What are your thoughts on hunting and fishing?

[shusuke]

2. I buy fish from stores because it hurts them.

Was I the only one that had trouble not laughing at this [I don't mean to be rude, but still ...x'D]

People still need to net or hook the fish you get in stores. Hooks are nowhere near as painful as being say...bitten in half by another fish [I've fished far too many pet fish out of tanks due to this phenomenon...mainly cyclids].

I'd rather have a healthy population of deer than one slowly dying of a disease or famine due to overpopulation, thank you. Same with fish.

I hunt/fish all the time! Especially possums because they're pests. Death is a very healthy part of life but we must be very responsible.

I actually try to leave possums alone. They're a pest themselves but they oddly keep away other pests. When my uncle had some possums in his neighborhood one year, all the mice that invaded his neighborhood were gone o 3 o

And it is true that while companies can get away with stuff if they're rich enough, when it comes to food, they'll probably less than likely to take that risk. I'd rather hunt my fish wild and buy local milk and eggs like I do instead of getting farmed fish or animals bred for nothing but to be food. Main reason is because it's actually healthier and it makes it more satisfying to eat the food when it's from a responsible person in the community.

[Koolwolfe]

Yay someone agrees!

[Tokoa]

I love hunting and fishing.
Do I do it for the fun of it? no..
I mean, who does not like some deer jerky and some good old yummy catfish for supper!

[Zarago]

I hunt, and I fish, so I'm hardly against both of those activities - however, it all depends on the animal(s) that you're hunting, and the way in which you're hunting them.

I fish as a hobby, though I dislike the idea of fishing to kill. I much prefer recording the sizes of the fish and proceeding to release them - I'm a very hands-on person, so releasing a fish is almost as fun as reeling it in. Eating the animal gives me no pleasure, especially since I don't particularly enjoy fish.

However, I'm against over-fishing and fishing for rare species (particularly if the goal is to eat them) but then again, who wouldn't be? Usually, I'd place it under natural selection/survival of the fittest, but there are too many humans in the world to include them in this. The way humans mass-hunt animals, fish in particular, is also unfair. There is little skill involved with catching fish in colossal net.

Now, I'll move on to hunting. I, myself, have never hunted with a gun or a bow, but I have hunted with birds of prey (falconry). It's a far fairer, and more natural, way to hunt an animal - when you use a gun, it's impossible for the target to avoid it. Of course, it takes skill to precisely aim a gun at an animal, but it seriously is a weapon too deadly for any creature to take on. Using a bow is a more difficult method, but it's fairer on the animal since it takes more skill to use it, even if it doesn't give such a quick death.

I find hunting with falcons to be more entertaining as well. You get to see a predator in action, and they also benefit from hunting with you. It's a win-win situation, and the sides are even. If the prey is too skilled and the bird loses it, then the prey is rewarded with keeping it's life and is able to pass on those superior genes to the next generation. But, if the bird is better than it's prey, then that inferior animal doesn't get the chance to carry on it's lineage.

Anyway, that's my opinion put. I don't think there's anything wrong with hunting or fishing if it's done within limits - I am highly against over-exploitation and unfair methods of hunting, it screws the system and leads to produce weaker, more vulnerable animals. Humans, unlike a lot of predators (wolves, for example), do not bother to observe their potential prey and will, with the power of guns, shoot any animal that happens to run within the weapon's range, and that animal could have been the strongest of the herd.

People are too ignorant.

[shusuke]

Humans, unlike a lot of predators (wolves, for example), do not bother to observe their potential prey and will, with the power of guns, shoot any animal that happens to run within the weapon's range, and that animal could have been the strongest of the herd.

In my area hunters don't shoot willy nilly at animals. There are many deer that members in my community let go because they're experienced enough to know if the deer is old or young, healthy or sick.

Sick deer meat can't always be used, so shooting a healthy buck is better if the entire deer is to be processed and then eaten. :V If humans had stronger immune systems like dogs and cats, then it'd be completely different and we'd be able to target sicker animals, but we don't, so it's the healthier animals people tend to go after [not just for trophies or whatever].

[Abomine]

I'm looking at these comments and I'm so happy to see that (so far) people are debating this touchy subject with relative civility. Usually topics like this (especially on forums for games of this type) get heated very fast.

[Genesis9]

I'd have to say that almost fairly neutral about the whole topic. I've fished before and it was fun, and we would always let them go after we caught them and measured them. However I never really enjoyed hooking a fish, because I always imagined it would hurt a lot to get a hook through the mouth. We also caught a snapping turtle by accident and I felt really bad for it :C (It was tricky buy we managed to get the hook out!)
As for hunting, I think it's fine (apart from poaching of course which is just awful). I don't really know more about that subject to really have an opinion on it.

[Zarago]

In my area hunters don't shoot willy nilly at animals. There are many deer that members in my community let go because they're experienced enough to know if the deer is old or young, healthy or sick.

Sick deer meat can't always be used, so shooting a healthy buck is better if the entire deer is to be processed and then eaten. :V If humans had stronger immune systems like dogs and cats, then it'd be completely different and we'd be able to target sicker animals, but we don't, so it's the healthier animals people tend to go after [not just for trophies or whatever].

You have a valid point - I should have said "don't usually bother". Well, it was one in the morning.

Whilst some hunters may examine, say, a deer before they let fire, nobody can accurately select a perfect target out of an entire herd and benefit the species as well as wolves do. And, as you say, our immune systems aren't excellent so we cannot risk taking the unhealthiest animal if we're hunting for food. I do not see what is wrong with raising, and then killing, captive deer instead of taking the risk with the wild population if you're not living in the wilderness.

However, if it's a cull, I doubt many of the hunters will bother observe the deer before they shoot them. Also, in trophy-hunting, people will usually target the most impressive individuals - it's definitely the worst 'reason' to hunt for.

[shusuke]

I do not see what is wrong with raising, and then killing, captive deer instead of taking the risk with the wild population if you're not living in the wilderness.

If you want the answer to that, just look at farmed animals we eat now, such as species of fish and chicken. They can be pumped with drugs and are bred to be food, and nothing more. It really is sad when you think about it.

Offshore fish farms [as an example] threaten the environment because the fish are kept in small spaces and don't allow the fish to roam. They can catch diseases and illnesses by being crammed into those net pens or tanks in facilities on shore.

The food that captive fish are fed can hold toxins that can cause cancer. Offshore farms also can cause algae to grow in the areas where they're kept and may lead to harm the wild animals in the area.

For wild fish the only real downside is the fear of overfishing, and how barbaric some fishing techniques are to ocean fish. If a system that focuses on those things were to be brought about in a way that would satisfy people's needs [both the consumer and the fishermen] then we wouldn't have to worry at all.

All in all, though, I wouldn't want to know what deer would go through if they were captive bred for food. I really, really don't.

[Zarago]

I wasn't aiming at a massive set-up like the ones used for chickens, cows, fish, pigs and such. I was referring to a small to medium-sized group of deer bred for food. I should have been more specific. From what I see in the butchers and supermarkets today, the demand for venison isn't particularly high, so I doubt people are going to move to farming deer like they do with many domestic animals.

Pumping the animals with drugs isn't necessary or compulsory either, it's just done (mostly) to improve the growth rate.

Also, regarding fish, bacteria and disease spreads easier in water than on land.

We don't live in a perfect world, I'm aware of that. Not everyone is going to care about the environment and how to farm sensibly, by a long shot. There are too many humans in the world and a lot have lost their ability to care for themselves, thus the amount of poorly-kept animals packed together and spat out by the millions in packets every day.