Maybe someone can explain it to me, because I truly do not understand how hunting animals can be seen as a sport, something to do recreationally. I don’t understand why people train up there dogs to sniff out the trail of wild boars, kangaroos etc. and lead them to the animal so that the mighty human can repeatedly shoot and stab the animal until they bleed to death. Often the dogs are rewarded by being allowed to maul the ‘trophy’ that they assisted in tracking down, while the humans stand back and photograph their kill.
I have the same issue with duck hunting and to a lesser extent, fishing. If you actually kill the fish you caught and eat it, then I understand that to some degree. It’s not a wasteful process; it’s not killing and simply discarding the animal, unlike ducks that are shot- and thrown away. I hate fishing where the fish is maimed by a large hook and thrown back (oh how gracious of you, kind human) bleeding, injured, and in shock with a wound that should never have happened.
I often see ‘true Aussie’ type memes in my Facebook newsfeed with pictures of dead pigs and kangaroos, bloodied and mauled, with a ‘bloke’ next to them, hands bloodied, often still holding the knife. Captions such as “Real Aussie men hunt” accompany these pictures. And in the comments, there’s often overwhelming support for the hunter: “bloody oath, great kill! She’s a beauty!”
She was a beauty before the lifeblood was drained out of her in a violent and frenzied manner. To those who say that kangaroos are pests and that hunting is simply assisting the ‘culling’ process, I put it those who hunt kangaroos that if they are indeed pests, there has to be a less cruel way to ‘cull’ said animal other than spearing, stabbing and shooting them.
With hunting, a quick death is not the objective. It almost seems like the longer the animal suffers, the more adrenalin surges through its killer. How can a ‘blokes weekend’, which involves utes, dogs, beer and weapons, be seen as harmless fun? It’s murder, plain and simple. And I don’t get it.
Are you a recreational hunter? Do you see a problem with killing animals for fun?
