I'd never turn anti or anything like that. I understand the need to hunt and control populations an such. I've been in many arguements over the years with relatives, co workers and others to explain the need to hunt.

I use to be obsessed with filling all my tags ( West Virginia and Pennsylvania ) There was about a 12 year stretch that I would bag 6,7 or 8 deer in a year. I'd keep acouple and give some to friends or relatives. My dad use to get a little upset that I would kill more than I needed to. He didn't like that I'd shoot them just to give away. he said something was wrongif I felt I needed to fill all my tags.I guess now, I see that he was right.

I enjoy hunting with my kids and being with them when they get deer. But its different when I shoot it now. I don't know.


This has been brewing in me for a few years. One deer in paticular. It was a small button buck I hit with a bow. I tracked it several hundred yards. It would get up and run but was too far to get another good shot at. When I finally caught up to it, it just looked at me. I could see in its eyes that it gave up. It could have got up and run but it didn't. It just looked at me as if to say" go ahead, I give up, you won" Ever since then the killing started to bother me. I kept it up a few more years. But now looking into the eyes of my backyard deer, I can't shake the guilt feeling. I don't know. Its hard to explain. I was hoping someone on here felt this way too.