are there any people out there that are animal lovers AND gun lovers?

[wherestheham]

Animal Lover

Like a co-worker always says: "There is room for all God's creatures.....right next to the mashed potatoes."

On the serious side. Most gun owners and hunters I know have animals and really enjoy being around animals. I think being in out in nature gives you a better appreciation for the animals that God gave us.

 

[Stevie-Ray]

One of the stories my Uncle used to tell was of when a woman from PETA came to the farm when he was loading hogs and using a shock prod to move them. When she pointed out to him that use was cruel and unnecessary he told her to show him the proper method. Now, as you may or may not know, a hog is as stubborn and willful as a three year old. After twenty minutes with a particularly aggravating animal the PETA woman lost her temper and picked up a shovel with the intention of hitting the animal. My Uncle stopped her and made her leave.

He also wrote PETA and asked them if they were to continue to send people that would abuse his animals he would sue them over the attempted abuse. To my knowledge he received no reply.

Selena

Greatest post yet!

 

[evan price]

I love animals. I am always bringing strays home. My wife is a veterinarian. She loves animals. I understand wild animals do what wild animals do. They need to eat and space to live.
That said, when the groundhogs at my friend's farm got so bad his tractor shed floor collapsed, we went over and started popping groundhogs. Not eating a groundhog. But we (humans) killed off the wolves and bobcats other things that ate groundhogs so we inherit their job of controlling the population of fast-breeding, destructive varmints.
I don't eat yellowjackets, hornets, mice and rats either, but I poison and trap hundreds of them every year.

I've noticed a tendancy amongst animal-lovers to be prejudiced, may I even say racist, towards critters like wolves and bears and other snuggly stuffed animals, and less so towards things like zebra mussles, leeches, Norway rats, and brown dog ticks.

 

[ezypikns]

I hunt

I've sat and watched Bobcats and Coyotes hunt around my deer stand. I won't shoot them.....now. I'm over 60. There was a time though when I would have killed them in a heartbeat. After doing that a few times though, you finally come to the realization that you probably get more pleasure just watching them.
Oh, and another thing, if you loose off at every other creature in the woods, you probably won't kill many deer. And I still love venison.

 

[rondog]

I love guns and shooting, but I'm not a hunter. I have nothing against hunting, but I don't know any place to go, or anyone to go with, so I just don't do it. I'd like to, but I have no burning desire or need to. I love my Beagles to death, and if I could get deer and elk to eat apples out of my hand, I'd probably do that rather than shoot them. Guess I'm on the fence about it, but I really like to photograph them.

We rent a cabin in Estes Park every fall, and this big boy and his harem came through one year. Another time, about 30 walked by me while I was grilling steaks. Truly magnificent to just watch them.

 

[KiltedClaymore]

i love animals. i love to hunt, and was taught that if you shoot it you eat it. but if the animal is a pest/threat, i have no problem shooting it and leaving it. rattle snakes, coyotes, mountain lions, and extra-aggressive wolves all fall in this catagory in my mind.

 

[NCMom]

I like guns and love animals. Grew up with a father who hunted and used to tag along. Even helped field dress what he shot. I was taught never to kill anything that wasn't going to harm me or someone else or that I wasn't going to consume. I was also taught that I should take a certain amount of responsibility for my own safety and that included knowing how to use a gun accurately.
Fast forward a few years to marriage and a hubby who wasn't brought up around guns and didn't like them. We had no guns in the house until the morning I woke up and realized someone had been bold enough to enter our yard and steal a battery out of our truck. No, I am not going to shoot a battery thief, but it made me realize I may not be as safe as I would like to think in my own home. Time to have a gun. Made a trip to my parents' house, shot a few of Dad's guns and brought home a .32.
Fast forward a few more years to birth of our child, carjackings in the news and being threatened by an employee. Time to get serious about self defense.
Tried out a good many more guns, took a course for concealed carry, got permit and purchased S&W 3913LS and a Mossberg 12 ga. Around that time, certain politicians started talking gun control and hubby decided he didn't like his right to own and carry being messed with. He jumped on the bandwagon and took the concealed carry course with me.
OK...no laughing here guys, but I picked him out a nice CZ99. He learned to use it well.
I like guns and the practical applications of them for defense, ability to get rid of nuisance/threatening creatures and provide food if needed. Always thought they were one of the things a well rounded person should be familiar with.
The snake in our creek that became aggressive toward the kids playing in the water had to be removed. The little bunny rabbit who nibbled a bit of lettuce is ok but the ground hog who gobbled the cantaloupe and burrowed under our barn causing foundation damage had to go. The day the neighbor's long horned steer wandered around our yard snorting at my dogs, the Mossberg and I stood between him and our dogs while I called the neighbor and asked him to come get his steer or we were having hamburger for dinner.
Worked for many years as a psych nurse and twice had either a patient or visitor bring a handgun onto the unit. Not in a threatening way but they brought them. I was the only one on staff on the unit who felt comfortable asking them for the gun and holding on to it until our security staff could arrive. Practical applications.
I love animals, have 4 cats, 4 dogs and a cockatiel. All of them were rescues. I have guns for self defense and hunting if need be. I have taught our son to be familiar with and safe around them, and to shoot accurately if he ever needs to. Just makes sense to me!