Why do we shoot living creatures

[Splashy]

I have been very annoyed by the posts on Scum Watch and have started to look at why I derive pleasure from killing living creatures. I feel that it is important to look at your own reasons.

 

In my time I have been a Junior Olympic squad member and have been very good at target shooting, I gave it up because of the lack of challenge. I believe that my motivation is linked to the primitive desire to provide for my family. In this modern age so much has been taken away from us. The endless striving to obtain a wage to feed, clothe and house the family coupled with the grinding blight of debt has caused me to be driven into a dead end.

 

Shooting and coming back with a pigeon or rabbit, even though the wife may not accept it, is a proving of my ability to provide. The skills I have learnt over the years have improved my chances of coming home with a meal.

 

The state of society has changed the attitude of many people and they would rather buy their sanitised meat from a supermarket. We need to hold our heads up high and be proud that we have become good hunters. It is in our nature and I for one will never apologise for being good at my way of life. Going out and shooting a rabbit or pigeon has so much more quality of life effect than doing another day's work.

[Lloyd90]

I like meat, it tastes good and its nutritious. If I could grow it in the ground I would, Its not practical to keep live stock, but if I did, I would have to slaughter them.

 

For anyone who says its not natural etc, tell it to the millions of animals out there, eating other animals ...

[Splashy]

My sister and her husband are vegetarians but when I cook a full breakfast including bacon then they will eat it with relish. Meat does taste good and we as a species like to eat meat. Why do the "antis" not criticise wild animals for their choice of meat. We are, after all, just another animal on this planet. I really hope that natural selection takes its course since i don't know of any vegetarian lions.

[lister22]

Simple Because I enjoy it

[pegasus bridge]

I enjoy the process , I've thought long and hard about this and I'm convinced that humans have hunted for the majority of our existence on the planet. In evolutionary terms we have been relying on shops for a minuscule amount of time to supply food. This hunting instinct is hard wired into us, hence the satisfaction derived in doing this - continuing this on is simply an expression of this hard wired behaviour. It's also escapism for me personally . I think it is the same with fishing too - it feeds the same needs.

Edited November 29, 2013 by pegasus bridge

[fenboy]

My sister and her husband are vegetarians but when I cook a full breakfast including bacon then they will eat it with relish. Meat does taste good and we as a species like to eat meat. Why do the "antis" not criticise wild animals for their choice of meat. We are, after all, just another animal on this planet. I really hope that natural selection takes its course since i don't know of any vegetarian lions.

They are not vegitarians then are they

[beeredup]

to hunt for food is a natural instinct, that and the fact most things i shoot i find tasty to eat

[chrisjpainter]

It's a great question and one I turn over in my mind a lot. I'm a Christian and have a lot of Christian friends, so there is always plenty of chat about 'killing fluffy bunnies for fun', even if it's pretty tasty at the end. Those that understand are great - oddly, those that don't and think it's wrong, still eat meat! For me, I don't revel in an animal's death, but I love pitting my wits against my quarry. I enjoy reading the land, working cover to my advantage and the satisfaction of a well placed shot. And I enjoy the meat it provides! And let's be honest, how much more free range can you get than the meat that ends up on our table! It's ethically dispatched, it's ecologically sustainable and a lot of game meat is far better for you that the fat laden pigs and cows that the antis are happy enough to eat.

 

Oh, and did I mention I like the taste?

 

I will, of course shoot rats and, if the farmer requires/they start taking eggs from our birds, shoot corvids, but only when they actively become a pest. Beyond that, a magpie or a jackdaw is free to be with me!

[pigeonblasterian]

Because it would be cruel to cook them alive.

[KFC]

By creation I am a hunter gatherer and I take responsibility for gathering my own food. I've cut out the middleman and don't pay someone to do my killing for me i.e. the supermarket.

 

I think of it as harvesting rather than sport.

 

I'm not going into all the details but, because I'm related by marriage and have many close connections to the local Pakistani community, I have taken part in Halal slaughter so I have a better understanding of it now.

One thing about it is that one Chicken, for example, is slaughtered, with a prayer of thanksgiving, and that Chicken is eaten whereas Western custom is to slaughter millions of Chickens, eat a few and turn the rest into fertiliser or throw them away without a thought for the sanctity of life.

 

These days, whenever I kill something, I always offer up a silent prayer of thanks for the food so my feelings are more of gratitude than enjoyment.

 

I do enjoy shooting as my means of gathering though.

[bi9johnny]

I have always done it, I will always do it, I enjoy what I do, I'm good at it,

I put the effort in and I get the end result

[WelshLamb]

Vegetarian: Ancient tribal slang for the village idiot who can't hunt, fish, or ride.

[Gimlet]

I shoot to eat or to protect grops which are being grown to be eaten. Saying I enjoy it isn't quite accurate, its more a case of deep satisfaction in doing it right. As above, man is a hunter-gatherer. We've been on the planet for 200,000 years which is an eye-blink in evolutionary terms. Our DNA and instincts haven't changed one jot. We are supposed to hunt. Its natural. Its actually farming that's unnatural. If all mankind hunted and gathered there wouldn't be 7 billion people devouring the Earth.

[aris]

Humans, like most omnivorous or carnivorous creatures, have an innate hunting instinct. If we didn't, we would have been extinguished long ago.

[krugerandsmith]

I have been very annoyed by the posts on Scum Watch and have started to look at why I derive pleasure from killing living creatures. I feel that it is important to look at your own reasons.

 

In my time I have been a Junior Olympic squad member and have been very good at target shooting, I gave it up because of the lack of challenge. I believe that my motivation is linked to the primitive desire to provide for my family. In this modern age so much has been taken away from us. The endless striving to obtain a wage to feed, clothe and house the family coupled with the grinding blight of debt has caused me to be driven into a dead end.

 

Shooting and coming back with a pigeon or rabbit, even though the wife may not accept it, is a proving of my ability to provide. The skills I have learnt over the years have improved my chances of coming home with a meal.

 

The state of society has changed the attitude of many people and they would rather buy their sanitised meat from a supermarket. We need to hold our heads up high and be proud that we have become good hunters. It is in our nature and I for one will never apologise for being good at my way of life. Going out and shooting a rabbit or pigeon has so much more quality of life effect than doing another day's work.

 

Man by nature is a hunter like all other animals with their eyes on the front of their heads ..... The hunted have theirs on the side.

[Kes]

I shoot because I am good at it, I shoot foxes to provide more of what we shoot. I only shoot a small number and enjoy providing perfect conditions and habitat to be used by other wildlife. Every shooter is a conservationist as it makes sense - shoot everything - no shooting. More than that we are all lovers of nature and wild places and will often spend hours watching the animals we came to shoot. I am a small bird person too and to see our cover crops yellow with goldfiches is enriching. Creating woodland habitat for more species as woodland is removed for fuel is essential to the environment. If I get the chance I will create a few more acres of nature reserve but the odd incomer will go in the pot. Shooting is not about killing for me but everything that goes into the day and the chat, meal, conversations with like - minded people and anticipation of another day soon. Killing things (for food) is a long way down my list of enjoyments from a day shooting but its there - nothing better than a nice fresh wild teal, except maybe a brace.

[Scully]

Humans became the most successful animal on the planet by their ability to utilise, create and develop tools for amongst other things, hunting. Like it or loathe it, we wouldn't be where we are today without this ability. None of us nowadays need to hunt for our food, but that doesn't mean none of us FEEL the need. Some regard us as primitive. I couldn't give a monkies chuff what they think.

Humans are the only creature which kill for entertainment as far as I know.

[j-c]

For the fresh meat, despatched in a sustainable and relatively environmentally-friendly way. To know where my food comes from is important to me, and is I imagine something that's becoming less important as a whole with each convoluted battery-farmed, offal-blended source of 'meat' available in the shops. This is unavoidable at times, but will always prefer fresh and free to the supermarket equivalent.

[88b]

Personally I don't like rabbit or pigeon so I don't shoot them. I'm not allowed to shoot lamb chops or steak and neither are considered pests or roam freely. So I don't shoot game, I don't have a problem with anyone who does it properly and understand why many do it. I would like to shoot vermin but apparently I'm not allowed to while they drive their Transits and ring bells

[Chris Bb]

Personally I don't like rabbit or pigeon so I don't shoot them. I'm not allowed to shoot lamb chops or steak and neither are considered pests or roam freely. So I don't shoot game, I don't have a problem with anyone who does it properly and understand why many do it. I would like to shoot vermin but apparently I'm not allowed to while they drive their Transits and ring bells

+1

[islandgun]

Vegetarians simply haven't thought it through they are quite happy to eat dairy produce, wear leather etc. The bye product of dairy production is bull calves do we kill them at birth (some are already) British countryside is shaped by agriculture with a lot of marginal land only suitable for livestock production. I raise livestock to provide food for my family I also shoot and fish for the same reason. the animals my family eat are killed with the respect and are sustainable and very good to eat especially with home grown veg, vegetable production has pollution issues (agricultural runoff) which is however a different topic. The bottom line is would you rather be a pheasant or a battery hen

[kyska]

As I've said before.

 

It makes me feel omnipotent and feeds my masturbatory needs.

 

Simples.

[FalconFN]

As I've said before.

 

It makes me feel omnipotent and feeds my masturbatory needs.

 

Simples.

[kent]

Because man is the ultimate Apex predator. Contrary to what others have said about vegetarians I find most true veggies are very willing to except what we do. To back my claim up a friend and his wife were coming to eat at ours a while back (she had been a veggie most of her 1/2 century but had recently started to review her diet some after health issues) anyway she now ate certain meats, I had planned roast Pork and asked his opinion if that might be OK with her. The reply came back no sorry, she says don't like the way they are kept and the fact that they are an intelligent animal. Ok how about some venison I suggested half in jest, yet he toddled off to ask before I could stop him. She came to the phone, she asked if I had shot it "eek" "Yes, I did" I admitted somewhat bashfully. "Ok I will have that, I know you wouldn't have let it suffer and it will have had a good life living free". Jeepers! nearly fell over- BUT this is how many people feel.

Antis are antis because they are Anti, if it wasn't shooting and hunting it would just be something else. How can a genuine caring person talk of violence against other humans or openly wish for them to come to harm? they cannot and I recon the whole world sees them as what they are as a result Narky little jumped up fools out looking for trouble with a holyier than tho' misguided attitude. There will always be something for the protester to protest about, its just the way they are

[oscarsdad]

Because man is the ultimate Apex predator. Contrary to what others have said about vegetarians I find most true veggies are very willing to except what we do. To back my claim up a friend and his wife were coming to eat at ours a while back (she had been a veggie most of her 1/2 century but had recently started to review her diet some after health issues) anyway she now ate certain meats, I had planned roast Pork and asked his opinion if that might be OK with her. The reply came back no sorry, she says don't like the way they are kept and the fact that they are an intelligent animal. Ok how about some venison I suggested half in jest, yet he toddled off to ask before I could stop him. She came to the phone, she asked if I had shot it "eek" "Yes, I did" I admitted somewhat bashfully. "Ok I will have that, I know you wouldn't have let it suffer and it will have had a good life living free". Jeepers! nearly fell over- BUT this is how many people feel.

Antis are antis because they are Anti, if it wasn't shooting and hunting it would just be something else. How can a genuine caring person talk of violence against other humans or openly wish for them to come to harm? they cannot and I recon the whole world sees them as what they are as a result Narky little jumped up fools out looking for trouble with a holyier than tho' misguided attitude. There will always be something for the protester to protest about, its just the way they are

Excellent point - I try my best to only eat meat that I or my friends have shot - sometimes meat from other sources cannot be avoided and on more than one occasion I have had vegetarian food to avoid cheap meat.

 

I object to the terrible animal welfare involved in cheap supermarket meat and equally as bad the religious slaughter of meat and then no requirements to tell me that some mumbo jumbo was chanted over the poor animal as it was terrified and having its throat cut.

 

I am in the fortunate postion of only needing to shoot edible quarry - if I can't or won't eat it then I don't shoot it...as above, it's wild, free range, sustainable and above all high welfare meat with no chemicals, antibiotics or stress (obviously we don't always have a clean kill but we end all suffering as soon as is humanly possible).

 

I have an awful lot more respect for vegans who object to me shooting than I do for the ignorant supermarket halal chicken munching anti.