To ask what you think about people hunting/shooting

[lorettalemon]

I was with quite a big group of people last night and some of them said that they enjoyed shooting (pheasants). Some of the rest of the group remained quiet and didn't say anything and I think they didn't want to argue. I quickly tried to change the subject because I had nothing polite to say.

I personally think that to blow creatures to bits, not with any intention of eating them (they said they had no idea what happened to them) for fun makes you a certain level of messed up in the head. It's lost on me how it's a sport. If you're intending to eat them, that's one thing, although hunting your own food isn't usually necessary in this day and age. Killing things because you enjoy doing it is absolutely lost on me.

I wanted to ask whether people generally think it's ok or not, because I can't believe that the majority of people can think it's ok!

I think killing things for 'fun' is barbaric, and would say so. (Depending on the company I might say politely that I didn't agree with it.)

I have no problem with shooting if you eat the birds. Better than factory farmed animals which never see daylight

I agree with you op, it's not normal or ok to just want to shoot and kill animals. Imo there's something wrong with people who enjoy it and think it's fine.

The pheasants are sold and eaten even if the people shooting don't eat them.
Tbf I'm torn, I could never do it but those pheasants have a better life and more humane death than the majority of the meat that is consumed in the UK. Just because we don't pull the trigger we are still as accountable for the way animals die which we then consume.

Who doesn’t eat pheasant? I’ve never known any pheasant shoot where the birds weren’t taken by the guns or sold on to local eateries or butchers. We had pheasant last night from the shoot next door.
I’d rather eat pheasant than a supermarket chicken that never saw daylight, was electrocuted and then had its throat slit. But each to their own!

My husband shoots occasionally, I was a beater as a kid, and I hunted (horse too old now).

It's very normal where I'm from.

Shooting (and fishing) for 'fun' is never acceptable.

It's only acceptable in communities where it's what people do to get food, for example in extremely isolated communities where it's essential to be able to hunt in order to eat.

Do you feel the same about people that fish?

I also think it's barbaric. Go clay pigeon shooting if you must shoot something. Fox hunting is just horrific for both the foxes and they ate pretty shitty to the hounds too.
I don't agree with horse or greyhound racing either.

I live in the country and have family that are game keepers so, yes they shoot vermin. Friends also work on pheasant hunts but they have dogs that retrieve.

I'd rather see a pheasant that has lived a free life being shot quickly then eaten/sold, than a battery hen that has known nothing but misery in all its short life.

I've hunted rabbits to eat.
It involves bloody ages of sitting still and being quiet followed by a second or so of unpleasantness when you break the neck.
I didn't enjoy either aspect particularly and I didn't go a second time.
I don't know if people who enjoy it are enjoying the being still and quite aspects (weirdos but each to their own) or the taking of life (weird and pycho)

People who kill animals for fun are horrible.
I wouldn't have anything polite to say either and would not want them to be under any illusions that I agreed with them.
A woman I thought was a nice enough colleague turned out to be well into fox hunting.
Absolutely abhor seeing dickheads who've killed an endangered animal posing proudly.

Like you, it would bother me that they have no intention of eating them. Is there some other reason for it, like a cull or something? Otherwise, why can't they just shoot clay pigeons? It makes absolutely no sense to me why anyone would enjoy ending the life of any animal for 'fun' and yes, it is indicative of something a bit wrong with them imho.

The OP said that these people don't eat the birds they kill - they just kill them for the thrill of it then leave them there.

That is NOT okay. Not at all. It shows a total lack of respect and value for life.

If you kill something to eat and survive that's different. Killing something just for the sake of killing is a callous and pointless thing to do.

I am totally indifferent. I dont know why, it just doesnt bother me.

If you are shooting it to eat, that seems reasonable, as the amount of animals lied would be reasonably small. Shooting for fun/sport is abhorrent.

It doesn’t mean the birds aren’t sold/used for meat after the shoot.

They sound like utter dicks. If I was going to participate I’d want to know what was planned for the killed birds.

It’s awful. Especially fox hunting which is just barbaric

Very normal part of life here.

I'm not sure on other areas but here the guests are unlikely to keep the birds unless they specifically asked. However that does not been they are just disregarded. The beaters and organisers of the shoots here use the meat on everything shot, that's normal practice around here.

Any excess is given to a butcher in town and turned into sausages and burgers. They are then given along side food bank donations or to anyone who would like them.

Depends on the situation.

I am totally against killing animals for fun.
It’s a psychopathic hobby IMO.

But sometimes there are areas that are overpopulated with a certain kind of species which endangers for example food supply for the whole species/other animals in that area. In that case I can understand that hunting might be a solution but I still don’t like it.

I hope that the birds were sold on to be eaten at least, but it's the people's attitude of "its fun" and "it's a sport" that I have a problem with (followed by the nonchalant shrug about what happens to the birds afterwards and whether the meat is used for any purpose).

I think it's different to shooting pests/vermin which are causing a problem to other animals or crops.

It's the idea that it's fun to kill them which really bothers me.

If people feel it's a way of life and that's how they obtain their food, but don't have any positive feelings about the killing, I don't take such issue with it.

They just seemed brash and obnoxious and I felt that if their idea of a fun day out was killing as many things as they could for a thrill, then they must have some serious issues

Anyone who kills animals for sport, fun and tradition are a grade A arsehole IMO

I am totally against killing any living creature for fun and don't understand how anyone can do it.

My family shoots. Dp is out there shooting now with our gundog. The pheasants get eaten.