Bowhunting..is it ethical??
10-28-2006, 11:48 AM
#11
Super Moderator
Join Date: Feb 2004
Location: Central Utah
Posts: 4,815
RE: Bowhunting..is it ethical??
ORIGINAL: muley69
From a strictly ethical standpoint, many more deer are wounded with bowhunting then with gun hunting,
From a strictly ethical standpoint, many more deer are wounded with bowhunting then with gun hunting,
The percentages might be different, but not even the 'sharpshooters' can boast a zero wounding rate.
Strive to be accurate, take onlyhigh percentage shots within your effective range, obey the game lawsand you should be able to sleep at night.
10-28-2006, 11:50 AM
#12
Dominant Buck
Thread Starter
Join Date: Jan 2005
Location: Central Florida
Posts: 25,116
RE: Bowhunting..is it ethical??
Thanks Terry,
I'm at the age of 52 where ya start re evaluating everything .
I'll tell ya what....those shakes ya get in that stand is a trip. I like that....Talk about an adrenalin rush. Whew dawgy.[8D]
I'm at the age of 52 where ya start re evaluating everything .
I'll tell ya what....those shakes ya get in that stand is a trip. I like that....Talk about an adrenalin rush. Whew dawgy.[8D]
10-28-2006, 12:04 PM
#13
Join Date: Sep 2006
Location:
Posts: 75
RE: Bowhunting..is it ethical??
I shot a doe opening weekend this year at a distance of 11 yards with my bow. An unseen branch altered the arrows path, so instead of hitting vitals, the arrow severed the spine. Instant death. I've shot other deer and hogs with a bow and they've all gone anywhere from 20 to 100 yards. On the other hand, a few years ago I shot a doe during "Doe Week" with my Mossberg Model 800AL chambered in .308win. Distance was 20 yards with a 160gr CoreLokt. The bullet devastated the heart(i.e. turned it to cherry Jell-o) yet the deer still ran 100 yards.
Deer, as well as most game animals, are incredible creatures. Most humans, upon being shot with a gun, simply slump to the floor and go into shock. Deer will run on pure adrenaline. I know for a FACT that the above mentioned doe did not have a heartbeat a fraction of a second after the shot. I mean, there was no heart left. Yet she had enough in her to run at full speed for 100 yards.
Hunting, be it with gun or bow, is ethical. I think we should spend less time worrying about the deer's feelings and spend more time improoving our accuracy. We should spend less time coming up with ways of killing deer faster(because every single deer will die at a different rate) and spend more time sharing the great outdoors with our children. We should spend less time fighting PETA and spend more time doing our part to keep the wild places wild.
Death is a natural part of life. Deer are prey by design. No deer will be happy about dying. No animal will smile and go gently. Kill the animal. Process the meat. Feed your family.
Kind Regards,
Axel
Deer, as well as most game animals, are incredible creatures. Most humans, upon being shot with a gun, simply slump to the floor and go into shock. Deer will run on pure adrenaline. I know for a FACT that the above mentioned doe did not have a heartbeat a fraction of a second after the shot. I mean, there was no heart left. Yet she had enough in her to run at full speed for 100 yards.
Hunting, be it with gun or bow, is ethical. I think we should spend less time worrying about the deer's feelings and spend more time improoving our accuracy. We should spend less time coming up with ways of killing deer faster(because every single deer will die at a different rate) and spend more time sharing the great outdoors with our children. We should spend less time fighting PETA and spend more time doing our part to keep the wild places wild.
Death is a natural part of life. Deer are prey by design. No deer will be happy about dying. No animal will smile and go gently. Kill the animal. Process the meat. Feed your family.
Kind Regards,
Axel
10-28-2006, 12:57 PM
#14
Nontypical Buck
Join Date: Nov 2005
Location:
Posts: 2,621
RE: Bowhunting..is it ethical??
I believe bowhunting is ethical.
I realize that many deer are hit and lost by bowhunters. But I also believe many of those deer survive. I'll give a few examples.
Many years ago, I hunted a private piece of property. Their was a new hunter to the property. The owner did not allow shooting does, only bucks.
Every evening a doe would enter this small field with her offspring. I observed them many evenings. One evening they did not come out. As I went to my truck, the new hunter informed me that he hit the doe. I told him that the owner did not want does shot, but he didn't know that.
I helped himtrack the deer. We went several hundred yards and it was bleeding pretty good but never bedded. I suggested he come back in the morning and take up the trail.
For the next several days, the 2 fawns came to the field by theirselves. I felt a little bad for them. I never saw the other hunter again. I wondered if he found the doe or not. Maybe he didn't even look because the owner didn't allow doe hunting. Who knew?
After about a week I saw the big doe come out with her fawns. She had lived. She had two big scabs on each side at the base of her neck but seemed to be doing alright.
Story#2
I had a decent 10 pt buck coming to the backyardfeeder about 4 years ago. He started showing up right before rifle season. He too had two scabs each side, between his shoulder blades and base of his neck. He most likely was hit by an archer. He walked with a slight limp but seemed to be alright.
When deer are hit with a rifle, I think that they receive more damage to muscles and such and are less likely to recover.
I've taken many deer with rifle and bow.They all react differently at the shot but the bow deer, many times, don't act like they are in a great deal of pain when hit. That's just my observation.
I think that bowhunting is a great challenge and the deer have a much better chance of getting away.
Shot placement is vital as well as tracking skills to be successful. I also feel your pain when hearing stories of the one that someone couldn't find. Been there myself a few times. It happens. But, all in all, bowhunting is ethical and humane.
I realize that many deer are hit and lost by bowhunters. But I also believe many of those deer survive. I'll give a few examples.
Many years ago, I hunted a private piece of property. Their was a new hunter to the property. The owner did not allow shooting does, only bucks.
Every evening a doe would enter this small field with her offspring. I observed them many evenings. One evening they did not come out. As I went to my truck, the new hunter informed me that he hit the doe. I told him that the owner did not want does shot, but he didn't know that.
I helped himtrack the deer. We went several hundred yards and it was bleeding pretty good but never bedded. I suggested he come back in the morning and take up the trail.
For the next several days, the 2 fawns came to the field by theirselves. I felt a little bad for them. I never saw the other hunter again. I wondered if he found the doe or not. Maybe he didn't even look because the owner didn't allow doe hunting. Who knew?
After about a week I saw the big doe come out with her fawns. She had lived. She had two big scabs on each side at the base of her neck but seemed to be doing alright.
Story#2
I had a decent 10 pt buck coming to the backyardfeeder about 4 years ago. He started showing up right before rifle season. He too had two scabs each side, between his shoulder blades and base of his neck. He most likely was hit by an archer. He walked with a slight limp but seemed to be alright.
When deer are hit with a rifle, I think that they receive more damage to muscles and such and are less likely to recover.
I've taken many deer with rifle and bow.They all react differently at the shot but the bow deer, many times, don't act like they are in a great deal of pain when hit. That's just my observation.
I think that bowhunting is a great challenge and the deer have a much better chance of getting away.
Shot placement is vital as well as tracking skills to be successful. I also feel your pain when hearing stories of the one that someone couldn't find. Been there myself a few times. It happens. But, all in all, bowhunting is ethical and humane.
10-28-2006, 01:07 PM
#15
Nontypical Buck
Join Date: Aug 2005
Location: marshallville, ohio
Posts: 3,221
RE: Bowhunting..is it ethical??
I'm not so sure you want to practice with broadheads. Start with feild tips, You dont want to miss the first couple times, loose an arrow and find it with a foot or a tire. Fine tune with broadheads. The broadheads i use run about $30 for 3 heads. I'm not going to pay that for practice. Plus you could be using damaged broadheads when practicing and when you go to shoot a new head to check one more time before you go out you will find that the head is shooting in a total different place than where your "old" broadheads were. Fine tune!
10-28-2006, 02:06 PM
#16
Dominant Buck
Thread Starter
Join Date: Jan 2005
Location: Central Florida
Posts: 25,116
RE: Bowhunting..is it ethical??
I'm not so sure you want to practice with broadheads. Start with feild tips, You dont want to miss the first couple times, loose an arrow and find it with a foot or a tire.
Squirrel,
I appreciate the concern.... I've been shooting for 4 years. My groups are decent. I'd like to get them into the 50cent piece before the next season. Many guys can easily shoot 50 cent groups.NO matter how good someone is ..it takes discipline to not shoot at a deer that doesn't present a good shot with a bow.
c7
Squirrel,
I appreciate the concern.... I've been shooting for 4 years. My groups are decent. I'd like to get them into the 50cent piece before the next season. Many guys can easily shoot 50 cent groups.NO matter how good someone is ..it takes discipline to not shoot at a deer that doesn't present a good shot with a bow.
c7
10-28-2006, 05:42 PM
#17
Join Date: Aug 2003
Location: Beautiful Western Montana
Posts: 2,308
RE: Bowhunting..is it ethical??
ORIGINAL: HNI_Christine
Not to be a pain, but more deer are wounded by gun hunters. (in simple overall numbers)
The percentages might be different, but not even the 'sharpshooters' can boast a zero wounding rate.
Strive to be accurate, take onlyhigh percentage shots within your effective range, obey the game lawsand you should be able to sleep at night.
When dealing with the question of ethics, I believe the only important number is: which activity offers the greatest chance of wounding an animal, the answer is unequivically a bow. At least in terms of modern hunting equipment. Ethics is a sticky question in general, is it ethical to sit in a tree and lie in wait? Is it ethical to use modern technology, or perhaps even unethical NOT to use the most modern equipment. I guess the point is that ethics afield can get a little ridiculous like everything else. At the end of the day itis steak on hooves, and even if you don't recover it, you have fed some other critter and perhaps saved the animal from a very painful winter of starvation. That is not to say I condone wounding animals, but it happens. I will say I really don't see the need to post about it on here.
ORIGINAL: muley69
From a strictly ethical standpoint, many more deer are wounded with bowhunting then with gun hunting,
From a strictly ethical standpoint, many more deer are wounded with bowhunting then with gun hunting,
The percentages might be different, but not even the 'sharpshooters' can boast a zero wounding rate.
Strive to be accurate, take onlyhigh percentage shots within your effective range, obey the game lawsand you should be able to sleep at night.
When dealing with the question of ethics, I believe the only important number is: which activity offers the greatest chance of wounding an animal, the answer is unequivically a bow. At least in terms of modern hunting equipment. Ethics is a sticky question in general, is it ethical to sit in a tree and lie in wait? Is it ethical to use modern technology, or perhaps even unethical NOT to use the most modern equipment. I guess the point is that ethics afield can get a little ridiculous like everything else. At the end of the day itis steak on hooves, and even if you don't recover it, you have fed some other critter and perhaps saved the animal from a very painful winter of starvation. That is not to say I condone wounding animals, but it happens. I will say I really don't see the need to post about it on here.
10-28-2006, 05:48 PM
#18
Join Date: Mar 2004
Location:
Posts: 13,082
RE: Bowhunting..is it ethical??
Personally, I believe bow hunting to be MORE ethical than gun hunting. I mean, look at the damage a rifle bullet does to a deer. Yes, I know sometimes it puts them down for the count and they never hear the gun go off....BUT....A razor sharp arrow is in and out of them so fast they have not a clue anything has happened. I've seen deer shot w/ a bow run off about 20 yards, stop, and look back to see if what ever it was is still following them. They just don't even know it...
I've shot 2 does this fall. COMBINED they ran about 60 yards, and from shot to finish on both was under 15 seconds. In fact, it was closer to 10.
I said something to my dad about an arrow killing a deer faster than a bullet...He got ticked off at me.....[&:] He just simply couldn't accept that an arrow works that fast....They do, if you hit them right. You gotta hit 'em right w/ a bullet too, though.
I've shot 2 does this fall. COMBINED they ran about 60 yards, and from shot to finish on both was under 15 seconds. In fact, it was closer to 10.
I said something to my dad about an arrow killing a deer faster than a bullet...He got ticked off at me.....[&:] He just simply couldn't accept that an arrow works that fast....They do, if you hit them right. You gotta hit 'em right w/ a bullet too, though.
10-28-2006, 06:48 PM
#20
Fork Horn
Join Date: Oct 2006
Location: galesville, wisconsin
Posts: 229
RE: Bowhunting..is it ethical??
I firmly believe bowhunting is more ethical than gun hunting. For starters, deer must come much closer to the bowhunter than for the gun hunter. Deer can't be shot at 100, 200, 300 yards with bows, so that right there gives them an edge. Secondly, when a deer is hit correctly or accurately with a bow, it usually doesn't live as long as it would if it was shot with a gun.