A cry for help from an S.D member

[Triggermortis]

Lads, had a call from a prominant member of the forum, bit of a cry for help:!:, it seems he almost went over to the dark side, at first he said a "mate of his" had a been sat up with his 22lr when a cub came to the sqeak,it stopped 2m from him and sat looking at him,when "his mate" raised the rifle he couldn't bring himself to shoot so let it go as "it looked so cute!" now, at this point i started to detect a quiver in his voice and realised there never was "a mate" and in fact it was the prominant member himself who'd had a momentary lapse of sanity anyway, he finally came to his senses and shot the cub as it ran away,so i recon it was a close call and can only put it down to "funny five minutes" or a "mid-life crisis" anyway the thing is, after a lot of reassurance and a bit of a pep talk, i managed to persuade him to let me post a request for advise on here as long as i don't identify him, so if any of you budding agony aunts can assist with a wise word or helpful comment, please go ahead, particularly if you can help ensure he doesn't become a tree hugging springwatch fan.

Tikkat3

 

[Duncs]

Nothing wrong with feeling a tinge of sadness for taking something's life, no matter what ceature. It is what differntiates the true sportsman/stalker, from the cold hearted killer. I had a mate that when first confronted with a young Red, didn't shoot and said, it looked so sweet. From that day on, I knew my guidence had been taken and that he would always be able to justify the shot. Glad your mate managed to shoot the fox. Mine did catch up with the young calf, and we still have a few sarcastic comments.

 

[patrickt]

tikkaT3, Iam over come with emulsion... that white.. emulsion

 

[Rake Aboot]

Just happens sometimes.

I have a good friend ,with whom I have shot for over 20 yrs. He has now given it up entirley and a major part of that is because he no longer feels comfartable killing animals. I have never berated him, or indeed tried to talk him round. He knows all the arguments and I have too much respect for him to not respect his decision.
If he comes out with me now it is with his camera.

Peoples lifes change. He is just lucky it never took hold and that he shook it off.

 

[Moray Outfitting]

Writing as self rather than MO.

Duncs - well said.

TikkaT3 - a mate ( of a mate )? Ok ( would have put more O's in, but thought everyone would think I was quoting the librarian from Unseen University )

I have lost more than fair share on chickens to foxes et al. I do fall into the trap of anthropormorphising , antroformis - putting human feelings/ emotions to an animal on occasion too. But my dearest memories of a hunting life are the times I did not press the trigger - I do not regret a single one of those times.

As has been noted, being a stone killer isn't the same thing as being a hunter. Neither will ever truly understand each other and by all means let us be individuals and true to ourselves.

If it doesn't 'feel' right don't press the trigger and crucially - rejoice in that restraint.

Nowt to fix in my personal view.

You'll - er - I mean he'll be fine....

 

[pilgrimmick]

Just sort your life out or jump off a high bridge!

 

[VSS]

Nothing wrong with feeling a tinge of sadness for taking something's life, no matter what ceature. It is what differntiates the true sportsman/stalker, from the cold hearted killer..

+1

 

[AllThingsShooting]

+1

+2 we are only human

 

[Mark 1]

Nothing wrong with feeling like that i'm sure we have all felt at one time or another a touch of sadness,
Just ask Deako, we used to shoot in excess of 5000 wood pigeon's a year until he bought his african grey parrott now he won't shoot any form of bird what so ever.

In my opinion it come's down to respect of what we do if you did'nt feel like that at time's you have no respect for the quarry.

Mark.

 

[matt_hooks]

Frankly, if you don't have a moment of doubt and compassion every time you pull the trigger, then you probably shouldn't possess a gun. It's that essential humanity that distances the true hunter and outdoorsman from the cold blooded killer. A true outdoorsman loves the animals he pursues. He knows them intimately, their habits and their behaviours, and with this has to come a certain amount of respect. It's this respect that drives me to ensure that anything I slip the trigger on will die a quick, humane death that's as instant and painless as I can possibly make it.

Anyway, humans have an in built soft spot where baby animals are concerned, of any species. It's a safety mechanism that helps to protect human young, but also seems to transfer onto other species. I'm not saying that everyone has it, but it tends to be the mad ba#####s that don't have that soft streak for small cute critters.

 

[varmint223]

I had the very same problem last year , I was out with the air rifle only on this day and following farmers orders to remove grey squirrells i set up in the woods and the first one appeared after 5 mins......and yes i couldn't pull the trigger so i just watched it and I stayed for 3-4 hours on the farm that day .....and never fired a shot although i saw plenty of targets.....things returned to normal the following week but I have to admit that these feelings happen quite regularly no matter what i am out for whether it's foxes,deer,rabbits etc....maybe one day i will give it all up .....i don't know for sure so we'll just have to wait and see

 

[pitiliedon]

I notice with some of the older stalkers/keepers when they approach retirement they are content to let the young bloods storm about at vermin control ect ,I suppose it's a bit "why keep a dog and bark yourself" But i generally think that we mellow as we get older and become softer hearted. It 's sometimes more pleasure to watch a buck about his buisness, be in a position to take him and leave him in peace. I know of retired stalkers who like to get back up into the hills and see the deer but have absolutely no inclination to pull the trigger on one.

 

[Hodmedod.one]

Me and my lamping partner absolutely love shooting foxes. Every time we shoot one we always admire what beautiful looking animals they are.
I look at my Red Stag's head on my wall dozens of times every day and always feel both the excitement of the stalk and a certain amount of sadness for ending such a magnificent creatures life.
The taxidermist did such a brilliant job on it that it looks as if it is watching my every move.
Nothing wrong with having compassion for the creatures that make our sport so unforgettable.

 

[204 Ruger]

Well its good to see that its not just me that's shown a softer side then..Yes Tikka was talking about me and I appreciate your indirect support and understanding....like you I always admire the animals I shoot. Having a cub run to within 2 metres having given a couple of mouth squeaks, looking up at us and tilting its head like a puppy...just did me in I'm afraid ..

 

[PointBlank]

Well its good to see that its not just me that's shown a softer side then..Yes Tikka was talking about me and I appreciate your indirect support and understanding....like you I always admire the animals I shoot. Having a cub run to within 2 metres having given a couple of mouth squeaks, looking up at us and tilting its head like a puppy...just did me in I'm afraid ..

That's fair enough, well spotted.

If you didn't spot these occasional wonders of nature then you would just be shooting targets at a fairground

 

[Psyxologos]

The day one takes pleasure in killing an animal for the sake of it, is the day one should stop. There is nothing wrong with showing mercy to a cub. Absolutely nothing wrong.

 

[jamross65]

YouTube - Human Mammal, Human Hunter - Attenborough - Life of Mammals - BBC

Don't know if any of you have seen this before, but even although it is edited in some bits the message at the very end is clear with regards to appreciating what it is to kill an animal. Even though for these people it means surviving or not...

 

[norma 308]

quite moving really ,one hell of a kudu that boy was fit .
i would like to ask all pro guides to if they will ALL move the 3 hour stalk to a 8 hour stalk now please i am going into endurance training after the weekend

regards norma

 

[Moray Outfitting]

T3 my apologies

 

[filzee]

one day i was walking the headrows of a friends farm ide been asked just to take care of any 'pests' it was a beautifully sunny day and i had the shotgun with me. It was really just nice to be out the house and away from work. While walking down one hedge row three fox cubs burst out of it play fighting they were having a right old time doing what cubs do.
I got myself within ten feet of them but i didn't have the heart to shoot them so i just sat down in the long grass and watched them for a bit. After about half an hour or so mummy fox returned and they all trotted off. If we spot them at night with the rifle we will take them but there was no way i was doing it then.