animal shot by one of my uncles-in-law last year. I have no desire to go shoot one myself (& moose hunting here is about trekking through the woods and across the bogs to hunt down your animal, shooting it, butchering it and hauling the carcass back out of the woods to take home.** This all sounds very much like hard work.) but have no problem in eating the fruits of someone else's labour.

** doubtless dbd33 will shortly come along with his 'shooting moose by the highway in NL story which I'm is true, just not the way my relatives do it.

Hunting is one of those things taken for granted by country folk but which gets urbanites, particularly British urbanites all het up.

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I eat enough deer and moose meat (hunted by others) so I should really, out of courtesy, start killing the things myself.

Guns seem too easy, so I'd like to learn how to hunt with a bow. However, spending all day following spoor might come second place, when compared to sitting up a tree drinking beer (while waiting for a passing deer to notice the pile of apples at the bottom of the tree).

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Alright I heard you the first time.

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Our hobby is archery, more specifically 3D target shooting. The 3D, sometimes life size, models are place in woodland in various positions around the course. You get so many points for a "kill" so many for a "wound". You need skill to be able to do it properly, and that skill comes from practice. We use traditional sightless bows and arrows so we are less likely to score a kill than if we used say; a recurve, or a compound, or a crossbow. - Listed in increasing order of accuracy.

This sport has a completely different character to a hunt. The only adrenalin is from winning, or not being attacked by the real wildlife.

Some hunters use the sport for training of course, but it's a social day out more than anything.

BTW you don't need to be close to shoot with a bow. Hunters who chose to use a less accurate method to kill are more interested in their own ego than in the animals welfare.

I don't see anything wrong with hunting for food. I do worry about those who get their rocks off by killing, that to me is a rather primitive emotion that should be controlled.

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Nah, that one's done to death.

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More skill involved hunting these I think.

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I can't even buy a live lobster and throw it in the pot :eek:

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mmm no doubt, ask the hawks and owls and coyotes that have been eyeing them up for supper.

Thems the breaks of living in the country.

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Yes and its these that do the sport injustice. ooooh I dunno - what is the distance for a decent bow shot? 30 yards away? Bloody close enough for me!

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Depends on the bow. With a compound and composite sights you should never miss at that distance. You could hit a target at 100m easily.

With a traditional and no sights?? I couldnt even reach 100m at the weight I pull. 30m you should hit, but a kill??

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Something along the lines of these are pretty typical hunting bows.

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Yep, those are compound bows. They design means that you can hold the draw for sometime while you aim using accurate sights. They are as accurate as a gun, possibly more so, and silent. A crossbow is more accurate still, and faster. So would be better for a large animal.

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Crossbows are illegal to hunt with unless you have a disability

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I do :sneaky:

They aren't illegal in Ontario, I know someone that uses one.

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yes I know you do but I was under the impression that you could only use a crossbow if you physically could not use a compound one. Hang on just going to check now

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no, you can use a crossbow as long as it isnt bow hunting season,it's classed as a gun i think

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Aaaah thats where we got it wrong. Crossbows are only illegal in archery season unless you are handicapped.

All other times they are fine.

Actually heres some interesting info if anyone cares!


Note: The following applies to bowhunting other than with a cross-bow. Scroll down for information about hunting with cross-bows.

Except for the hunting of black bear, coyote or wolf under the circumstances as outlined under Access for Control of Livestock Predation, a Bowhunting Permit is required by anyone who hunts big game, game bird, wolf or coyote with a bow and arrow. Bowhunters with appropriate general or special licences may hunt during the general seasons as well as archery-only seasons. A Bowhunting Permit is required in combination with a big game licence. In some areas of the province, hunters require special licences to hunt certain species of big game – see season tables. A bowhunter who obtains an Antlered Moose Special Licence, Antlerless Moose Special Licence, Calf Moose Special Licence, Antlered Mule Deer Special Licence, Antlerless Mule Deer Special Licence, Antlered White-tailed Deer Special Licence, Antlerless White-tailed Deer Special Licence, Antlered Elk Special Licence or Antlerless Elk Special Licence may, if an early archery season is offered, hunt under the authority of that licence during the archery season but only in the WMU specified on the licence and only for the type and species of animal for which the licence was issued. Bowhunters are reminded that, in some situations, archery-only seasons for some species may be in progress at the same time as primitive weapon and rifle seasons for other species in the same WMU. Bowhunters, under the authority of their White-tailed Deer Licence or Mule Deer Licence can hunt during the primitive weapon seasons.

Persons hunting big game must use an authorized bow and an authorized arrow. An authorized bow is one that is held, drawn and released by muscular power and has a draw weight of not less than 18 kg (40 lb.). This is the number of kilograms (pounds) required to draw an arrow of 71 cm (28 in.) to its head. An authorized arrow is one that is not less than 61 cm (24 in.) in length that has a tip that bears a head that is not intentionally designed to resist being withdrawn after it has penetrated an object. Furthermore, it must either have a solid, sharp cutting head of at least 7/8 inch in width, or a head that, when the arrow impacts, opens to present sharp cutting edges at least 7/8 inch in width.

Hunters are asked to remove their tree stands at the end of the hunting seasons unless permission has been granted by the landholder to do otherwise.

HUNTING WITH CROSS-BOWS

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Since the fall season of 2002, cross-bows are no longer "prohibited" for hunting wildlife in Alberta, although there may be federal licensing requirements (click here to view Federal Firearms Legislation).

Cross-bows may not be used to hunt big game during archery-only seasons. The only exception is for an eligible handicapped hunter who has obtained a cross-bow licence.
A Bowhunting Permit, as required by bowhunters using conventional archery equipment, is not required by persons who are hunting with cross-bows.

In accordance with federal regulations, cross-bows may not be used for waterfowl hunting.
Persons hunting big game with a cross-bow must use an authorized cross-bow and arrow (bolt). An authorized cross-bow is one that requires 100 pounds or more of pull to draw the string or cable to its cocked position. There is no restriction on arrow length however it must have a tip as described under the heading "Bowhunting" above.

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Personally I find the whole idea of hunting and killing an animal for sport/pleasure to be quite barbaric.

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Yup, this is what you shoot into the animal to kill it

http://www.3riversarchery.com/Broadh...70_p0_cat.html

What do you feel about killing animals for food??

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I suppose the way its viewed is that population needs to be controlled anyway. Hence the reason for the tags.

You can employ game wardens to do it for you, and pay them - or you can issue tags for which the hunters pay - whereby creating revenue for the relevant government department which is all fed back into conservation and education.

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I think in the uk,anyone shooting on a deer cull would have to prove they're capable of killing a deer with one shot,from a certain distance.
Would that be similar in Alberta?

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Certainly the people I know have been brought up to learn to shoot properly and wouldn't be let loose on deer without being relatively able to to hit the vital organs first time.

Look at it from another point of view - the skill of the hunt is to track, not be detected, and shot and kill instantly. Multiple shots means you are basically crap (therefore being ripped by all of your mates and costs money in bullets) Even the most redneck of guys would see it as being a complete retard if you couldn't make a clean shot.

They are not in it in the way that someone who tortures a dog for fun are. Hunters are not cruel people

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I believe this to be true.

People who lock cows up in a feed lot, feeding them antibiotics and who knows what else, while being fattened, while waiting to be killed, are cruel.

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They may not be cruel, but there is something not right about taking a life that does not have to be taken.

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Never said they were

I have lived rurally for years Mandy, I understand the importance of culling wild deer,fox hunting etc and the benefits good Forestry Management has.

Yes, more people should search out wild game etc, but at the end of the day its all about motives. Am I shooting said beast for food or to keep numbers in check, or to prove that I have a larger penis than the next man.

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NO, the way you prove that (at least in AB) is by driving a bigger truck:sneaky:

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The general idea of humans eating animals has nothing wrong with it. We evolved as omnivores and animal meat provides many of the basic nutrients, vitamins and minerals that we need to survive. I have never seen a healthy vegan who has not resorted to taking artifical supplements to cope with their dietary defficiencies.

As for an individual or group of individuals hunting for food it depends upon the circumstances. For the native first nations population who live in some of the least hospitible areas, it is a way of life and the only option so that they do not starve. I can't see Safeway opening up too many stores for them. I'm sure that these people take no pleasure in the kill.

As for hunting to either obtain some either cheap or better tasting meat, I don't really see that that makes the hunters any better than those who do it for sport. In this day and age it just isn't necessery to go out kill an innocent wild animal. We have evolved (not necessirily for the better) so that our food production methods are no longer part of the natural food chain, so we should keep out of it.

Factory farming of animals is another issue outside of this post. All I'll say is that whenever possible we try to eat free range/organically produced meat products although I'm pretty sure that some of this is just marketing hype.