Active discussions

Meet the Other Phone. Child-safe in minutes.

Meet the Other Phone.
Child-safe in minutes.

Buy now

Please or to access all these features

Talk
AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

To be upset at DH for killing a pheasant?

108 replies

MrsSatsuma · 18/09/2011 21:19

Driving along a country road we came across a group of pheasants. DH beeped the horn and slowed down a bit but when they didn't move he just kept driving and hit one. His reaction was 'oops'.

Now I know they are probably the UK's most stupid birds but I was shocked he didn't try harder to avoid it, which he could easily have done without putting any human life at risk. He could have slowed down much more than he did and beeped again and they would probably have moved! I was so upset I burst into tears - upset because of the poor little thing (to which he replied 'it's only a bird) but also because of what I thought was a very callous reaction.

AIBU to have got so upset with him?

OP posts:
Moominsarescary · 19/09/2011 10:54

Oh ffs he slowed down a bit and beeped at it, it didn't move so got hit. People should not be stopping in the middle of the road for birds

It's not like he saw it sped up and swerved to hit the thing

Vallhala · 19/09/2011 10:57

"Oh ffs he slowed down a bit and beeped at it, it didn't move so got hit".

So that's alright then? Hmm

i'd rather folk didn't slow down for those who rear, farm, shoot, breed and/or deliberately kill these beautiful and harmless creatures.

Moominsarescary · 19/09/2011 10:58

Also ex p swerved to avoid a fox and wrapped the car road a post, not a pretty sight, lucky he wasnt killed

Moominsarescary · 19/09/2011 10:59

Yes it is allright he didn't deliberately mow it down

Hardgoing · 19/09/2011 10:59

He did what I would do, slowed down, beeped horn, but on a small road, sitting in the middle of the road not moving is a dangerous place for a car and someone may run into the back of you as they are not expecting a parked car in the middle of the road. He did the right thing by carrying on driving in my opinion (unless he could have pulled off the road).

I hit an animal for the first time ever, driving at night, last week. I felt minorly sad for about two seconds, but no more than that. I didn't do it on purpose, I slowed but to have avoided it I would have had to swerve into the oncoming car who was also trying to avoid the rabbits (more than one). At the last minute one dashed the wrong way, such is life.

TawnyGrisette · 19/09/2011 11:00

stealthsquiggle Mon 19-Sep-11 10:34:10
unless you are proposing that I creep around every blind corner at 5mph (thus quadrupling my journey time to anywhere) then yes I will still occasionally hit them.

So how fast do you go around blind corners then? What would happen when it was a deer in the road instead? Or a kid on a bike?

Vallhala · 19/09/2011 11:02

Moomin, yes he did delibrately kill the creature! He slowed down and when the pheasant didn't get out of his way he kept going and killed the animal!

As the OP points out, the road was clear, he could have stopped but didn't.

booyhoo · 19/09/2011 11:03

OP i am with you. i would probablyhave cried aswell. ihave been really lucky in that i have never yet (touch wood) hit an animal whilst driving (well i've never hit an animal full stop) i hate seeing the dead bodies of cats and rabbits etc on the road and i would feel guilty for the rest of my life if i had even accidentally hit one, never mind just been too impatient to slow down and wait for it to move.

CocktailQueen · 19/09/2011 11:08

YANBU. Horrible and uncaring. I wouldn't be at all impressed if dh did that.

Pootles2010 · 19/09/2011 11:09

Do you cry everytime you eat meat at dinner Hmm? Same thing really, an animal is deliberately killed that technically didn't have to be.

I'm not veggie either btw, but neither would I be in tears over a dead pheasant.

Moominsarescary · 19/09/2011 11:12

Well coming from someone who "would rather folk didn't slow down for those who rear, farm, shoot, bread" etc we will have to agree to disagree

Not ok to run over a bird but ok to say you would rather people didn't slow down for people that breed them

Not realy

QueenofJacksDreams · 19/09/2011 11:36

YABU Sorry but Pheasants are bloody thick creatures they don't even run from my JRT, 99% of Pheasants are raised in the wild and one bad breeder doesn't mean that it happens all the time.

Whatmeworry · 19/09/2011 11:41

YABU to moan at him. He is increasing the net intelligence of the British pheasantry.

Now if you'd moaned because he didn't grab it for later consumption, that is NBU.

TrillianAstra · 19/09/2011 11:42

What was he supposed to do exactly?

Stop in the road? For how long?

What if the pheasant decided to have a little nap?

What if other cars needed to get past?

SnakeOnCrack · 19/09/2011 11:47

I'd be upset by this too. We actually encountered a pheasant on a country lane (more of a long drive way really) last week and, GOD they are stupid birds. We beeped but it wouldn't move from in front of the car so I actually had to get out and chase it away.

TawnyGrisette · 19/09/2011 11:57

I am Shock and Hmm that so many of you wouldn't give a second thought to killing something for the sake of it, or because to not kill it would be a smidgen inconvenient.

Killing something because you want to eat it, fine. Killing something because you would be endangering yourself or others not to, fine. Killing something because you couldn't give a fuck about another creature's life. That's just repellent to me. Those of you who do that are repellent to me.

TrillianAstra · 19/09/2011 12:07

I don't think those of us saying the OP is BU would not give it a second thought so much as we think she is massively overreacting. There is a middle ground.

Whatmeworry · 19/09/2011 12:08

Alternative strategy is screech to stop in road, potentially skid into ditch. Car behind crashes into back. Both can lead to injury. Far better outcome eh OP?

Do you drive as a matter of interest?

Pootles2010 · 19/09/2011 12:17

That's ok Tawny, I find you a bit daft and hysterical.

Scheherezade · 19/09/2011 12:19

tbf, there's nothing you can do to avoid killing a pheasant, if it wasn't already in the road, it would have probably thrown itself under the wheels of the car anyway.

Bloody hate the things.

Scheherezade · 19/09/2011 12:21

pheasants don't run/fly away from danger, there are far too many times I've been out enjoying a nice quiet walk/ride, plodding along just to have a bird THWACK right into the side of me in a terror of wings and carnage. They fly towards/into danger. they are RIDICULOUS excuses for creatures.

stealthsquiggle · 19/09/2011 12:22

Exactly, Whatmeworry (and Trillian & others) - it's not "not giving a second thought" - of course we try not to hit them - it's a waste in every sense, and only benefits the buzzards, who have plenty of other food sources, but I refer you to this:

"We beeped but it wouldn't move from in front of the car so I actually had to get out and chase it away"

...which is fine (assuming you have a spare hour to drive 3 miles and don't mind being laughed at by locals) on a "long driveway" (and arguably on a single lane country road, as one might reasonably expect tractors, etc to be stopped in the road) - but what about a busy B road on which (other) people are regularly doing 60-70mph - are you seriously suggesting that the risks associated with people stopping for pheasants are justified?

Morloth · 19/09/2011 12:24

If only you could buy a repellent to keep away the more excitable types.

thekidsmom · 19/09/2011 12:27

There are times when its more dangerous to brake than to carry on, tbh - you have to know exactly what's behind you at any point on a country road to know if you can go full on the brakes for a bird or a rabbit, or you risk something going up the back of you - could be far worse....

hellymelly · 19/09/2011 12:32

YADNBU,Iwould be really upset if DH did this.I hate people who don't stop for animals and seem not to care what they kill. The corpse then attracts other animals too,which can also get hit (foxes,raptors etc). We have stopped for sheep,rabbits,weasels, pheasants,foxes,and various birds and have never hit anything yet .