Community Chat

[CrazyDaisy]

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@RedTop wrote:

Every year these posts about hunting get very interesting as different opinions and views are shared.   I respect everyone's opinion, and am well aware many opinions are from people who do not live in an area where these hunted animals are causing problems.  Not everyone lives as rural as I do, and not everyone grew up around hunters and guns, or eating food that didn't come from a grocery store.   

However, I am very proud of my WV heritage, and the fact my family has lived here and hunted these mountains for more than 150 years.  My family has hunting stories about bears and big bucks that were killed by my great great grandfather, my great grandfather and his brothers before 1863, on land that is still owned by my family.   Every male and female in my family were taught to handle, and shoot a gun at an early age; most of us have handled and shot the muzzleloader used by our great grandpa in his hunts.

Hunting is in our blood, and it's what we do.  I was taken on small game hunts when I was young, but I didn't like being out in the cold weather, and being still for a long time was not something I did well.   I was eager to help with the processing, and was never grossed out with that part, and it never stopped me from eating the meat.   Our farm animals existed for the sole purpose of feeding us; we didn't think they were cute, we did not see them as pets, and they never had names.   The deer, turkey, and bear that crossed our farm were viewed as another food source, and because of this, my family survived the leanest of times thru the Depression.

My early ancestors were farmers, as was my grandfather until the 70's.   Now my family consists of successful doctors, nurses, teachers, construction supervisors, and tractor trailer drivers, who have purchased lifetime hunting licenses (@ $500 each).  Not one of these people needs to prove anything to anyone.  One of the teachers, and one of the tractor trailer drivers, are my beautiful daughters, who have been hunting with bow and gun, since they were 15.   The deer meat eaten in this household is supplied by those 2 young women, and I have great pride in them for continuing our family's presence in these woods for 150+ years.   

I don't expect everyone to agree with hunting.   I do expect each of you are making your choices in life based on your lifestyle, your circumstances, what makes you happy, and what you feel you need to do, etc.   Speaking for the avid hunters in my family, I assure those of you who have expressed such strong, and negative opinions of what we do, that we are doing what we feel we need to do to help maintain the balance of the beautiful environment we live in.   Deer know only 2 things; eat, and breed.  If you ever drive thru our beautiful state on I-77 or I-64, and have an unfortunate encounter with a deer, perhaps you will view things a bit differently.   

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Beautifully said.  Would much rather see the deer on the top of a car knowing that it will be feeding a family that the large number I see along the turnpike daily rotting from being hit by a car.

[nun ya]

I don't hunt but mostly everyone I know does. Living in Pa my entire life, it is a way of life and needs to be done. First day of hunting, kids have no school.

[novamc1]

@CrazyDaisy

After I wound down my  full-time job,  I worked part-time at a friend's small business, mostly for fun.  Had to quit because the only two routes  to her shop were narrow, two-laned scenic roads along some of the most wooded areas of the D.C. suburbs.  After at least 4 close calls with multiple deer darting in front of my car, the commute became not worth it.  In addition to it being dangerous, traffic was practically halted one day while we drivers had to inch our way past a badly injured deer in the road that was bleeding

 profusely and gasping for air.  Crossbow and gun hunters can kill in one shot.  Auto-caused deaths are not always quick and merciful.

Deer encounters can be frightening at home, too. It probably has taken a couple years off my life, when I've gone out the front door in the morning to pick up the newspaper and suddenly had a group of startled deer leap out from beside the house and stampede past me.  These are not small animals.  Erase any illusions about them looking like sweet little Bambi.

Deer have crashed through glass windows of downtown D.C. office buildings, flown through the picture window of at least one home here in recent years, and have injured people when they feel trapped and react violently.  They carry ticks that cause Lyme disease.

Very sorry that some sheltered people here feel OFFENDED by something with which they have neither experience nor understanding.  They'd better not try going for a hike in the woods.

[CrazyDaisy]

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@novamc1 wrote:

@CrazyDaisy

After I wound down my  full-time job,  I worked part-time at a friend's small business, mostly for fun.  Had to quit because the only two routes  to her shop were narrow, two-laned scenic roads along some of the most wooded areas of the D.C. suburbs.  After at least 4 close calls with multiple deer darting in front of my car, the commute became not worth it.  In addition to it being dangerous, traffic was practically halted one day while we drivers had to inch our way past a badly injured deer in the road that was bleeding

 profusely and gasping for air.  Crossbow and gun hunters can kill in one shot.  Auto-caused deaths are not always quick and merciful.

Deer encounters can be frightening at home, too. It probably has taken a couple years off my life, when I've gone out the front door in the morning to pick up the newspaper and suddenly had a group of startled deer leap out from beside the house and stampede past me.  These are not small animals.  Erase any illusions about them looking like sweet little Bambi.

Deer have crashed through glass windows of downtown D.C. office buildings, flown through the picture window of at least one home here in recent years, and have injured people when they feel trapped and react violently.  They carry ticks that cause Lyme disease.

Very sorry that some sheltered people here feel OFFENDED by something with which they have neither experience nor understanding.  They'd better not try going for a hike in the woods.

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I can understand that some people may be sensitive to the sight of a dead animal, yet it is a fact of life.  I believe that hunting is a much more humane way of getting food than these comercial operations.  What I do not understand is why some feel the need to put down others who see things differently.