"Why do you hunt?"
"How can you take a life?"
"How do you hunt but not kill something every time?"
It's a reoccurring question I hear from hunters and anti-hunters alike, and more often than you can imagine.
Just a few weeks ago, I was interviewed and shadowed by a newsy.com videographer. She had contacted me because she was doing a story about an organization that allows hunters to donate deer meat to food pantries and shelters. Hunters for the Hungry is an organization I am honored to be a part of and demonstrates one of the ways hunters give back to their communities.
While watching deer roam the fields that afternoon, the Newsy reporter asked, "Why do you hunt?"
It's a loaded question, really. There are multiple approaches to answering it. As a passionate hunter, you start out by wanting to make the anti-hunter understand when, ultimately, you never will. There's also the route of hunting running in the family, followed by the adrenaline rush when you pull the trigger. I've written several articles recently involving hunting, mainly because its that time of year where I am in the woods frequently, and those that don't understand or necessarily agree, are constantly asking about the hobby I so enjoy.
One route of answering this question takes me back 12 years to the day I went on my first deer hunt with my papa. That evening, I harvested my first deer, and from then on I was hooked.
When I took my first deer, I was shaking like a leaf after I pulled the trigger. It could've been a result of the cold November air and my lack of layers, or a combination of the cold and the adrenaline of my first shot. When family members and friends met us to help us look for my first deer, I was met with congratulations and excitement by all. That day sparked a love and passion that still drives me today, and has only expanded.
Over time, I became a well-rounded hunter, learning to harvest more game than just deer. I have risen, utterly exhausted, at 4 am to get dressed and get out on the field before sun up. I have duck hunted in -1 degrees beside a river in Oklahoma while making new friends and also losing the feeling in my toes. I felt the excitement of taking my first turkey while my cousin and best friend sat beside me.
I hunt because I love the outdoors. While hunting, I have seen some of the greatest sunrises and sunsets that have ever taken place (in my opinion). I have watched fawns run around a field chasing each other, calling to their mother who was just yards away. I have observed turkeys in their daily activities, seen ducks land and glide across the water before swimming around calling to one another, and I have had the privilege of watching otters swimming in their natural habitat. Something people fail to wrap their minds around is that hunting is not called "killing," and I am certainly not the type to shoot every animal that I cross paths with.
As hunters, we experience respect for game and land like others can't. We work hard in the off-season to make sure the wildlife have adequate food for the winter months, as well as habitat. It's rewarding to sit back and observe the wildlife we work so hard to protect and care for. I feel remorse every time I pull the trigger, but if I was a cold blood killer I probably wouldn't, right?
This sport, this hobby, and this form of conservation will never be completely explained to those who aren't a part of it. I hunt because I love the sport. I love the thrill of the chase and the reward of the hard work we put in. I hunt because I enjoy the few hours I can sit in silence and watch animals, even when I don't come across the trophy buck I'm looking for. I love that it gives me a chance to decompress after a long week.
I hunt for the fellowship, the excitement, and the adrenaline. It's okay if others don't understand this sport, and if those explanations aren't enough, then I will never be able to explain it.
