Opinion - Animal pain

[bubby]

Hunting pigs with a jeep your more like mad max

[joachimM]

Being able to kill an animal with minimal remorse is something you can learn.
I used to be a vegetarian for most of my adult life (not for reasons of animal welfare, more out of protest against the farming industry). Since my wife and I started a modest little farm with chickens, ducks and a few cows, I started to eat meat again on a regular basis. Still not the amounts most people eat, but I enjoy eating what I've raised more than anything else.

For me it's a click in the head: I know this or that calf will be butchered some day, and if I were allowed, I would rather kill it myself than let a stranger do it. Not because I have grown a liking to killing animals, far from it, but just for the sake of the animal. Being in a familiar environment or with a familiar person when it happens, rather than being put in a stressful environment with strange people surely helps to reduce suffering to a minimum. It's a matter of respect. With wild animals, they are never/always in a stressful environment, so shooting it doesn't add to that unless you don't shoot straight...

As for pain: even lobsters feel pain, as suggested by research http://blogs.nature.com/news/2013/08/experiments-reveal-that-crabs-and-lobsters-feel-pain.html

So it's a hunter's job (and a farmer's and butcher's job) to ensure that suffering is reduced to a minimum. Just out of respect for the animal you will eat or sell.
And there's a final economic argument as well: the meat of stressed animals is less tender and tasty than that of unstressed animals. So it's also in the farmer's own interest to stress his animals the least possible. And probably also in the hunter's interest to have a clean quick kill (apart from the time not spent trailing a wounded animal).

[mullet]

Being able to kill an animal with minimal remorse is something you can learn.
I used to be a vegetarian for most of my adult life (not for reasons of animal welfare, more out of protest against the farming industry). Since my wife and I started a modest little farm with chickens, ducks and a few cows, I started to eat meat again on a regular basis. Still not the amounts most people eat, but I enjoy eating what I've raised more than anything else.

For me it's a click in the head: I know this or that calf will be butchered some day, and if I were allowed, I would rather kill it myself than let a stranger do it. Not because I have grown a liking to killing animals, far from it, but just for the sake of the animal. Being in a familiar environment or with a familiar person when it happens, rather than being put in a stressful environment with strange people surely helps to reduce suffering to a minimum. It's a matter of respect. With wild animals, they are never/always in a stressful environment, so shooting it doesn't add to that unless you don't shoot straight...

As for pain: even lobsters feel pain, as suggested by research http://blogs.nature.com/news/2013/08/experiments-reveal-that-crabs-and-lobsters-feel-pain.html

So it's a hunter's job (and a farmer's and butcher's job) to ensure that suffering is reduced to a minimum. Just out of respect for the animal you will eat or sell.
And there's a final economic argument as well: the meat of stressed animals is less tender and tasty than that of unstressed animals. So it's also in the farmer's own interest to stress his animals the least possible. And probably also in the hunter's interest to have a clean quick kill (apart from the time not spent trailing a wounded animal).

Being able to kill an animal with minimal remorse is something you can learn.
I used to be a vegetarian for most of my adult life (not for reasons of animal welfare, more out of protest against the farming industry). Since my wife and I started a modest little farm with chickens, ducks and a few cows, I started to eat meat again on a regular basis. Still not the amounts most people eat, but I enjoy eating what I've raised more than anything else.

For me it's a click in the head: I know this or that calf will be butchered some day, and if I were allowed, I would rather kill it myself than let a stranger do it. Not because I have grown a liking to killing animals, far from it, but just for the sake of the animal. Being in a familiar environment or with a familiar person when it happens, rather than being put in a stressful environment with strange people surely helps to reduce suffering to a minimum. It's a matter of respect. With wild animals, they are never/always in a stressful environment, so shooting it doesn't add to that unless you don't shoot straight...

As for pain: even lobsters feel pain, as suggested by research http://blogs.nature.com/news/2013/08/experiments-reveal-that-crabs-and-lobsters-feel-pain.html

So it's a hunter's job (and a farmer's and butcher's job) to ensure that suffering is reduced to a minimum. Just out of respect for the animal you will eat or sell.
And there's a final economic argument as well: the meat of stressed animals is less tender and tasty than that of unstressed animals. So it's also in the farmer's own interest to stress his animals the least possible. And probably also in the hunter's interest to have a clean quick kill (apart from the time not spent trailing a wounded animal).

Being able to kill an animal with minimal remorse is something you can learn.
I used to be a vegetarian for most of my adult life (not for reasons of animal welfare, more out of protest against the farming industry). Since my wife and I started a modest little farm with chickens, ducks and a few cows, I started to eat meat again on a regular basis. Still not the amounts most people eat, but I enjoy eating what I've raised more than anything else.

For me it's a click in the head: I know this or that calf will be butchered some day, and if I were allowed, I would rather kill it myself than let a stranger do it. Not because I have grown a liking to killing animals, far from it, but just for the sake of the animal. Being in a familiar environment or with a familiar person when it happens, rather than being put in a stressful environment with strange people surely helps to reduce suffering to a minimum. It's a matter of respect. With wild animals, they are never/always in a stressful environment, so shooting it doesn't add to that unless you don't shoot straight...

As for pain: even lobsters feel pain, as suggested by research http://blogs.nature.com/news/2013/08/experiments-reveal-that-crabs-and-lobsters-feel-pain.html

So it's a hunter's job (and a farmer's and butcher's job) to ensure that suffering is reduced to a minimum. Just out of respect for the animal you will eat or sell.
And there's a final economic argument as well: the meat of stressed animals is less tender and tasty than that of unstressed animals. So it's also in the farmer's own interest to stress his animals the least possible. And probably also in the hunter's interest to have a clean quick kill (apart from the time not spent trailing a wounded animal).

Do you think your animals might feel the emotion of betrayal instead of pain?

[paco664]

Steve;
Like I told you when we talked the other night, I think the biggest mistake was showing off. If you had been hunting you would have probably concentrated more and killed the little booger. And never do that in front of a woman that has never seen something get pierced with an arrow

Howard, thanks for the nice words,, but I do pull out the Flintlocks, cap and balls, .300 WinMag, 44mag, AR-15, blow guns, sling shots, pellet rifles, spears, or whatever the situation dictates or tickles my fancy .

Eddie. . It was my wife...
 when i explained the critter was still alive but she doubted the story till we went back in the backyard and he ran out across a limb. . Stored and shoot us a dirty look then turned on the afterburner. ..

We talked about it all the way home and she is open to the idea of starting hunting with me. ..

But boy howdy.. that little Cuban had fire in her eyes for about 5 mins. .lol

But like i said she got over it. . And she found she really enjoys shooting bows. ...

I just don't think squirrel hunting will be in her future. ..

[Parnell]

Glad to hear it.

[mullet]

Paco, That is funny. I have squirrels that haul ass when they see me pick up the pellet rifle by the door in the shop.