hunting vs. killing
 

this may or may not have been brought up before, but here it goes. do people hunt anymore? or do we just sit in blinds and kill deer over bait? i know you elk hunters walk your butt off. but is taking a 500 yard shot really hunting or sniping? i know there is a magnum craze going on right now, but do you really need that much gun? i have been hunting in pennsylvania for 13 years now. i have strictly used a 30-30 to take 13 deer. i have now upgraded (or modernized) to a 7mm-08. the 30-30 was more than enough gun for every deer i have taken. all shot 100 yrds or less. i take one deer a year because that is all i can eat. i know some people eat more and that is fine in my opinion. i used to watch these hunting shows on tv, and see those guys in there blinds hunting over bait. do they eat there deer? when is the sport taken out of hunting? i will not shoot bear beacause i will not eat it. that is how i was brought up i guess. it just frustrates me to see people shoot a bear, deer, elk, etc. for no other reason other than to sell a product, or just for the sake of shooting it, or having another trophy to hang on the wall. i can understand someone wanting to go on a hunt of their life. paying a lot of money for it, and getting there trophy. where do you draw the line for hunting. imho, hunting is when you stand at a tree all day rain, snow, wind, waiting for that buck to walk by. or stalking for hours to get that perfect shot. getting up close and personal with the animal. not sitting in your cozy cabin with a fresh bag of deer chow of peanut butter. maybe i was just raised different than other people. my father is the best deer hunter i have ever seen. perfect shot and cool under pressure. he has shot just about everything in the lower 48 states. the largest rifle he has used is a 30-06. i do not want to put any one down or insult them by this. i would really like to hear other peoples opinion on this subject. all i have to go by is waht my father has taught me and my own feelings. i do not live or hunt in texas or wyoming, etc, or other states, so i am ignorant to the laws and ways of hunting in other states. please feel free to express your opinion.

RE: hunting vs. killing
 

I think if you just go out there to kill a deer for the meat why would you care how you kill it. Whether you are in a blind or taking a 400 yard shot... your just going to eat it right? I enjoy the outdoors as a whole; scouting, doing food plots, learning the animals and can never stop learning and enjoying myself. If you are in a blind eating snackes waiting for a buck or doe to come by and shoot it... its hunting. If you have sat in your tree for the whole day freezing and dont see anything.. its hunting.

if you go fishing and dont catch anything all day and go to a small stocked pond and catch fish you where still fishing.

I enjoy hunting most big game animals and if i dont eat them i give the meat to someone who will. I personally dont hunt for the meat but for the trophy of hunting the animal. I do eat allot of the game i kill but not all of it.

When you take a kid out for the first time to hunt he is not trying to kill the animal to bring home food for the family but to enjoy the outdoors.

hope this will broaden your opinion ... peace :)

RE: hunting vs. killing
 

Do you ask them how your burger died when you go to McD's. I hate to tell you but killing is part of the game. First you hunt then you kill. If you want you can harvest it or say you shot it but when you take a life it's killing.Poeple try to clean it up, but thats what predators do they kill.Don't get me wrong I'm not putting you down,just some people have problems with it.

RE: hunting vs. killing
 

Sometimes just plain killin' is needed, and lots of it. Just ask the 'Bama boys with their 64 deer limit, even at that they are fallin' behind.

RE: hunting vs. killing
 

Well said recurve, slamfire how come they have a 64 deer limit?! overpopulation?

RE: hunting vs. killing
 

actually in most of the state it's more than 64, don't have the exact numbers but it's 2 deer a day only one can be an antlered buck, or you can kill 2 does, in some counties this is all thru bow m/l'er and gun season, some counties have fewer "doe days". the bad part is when you start busting a few does they go nocturnel very quick so it's not as crazy as it sounds, i have killed over 30 deer in a single season, wont ever do that again, i hunt on 3 different pieces of property, one needs some thinning, my best place has a very good buck/doe ratio, i think it has a lot to do with the area your in. and a lot of people here still refuse to kill a doe, i don't know why they eat just as good or better than a tough old buck[&o], makes no sense to me.

as far as the hunting verses killing i feel the same as jtenute

RE: hunting vs. killing
 

Both the same

RE: hunting vs. killing
 

Same difference. As long as the animal is not wasted, its meat in the freezer. It's all in how you look at what your doing. There is a reward at the end of a good day of hunting. No reward for just going out killing. I think of killing as applied to varmits or unwanted animals. Either can be awfully fun though.:D

RE: hunting vs. killing
 

Yawn, Yawn! Ho-hum, another "I'm such a better hunter and sportsman than the rest of you guys," thread!
Personally, I hunt for sport, for recreation, for trophy! I enjoy it all! The scouting, the stand building, the camping, even the processing! At the end of the day, I consider it to be a good day, without firing a shot! However, the ultimate goal IS to put game in the pot! If not, why would you be carrying around a loaded gun? You'd be carrying a camera instead, but then you can't really miss with a camera, so thats not hunting!
Pure "sport hunting," is a relatively modern concept! When feeding the family was the main priority, it didn't matter what type of weapon you used, whether or not you hunted over bait, or even if you used dogs in the hunt! So now, it doesn't really matter either, if you use a modern, or primitive weapon, stalk, stand hunt, or use modern camo, and gadgetry!
Enjoy the outdoors, do it right, by doing it legal, and all is well!

RE: hunting vs. killing
 

According to the Game Dept's web sight, the hunter harvest doesn't keep up with the herd increase. The Alabama non-resident license costs less than the Tennessee Resident license. [:-]

RE: hunting vs. killing
 

As long as I keep eating tag soup instead of venison I'm sticking with hunting . ;)

RE: hunting vs. killing
 

Hunting vs. Killing There is a difference. I like to refer to it as Hunting vs. Harvesting. There just a few instances where I call it Killing or Harvesting instead of Hunting. Like canned hunts for example, or high fenced hunting. I'm not saying it's all wrong and bad, just not hunting. But that's my opinion, everybody has that.

RE: hunting vs. killing
 

I don't think anything has changed. Sure this baiting crap is out of control IMO. But in the old days, I heard my grandfather talk about driving mostly for deer.

For me niether are truely hunting. But for another guy it is. Its something that you have to decide for yourself and make up your mind on "are you having fun".

RE: hunting vs. killing
 

Hunting is a lot of things to a lot of different people. Had your grown up in a different state you would have different views. The most important thing I've come to learn is not knock other peoples styles and choices in thier hunting methods. Some things I may not agree or understand, but its not my place to tell them it isn't right for them.

RE: hunting vs. killing
 

I agree with rybohunter. So much of what you consider to be acceptable is based on what you are used to,what the methods were in the area where you grew up.I would also agree with others who have said that we need to be careful not to sit in judgement because someone else's preferred method doesn't match our own. The bottom line for me is,is it legal in the state you are hunting.While I may not choose to bait or drive or hunt with a particular weapon I will not criticize someone else who chooses to,provided it is legal.
As it relates to consumption,as long as whatever is shot is eaten either by myself or someone else I would have no other ethical concern.
Lastly as it relates to simplicity in the equipment we use or using things out of pure necessity.I agree that most of us over analyze the equipment we use and the importance of what we use,there is a lot to be said for getting back to the basics.Having said that though,I definitely enjoy always pursuing equipment that it is better more dependable,things that will contribute to my effectiveness.Most of us,myself included would be better off to focus on being more skilled hunters than the "latest this" or the "newest that".Again though I would never criticize any one for their pursuit of those things!

RE: hunting vs. killing
 

Since I'm selective in what I shoot and I don't shoot everything I see, I guess It means I'm hunting.:eek:

Others have said it well. Hunting is enjoying the outdoors. If I see a good buck or a doe that offers a high percentage shot I'll take it and hopefully kill the animal. If there is one thing the hunting community needs to do is stick together no matter what. You and I may not agree with hunting over bait but if it's legal and someone wants to, we as hunters need to support their way of hunting. When we hunters divide ourselves into groups and critque each others style of hunting or even worse, oppose a legal method of hunting all we do is hurt hunting in general.

Example, In Maine we had a referendum of baiting bear. There were actually hunters (non bear hunters) who voted to have bear baiting banned because they didn't like the method of hunting. This sickens me. If it's legal, it's hunting and I support it.

Just my $0.02

RE: hunting vs. killing
 

well to ME i think that shooting animals over a pile of corn or hunting high fenced areas is not what I would call hunting. other then that i say get out there and enjoy yourself! i watch to many hunting shows where guys throw out a pile of corn and shoot the big buck that comes in to eat it and i don't think that is right. they know the corn isn't natural and they are in a more relaxed state and will allow you to get away with just about anything.

i also never shoot more then what i can eat, and i don't shoot animals that i won't eat unless it is going to freinds/family that would enjoy it

RE: hunting vs. killing
 

thanks to all who have replyed. i agree with a lot of the statments that have been made. i do not mean to be argumentative. i am just trying to get a better understanding of how and why people hunt the way they do. i'm not trying to put anyone down, or insult them. it just seems that the challange is being taken out of hunting.

RE: hunting vs. killing
 

I climb a tree with my treestand and use my bow to hunt. I do not use bait or scent lures. I do use cover spray though. I consider this hunting. I believe using a gun to shoot a deer at several hundred yards is not hunting.

RE: hunting vs. killing
 

Either way we're doing what we're supposed to do!!! God put 'em here, We made guns, we take 'em down(however you prefer) and eat 'em!!!!!!:D

RE: hunting vs. killing
 

here's a way to put the challenge back into it, opening day,you have'nt showered for a week, you walk around(humming,singing, or whistling is entirely up to you) and hop that you can kill one(just for food now) with your bow(made out of a stick and twine) without any modern technology. I bet that would be a challenge!!!!!!:D

RE: hunting vs. killing
 

the challenge has been taken out of hunting?????? what??????

i've been deer hunting since i was ten and i finally got one this past season when i was 15. it wasn't easy and i was using modern technology. just because we find better ways to do things doesn't mean you still don't have to work. whether you hunt deer from 500 yards away or up close and personal at ten yards, no matter how much new technology you use it still doesn't guarantee the kill. human error plays a big part and of course the animals don't always cooperate. so unless you're hunting fenced in animals that might as well be tied down, nothing is 100 percent in hunting.

RE: hunting vs. killing
 

The plain and simple truth is that while prosperity is good people can't handle it. If our lives were more difficult we would have less time to worry about what other people are doing.