Anyone else feel 'bad' after shooting something?

[davemata]

The one shot I wish I NEVER took, and I still do, this is so bad I've never even told my fiancee (she'll hate my guts)...

Good idea, keep it to you.

 

[Slowdive]

I've always asked myself this....what is more ethical, killing your own food or letting someone else kill it for you? I'm not a hunter, but I believe that hunting is more ethical than your average factory raised game packaged up at the grocery store. The animal gets to live in its natural habitat, without hormones or engineered food. It isn't born, fed, and killed in a pen. Most hunters I know have more respect for the food on their table than the "civilized" anti-hunting yuppie suburbanite who buys their meat at Whole Foods and ends up throwing half of it away. Unless you are a strict vegetarian its hard to argue that hunting (for food) is unethical. Even hard core liberal, anti-gun, omnivores that I've met believe this...or at least concede that not agreeing to this would make them a hypocrite of the highest order.

 

[SheepDog_B]

I realize that this is MA, but geez....suck it up!

Sad about a porcupine....really? How would you feel if it unloaded on a pet or a kid?

Do you also grieve over dead chipmunks, mice, rats, etc.? All very destructive and virtually begging to be 'taken out'!

I had to take my dog to the animal hospital at 2:30 am one morning when she came back in with quills all in the side of her face.
Vet ER trips suck!
Don't feel bad after blasting porky.

 

[SheepDog_B]

Growing up in Lebanon, I had access to a shotgun/rifle as early as 12-13yrs old. I'd go hunting all by myself in the fields around our mountain house most summer days. I've shot many birds when I was a kid. Never really felt bad except when I had to kill a wounded bird. That was always tough for me. I've killed many lizards, snakes... NEVER felt bad haha.

The one shot I wish I NEVER took, and I still do, this is so bad I've never even told my fiancee (she'll hate my guts)...

Story goes like this; stray dog birthed a litter somewhere around our garden, and as soon as the dogs could walk, they would dig up all our plants, flowers, vegetables, drive our dog nuts... for a couple weeks we'd try to throw stones to scare them, try to catch them... nothing worked. They kept coming back and causing chaos. One day I happened to be coming back from hunting and had my 20gauge... Before thinking, I aimed and took the shot. One puppy down. I was devastated once I realized what I had done, and at my young age, I was on the verge of tears. My grandpa stepped in, helped me clean up the mess, and told me it was ok, and that I did what I had to do (lol, that worked for me when I was a kid). Now I know that was retarded.

A puppy killer! You must be SWAT!

 

[s4mt3k]

A puppy killer! You must be SWAT!

Oh God, pls don't say that.... I friggin love dogs [sad2]

 

[Titan]

So, let me see if I understand correctly.

You think that you can flip me the bird and make it okay by tacking on a smiley emoticon?

 

[davemata]

Oh God, pls don't say that.... I friggin love dogs [sad2]

We're dumb when we're kids, that's for sure. I took a shot at a cat once when I was really young, missed and took a hand to the back of the head. Learned it quick.

 

[GML]

Maybe we can progress to the point when the goal will be to stalk the game and give it hug. You can't feel guilty giving a black bear a hug. Somebody please deliver the unicorns and rainbows we were promised.

I have nothing against hunting at all. I am actually going to be hunting for the first time this year. For me, it's all a matter of having a closer connection to the food I eat. I fully understand that an animal has to die in order for me to survive. That being said, there is no way I will ever not feel bad about ending something's life, and I will never hunt for sport, only survival. If that makes me a pussy, so be it.

 

[Slowdive]

That being said, there is no way I will ever not feel bad about ending something's life, and I will never hunt for sport, only survival.

So at what point down the animal kingdom hierarchy do you not feel bad about non-survival related killing? A gopher, rabbit, squirrel, rat, mouse, snake, bee, fly, spider, mosquito..... Why did you pick whatever cutoff you picked? What was your criteria and rational?

I don't present this as a criticism to your views, but as a general philosophical question . I've asked myself this very thing, and frankly what I came up with is little more than some non-defensible arbitrary standard that I can live with.

 

[GML]

So at what point down the animal kingdom hierarchy do you not feel bad about non-survival related killing? A gopher, rabbit, squirrel, rat, mouse, snake, bee, fly, spider, mosquito..... Why did you pick whatever cutoff you picked? What was your criteria and rational?

I don't present this as a criticism to your views, but as a general philosophical question . I've asked myself this very thing, and frankly what I came up with is little more than some non-defensible arbitrary standard that I can live with.

I've thought about it before as well, and honestly I think all life is important, regardless of where it stands in the animal kingdom. I could never kill any animal for the sake of it, but even if I have good reason to, a part of me will still feel bad about ending a life. That's just my opinion though; it's not my place to tell others how they should feel (I'm not the government )

 

[ptanks56]

I'd say it would be more of a problem to not feel anything when you take the life of something.

+1

My thoughts exactly.

+1
I have had to shoot a rabid racoon and a woodchuck. Felt kinda off, about it. Would in the past hunt and use every part I could for food and the hide, along with some of the big bones for handles if I could and it was better.
However, recently had to "Fix bayonets" (garden hoes and any sharp hand tool) and go Hand to Hand with giant rats eating my barn, didn't feel too bad about those.

 

[ChargingCharlie]

So, let me see if I understand correctly.

You think that you can flip me the bird and make it okay by tacking on a smiley emoticon?

Lighten up. You've never flipped off a friend in a fun way for laughing at you. That's all I was doing, but if it hurt your feelings then I'll delete it. I figured that you could take a joke based on your previous reply to my opinion but I guess I was wrong.

 

[davemata]

 

[GunGrey]

I have yet to feel bad about killing any animal and probably wont feel bad. but thats just me i dont kill animals out of enjoyment its kind of a waste

 

[Billsail]

I have yet to feel bad about killing any animal and probably wont feel bad. but thats just me i dont kill animals out of enjoyment its kind of a waste

I think for some of us, it's not about feeling bad, it's about the complete lack of joy in ending a life. Thrill of the hunt, and that perfect, well placed shot, good. The kill, not so much.

 

[GML]

I think for some of us, it's not about feeling bad, it's about the complete lack of joy in ending a life. Thrill of the hunt, and that perfect, well placed shot, good. The kill, not so much.

Exactly.

 

[ChargingCharlie]

I think for some of us, it's not about feeling bad, it's about the complete lack of joy in ending a life. Thrill of the hunt, and that perfect, well placed shot, good. The kill, not so much.

That's what I was trying to get at but I did a really bad job articulating it.

 

[mike o]

Best reply and never so true, "I think a healthy respect for life is a good thing and a slight pang of guilt/regret/whatever isn't bad, and isn't out of the ordinary." I hunt but have a huge respect of life. The guilt one feels if it not done humanely is huge. "That's the difference between a hunter and a killer." Myself, I'll practice at least once a week just to ensure of that one proper shot.