wolfo44

Ok first i like to say hello all i just registerd and im happy to be part of a new forums. K im at a crossroads here for a while ive considered hunting. I have never been hunting in my life but seeing as i love to fish and i love the woods i thought hey i might like hunting too.
But the thing is i really like animals but like i said hunting seems cool. *Sigh* i dont know what im asking here like your fist deer is there a feeling of guilt or regret? does that go away? I think i could go out a hunt and enjoy it, its just this nagging feeling about the animal. I dont want it to suffer but i have my heart set on bow hunting. Any help would be greatly appreciated if you can understand my problem.

noidurism

well first off you should view hunting as food for survival so to speak. don't get caught up in all this big rack craze or trophy hunting.
as for an animal suffering. if you shoot them in the heart or lungs they'll suffer very little. and to do this all i can say is practice,practice,and practice.the more you practice ,the more consistant your your shooting will be to make a good shot placement and with that you'll feel more comfortable and confident.
oh and also this is a great place to learn alot!

wolfo44

Thank you so much. Yes i dont want to hunt for trophys or any of that (mabye take the antlers of my first buck). Ok so im 15 and know nothing about hunting is their a place here for beginers? (like good bows arrows tree stands what to do what not to do) Im hoping for a bow for my birthday and extra stuff for christmas.

lucky_shot

the excitement will over power the guilt. i'm sure if you google deer hunting for beginners you'll be able to find plenty of information, but your best bet is to get out there and find out what works for you.
good luck

kswild

Let me help you over the crossroads. First of all welcome to the wonderful world of hunting. Here is a thread for you. Watch the vid and if you have any questions please do not hesitate to ask. Do you feel guilty when you bite into a Mcdonalds hamburger? Neither should you when you go shopping for deer steak. That's what hunting is shopping for dinner. As far as the animal suffering. Practice, practice, practice did I mention practice! Get proficient with your weapon. Shoot until it hurts. Get so good you can shoot nice tight groups with your eyes closed. Learn all you can about your prey. There is much to learn and asking questions is a very good way to learn. Good luck and happy hunting!
Live it up! Doug

sprintflyer

First let me welcome you. Now, this is about as straight as I can put it. I can only speak for myself but I did feel some guilt and still do just a tiny bit every kill. I know what I'm doing and why but it's still there just in the back of my mind. But, as stated above, you will be so pumped soon after your first deer you will get over it as I do.

The bottom line is ANYTHING that is killed for food will endure some degree of suffering. The burger that you ate last suffered much more than a double lunged deer ever will tho. You are going to make some mistakes as we all have but the best advice I can give you is try to find a mentor to help you get started. Read everything you can get your hands on about not only hunting but the game anamal you hunt.

A good place to start would be the after the shot thread in "bowhunting"

I hope I didn't discourage you but wanted to give you all the info I could. Good luck and again, welcome

timbercruiser

I've been deer hunting for close to 44 years and have killed a pile of deer. I don't think the need to feed myself or my family has ever been a major consideration for me to hunt. I've probably given away 90% of the deer I have killed. It's just something I enjoy. I guarantee you can go to the local farmer and buy and process a farm raised beef a lot cheaper than you will ever get by hunting for meat.

SJAdventures

Don't think for a minute you will hunt for any length of time and not make a bad hit that will cause the animal to suffer or wound one you never find. Not trying to be negative, but it is a fact of hunting sooner or later. You can try to minimize the chances by practicing until your very proficient with your weapon and making sure you take nothing but high % shots at the animals your hunting but it will happen if you hunt long enough so prepare yourself to handle it in advance. You have to settle it in your mind that you did everything in your power to make a good humane shot but just didn't get it done that time for what ever reason.

sussexhunter

One point I didn't see brought up is, if nobody killed the deer, they would starve to death. It would be my preference to die a short death from a gun shot than a long drawn out death from starvation. I think once you kill your first deer, all your reservations will be behind you. The best advice I could give you for getting started, is to go to a local gun shop or bow shop and tell them that you want to hunt whitetails and have no idea what you are doing and have no one to show you. I don't know many people that could say no to that. I have read a mess of info and listened to a lot of people, and not to say I didn't learn anything from them, because I did, but the best way to learn is to get out there and watch. You don't always have to worry about killing a deer, you can just watch them sometimes and enjoy seeing something many folks will never see up close.

Sheridan

It's all about becoming part of nature again and getting back in touch with our place on this earth.


"......it's the circle of life !"


Remember; That's why they call it hunting and not shopping.


Very fulfilling once you become a participant and truly understand and apperciate it.