Giraffes gunned down for family holiday 'fun'

I was taught two very simple rules about hunting when growing up:

1: NEVER point a gun at something you don't intend to shoot.

2: If you shoot it, YOU ARE DAMN WELL GONNA EAT IT.

While I have no problem with sustenance hunting where necessary sport hunting is way off the cards. And taking your children? How ghastly!

"Look son, a majestic Giraffe, the tallest creature on Earth." From the distance, "BLAM!" Hunter emerges to see father and son in a state of disbelief and says, "You saw that right, it was coming straight for us!"

reply to post by ShadowAngel85


So, did you enjoy your last hunting trip in Africa? How many animals did you kill? And eat?
Seems to me you are arguing from the viewpoint of the guilty!
I was born in Africa and have lived in Africa my entire life and a Giraffe is one of the most gentle creatures you could hope to encounter!
Kill the wildlife in your own country/continent!

I am a hunter myself. I have no problems with hunting an animal that you plan to eat as the brush tribes spoken of above do. To them it is a means for survival I can understand this. Trophy hunting eh I dont know about that i just dont see these animals as a trophy. To me, an this is just my personal oponion the only animals tht can be considered a trophy is something that you had to track and stalk and worrie about coming and hunting you. You dont have to do any of this with a giraffe. All you do is drive out with someone who knows where they are pick one aim and fire. Where is the honor in that? You are doing NOTHING this cant even be considered hunting its just killing bottom line. Those that are killing these animals just to take a picture of them are cowards with no regard for nature. If they want a real trophy they should go for wild boar or lion, something that is an actual challenge. Even as a hunter I find this a disgrace.

I have read Teddy Roosevelt's book that he wrote about his safari in Africa to collect specimens for the American Museum of Natural History.

Most of the giraffe that they encountered proved to be difficult quarry, and they were hunting from horseback.

He also said that there was never a bit of meat wasted, as whole tribes would follow the safari at a distance, taking whatever they could, especially the bones, which they cracked open to get the marrow. Some of the marrow was eaten, but the natives would also render the fat from it to use for cooking oil. Most African game animals have very little fat on their bodies.

Any meat that they couldn't eat in a short time was made into 'biltong' by drying strips of meat over a smoky fire, as in unsalted jerky.

Most African 'bushmeat' tends to be smaller animals like rodents and monkeys, some species are being over-harvested to the point of near extinction.

reply to post by butcherguy


And that relates to this thread exactly how?

I don't see your point at all!

Originally posted by wiser3
reply to post by butcherguy

 

And that relates to this thread exactly how?

I don't see your point at all!

Some posters seem to believe that the meat was wasted.

African bushmeat has been mentioned. Bushmeat is killing off species more quickly than big game hunting, which is regulated and raises conservation money.

I was hoping to add to the understanding of what it is like in the bush, versus what supermarket 'hunters' eating their factory farmed meat think and feel about their 'real world'.

ETA: some poster also mentioned how easy it is to kill a giraffe. Try driving up to one in a motor vehicle, when you are not in a game park, in the bush. That was my point with them being difficult quarry, even when hunting from horseback. Giraffes have a keen sense of smell and good eyesight, plus a pretty good view from atop that long neck.

Sorry, I guess I wasn't specific enough for you to see how it relates to a thread that involves killing a giraffe.

Sport? is that what they call this now? Sitting on you Jeep and sniping a feeding Giraffe? Wow that was some challenge for you.

Wasn't actual sport hunting requires stealth, camping, understanding animal behaviour and actually work for it.

Oh, and all those that is saying that the meat didn't go to waste.. does that make this OK?.. so according to this logic, we can kill another human, take his money, wife, kids, house... i mean, its OK right? since whoever is taking those things will be happy and they wont go to waste.

It is interesting to me that so many people here fixate on the "motive" of the hunting. If the meat was eaten, and the animal's suffering was as brief as possible, what was the difference?

If a tribal hunter was proud of the meat he provided the village, would that make him an evil bastard? What about if he hung the skull over the doorway to his hut, but still gave the meat to his village? Would that make him evil?

What if he wasn't a local? What if he was one of "us," while donating the meat and displaying his trophy?

Would it now be wrong because anything "we" do is automatically anti-life and heartless?

I could give a s#it if the animal was eaten afterwards or not. Did they need to kill it? Was it a matter of survival? Of course not! The disgraceful people travelled all the way to Africa in order to kill a Giraffe purely for their enjoyment. It's their intent that makes them more of an animal, deserving of punishment -- more than that Giraffe -- and they'll pay for it in this life or the next. No escaping Karma.