Anyone shoot/own guns but not hunt?

[Duke of Lawnchair]

I'm a gunowner but not a hunter.

Why?

Laziness.

My idea of fishing is when the sushi boats float along at the sushi bar.

My idea of putting a bird on the table during Thanksgiving is KFC.

 

[Ala Dan]

Yes, since the early 70's I owned literally hundred's of
firearms including handguns, high powered rifles, and
shotguns; but I've NEVER hunted game animals; only
hunted the "bad boy" 2-legged critters for the long
arm of the law!

Best Wishes,
Ala Dan, N.R.A. Life Member

 

[Gillster]

Started off hunting with a rifle and worked up to a handgun and found out I liked shooting handguns alot. Last years deer season opener was the first I missed in the last 10 years. I was still up early with a gun at my side that day but it involved paper and a timer instead of venison. Also, my wife won't eat game animals so one more reason a freezer full makes less sense. Would like to hunt again if they would quit scheduling matches on good hunting days.

Chris

 

[Darkside852003]

I am looking into hunting. But unlike most hunters I did not have my old man around to teach me. Thinken of calling my godfather up this season to take me out hunting. Now that me and my pops talk, I have tried to get him back into shooting. Got him to the range for the first time in 10 years just a couple months ago. I would like to hunt deer, elk, and moose it all sounds like fun. Plus they taste better then beef.

 

[Iron Mike]

Hunting?

I own quite a few guns but have never hunted. I have nothing against it I've just never done it . I would love to do it one day (Ive been saying that sense 1965) but unless the deer would clean and butcher itself I'm affraid I'd be lost.

 

[WhoKnowsWho]

I have gone hunting for quail once and had a good time. I wouldn't mind hunting something larger, but I don't have the ability or supplies to pack it all up if I do hit something. I wouldn't shoot something unless I was going to cook it. Varminting might be okay though, since I hear the gophers really wreck land pretty bad.

I don't think guns and hunting go hand in hand. If you like to hunt, you like to hunt, go ahead and do it.

 

[Hkmp5sd]

I hunted in my younger days, but drifted away. I go on occasion, but for the most part, I'm a collector/shooter.

 

[BryanP]

I have never hunted. If I needed it for food I would hunt. If it was necessary for protection I would kill an animal, but wouldn't take any pleasure in it. I do not understand the concept of hunting for thrill or trophy. But that's me. Everyone sees things differently.

 

[BluesBear]

Years ago,â„¢ whrn i was younger and better able to get around I hunted. I was never a fanatic about it though.

I do however, fully support hunters and hunting.
The phrase "thinning the herd" isn't just retoric, it is an actual need.

I recall back around 1980 when the deer population in Southern Indiana was getting so large that, not only were they starving, but driving through the Hoosier National Forest on I-64 was actually dangerous.
On the way from Louisville to Evansville one fall Friday I counted over 20 freshly hit deer along the highway in the HNF alone.

Responsible hunting and fishing helps ensure the future.

 

[Steelbanger]

I can understand the non-hunters points about not wanting to personally shoot an animal. I feel compassion for the animals we do hunt but will never again hunt non-edibles like crows or woodchucks (which I used to shoot every summer). I grew up hunting and that's what really got me into guns. That was a long time ago and although my reasons for hunting have changed, I continue to hunt after 50 seasons.

For me, the reason I hunt is because I get to spend really quality time with my son, granddaughter, and a few friends. Success isn't measured by the kills we make but rather in seeing the same sunrises & sunsets, unusual animals or animal behavior observed, the crisp smell of an autumn morning, surviving a bitter cold Pennsylvania day. I could go on about this but hope the point is made.

Also, we process all of our venison from field dressing to freezer, taking extreme care to package the very best boneless meat and the nicest ground meat a person could ask for. As an aside to this butchering we get to see and evaluate bullet performance and have a modest collection of successful bullets that have done their job well. And it's more time spent together.

Would I sell my guns if I couldn't hunt? NO!! I enjoy shooting and competing with handguns & rifles and hope to continue this aspect of my shooting even after I can't climb the hills any more.

 

[MaterDei]

I've been dove hunting once (in Mexico) but am not a 'hunter'. Calling yourself a hunter implies a certain level of knowledge of the craft, which I lack.

I wish I was a hunter though and I wish my father had done with me what Steelbanger has done and is doing with his children/grandchildren. My boys are now old enough to shoot (4, 7, and 9) so I'm really wishing that I knew HOW to hunt and fish better so that I could do with them what my father didn't do with me. We're kind of learning together and having fun doing it.

I want to teach my children the art of self-sufficiency. For the boys, especially, putting meat on the table is part of that, IMO. My girls are learning to grow vegetables, cook, and sew. If they had any interest in shooting or fishing, which they have tried, I would teach them to hunt as well.

btw, welcome to THR Steelbanger.

 

[hso]

Not quite like you, but I do collect, target shoot, and self defense train. I don't hunt because I don't have time or enough desire to put in the effort of being a good hunter. I have no problem with those that do and happily prepare game meat bought by friends that do hunt.

 

[Majic]

I've hunted since I was bout knee high to a grasshopper. I never was a trophy hunter as I've never found a receipe for horns. I will also rid a farmer's field of groundhogs if he so wishes.
I do take a dislike to those animal lovers who loudly preach against hunting, but take full advantage of lands provided and managed by the state partially funded from the fees of game permits while not adding anything to the kitty from their pockets.

 

[GSB]

I own guns and don't hunt. I have nothing against it as long as it's done responsibly, but it just isn't my thing.

 

[Ransom]

I only hunt the deadliest prey of all.....MAN!

 

[jdkelly]

I don't hunt for food, although what I shoot gets eaten. I like just about everything about the hunt. I enjoy the planning, the packing, the road trip, the camp, the people and the Hunt. I enjoy the humor, the stories, the lies, the meals, and the cards.

I enjoy seeing friends beaming with pride while telling the story of today's successful hunt. I enjoy sharing the frustration of a blown attempt, so close to fruition. While one can get great pleasure out of stocking game with a Nikon, it pales to being an actual predator.

The White Tails are lucky that I'm such a poor hunter, but you don't have succeed in the hunt to enjoy the experience.


Respectfully,

jdkelly

 

[Viking6]

I hunted with friends as a teen--birds, squirrels, nothing big. I don't hunt now. While living in Kansas almost twenty years ago, I thought about deer hunting but didn't have time; now I don't have the interest. To be honest, I don't know how I feel "philosophically" anymore. There are too many other things happening in the world right now that compete for my depleted gray matter to address hunting.

 

[FPrice]

I own guns and shoot but do not hunt. It's something I am just not interested in, but I have no problem supporting hunters and hunting as long as they adhere to the same rules of behavior we expect everyone else to adhere to. I cannot abide drunk hunters, hunters who destroy other's property, etc. But then, that relates to their standards of behavior rather than hunting as an activity.

 

[Dave Markowitz]

I've gone hunting in the past but not since 1992. Lack of time and sheer laziness. But sometimes I get to sample some nice venison from friends that do hunt.

 

[Tamara]

I've owned guns for many years, but never went hunting 'til last deer season.

Memorable experience. You'll find me in the woods more often in the future.

 

[CannibalCrowley]

The only hunting I've ever done consisted of spearing frogs and catching snakes. But now that I'm back in Michigan I'm looking forward to my first deer season.

 

[outfieldjack]

I just started hunting a few years ago... I still remember my first deer and how I felt "sorry" but very excited about taking the deer. My hunting buddy was correct, after the shot I was shaking uncontrollably.... must be an age-old response..... makes me wonder if or ancestors tens of thousands of years ago got the shakes the same way....

Anyway.....

This reminds me of an interview I read with Dale Earnhardt Jr. where he talked about hunting. As far as I can recall, what he said was basically along the lines of "you get up at 5am, shoot a deer around 7am, and the whole rest of the day is turning it into food. That's a whole day shot..."

I agree, but after a "whole day shot" you'll have memories to last you a lifetime! And I use a processor for my deer..... skinning and all that takes too much time.

 

[Bubbles]

I didn't grow up either owning guns or hunting, and I started shooting for competitions and self-defense.

I went hunting the first time, for deer, with a borrowed shotgun only because my brother-in-law invited me along. I didn't get anything, but I had a great time.

Last year my husband and I brought home three does from an area that is severely over-populated. I couldn't imagine a season where I don't spend at least a few days out in the field.

Oh yeah, and that shaky feeling after you drop one doesn't go away over time.

 

[Evil_Ed]

I have been hunting exactly 2 times, with a bow. Went out with some friends into the 100 + acres of woods out behind my parents house when we were all teenagers, didn't actually get a clear shot at the 3 total deer that we came across as they were always too far away and we made too much noise to sneak up on them.

I haven't been hunting since. It's something I would like to try at some point but I have no clue whatsoever how to properly dress the game and I would hate to waste any of the meat. I am a dedicated omnivore with carnivorous leanings so killing and eating an animal is no big thing for me. I would love to go hunting eventually if I can find someone who doesn't mind a greenhorn like me tagging along. Might hit up my fatehr in law once he is retired...maybe head up to Maine during hunting season to go out with him for a hunt. After reading the safari account in Unintended Consequences I now even have the urge to go on a safari at some point.

 

[Werewolf]

I used to hunt but haven't since going off to college in 1971.

As a kid I hunted rabbits, squirrels and dove. My rule was if I wasn't going to eat it I didn't shoot it. The one exception to that rule was crows - they were a nuisance where I lived and the county paid a buck a bird for each one you brought in. For a teenager in the 60's that was a lot of money for doing something I liked (shooting).

I mostly did it because I liked shooting not because we needed the food. I've got no problem with most hunters. Hunting is I believe a natural instinct in man and if more folks did it I truly believe we'd all get along better. Hunting is also a necessary device to control overpopulation of game animals since until recently their natural predators were mostly too few to do the job.

I do, however, have a problem with one type of hunter. The guys that hunt for trophies. If they eat their kill and save the trophy fine but if they don't then I have a problem with them. Using a tool to get food is one thing using a tool to kill just for killing's sake or bragging rights is another. Those guys ought to be required to hunt with just their god given talents - no weapons allowed when going up against a herbivore. Maybe give 'em a knife if they wanna go after carnivores. They want a trophy they should have to work for it and take the same risks the animal does.

Since departing the military I've pretty much restricted my shooting to paper. I put little holes in paper targets with pistols and rifles using a wide variety of guns. I carry for self defense. Occasionally I shoot in an IPSC or CAS match.