Would you?

[Dinkshooter]

As you may be able to tell by the picture he was a pretty tame buck. Living in a gated community eating golf greens. According to the story someone waited on public land nearby and smoked him. I saw the pic, he is dead. They claimed they shot a buck miles from this spot, but it was a pretty popular buck and was easy to match up the photos. They finally admitted it was him.

Not sure why I find this so obnoxious. I have actually sat in a tree stand for Whitetails back east on a golf course. Didn't seem abnormal. Mulies and elk? Seems weird. Gonna happen alot more in the future here in the once wooly west I am sure. Maybe I am just be jealous, but I am hardly ever jealous with hunting. I am the first to call someone up and offer conrats. Maybe he is just to big and my envy meter went through the roof Cause I didn't think of it

I guess my question is............................would you feel bad about shooting him, would you try and lie about the location? Or just say yeah we got the subdivision bastardhump Is it any different than a huge private ranch?

Supposedly going to go 240 net N/T

 

[Oak]

Heck of a buck. I can't say that I would have done what they did, but I can't fault somebody for shooting him if it was done legally. I wouldn't lie about it, though. Sounds like the person felt a little guilty about doing it themselves. Either that, or they were trying to avoid being lynched by the locals.

 

[Tom]

What does B&C say about it? Its not like shooting a B&C bear out of the fruit tree in your backyard, is it?

 

[noharleyyet]

Do you have a link to the story?

 

[Dinkshooter]

No story link. All local talk and pics.

 

[Spitz]

I certainly be tempted if it could be done legitimately. But I wouldn't lie or hide the fact, I'd own up to it.

Come to think of it, that's all he would do is look good. I'd definitely be more proud of a buck 50 inches smaller shot 12 miles in.

 

[noharleyyet]

I wouldn't do it if I was ashamed of how I took it.

 

[Moosie]

I would smoke him... then tell everyone I did. If it was on the up and up..... Kudos !!

 

[ELKCHSR]

Done legally!!!

You betcha...

 

[BuzzH]

Just because its legal doesnt make it ethical.

I've seen some real nice bucks in cities, never even entertained the thought of hunting them though.

NHY hit the ball out of the park with his post...couldnt agree more.

 

[MattK]

While I understand the sentiment and agree with not shooting this particular deer with the facts stated...How do you differentiate between shooting this deer as it moves off private property and lets say shooting a 360 bull as it wanders out of Yellowstone Park or off Turners land? Are they also unethical? In an earlier thread, an elk was killed in AZ just off of private property...again called unethical. Where does the line get drawn? If it is free ranging vs. fenced or does it go beyond those boundaries to wild and free vs. used to people and free? How can you judge "wild" vs "tame"? Again, I believe in this case it is over the top but is there a sizeable "gray ethical" area when dealing with deer and elk being habituated toward people? Is there a distance from city center that should be enforced?

 

[ELKCHSR]

As far as the law is concerned, (unless I see some thing different) legal is ethical

Now it comes down to “Is ethical to one person the same as another?”

That’s just a question for debate and nothing more...

In the state of Montana, (I know this took place in Wyoming) game farms are a thing of the past...

Wild animals are wild animals and the pet parks are getting to be a thing of the past where harvesting from those left really isn't an option any way...

Coming off a golf coarse means it’s fair game as long as the rules of the law were followed in harvesting

 

[MattK]

Cheese- You couldn't be more incorrect if you tried. Just because something is legal does not qualify it as ethical. It is legal to shoot a deer that is so habituated toward people that it would literally eat of your hand...if you were to shoot that deer, it would be unethical as a sportsman. Legality and ethics obviously weren't taught in the collage you went to.

 

[ELKCHSR]

Now it comes down to “Is ethical to one person the same as another?”

That’s just a question for debate and nothing more...

Fell right into it didn't you there younster...

 

[Dinkshooter]

Most everyone says no. I don't even know myself, that thing is a pig.

On the upshot a friend of a friend that is a taxidermist just took the cape in. Wouldn't tell him the real story either. He knows now Hopefully I will see the rack there this summer and be able to rub my nutz on the horns and feel better about the whole thing.

 

[ELKCHSR]

HAHAHA!!!!!

Sounds like a great plan...

 

[Moosie]

Come on.. Saying it's Unethical to shoot a good buck because it eats grass on a Golf course is like saying it's unethical to kill a bull on a late season migration tag.

 

[BuzzH]

Yeah, and its legal to shoot a bull on a game farm in a 5 acre pen in lots of states too. Is that really ethical?

I dont know, I think when you simply follow the law and forget ethics, you've sold out and may not even be hunting for the right reasons any more.

 

[BigHornRam]

"It is legal to shoot a deer that is so habituated toward people that it would literally eat of your hand...if you were to shoot that deer, it would be unethical as a sportsman"

"I think when you simply follow the law and forget ethics, you've sold out and may not even be hunting for the right reasons any more."

I thought one of the reasons to hunt was to manage the populations of game. Over population of game animals (deer in particular) in urban areas is a serious problem. Habituated to people or not, some of them need to be culled. Nothing unethical about that.

 

[ELKCHSR]

Think what you want, fortunately your not in the minority...

Again, ethics is in the law of the beholder and every one of us can justify in our own minds what’s right and wrong (and we most certainly do)...

If it bugs you so much, get some legislation passed where no one can shoot animals coming off golf courses...