Dad shoots son....thought he was a Turkey? Sad..son died.

[Grits and Shins]

First rule of hunting ... if you don't know for sure what is in your gun sites don't shoot. ALWAYS, ALWAYS identify your target before shooting ESPECIALLY if there are other hunters/people in the area (like your 8 year old son).

 

His son should have been wearing an orange vest to help prevent him from being mistaken for a target ... but really there was absolutely NO reason to seperate from his son.

 

If this was truely an 'accident' in that it was not purposeful on the part of the father, the only thing I can thing of is that he identified movement/sound in the brush and snapped off a shot before knowing what he was shooting at.

 

The thing that made me pause was that his son was shot full in the chest with a fatal shot gun blast ... meaning they had to be fairly close and the boy had to be standing up. How can an 8 year old boy standing within 25 yards be mistaken for a turkey?

[Grits and Shins]

hat can do whatever the f*ck he wants, it's still a free country (sort of). for me personally, I do see a difference between killing for food and killing for sport. but most hunters, even those who eat their kills, are still killing primarily for sport. I mean, they don't get out in the woods sit there for 8 hours waiting for bambi to walk by because they are hungry, they do it because they think it's fun blowing away unsuspecting creatures. eating it or not eating it really isn't the issue, IMO, rather it is the motivation behind killing them.

 

 

It is okay for cows, chickens, pigs, lamb, etc to be lined up and slaughtered so you can eat but you find fault with a hunter that makes the kill himself, field dresses the animal and either butchers it himself or pays to have it butchered. So it is okay to eat the meat of an animal as long as you didn't take pleasure in killing that animal.

[Hat Trick]

First rule of hunting ... if you don't know for sure what is in your gun sites don't shoot. ALWAYS, ALWAYS identify your target before shooting ESPECIALLY if there are other hunters/people in the area (like your 8 year old son).

 

Yep

 

His son should have been wearing an orange vest to help prevent him from being mistaken for a target ... but really there was absolutely NO reason to seperate from his son.

 

While a fine idea and they would have heard some wildlife, they would have never seen anything, as soon as the orange was observed that Turkey would have ran for the hills.

 

If this was truely an 'accident' in that it was not purposeful on the part of the father, the only thing I can thing of is that he identified movement/sound in the brush and snapped off a shot before knowing what he was shooting at.

 

Pretty much what I imagine happened, careless and irresponsible

 

The thing that made me pause was that his son was shot full in the chest with a fatal shot gun blast ... meaning they had to be fairly close and the boy had to be standing up. How can an 8 year old boy standing within 25 yards be mistaken for a turkey?

 

None of us can go back in his shoes and find out, but it's definitely something I just don;t underrstand. I don't understand how a lot of hunting accidents occur, but somehow they do.

Edited April 23, 2008 by Hat Trick

[KSUChiefsTarheelFan]

How can an 8 year old boy standing within 25 yards be mistaken for a turkey?

Not to defend the father, because I think he is an idiot, but most camo used in turkey hunting have print that actually look like real bush. So maybe he was thinking "Thar is a danged ol' turkey in that bush over there, and Ima gonna shoot it!"

Edited April 23, 2008 by KSUChiefsTarheelFan

[Grits and Shins]

Not to defend the father, because I think he is an idiot, but most camo used in turkey hunting have print that actually look like real bush. So maybe he was thinking "Thar is a danged ol' turkey in that bush over there, and Ima gonna shoot it!"

 

Again ... you should NEVER shoot what you can't see. Shooting in the brush because you suspect there is a turkey on the other side is idiotic.

[KSUChiefsTarheelFan]

Again ... you should NEVER shoot what you can't see. Shooting in the brush because you suspect there is a turkey on the other side is idiotic.

I agree 1,000%

Edited April 23, 2008 by KSUChiefsTarheelFan

[Double Agent]

They are now reporting that the dad didn't even have a hunting license.

[Azazello1313]

 

It is okay for cows, chickens, pigs, lamb, etc to be lined up and slaughtered so you can eat but you find fault with a hunter that makes the kill himself, field dresses the animal and either butchers it himself or pays to have it butchered. So it is okay to eat the meat of an animal as long as you didn't take pleasure in killing that animal.

 

it's pretty simple, really. killing living creatures for fun is just kinda warped to me. harvesting them for food or whatever doesn't bother me in the least. a rancher shooting coyotes, or a farmer shooting prarie dogs....also doesn't bother me in the least. it is the killing for the sake of killing that strikes me as being a bit jaded.

[Perchoutofwater]

hat can do whatever the f*ck he wants, it's still a free country (sort of). for me personally, I do see a difference between killing for food and killing for sport. but most hunters, even those who eat their kills, are still killing primarily for sport. I mean, they don't get out in the woods sit there for 8 hours waiting for bambi to walk by because they are hungry, they do it because they think it's fun blowing away unsuspecting creatures. eating it or not eating it really isn't the issue, IMO, rather it is the motivation behind killing them.

 

I take exception to this. Venison is very good eats. It is also much leaner than beef, and thus much better for you if you are on a heart healthy diet. If you are hunting on your own land, or on a friends land then venison is a lot cheaper per pound than beef. I love eating dove, and I can't find another meat anywhere in the grocery store that is like it. Yes, it is sport, but the fact of the matter is, if venison and dove were readily available at the grocery store I'd be buying it, unfortunately it is not. I'd probably also still go hunting even if it was available on at the grocery store, but I'd be much more selective of my kills. Hunting while for many of us is about the meat, it is also socialization, spending time with my family and friends. My grandfather taught me to hunt. I've probably spent more time with him at the ranch than I have at home. I learned to drive at the ranch. I learned to play 42, dominoes, spades, gin, and poker at the ranch. The first time I ever got drunk I was on the ranch. Up until my grandfather died, we had a family reunion out at the ranch the opening weekend of dove season every year. Both of my children were conceived the opening week of dove season at the ranch. Hunting isn't just about killing. I can't tell you the number of times I've passed up on a deer, went out the next day and passed up another. If I'm low on meat or see a trophy I'm going to shoot, but I won't shoot just to kill one. Some times I just go out there to sit in a tree blind, watch the birds, foxes, hogs, squirrels, quail, dove, and deer, and then go back to to the cabin for a good game of dominoes, venison steaks cooked over a camp fire, and to listen to camp stories.

[yo mama]

it's pretty simple, really. killing living creatures for fun is just kinda warped to me. harvesting them for food or whatever doesn't bother me in the least. a rancher shooting coyotes, or a farmer shooting prarie dogs....also doesn't bother me in the least. it is the killing for the sake of killing that strikes me as being a bit jaded.

That's pretty much how I feel. Killing for necessity is part of nature. But I don't support killing for fun, including killing for trophies. There's virtually no other animals, other than humans, that do that.

[untateve]

Real men don't use guns to hunt. When I hunt, I don my loin cloth and grab a sharp rock. And then, it's on.

[Perchoutofwater]

Real men don't use guns to hunt. When I hunt, I don my loin cloth and grab a sharp rock. And then, it's on.

 

Bow hunting is fun. When I had more time on my hands I used to do it. Unfortunately I don't have enough time anymore to be a good enough shot, and I don't want to wound an animal.

[Azazello1313]

I'd probably also still go hunting even if it was available on at the grocery store, but I'd be much more selective of my kills. Hunting while for many of us is about the meat, it is also socialization, spending time with my family and friends. My grandfather taught me to hunt. I've probably spent more time with him at the ranch than I have at home. I learned to drive at the ranch. I learned to play 42, dominoes, spades, gin, and poker at the ranch. The first time I ever got drunk I was on the ranch. Up until my grandfather died, we had a family reunion out at the ranch the opening weekend of dove season every year. Both of my children were conceived the opening week of dove season at the ranch. Hunting isn't just about killing.

 

I am sure michael vick has some really fond memories associated with fighting dogs as well...doesn't change the fact that killing animals for fun is, arguably, pretty f*cked up.

[Perchoutofwater]

I am sure michael vick has some really fond memories associated with fighting dogs as well...doesn't change the fact that killing animals for fun is, arguably, pretty f*cked up.

 

You kill animals for meat. Meat that is not readily available at the grocery store. The whole process, is fun. Sitting by the camp fire, learning about nature, spending time with friends and family. Your comparing hunters to dog fighters is just wrong, and frankly I'm offended by it. Oh well, I'll stop here, I wouldn't want to take up too much of your time and make you miss your PETA meeting tonight.

[yo mama]

You kill animals for meat. Meat that is not readily available at the grocery store. The whole process, is fun. Sitting by the camp fire, learning about nature, spending time with friends and family.

I love camping and hiking. Sometimes I take a fishing pole because its lighter than carrying food itself; I'll just catch what I can when I get where I'm going. So I get most of what you're saying. I just can't get on board with killing for fun.

[Perchoutofwater]

I love camping and hiking. Sometimes I take a fishing pole because its lighter than carrying food itself; I'll just catch what I can when I get where I'm going. So I get most of what you're saying. I just can't get on board with killing for fun.

 

Is fishing fun? Don't you kill the fish before you eat them? It is really no different. I eat everything I kill and always have, with the exception of what I give to the maid to eat, and she really appreciates that. The killing and the cleaning are actually the least enjoyable part of the whole process, at least for me. Have you ever had venison summer sausage, or venison jerky? That stuff is good, and you will not find it in the store. Or have you ever wrapped a dove breast around a jalapeno and then wrapped the dove with a strip of bacon and thrown it on the grill? That is slap yo mama good.

[Azazello1313]

right, because there are no other ways to eat venison, spend time with family, or learn about nature, short of killing unsuspecting animals.

 

as far as the lame PETA comment, I think I've made it pretty clear my perspective here has nothing to do with animal rights or anything of the sort. there are all sorts of perfectly sensible and practical reasons for a human being to kill an animal, as I have already said several times in this thread. killing them for fun strikes me as being gutless and somewhat immoral.

[wirehairman]

I love camping and hiking. Sometimes I take a fishing pole because its lighter than carrying food itself; I'll just catch what I can when I get where I'm going. So I get most of what you're saying. I just can't get on board with killing for fun.

 

I love to eat venison and prefer it over any other meat. Venison is also much healthier than most red meats. I cannot buy venison. If I want to eat venison, I have to hunt it and kill it. Can you get on board with that?

 

I also find it very spiritually healing to be hunting birds under the Big Sky with my dogs or sitting on a game trail in the evening waiting for a whitetail. The chance to spend quality time with my family and friends away from the modern hustle and bustle, television, and (heaven forbid) the internet is also invaluable to me.

[Hat Trick]

Is fishing fun? Don't you kill the fish before you eat them? It is really no different. I eat everything I kill and always have, with the exception of what I give to the maid to eat, and she really appreciates that. The killing and the cleaning are actually the least enjoyable part of the whole process, at least for me. Have you ever had venison summer sausage, or venison jerky? That stuff is good, and you will not find it in the store. Or have you ever wrapped a dove breast around a jalapeno and then wrapped the dove with a strip of bacon and thrown it on the grill? That is slap yo mama good.

 

I bring in venison jerky about 5 times a year, you should see how fast it disappears. 20 lbs of meat gone in less than 30 mins. I feel I owe it to the people that don't have the opportunity or the chance to experience what I live.

[Azazello1313]

I love to eat venison and prefer it over any other meat. Venison is also much healthier than most red meats. I cannot buy venison. If I want to eat venison, I have to hunt it and kill it. Can you get on board with that?

 

maybe if it were true

[Perchoutofwater]

right, because there are no other ways to eat venison.

 

I don't know about grocery stores where you are from, but I can't find it around here. Besides, what is the difference between me killing it quickly and it sitting in a slaughter house for a few days waiting to be killed? Oh yeah, me killing it quickly means it doesn't suffer, and also keeps deer form starving to death due to over population.

 

Seriously I'd kill to find a grocery store that sold dove. I always have enough venison to last until the next season, but due to bag limits, I'm always out of dove about a month or so after dove season. If you know of one, please tell me.

[yo mama]

I love to eat venison and prefer it over any other meat. Venison is also much healthier than most red meats. I cannot buy venison. If I want to eat venison, I have to hunt it and kill it. Can you get on board with that?

Yes, if you eat it, and further assuming deer is in season, you've got a valid hunting license, and you're responsible with your gun. But, hypothetically, if you killed a deer just to mount its heads over your fireplace, then I'd think you're sadistic nut job.

Edited April 23, 2008 by yo mama

[wirehairman]

maybe if it were true

 

Clicked on your link and tried to see how much it would cost. They apologize, but their extremely limited selection of venison cuts are temporarily unavailable.

 

Even if they were not out, I doubt I could afford to order meat from them. I process all my own deer, including making jerky, burger, and sausage, in addition to harvesting them.

[Perchoutofwater]

I bring in venison jerky about 5 times a year, you should see how fast it disappears. 20 lbs of meat gone in less than 30 mins. I feel I owe it to the people that don't have the opportunity or the chance to experience what I live.

 

I generally try to harvest two deer a year. I make ground venison and sausage out of the hind quarters, steaks out of the straps and loins, and jerky out of the shoulders. You can't beat venison jerky.

[detlef]

I've only been hunting once (unless you count fishing which by all accounts you should, so I guess I've been plenty of times). None the less, it was a boar hunt and I was completely fired up. I love pig and was really looking forward to roasting some boar that I had hunted myself. Sort of the full circle thing. As it turns out, I wasn't able to make a kill. Obviously I wasn't captivated enough by the endeavor to ever go again, but I can understand why people enjoy it. Provided that there's an ultimate goal besides just killing the thing. Be it food or eliminating threats to livestock. Like anything else that is challenging, soon enough the actual act of doing it takes on a life of it's own.

 

To be honest, I can get behind hunting for food far more than I can catch and release fishing. When I was in Idaho, that was the rule and all the fishermen had this attitude that what they were doing was karma free. Oh gee, what a nice game, you stick something in the mouth with a hook and then let it go. I'm guessing the fish isn't very down with this little game of "tag". Funny thing, actually, that I have no problem with my spot in the food chain, so I have no problem with catching a fish and then whacking it's head on the rocks so you can cook it up but do have one with catching it and then just letting it go.

 

None the less, I dare not judge those who find sport in hunting.

 

I will judge the hell out of some dumb ass who doesn't know what the hell he's doing and takes his kid out in the woods and shoots him. As somebody who feels both having kids and owning guns should be taken far more seriously than many seem to take it, this strikes two nerves.