Just because its legal doesn't mean its right.
1. I do NOT think I am better than anybody. I'm sure this post will piss a some people off and they'll throw the "your just jealous" or "you just think your better than everybody" lines. No, I don't & no, I'm not.
2. I'm still new to this. I've only killed 4 deer in my life. I'll admit, I'm still learning. But I would rather be known as the person who doesn't kill much than be known as the person who bends the rules just to get a buck.
3. I am not tooting my own horn. The stories I'm going to share with you are not to make you think that I'm some self righteous jerk who needs your praise. I am sharing these with you because I want you to see what I see and understand just why ethics mean so much to me. If I wanted praise, I'd ask for it.
4. Understand I live in SC. What regulations may apply to my state may not to apply to your state or vice versa. Just try to understand SC is lenient. Very, very, very, lenient when it comes to deer season, so bear with me. We don't have buck tags, and we can buy doe tags if we want. If not, we can shoot does without tags on almost every Saturday of the year. Our season starts in August (low country) and ends January 1st. Baiting is legal. Running dogs is legal. Shooting out of a house is legal. You name it, its probably legal.
Well, I have been thinking about talking about this for some time, but decided against it.. Until this morning. I saw a post on a social networking site that made my blood boil. After a very draining season, and getting some heartbreaking news about a buck we'd be hunting all year, it really set me over the edge. It's not clearly illegal things (spot lighting, shooting from the truck, etc) that bothers me, its the things that are perfectly legal but not necessarily right. I have seen a lot of people share things that I would be so embarrassed to share, and getting praised for it. The story/picture I am referring to was a woman's first buck, and here's her story:
"Shot my first buck this year during MO rifle season! My 2-yr old and I were walking by the back door in the morning before leaving for daycare/work when I saw him in our yard, so I grabbed my gun, my husband opened the kitchen window, and I... shot him while my son watched from the back door! I threw camo over my pj's to go out and find him and take pics Had an encounter with him during bow season but I didn't get a shot, so it was pretty amazing to have another chance."
Now what gives me the right to say that's wrong?
I've lived in the country my whole life. I have had many opportunities to shoot a deer or turkey from my window. My son was born during the first week of turkey season. Six days postpartum, my husband and I set out for a tom (taking it easy of course). We came home after a morning hunt, and there sat one giant gobbler and about ten hens feeding and strutting in my backyard. Completely in shot gun range. My husband begged me to try to take a shot on him, but I refused. I just couldn't do it. We slipped up and around a ridge about 300 yards away from the house and we tried to call him in. He turned with his hens and left, and I walked away with every tag I started out with that season.
Why didn't I shoot? I pictured myself holding up that bird for a picture, and I knew that when I looked at it I would always see myself shooting it out of my house. It turned my stomach just thinking about it, and I was more proud of taking nothing than doing that.
This summer, we had a deer show up on camera that I would have never expected to see in our area. He was a 120 inch, 5 1/2 year old eight point and he earned the top spot on out hit list. My husband and I hunted ourselves to death trying to take this deer, which we named No Show, with a bow. We hunted weeknights after work, weekends, in pouring rain, freezing cold, and gale force winds. We never saw him again. Assuming he was dead (we hunt in a high pressured area) we eased up a bit on our pursuit. About a week ago, a neighbor friend called and said he just killed a giant behind his house, and sent Brandon a picture. My stomach dropped. It was No Show.
As discouraged that I was that No Show was officially dead, I told him I would come take some good pictures of him and celebrate his kill. That was, until I heard the story. Apparently, our neighbor was in the bathroom. He saw No Show in the bottom of his yard, walked outside in his underwear, pulled up his gun and shot him three times. I was disgusted and furious. This was the first deer we had ever singled out to hunt and had named, and he was the first deer we had ever lost to something like this.
To me, this is no different than poaching. But its legal. So is fence hunting. You think its okay to sit on a property line with the intention of being legal but shooting a deer right off the line? It may be legal, but its not right. I've seen more and more people sharing stories about hunts that I would be ashamed to share. I saw one where a hunter killed a deer with a .22 rifle, and even bragged that it took six shots to bring it down. If someone says, that's wrong and unethical, then they get attacked by saying that hunters should "uplift" each other. I agree, we should uplift each other; but in the right way. Anti-hunters already have a lot to attack us with, but this just gives them ammunition. I may be hated for it, but I will never support something like this. I will never tell someone, "Congratulations!" when they shoot a deer out of their kitchen window. People say "Any hunter would have done the same thing," is wrong, because I am a hunter, and I never have and never will do something so unethical just to get horns or spurs on a wall. I've had opportunities, but I have enough respect to back down and say no, its the right way or no way.I feel like the importance of ethics are slipping away in todays society. Cheaters win (look at the White House!) in this day and time. Its sad, but it's true. But the fact of the matter is no matter how badly I want to harvest an animal, I would rather have tags in my pocket than unethically harvested trophy. How someone hunts says a lot about their character, in my opinion. Just because it's legal doesn't mean its right, and I don't want my son growing up thinking that the right way to hunt is from his kitchen window. I want him to understand its not just about the kill, its about everything that goes into it. The hard work, the dedication, the respect for nature, the love of the woods, and sometimes the defeat of a slow season. Defeat makes the victory that much sweeter, and even if I go the rest of my life without killing anything, I'll take pride in knowing that I did things the right way. I'll take pride in knowing I raised my son to be honest and ethical, and to me, that's the biggest trophy of them all. If we all stood together and let everyone know that this kind of behavior is unacceptable, then maybe a lot of people would reconsider doing something stupid. It would be worth a try, because at this rate ethical hunters will be a minority.
Remember this post is my opinion only. If you disagree, that's fine, but be respectful in your argument. I just stand by the saying that if you don't stand for something, you'll fall for everything, and I stand for ethical hunting!
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