Last year I blogged about the signs of the changing seasons in our part of the world. You can read about it here. Well, it's that time of year again and what it means for me is that we're going to have hunting dogs running through our farm for the next couple of months.
This past week we had three dogs on our farm. They got stranded in one of our pastures and were there for three days. I didn't realize it until the third day and I spent a good amount of time trying to coax them out the gate without letting out the goats and the horse. There was a phone number on a brass plate on each of their collars. I called the number so the owner could come get the dogs. The problem was, the number wasn't a valid number. My next step was to take the dogs to the Humane Society so they could locate the owner through their license numbers. Before I could round up the dogs, they disappeared into the woods. I thought that they had gone home and didn't think anything of it until Saturday. That was when we discovered one of our chickens behaving strangely, as if a predator had frightened it. On Sunday, my husband learned why the chicken was so frightened. One or more of the dogs had killed at least two of our chickens. The dogs are beagles which normally don't hunt farm animals, but the poor creatures were so hungry they were desperate.
This brings me to why I hate certain hunters - dog hunters. These people use their dogs to hunt deer. While the dogs do all the work, the hunters, dressed in full camouflage, sit in their warm pickup trucks, often drinking beer and probably eating Slim Jims, and wait for the dogs to chase the deer in their direction so they can shoot them. They call this a sport. What makes it really bad is the way they treat their dogs. They like to keep them hungry, because they say it makes them better hunters. And I know these dogs are usually mistreated in other ways. So, because these so-called sportsmen keep their dogs hungry, when the dogs get lost, and they often do, they become extremely hungry and will attack livestock for food. Sunday my husband and I had to witness one of our chickens breathe her last breath after she was severely injured by a hungry dog.
Now, on a lighter subject, why do these hunters feel the need to dress in full camo to sit in their trucks? Fashion statement?
Photo source: www.cracked.com
5 comments:
How absolutely terrible. I can never understand the "hunter" mind set. What a shame.
Those poor dogs...I am not a fan of hunting either.
First I must state that I am a vegetarian, but do not impose my culinary choices on others. Second, this comment is not meant to start an argument with anyone.
There is a great line in the TV show "Jack + Bobby" where young Bobby asks John Slattery's character why he hunts, his reply is "because modern life has become too convenient."
I have a good friend whose brother + boyfriend hunt together + this is a huge source of contention for them. I always have to bring up that she gets upset when they kill ducks + deer, but she eats hamburgers + chicken. She always responds sheepishly with "I know, I know." Another friend was big on Atkins, but worked tirelessly for animal rescue organizations. Her response to her 3-meal-a-day meat eating was "I choose not to think about it."
I understand that your post is about dog hunters, I find this practice absolutely appalling as well. As for regular(?) hunting, I do not oppose giving the animal a chance because this is far more humane than factory farming and pretty much amounts to the ultimate in free range.
Adrienne and Hostess, it does break my heart when I see those poor dogs.
Shona, I'm a vegetarian, as well, and believe people have the right to choose to eat meat or not. However, I agree with you, if you're going to eat meat, you should know the cost of eating that meat. A true hunter has to work for his/her meat and the animal has a fair chance. My husband has become what he calls a "farmitarian," that is, he only eats meat that he has raised or hunted. He refuses to participate in the torture that occurs in factory farming.
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