Quote Originally Posted by Witis View Post
I don't think there was any ambiguity, I clearly only asked the question I meant to ask, which is obvious from the interaction:
No, you started off asking about the motivation of the hunter, then turned it into an ethical question about whether I thought it was acceptable. For one thing, I have already stated that I don't hunt, so even talking about the motivation of a bow hunter is entirely secondhand. When you start talking about what is acceptable, then you get into the realm of fair chase law, an area I have little opinion on. So, if we are talking about how people harvest deer, I have a little second hand information about that. If we are talking about why people harvest deer, I have talked to a variety of people about that and know that there are a wide rande of motivations. But, if we are talking about the ethics of hunting deer, I'm not even going to answer, because I don't feel very strongly about it.


Then I have to reiterate my question: Do you believe that it is acceptable to kill a deer as long as there is more skill involved e.g bow and arrow, blowpipes, or spear?
What have I said that indicated whether I thought it was either acceptable or unacceptable to kill a deer by any means? I would certainly say that it takes more skill, and generally greater effort, to kill a deer with a bow than it does with a rifle. A blowpipe without curare would be inhumane and would not fall under fair chase laws, while I would expect that a blowpipe with curare would be illegal in most of this country. Spear hunting is legal for some types of game, but not for others. Whether it's legal for deer is a state by state issue. I would guess that, if it is legal at all, if probably is acceptable under fair chase laws. Running deer by humans is illegal in this state (it would fall under harrasing wildlife, cause you'd never convince a game officer that you were actually hunting). Running deer by dogs may be legal in parts of the southeast (hound hunting for various things is more widely used in the some states down there), but the dogs may be shot on sight by law enforcement in other states. So, you'd have to check the laws in whichever state you felt like chasing deer around. It may even be encouraged in some areas, since deer will move into towns where they can't be hunted, and they have been known to attack people and domestic animals.

What sort of prey are they allowed to hunt at that age?
You'd have to check with the state. We have 50 different sets of laws on the subject. Have fun with your research.


Ok then, what about elk, or moose rather than venison?
I'd certainly consider elk, moose, or bison if I was at a place that had it on the menu. I've certainly had bison, and I think I've had elk, or at least seen it on a menu. Both of those tend to be VERY lean compared to beef, with no marbling to speak of, so they have to be cooked in certain ways or else they are really dry. I had some BBQ Buffalo burgers (American Bison aren't technically Buffalo, but that name is used a lot more than Bison) that were really good.