I Am Not Ashamed To Be Called A Hunter!

I just read an article about record Alligators being killed in Mississippi. The comments following the article made me want to scream. So many people are either just plain stupid or they are complete hypocrites. They whine and cry about big, bad hunters who enjoy killing for the sport of killing. "Why do these animals have to be killed?" "Why don't we just leave these animals alone?" "Why don't we kill fat people and eat them instead?"

I have a hard time understanding why humans hate humans so much. There seems to be an element of people who hate their own species but love all other species. I hope these people aren't prejudice and love only certain species more than their own. I mean, if you love Alligators then you also have to love snakes, lizards, scorpions, mice, rats, wasps and flies, right?

Maybe it's just hunting that they hate or hunters. These alligator hunters don't just kill gators for sport, it's how they feed their families, it's how they earn a living. I am a hunter myself although I have never killed with a gun. I am a trapper type of hunter. I set traps in just the right locations to have the best chance of catching my prey. I do not skin or eat my catch, so I guess you could call me more of a sport hunter. I do not, however, waist my prey. I donate my catches to feed the hungry. Both of my cats enjoy my hunting hobby. It is worth all my efforts of scouting, baiting and checking my traps, when I see how much my cats love to eat those mice.

I am also a vicious hunter and killer when it comes to flies, mosquitoes, fleas, ants, roaches, wasps, wood bees, bumble bees, hornets and spiders. I use many different methods to eliminate these prey, I smash, squash, swat, poison and burn alive.

It is not that I would be opposed to killing with a gun if I had to, the sad truth is that I tried several times to shoot a fox who was quickly ridding me of all of my chickens but never could hit him. If times and resources required it, I could hunt for my food without any guilt. I could shoot an animal that was causing me continued problems, like the fox did. I could also shoot a pet, livestock or wildlife animal if I thought it was suffering and there was no one else to do it.

The truth is that the same people who whine about hunting are the same people who would be whining about all the deer in their gardens and in the roads. They would want some kind of protection for their kids from the over-population of alligators in their neighborhoods. They wouldn't like it if 15 bears were in their backyard going through their trash cans.

Let's just talk about life and the circle of life. I could use scripture here and talk about God, creation, stewardship, husbandry and dominion. But that would offend the non-believers, so we will talk about nature, conservation and common sense.

The DNR monitors and sets up rules and regulations about hunting. They know that without hunting seasons, animal populations will explode and natural resources will be depleted and everything will suffer. They keep an eye on all areas and animal numbers and adjust hunting seasons and limits accordingly.

Why, you might ask, do humans think that they know more than nature about how to handle these things? Why don't we just let nature balance its own self. The answer is so simple that I am surprised that you didn't think of it yourself. We humans are a part of nature!!! Amazingly, we are part of the food chain, we have canine teeth and are omnivores. It is up to us to play a role in the circle of life.

Actually, if you think about loving the environment and being all natural, that would include eating meat with your canine teeth. Whether you like it or not, man is the dominate species. Nature (or God), whichever you prefer, designed us this way. We have the abilities that we need to manage the earth's resources and that includes managing animal populations.

One more thing that always disturbs me is when some supposed expert out there says, "Humans are the only animal that kills for sport or for the fun of it.". That is not true. Neighborhood dogs are the best sport killers of all time. They will kill a whole herd of goats or flock of chickens and not take one with them when they go. My cat tortures and kills for the fun of it too, not for food, out of fear or because he is teaching his young. Horses will even kill small animals like cats, kittens, rabbits and even chickens, not by accident, not for fear, not for food and not to teach their young. Just because they are feeling frisky and want to stomp something.

One commenter said that he hated humans and wished they would all become extinct. That's a pretty intelligent way of thinking. I was surprised at the number of people who called for the killing of the hunters who killed the alligators. That in itself seems a little hypocritical since they despise killing living creatures. They must hate this earth and nature in general since they would like to see the balance of all things upset. Humans are a natural being, we are what we are.

As to the comments about hunting making these rednecks feel like real "men", one of the alligator hunters who broke a record and got a trophy gator that same day was a woman. Someone also mentioned that he hoped that the people complaining about the kills didn't eat hamburger, to which someone actually replied that it was different eating beef because those animals are raised for food. I wonder how all those beef calves feel about this distinction? Probably about the same way all of those young deer, fish, racoons, birds, turtles, cats and dogs feel when they get eaten by an alligator

Exotic Feline Rescue

Our old mare with Cushings never got any better even with the Chaste Tree Berries. My DH spent many days cutting her long hair so that the hot days weren't so hard on her. But even with her hair cut she suffered in the heat. So we finally donated her to the Exotic Feline Rescue Center, who provide a home for nearly 200 big cats. They were thrilled to get her at the time because they were having a drought in meat donations. They said that they would be here in a couple of hours.

When he came to get her, he said that after my Husband had called they had gotten some other calls. They feed 3000 lbs. of meat per day. Unfortunately we have several horses who are at the age that they will probably end up in the same place in the next few months or years. It isn't as bad as it sounds, the man was very skilled in putting our mare down and he did it on our own property, so the horse does not have the stress of being loaded and hauled to a strange place. We feel like this is the right answer for all involved.

Horses Killed For Meat?

Horses being killed in South Florida for their meat? - CNN.com

If you haven't been following the above story online, it is terribly frightening. I don't think that it is getting much coverage. I have asked several horse people that I know and they haven't even heard about it. They are saying 19 horses have been slaughtered but they think that many more have been killed. Some people are just not reporting it because they don't want to be involved with the police or the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals.

The articles are saying that horse meat is bringing $7 to $20 per pound on the black market and possibly even $40 per pound. The strange part of this story is that they aren't stealing the horses but are butchering them right in their own pastures or in their stalls. I read in another article where a lady went out to feed her horses and found nothing but the horse's carcass in the stall. How shocking would that be?

It is not illegal to kill and process your own horses for meat in Florida. So with horses selling at auction for $10 to $250 each or being offered for free, why would someone risk jail time to do this? They are also risking being shot by the horse owners. With all of the unwanted horses out there, it is a real shame that good, well loved horses are being slaughtered.

Goodbye, Ethel

Maude is the giant cornish cross hen that was attacked by a possum and then by a Bobcat, she sustained some serious injuries from the Bobcat attack but it was Ethel that I found dead this morning.

I knew that they usually don't live more than one year because they tend to overeat themselves into an early grave, if they are not butchered and eaten. I was just surprised when I seen one of them dead and it wasn't Maude.

Ethel was still warm when I found her so I decided to get some butchering experience. No sense in her going to waste when I have two dogs and cat to feed.

I didn't think that I could do it, I thought that is would turn my stomach but it wasn't hard at all. I just skinned her in areas that I wanted the meat from, the breast and legs. It was really no different than skinning, cutting up or deboning a store bought chicken.

She had a lot of good meat on her and my dogs and cat got a fresh, raw, show dog meal today. I know a lady that shows dogs and she keeps chickens just for her dogs, they get fresh chicken meat everyday.

Chloe, my house dog, left a piece of breast meat unguarded for just an instant and one of the Rhodie hens got away with it. She grabbed it and ran, one of the Barred Rock hens chased her down and took it away from her and disappeared, so I don't know who ended up with it but it is a dog eat dog world around here. Chloe is still upset, she may have to have therapy.

Horse Slaughter

Horses surrendered by ranch owners

After reading the article above and talking to a friend on a message board, I got to thinking about this situation that we find ourselves in. My friend told me that it is getting hard to sell big dog breeds because of the cost of dog food, it is getting ridiculously high. Yet, the value of horses in this country continues to drop, due to the closing of slaughter houses, drought and rising grain and hay prices. Anyone can afford a horse now but few can afford to feed and care for that horse.

We have been offered some of the free horses out there, the ones that no one wants, these usually include the old, the impaired, or the young untrained horse. We have to face the facts that there are some horses that are unwanted, just like there are unwanted dogs or cats. However, you never see an unwanted cow or pig, I wonder why?

In the article that I posted above, the comment was made that they were taking these horses out of one rescue with no resources and putting them back into another rescue with no resources. Horse rescues are overwhelmed with a glut of horses and have no money to feed these animals. They are becoming like the animal shelters, who routinely euthanize or send their animals away to be euthanized. Our local shelter became a kill-free shelter for awhile, they quickly became overrun and full of disease.

I know this is an emotional issue but the cycle of life is just the cycle of life. Why do humans think that they are so smart that they can change the normal pattern of nature. All animals have a survival instinct, I believe God put it there so that they wouldn't quickly become extinct. But how do we know that animals really fear death? They may be like me and fear injury but death should just be another part of life. All animals go to heaven anyway, right? How do we know that they don't welcome death when it comes?

I don't think that anyone should have a voice in this debate that doesn't own horses, period. People tend to live in a dreamworld where all horses are majestic, beautiful animals that are the picture of health, running through open pastures and that just isn't reality.

We do run our horses on open pasture and they are fed very well, even our unwanted and useless horses are given the same treatment as our valued horses. But many people have horses that are stuck in small stalls most of the time and don't know how to properly feed them. All horses aren't healthy, many have arthritis or other crippling diseases. Some are just old and very skinny, we have had good horses here that once they reach a certain age and their teeth get bad, we just cannot keep weight on them even though they are eating twice or three times the amount that the other horses are eating. They are the ones that stay close to the road where people passing by can see them.

Another thing that is funny to me and I am as guilty of this as anyone else, but we think that a horse is not healthy unless it is rolling fat, but to be a healthy person we must be bone thin.

I just read another article about a man shooting his two horses and burning their carcasses, it made national news. They were trying to decide if he could be charged with anything. This was in Illinois where the last U.S horse packing company was closed down. What was he suppose to do? I don't know his situation but there are some people who don't have very many options.

You can't take your unwanted horses to a sale barn because they won't get a bid and you will have to pay a fee and take them back home (some are just leaving them at the auction barns). You can't afford to keep them anymore for the rest of there days, because you still have to feed your family. Rescues are turning them away or you just don't trust the rescues to take proper care of them. You are expected to euthanize your old or impaired horses but then what do you do with them? Rendering companies will no longer pick them up without a large fee, so unless you have a backhoe or are good with a shovel, I think burning is a reasonable alternative.

Feeding wildlife is another idea, it is the circle of life. We lost a wonderful old mare a couple of years ago, she just dropped dead going up a steep, rocky, wooded hillside. There was no way for us to get to her with a tractor and there was no way to dig a hole. So we had no options other than leaving her where she fell. It was amazing how fast she disappeared, even her bones and hooves were utilized. However, if she had been euthanized by injection this would not have been an option, they have to be burnt or buried very deeply. Many people live in states where they are not allowed to bury, burn or leave them lay.

Our Vet recently faced this dilemma, the rendering company that had always picked up the animals that he had euthanized at his office, would no longer pick them up. We haven't seen him for awhile, so I don't know what he has done about this.

I do love horses, I also love other animals, but I eat beef, pork, chicken and fish. The last time I checked these were animals with a survival instinct also. Whether you believe it or not the meat that you eat didn't just come from a grocery store, it was once a living creature.

Dogs, cats, tigers, lions, bears, humans, and other members of the animal kingdom have to eat, so why is this resource being wasted and this burden being placed on horse owners and rescues?

I am totally against horses being transported into Mexico or Canada to be processed. I think that processing plants should be regulated in this country but not just the horse processors, the standard should be the same for all animals.

Sometimes it is all in the terms we use, we don't mind eating beef that has been processed at a packing plant but we would never eat horse meat from a slaughter house. It is alright to euthanize an old horse with a needle but we mustn't kill them with a gun. I have heard and I don't know if it is true, that some Veterinarian's in other countries carry guns to euthanize with because they feel that the injection is cruel.

One more thing that I firmly believe, the Humane Society as a whole, I am not talking about our local shelter, is a money making organization that takes advantage of and uses big hearted people.

More articles:
Death Across the Border Awaits Horses Spared It in the U.S. - New York Times
Drought is a hard time for horses - Los Angeles Times