who here doesn't hunt?

[zippyfusenet]

Never had the opportunity. I'm a life-long city boy who took up shooting late in life. I eat meat and don't object to hunting, but I don't know how and have no one to teach me. I'd like to learn the art from some one experienced...probably best if I go unarmed the first time, keeping eyes and ears open.

 

[MD_Willington]

Hunted a few times with friends before I was married, never got back into it..

 

[Hawg]

or watched a buck pick up your scent trail after you showered in special, expensive, scent killing soap, laundered your clothes in it and washed your mouth out with peroxide?

I don't do any of that stuff or use cover scent. I smoke while I hunt and while I don't get a deer every time I go I always manage to get one or two every season. BTW deer seem to be attracted to cigarette smoke.

 

[beenthere]

Combination of age (69), arthritis and three back operations stopped the hunting. Helped me cut down my inventory but left an enjoyment hole. Some things you live with.

 

[Wleoff]

When I was younger, i hunted everything in North America except for grizzly and buffalo. My father grew up in South Texas and i was raised in the Florida Panhandle, so we hunted. Game is so scarce now and I don't hunt reserves, so I'm down to hunting varmints, such as coyotes or groundhogs. The panthers and black bear are gone in Florida. I've shot enough deer, that its like shooting cattle. Biggest challenge in the Southeast is wild hogs, but I'm getting too slow to have to climb a tree every now and then. So I kill paper and a rattlesnake every now and then. The trouble is, I remember how it use to be.

 

[raveneap]

In my younger days (50 + - years ago) I used to hunt but never really got in to it. Like to shoot, mostly handguns.

 

[mvpel]

Other: I don't hunt for mainly the same reasons I don't play checkers.

 

[hogdogs]

I eat therefore I hunt. I do not buy purdy clothes (camo) nor fancy shootin' irons... I just go out find me an edible critter and subdue it with dogs (wild hogs) or shoot it (deer) and bring it home to eat. Some things are shot to feed the dogs and some critters find something about my place appealing when they should stay away.
Brent

 

[Stevie-Ray]

There was an occasional frog hunt with .22s, but nope, not a hunter. Just a shooter.

 

[fbrown333@suddenlink]

I have hunted all my life. I how ever do not kill just to kill. I feed my family. While I was growing up we were poor and had no choice but to hunt to survive. Now that I am older I still hunt for meat but I also enjoy the outdoors and am teaching my sons to hunt.
I don't have to kill something every time I go hunting, sometimes I just sit and watch the woodland critters do their thing. It is peacefull in the forest and often find myself taking a nap.

PAX there are lots of places to hunt in Washington state. I grew up around Kettle Falls and Coleville area, small towns but good hunting. There are lots of national forest to hunt out there. As soon as we can sell our house we plan to move back to Washington/ Idaho area and get away from the eastern part of the country.
You can spend as much as or as little as you want to go hunting. Some peopl have to have all the little gadgets in order to hunt,me I take just what I need to do the job and have some type of backup plan if things go bad.

 

[YukonKid]

I don't kill for pleasure, but I do hunt from time to time. I enjoy being outside with my dog and horse/ATV. I like setting up camp and telling stories around a fire at night with my buddies. I love the rush when the animals are spotted and the the long wait ahead. I enjoy pouring coffee in a blind and trying to remember if I packed a snack. Hunting is an American tradition, I could not justify owning as many guns as I do if I was not a hunter. I do not kill for fun and it has never brought me pleasure, just a sense of accomplishment and pride in being able to provide for myself (you would not catch me stepping foot inside a Micky D's...that food has got to kill more people that guns and some of the people in there make me want to speed all the way to a gym)

Recently I have found myself turning away from big game, because I do not hunt to eat I do not need loads of meat and I prefer shotguns to rifles anyhow so i have been spending more time on shorelines and in wheat fields than on canyon tops. Hunting teaches valuable lessons that can be learned other places, although I always valued the lessons I learned with my father out in the field more than the ones I learned in my fraternity or from my first job interview.

So I am not a "if it moves if can be hunted and then eaten by me" kind of hunter, but I am still a hunter and although not proud of it, I am not ashamed either.

YK

 

[Jeffenwulf]

I'm no longer a hunter. When I was a kid I'd hunt anything that moved, from birds with a pellet gun to deer with a rifle. Always had to eat what I killed ... I stopped shooting birds pretty quickly. I'm not against hunting by any means, I just don't do it anymore. I'll let someone else do the messy work and deliver my burgers and steaks to me.

Now I just collect guns because I want to have them. I doubt you'll find many military members or veterans without at least one gun available to them. It just sort of seems to work out that way. Interesting, no?

-Jeff

 

[blume357]

As with many others... I hunted a good bit when I was young

have no desire to now, but don't really have a problem with most of those that still do.... really can't see the need to kill a hundred prairy dogs out west or 14,000 doves in South America.... etc... but,

If I was hungry and there were no grocery stores you better believe I'd go out and kill what ever I could find.

My main aim with my shooting is to try and improve my own abilities and keep the 'culture' alive.

 

[Arabia]

I grew up in a rural area with plenty of hunting opportunities, I just never had an interest in hunting. It is not in my genes. No one in my family hunts, or even owns gun for that matter. It just does not interest me. Now I do not have a problem with hunting. I actually support people that do hunt. But some of the hunters I have met at the local rifle range scare the hell out of me. They have no basic gun safety skills or common sense. I nearly got shot once by some kid who waved a loaded rifle around then accidentally pulled the trigger when the barrel was point in my direction. Luckily the rifle was pointed above my head. The kids father smacked him into the next week, but the father did not say anything when he was waving the gun around. Since then I do not go to the range during hunting season because of those types of clowns.

 

[shortwave]

As YukonKid stated, valuable lessons to be learned. I was about 8 or 9, just being aloud to carry gun hunting(prior I was the rabbit dog) and we were all out hunting. Walking down railroad tracks, went over bridge,looked down and saw a turtle. Shot turtle. Bad move on my part. After dad had chastised me profusely and taken my shotgun, I had to pack that turtle all day and clean it when i got home as we were always taught to eat what we shot. Dad further explained that it was rabbit season not turtle season Lesson learned.

 

[CGSteve8718]

After 5 pages, I guess I'll respond too.

I don't hunt, nor have I ever been hunting. Like some others here, I grew up in the city, and never had the opportunity from lack of people to take me. No one else in my family (except my brother) is even interested in firearms, and living in the city, certainly not hunting.

However, my mindset is this: I am not against anyone hunting any animal for whatever reason, but I don't think it's right to just kill an animal and not use it. If I were to go hunting one day, I'd make sure it would be an edible beast, and that I'd eat it. The one exception is for pests, and predatory animals, but again, living in the city, that becomes irrelevant except for bugs.

It's funny because I open up a box of Federal Power Shok shotshells and on the flap, it says "remember to take a kid hunting". I'm not old (still under 30) but I ain't gettin younger, and I'm waiting for someone to take me hunting.

 

[hogdogs]

CGSteve, I live in Florida and we have a fairly affordable non-resident license fee. Since you are under 39 you will need a hunter safety card... I think reciprocity rules allow most out of state cards. myfwc.com is the official site. If it interests you I will be hunting the heck out of the Eglin AFB wma this season. I will be gun hunting deer and hogs and than small game during respective seasons...
You are invited to hunt with me and junior and may even run the hog dogs while your here too...
Brent

 

[CGSteve8718]

CGSteve, I live in Florida and we have a fairly affordable non-resident license fee. Since you are under 39 you will need a hunter safety card... I think reciprocity rules allow most out of state cards. myfwc.com is the official site. If it interests you I will be hunting the heck out of the Eglin AFB wma this season. I will be gun hunting deer and hogs and than small game during respective seasons...
You are invited to hunt with me and junior and may even run the hog dogs while your here too...
Brent

hogdogs, that sounds very sincere and is very kind of you to say that. I'm not sure when I can really take you up on that offer though.

I said what I did in jest, I'm not really sore or anything . I wish you a good hunt, stay safe.

 

[shortwave]

CGSteve, 1st lesson in hunting. Never say anything to a hunter in jest. Ok to stretch the truth when telling hunting story(not considered lieing) but thats it. p.s. same rules for fishing

 

[hogdogs]

I fully understand... I just make the offer pretty often cuz I like to meet folks and share a hunt. If I get to also help kindle a flame or give someone the chance to decide if it is for them.
plus I get to see lots of guns and bows I would never buy
Brent