How can anyone get any satisfaction from hunting animals with tricks?

Question

I was thumbing through a sporting goods catalog recently and was slightly amused/horrified to see fake geese, a fake cow, all manner of subterfuge to make hunting animals easier. I thought the whole point of hunting was the challenge. Between canned hunts and all these silly fakes, where's the sport?

For the record, I'm not a hunter, but hunting is legal and protected. I respect that right. And I do appreciate that someone else killed that cow I had in burger form.

Answer 1

Some people hunt for sport, others for food. I fall into the second category. I only deer hunt and I try to get at least two a year to be able to have enough to eat until next year. In my state it is legal to feed and bait deer. I feed them but have never killed one over food or bait. I kill them right in my backyard. It is more like harvesting livestock to me. I use to love hunting for sport when I was younger. I now find it rather repulsive but I respect others right to do it. Hope this was helpful.
Been eatin' on aged venison steaks since breakfast this mornin'. Canadian Steak Seasoning, worcestshire, and teryaki marinade punched into the meat with fingertips. Fried in beef fat. Yum Yum.

Answer 2

Decoys have been used for ages. Ducks in flight are very wary about where they land. If they see other ducks in the water, they feel a little safer. Still, I have come home from a long freezing morning empty handed.

Your question reminds me of my wife a few years back. We were in the sports store and she was looking at all the archery practice targets in the form of bear, deer, bighorn sheep, etc. and assumed they were decoys for the animals.

'Canned' hunts rub me the wrong way. Guys that train their deer to come to a programmed feeding station every day at the same time for food and deer co-cain, then just show up to harvest their 'stock' are actually 'ranchers' and not hunters. Nothing wrong with it, it's no different than herding cattle.

Answer 3

I live in a rural part of North Carolina where the Deer population gets out of hand even with the Wildlife Commision looking after it. I am not talking about Deer Genocide here, but we can take extra Does this year because of the high population of does. Bucks get taken too young alot of times just for being a Buck and having antlers and thats not right in alot of ways but thats the way it is. I hunt for Food and to feed my wife and 4 kids.

Answer 4

I hunt, and in a small way I see your point. I prefer walk and stalk hunting v/s stand hunting or blind hunting. The guys that use the decoys need the extra advantage of the decoys to lure their game in close enough for a good shot. I on the other hand, go out and track my game and get close enough to get a good shot.
Without the use of decoys, the stand and blind hunters would have to rely on luck alone that their quary might show up. Don't get me wrong, I see nothing wrong in a major way about decoy hunting, it's just not for me. I don't have the temperament for sitting still for long hours just waiting, I'd rather be out there, by myself, stalking some critter that needs a new home in my freezer.

Answer 5

Tricks? There's a animal sucker born every minute. One time, I was running a shell game in the woods, and man did I ever trick them deer. Maybe not as good as when I ran a three card monte deal on them, but it was good.

You should see how close they come to me when I pull a rabbit out of my hat.

Okay, so i was a little snotty about that. I don't use tricks or decoys simply because it's just more crap to haul and our record for taking game is fine without it.

Answer 6

i also hunt for food I don't go after big bucks (don't get me wrong I'd shoot buckzilla if walked in front of me) usually i like the 1 1/2 year old stuff. being that i have 2 boys i don't have the extra money to throw away on this kind of kimmiks and toys.
Nothing warms my hart better than returning to work after deer season hering the guys talking about how bad there hunt was. after listening to them for months tell me you can't kill a deer without a $2,000 rifle and a $250 feeder and a $300 tree stand. mean while i fill my tags most years with my old M1917 30/06 war horse.

Answer 7

Yeah, I see your point. And how can any woman get any satisfaction from attracting a man's attention by plucking and pulling, shaving and waxing, twisting and dyeing, stuffing it all into a tight little dress, painting up the face and using "all manner of subterfuge"? It does make one wonder.

Answer 8

Well no disrespect intended, but why don’t you go out hunting with me a few times and see just how EASY it is to use these tricks, I’ll let you do all the calling and decoy arranging.
Don’t worry I’m not coming on to you, because I’m old enough probably to be your farther.

You cant believe just how hard it is to fool a wild animal with these toys.

thats why they have calling contest, because it is so difficult.

I’ve been at this for over 3 decades and I am still learning.

Just make 1 wrong sound with that call and you blew it, it knows your there.

Set up the decoys wrong and nothing will come near.

There is not too many dumb animals in the woods.

To be 100% honest 95 % of those toys are manufactured to attract the hunter and bag his wallet.


D58


Hunting with Rifle, Pistol, Muzzle loader and Bow for over 3 decades.
Reloading Rifle, Pistol and shotgun for over 3 decades.

Answer 9

I saw a video several years ago about some state's Fish and Game officers rigging a decoy deer to catch hunters who shoot from their trucks on the road...
the decoy's head even turned, looked very lifelike.
Several trucks stopped, the hunter fired at the decoy, and the
F&G wardens would arrest them.
The last truck stopped...driver got out, walked to the edge of the road and yelled- SHOO !
A moment later you could hear the warden on his PA system [laughing]: "Uh, sir, could you please move on...''

Answer 10

It helps evolution. If an animal is too stupid to know a plastic statue is not really another animal then it is best for the species that the stupid ones that fall for the tricks are eliminated from the gene pool.

Answer 11

I've been a Hunter all of my life and as a true sportsman, nothing goes to waste.If I have a surplus of venison, I donate it to a local homeless shelter and food kitchen to feed the hungry as part of a national hunters organization.
I understand your reasoning and though I'm a hunter, I get a chuckle out of some of the things I've seen that are "gimmicks". I went goose hunting last year as a guest of a large corporation ($1,000 per day pit fee's to hunt) and walked into a corn field, and behold, right in front of me about 100 yards away was a giant 8' long x 4' wide Canadian goose. Some geese flew over and the top of this gigantic decoy flipped up and a hunter stood up and fired at the geese overhead. I about peed my pants laughing. That was an extreme case because decoys have been used by hunters for over a 100 years. Some of the first were carved by hand from wood,and are incredibly expensive as it is considered an art form today.
I guess what I'm trying to point out is there are literally hundreds of hunting "gimmicks" out there from Deer baits to "oversized" decoys made to resemble just about any north american animal that is hunted. The reality is most of these "gimmicks" don't work well enough to make a difference but take a "Hunter" and I use that term loosely with a little extra cash, and he/she will buy anything in hopes of gaining an edge. It doesn't make them have an easier time either, so that is another mis-conception.Sad to say, but this is the American way.
As far as canned hunts are concerned they are just like going to a zoo and shooting a penned up animal for the thrill of the kill, not the thrill of the hunt as it should be as far as I'm concerned.. Most true hunters would agree with me on this. The concept of true sportsmanship and the challenge of the hunt is losing ground to those who want to buy their way to success by throwing their cash down,and gaining instant gratification with minimal to no effort required. So it's not about sport at all, it's about gaining that little edge on the other guy and losing sight about why we are hunters out in the field in the first place. Just my "take" on the situation......