Prince William goes 'deer culling' in Balmoral

[vera99]

What's wrong with these people? I can maybe understand the need for occasional culling (though it is most often for the human agency not a concern for the animal) but to go out and enjoy stalking these magnificent creatures get them in the sights of your guns and kill them - that's just sick.

PS. King Charles was a big fan of fox hunting

AIBU? - Yes this is actual nature conservation activity and William is showing concern and leadership in participating in the shooting.

YANBU? - No this is a sick perverted hobby of the super-rich who glory in the pleasure killing of defenceless animals.

www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-11300807/Prince-Wales-visits-Balmoral-goes-deer-stalking-Scotland-trip-Queens-funeral.html

"Deer stalking is the act of culling ageing stags that would otherwise die in the winter, with William shooting his first when he was 14 years old, something that is said to have left him delighted at the time.
The activity, which has been a shared passion among generations of the Royal Family, was encouraged by William's father King Charles III, while Princess Diana used to jokingly call him 'my killer Wales'.
William is not thought to have been joined in Scotland by his wife Catherine, who is herself a keen markswoman, and their children. A spokesman for Kensington Palace declined to comment."

An ethical viewpoint

Is that what you honestly tell yourself 😂😂😂

Quite ironic that there’s some anti abortion people on this thread. In favour of culling an animal already existing in the world as it’s necessary, but not in favour of a woman deciding it’s necessary to abort her own cluster of cells. How bizarre people’s morals are.

That was a child, kicked by a horse, which could have happened any time she was near a horse. IT just happened to be connected to a hunt.

None of which has anything to do with deer culling in Scotland, which involves neither children nor horses.

People with no understanding of life outside certain English cities trying to impose their views on everyone else and being so arrogant that they don't realise all they are showing is their ignorance.
This. They always pop up on threads about any kind of animal, and their ignorance shows right from the get go. They seem to live in some kind of fantasy land, where the animals are all friends and when the time comes they just lie down and die peacefull, and land management is something they simply don't understand. As you said, arrogant is the word to describe them, as apparently they know more than those who actually live in the countryside and grow up understanding it.

This

^This.

I understand the need to control the sick and the elderly of the herd but he takes pleasure from killing, thats the sick bit...... if they were genuinely concerned about deer and culling they'd control numbers with hormonal therapy.

All this just strikes me as the "Save the planet" stuff the royals spout, whilst flying all round the world, using huge amount of resources in a way they seek to deny everyone else.

How patronising when so many of us have made it clear we live rurally and have first hand experience of the issues.

The problem with reintroducing apex predators is that they won't only be culling the deer, livestock and pets can be at risk (Lynx have been known to eat cats in my country, and cats are mostly kept indoors here but in the UK mostly allowed outside so I expect a lot more cats would get eaten in the UK if lynxes were reintroduced). The other issue is how many apex predators you'd need to control the deer population - we have bears, wolves, lynx and wolverines in my country but the deer population still needs culling (so much so that they're considering allowing people to hunt without licenses because there's just so many white tailed deer now), and the bear and wolf populations have to be kept at a certain level so they don't cause issues. Its all a delicate balance. And then there's the fact that death by being hunted by animals is going to be much more stressful and painful than being shot by a trained human.

There is no lid to be lifted, there's no mystery here. It was in the bloody Crown tv show, fgs, its just a fact!
It's neither barbaric or dangerous particularly to stalk deer. Apart from the danger of being bored or frozen to death, I suppose.

It’s all fun and games until he comes knocking on your nans door…

Nature needs managing ???

Isn't that what's fucking this planet in the first place?

This wasn't balanced re-wilding, the area had no fucking predators, (it was too small to introduce them) herbivores bred unchecked and shock, a harsh winter killed off huge numbers of them, nature was working perfectly - as it always does. But the public freaked at the sight of lots of cute dead peaceful animals.

If they had planned for a much larger area, introduced wolves to keep the herbivores numbers in check and provided more woodland, the project would have been balanced.

OP you are not even trying to have a debate. You have your opinion (which is pretty ignorant and simplistic) and you are not budging or willing to hear anyone else. What the point in posting here? Just to get people to agree with you?

I totally agree.

The hypocrisy is nauseating.

What bright spark suggested this trip to William so soon after the funeral and thought it would bring a good idea to highlight exactly the type of people they actually are to the public and not the PR constructed hologram wheeled out for public consumption?

Whether they need to be culled or not - the issue here is he is taking pleasure in the killing of animals as since he is the Prince of Wales, he has no other motivation to be involved in this.

Bollox! i live rurally as have all my (known) ancestors, a good friend of ours shoots deer as part of his living/control numbers & we often have meat from this BUT what he doesn't do is take pleasure from culling deer.

I understand the need to control the sick and the elderly of the herd but he takes pleasure from killing, thats the sick bit...... if they were genuinely concerned about deer and culling they'd control numbers with hormonal therapy.

All this just strikes me as the "Save the planet" stuff the royals spout, whilst flying all round the world, using huge amount of resources in a way they seek to deny everyone else.

Interesting.

@Sausagenbacon that doesn’t happen in the UK anymore. They are gassed and used for animal feed, to the extent that the UK has to import frozen male chicks for feed for animals. They are too valuable as animal feed to macerate.

This is very true. We allow people to exist in conditions which we just wouldn't allow if it was an animal.

If a dog or cow couldn't eat or needed physically moved by someone they'd be culled, put to sleep, killed.

If a human couldn't eat they could be tube fed, turned to prevent sores but never actually put out their misery.

Over population of deer will cause them to eventually starve as the land won't be able to sustain them.
Humans have population control via contraception. But we are still in danger of over populating the planet. And in some places famines do occur cauing people to die from starvation.

And then there's the fact that death by being hunted by animals is going to be much more stressful and painful than being shot by a trained human.

I'm jumping out of this thread, its absolutely bonkers....

@Kissingfrogs25 The killing of deer or any other game by gun is definitely the most humane method of slaughter possible. The animal is usually cleanly killed without any fear involved. There is no chase, the deer are unaware of the stalkers until the single shot is fired. Comparing that to any method of killing at a slaughter house and I would say it is far, far preferable. Also, all shooters need to be competent and the gamekeeper will always aim at the same animal as an ametuer to ensure a clean kill even if the ametuer misses.

Near me is a national forest with lots of deer. They OPW do request a deer culling as the deer numbers were quite high. I hated the sea but they did make a good argument.
They do wander onto the roads, I met one myself early one morning and a number of crashes have been attributed to them. They damage the bark of trees which kills the trees The park rangers do try to protect the some
of the gorgeous old oak trees, but the deers need to eat too.

the rangers are fencing like made trying to contain them from the ‘ancient oak forests’ you see them in gardens now

You don't seem to know that stalking is not chasing . I'm no 'toff', but having lived on Salisbury Plain for best part of 20 years, I do know a little about deer management, and was friends with a couple of landwardens. Their goal was to ensure the health of the livestock - which includes taking out the sick and dangerous. They weren't 'bloodthirsty' - they cared greatly for the deer. Pretty amusing that you seem to know better than the Deer Society though.

Ah I disagree! I live here.
The public have no idea - none.

‘Nothing to see here’ you may screech a little too loudly. I would strongly strongly disagree with that notion.

Rewilding benefits farmers. There is a small revolution here in the U.K. of farmers who are rewilding and it is benefiting their livestock. It’s how we used to farm before big industry came along and screwed us all. Beavers have just been given protected status here in the U.K. reintroductions will continue and soon they will be in every county. There will be issues as there are in Scotland and sadly culling of beavers is happening in Scotland, but we need to push ahead with this if we want to protect nature. The goodness that beavers do for the landscape is incredible. They actually prevent flooding whilst preventing wildfires. The areas they inhabit sees an increase of biodiversity on a scale that no other species can create. There will be arguments and beaters and push back, but ultimately, beavers are coming back across the U.K. and landowners can’t stop it.

Another reason why I hate the Royals. Entitled pricks, cruel to animals.

I am against hunting in general, but the alternative is to bring back the big predators, especially wolves, and not many people want that unfortunately.