Why I hunt - Food

[Big Fin]

Since YouTube does not have some of the confines of TV, we are working on a series of video clips of "Why I hunt."

So often I am asked why I hunt and often it is from a standpoint of questioning the morality of my decision to want responsibility for the food on my table. Over time, I have learned to answer the question in a non-defensive manner. Still a passionate response, yet unapologetic and hopefully an affirmative statement of my motives rather than a defensive position.

Whether like it or not, the reality is, society's approval of hunting is in large part dependent upon what they see as our motives for doing so. When polled, non-hunters support overwhelmingly support hunting when the motives align with theirs. As an example, data shows 77% of non-hunters approve of hunting when food is the primary motive. Conservation values gain high approval. Other motives/reasons have mixed support, with some behaviors conveying a motive that has very low support.

I worry that much of the messaging society sees from our media is reinforcing those motives that get low scores. They do not understand the nuances of hunting as we do. what they see is filtered through a mind whose life experiences are often disconnected from the process of life-death-food. Our goal in this upcoming series is to try provide some messages that align with the high approval motives and counter some of the low-approval behaviors.


This clip is a test clip that I am hoping to get some feedback on.




https://youtu.be/sMggfTIvV50



We are doing a bunch of similar that inspect why I hunt. It is not easy to articulate something as personal as taking an animals life. Hopefully this first effort about hunting for food is not too far out in the weeds.

I would guess that some of you have the similar motives for hunting. Not all of them will focus on food. Some will focus on culture, some on conservation, some on health, and the entire list of motivations I find in my personal hunting experiences.

I am hoping all of you will give me your honest feedback. Maybe give me some of your motives for hunting that I may have overlooked and should be included in this series.

I would also ask that you share this clip with any of your friends who you think might provide some good feedback. Or, share it if you think it has any use to explain one of the many motives we have for hunting.

As always, thanks for watching and thanks for subscribing.

 

[Lv2hnt]

A really good first episode! It should help spark the curiosity of the growing health-conscious population. I like how you also mentioned what we hunters do for wildlife that goes beyond the hunt itself. A well put-together piece that we hunters can easily share with others (I already have).

In the future you might incorporate the aspect of how we all have hunters in our genealogy (though with some it might go back a ways). Also how hunting keeps us in touch with the ebb and flow of life in its truest sense (balances our inner being) ...

 

[Jamen]

I really enjoyed the clip it has a lot of main points I think that most people can relate to.

For me being 24 now the reasons why I hunt and fish have changed completely since I started years ago. When I first started hunting I thought going out and shooting my limit of ducks and roosters or a big buck was what was important to me. As I grew up I began to see myself drift away from that mentality more and more.

It really hit when college started I only lived 100 miles away from home but like most college students I didn't go home very often. I did make it a point to go home and hunt with my father though any chance I got. Spending time with him as I grew older was why I went hunting. I didn't need to shoot my limit of ducks anymore nor did I need to find that giant buck.

Hunting for me has been a tradition, I remember hunting with my dad at 3 in the decoys for ducks. Every November we would go to deer camp where the entire family would show up all my cousins and aunts and uncles. At the time I never thought anything about it now I look back and miss those days.

I agree with the food part you mentioned being able to provide for yourself is rewarding and ensuring the future of hunting for generations to come. I also think hunting brings people together. Look at this forum and how many close friends we have all made and without the common interest of hunting we would have never met these people.

 

[7mag.]

Great start Randy. I wish more hunters were as well spoken as you and Rinella.

The reasons I hunt are a little different. While I agree with what you said, I hunt because it is who I am. I grew up hunting with my father. Most of my fondest memories of him were made hunting together.

A few years ago, I was diagnosed with a disease in my lungs, heart, and kidneys. I was told that I wouldn't be able to be as active as I like to be, and especially wouldn't be able to backpack hunt any more. That was the most motivating thing anyone as ever said to me. Now, 4 years later, I backpack hunt more than ever and enjoy every minute in the mountains with a new appreciation.

I have a 10 year old son that is just starting to hunt and backpack with me. When he starts to falter, I say " Don't you want to know in your heart that you earned the animal you take? With every bite, you'll fondly remember how hard you worked for it. Even if we don't bring something home, it won't be from lack of effort, and you will have made memories seeing places and experiencing things most people don't even know about."

A famous quote about sums it up for me.
" I don't hunt to kill, I kill to have hunted"

 

[Tom]

So many good points in just 2 minutes and 10 seconds. Awesome! This is my garden, can be expanded a bit. You could add its healthy, lean, and fresh meat, not processed, preserved, and fertilized, etc.

 

[jrabq]

Really nice video. As with most folks I have a wide variety of motivations, but the video captures one of the major elements; well done!

 

[MNElkNut]

I really liked how you said if an animal has to die for my food, I want it's blood on my hands. I know that when we eat wild game at my house, it really bothers me to throw some away for any reason. Ironically, if we eat domestic game, I really don't have the same emotional response if we have to throw some away. Throwing out the last few bites of chicken??? The same as throwing away the last few noodles.

I will butcher this next explanation, but it goes something like this: I hunt to experience wild places that I would not otherwise experience. I have never heard of anyone getting up before dawn, donning waders and placing decoys in a smelly swamp on a cold rainy day just to see ducks. I would guess it is extremely rare to find someone off the trails in the mountains in some remote canyon, an hour before dawn, clinging to some steep slope, sweat pouring off, just to listen to bugling elk. You could go on and on with examples such as these, but the reality is, hunting puts you in special places at special times that you would not experience any other way. I think we can all close our eyes and think of a time and/or place we would have never been without hunting. Experiencing it with family and friends makes it even more special.

I think back to hauling my elk out last year. At the end of a long, wet week. At the end of a long day. Exhausted. Heavy loads. Feet that literally took a month to recover. and I loved every stinkin' minute of it! My wife thinks I am nuts. And maybe I am. But I wouldn't have it any other way!

 

[Kiwi]

Great clip Big Fin. Such a positive message that perfectly explains one of the key reasons we hunt. I look forward to the next clips that cover other motivations.

 

[7mag.]

I really liked how you said if an animal has to die for my food, I want it's blood on my hands. I know that when we eat wild game at my house, it really bothers me to throw some away for any reason. Ironically, if we eat domestic game, I really don't have the same emotional response if we have to throw some away. Throwing out the last few bites of chicken??? The same as throwing away the last few noodles.

I will butcher this next explanation, but it goes something like this: I hunt to experience wild places that I would not otherwise experience. I have never heard of anyone getting up before dawn, donning waders and placing decoys in a smelly swamp on a cold rainy day just to see ducks. I would guess it is extremely rare to find someone off the trails in the mountains in some remote canyon, an hour before dawn, clinging to some steep slope, sweat pouring off, just to listen to bugling elk. You could go on and on with examples such as these, but the reality is, hunting puts you in special places at special times that you would not experience any other way. I think we can all close our eyes and think of a time and/or place we would have never been without hunting. Experiencing it with family and friends makes it even more special.

I think back to hauling my elk out last year. At the end of a long, wet week. At the end of a long day. Exhausted. Heavy loads. Feet that literally took a month to recover. and I loved every stinkin' minute of it! My wife thinks I am nuts. And maybe I am. But I wouldn't have it any other way!

Well said, I agree with all of it. There are so many reasons we hunt, and often the words we use to describe it, doesn't do it justice.

 

[noharleyyet]

Good clip...and commensurate with my attention span.

 

[Recurve62]

100% spot on.

 

[JayCO]

This clip is a test clip that I am hoping to get some feedback on.

So what am I missing? It says the clip is private.

 

[katqanna]

Excellent. Many of these points are what I share with my non-hunting conservation friends, especially taking responsibility for what I eat. Yes, there are health factors, no antibiotics, wild, diverse forage, etc. But whether I raise it, or I hunt it, I am going to take responsibility for my food choices.

I am glad that you showed the butchering part as well, too many people sterilize the subject in their minds.

 

[Big Fin]

So what am I missing? It says the clip is private.

Hmm. Not sure what happened. Try it now.

 

[kansasdad]

Really well put together in my opinion. Great videography and the thoughts are well delivered. I like it.

 

[BlakeA]

Awesome!

 

[Tradewind]

Good clip...and commensurate with my attention span.

Lol

 

[Tradewind]

Eloquently stated. I'm usually more blunt because it generally is an opener for someone else to go on a rant abt us 'bloodthirsty types.'

As an attourney told me, who fights on behalf of one of the meat industries. "It is very hard to counter a sound bite that would fit on a bumper sticker with a paragraph of explanation."

 

[JayCO]

Hmm. Not sure what happened. Try it now.

roll footage!

Looks good!

 

[Nutrioso]

Randy,

I thought that clip was excellent. A strong impactful message in a nice short clip, with great footage. This series will help contrast the "whack 'em and stack 'em" stuff that we see way too much of in outdoor media. Thank you for undertaking this project.