Most any hunter would agree that you used a poor example to defend your case of shooting several deer. Simple as that. If I were you, I would have retracted it and come up with a better reason.

Did I jump the gun? No. Did I ever say you were un-ethical? No.

The scenario you depicted, put all the emphasis on shooting another deer, and no concern as to why you couldnt find the first one. Thats un-ethical, in my eyes if not in yours. You never said you did that, so I wasnt calling you unethical, merely the example. That example in most instances would be unethical. Unless as you pointed out the deer fell into a deep river or off a big cliff etc. But what are the chances of that?

As for the antis, feel how-ever you like, but there is no denying that the majority despise hunting because they believe we dont recover animals. Thats the stats they are always throwing around. So if you are going to give an hour tracking job on an animal that could otherwise be recovered, you are lowering our recovery rate, and giving them a better reason to dispose of our sport. I dont want that, none of us should.

As for my ethics, of course you would question them. I cant prove it, but I can assure you that I wouldnt shoot the 180class buck....I would feel like a total a-hole but, hey, thats life. I do what I deem right, not to mention it wouldnt be legal, and I would fear that I may lose one of the animals due to greed. There are plenty of reasons not to shoot him.

I know its easy to sit here and preach, and then go and do something totally different. But thats not what I do. I care about this sport, and I dont like hearing non-sense. What you said about shooting a deer, tracking it and not finding it, and then climbing back in your stand to shoot another one, tells me two things. You most likely didnt give it your all to find that animal, and secondly you place the majority of emphasis on shooting game.

Maybe thats not the case, but from that example it would certainly seem that way. In my opinion there is a very weak, if any, case for shooting two animals in one sitting. Im glad to see that most hunters frown upon that action.