if not how would feel if you were a cow being led to the slaughter?
If you are a vegetarian, consider these stories.
With no deer hunt, Utah herds would perish From the bench, a few weeks past, Leslie Lewis, 3rd District judge in Utah, asked a deer hunter standing before her: "Have you ever actually looked at a deer when they're alive?"
She prefaced her question by noting she had a prejudice against deer hunters. She then had a spectator in the gallery arrested, handcuffed and jailed, because he yawned when he should have smiled at her anti-hunting views.
I ask her: "Have you ever looked into the eyes of a starving deer?"
I have. It is, to this day, a haunting memory. In the center of a group of trees were five deer so weak from hunger they couldn't stand, but only stare, wide-eyed, frightened and caught in the agonizing, painful grip of certain death by starvation.
Nearby, we counted 35 carcasses of deer that had starved in a 100-square-yard area and many more outside the area.
I doubt Lewis, who was voted out Tuesday, has or ever will see the end results of having too many deer and too little food. Doubt she has ever given much thought to deer trying to survive a winter with limited food sources.
http://www.deseretnews.com/article/1,5143,650205428,00.html "Our Goal is to promote hunters
as conservationists"The US whitetail population is out of control. Not only are deer starving by the thousands, they’re laying waste to entire ecosystems. No species in North America has been more mismanaged than deer. There is only one solution.
Founded in 1996 to assist landowners and wildlife professionals and provide for a balance between wildlife, landowners, biologists and hunters.
BWMANH is a New Hampshire registered non-profit organization utilizing the expertise of individuals from the hunting public which meet or exceed criteria established more than 20 years ago.
The purpose of our organization is to successfully contribute, through Bowhunting*, the management of wildlife populations in areas that would otherwise be closed to hunting. We do not, however, consider ourselves an "elite" hunting group.
Bowhunting in suburban areas can be difficult and sensitive. We pride ourselves in having good skills and discipline, as well as a capacity for hard work, dedication and responsibility. We take our relationship with landowners very seriously. We also make every effort to serve the community in ways other than wildlife reduction, ie; Adopt-A-Highway, Barry Conservation Camperships in connection with 4-H, Certified Hunter Safety Training Instructors, Certified Bowhunter Safety Training Instructors, PTO Youth Training, NRA Eddie Eagle Program and Boy Scouts of America. We require one workday participation per year to assist the landowners with cutting trees or planting shrubs and grasses to begin the process of regeneration of the damage done by the over-population of deer. BWMANH will supply various plants to participating landowners, based on property size and availabililty.
Our members are asked to abide by a strict set of rules and regulations formulated with the special needs of suburban Bowhunting in mind. Because of these restrictions, our organization is not for everyone. Please keep in mind that we are looking for "team players" and responsible individuals. We want to give people, non-hunters as well as fellow hunters, a positive impression of Bowhunting and bowhunters as a management tool. Program participants also must be certified in Bowhunter education through the National Bowhunter Education Foundation.
Populated areas of New Hampshire where human habitation prevents or limits the use of firearms for hunting creates an overpopulation of deer, resulting in; destruction of habitat, increased human/deer contact in adverse ways, which endangers human life, health and property.
http://www.bwmanh.org/ Hunting a solution to feral pig problem
Forget that 30-point buck. Set your sights on feral pigs to protect Wisconsin's ecosystems.Hunting has long been not only a part of Wisconsin's cultural heritage, but also a way to control the state's deer population. Last year, 642,000 licensed hunters killed over 350 thousand deer, according to a report by Madison's WKOW. But for this year's gun season, in addition to that 30-point buck, the Wisconsin DNR is encouraging hunters to set their sights on another prey: pigs.
They're not talking about domestic pigs on farms (in fact, shooting a domestic pig this season could result in a fine to replace the animal). Instead, the DNR wants hunters to help reduce feral, or wild, pig populations during this year's gun season, which begins November 21. Although pigs might not sound like a particularly menacing threat to the state, feral pigs are a concern not only because of their potential to spread exotic diseases to domestic animals, but also because they are destructive to Wisconsin ecosystems.
The DNR describes feral pigs as "exotic, non-native wild animals that pose significant threats to both the environment and to agricultural operations," according to this fact sheet. Originally native to Europe and Asia, feral pigs either escaped from hunting preserves in America or were intentionally introduced into the wild. In addition to being possible sources of disease for livestock, feral pigs damage native species while rooting for food and have been known to prey on domestic animals. So far, they have been reported in over half of Wisconsin's 72 counties. And Wisconsin residents have begun to take notice.
"There are a lot of them in the national forests up north. They're actually sort of a problem. People hit them with their cars," said Ben Rosemeyer, 21, a UW-Madison student who hunts regularly.
***snip***
The call for hunters to shoot feral pigs as well demonstrates the role of humans in stabilizing ecosystems. One of the most significant features of exotic invasive species -- animal, plant or otherwise -- is the lack of natural predators in the areas they invade. While there are still some top predators in Wisconsin, such as black bears and wolves, humans can also fill this role in the ecosystem when other predators are scarce. Just as hunters can stop deer populations from skyrocketing, they can also help prevent further environmental and agricultural destruction by shooting pigs.
And, as top predators in Wisconsin's ecosystem, hunters have an added bonus. Wild pig, according to the DNR, has been described as even tastier than its domestic relative.
http://www.mnn.com/local-reports/wisconsin/local-blog/hunting-a-solution-to-feral-pig-problem 
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