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Ethical dilemma

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Ethical dilemma

Postby mathspete » Tue Aug 06, 2019 9:38 pm

On one of my permissions in the wilds of Lincolnshire I have a healthy stock of roe deer. I have been enjoying watching a nice big buck over the last month, I have seen him every time I go over there bunny bashing, as he comes out of a neighbours wood and through the fence onto one of my grass fields about 5 to 600 yards away. I wanted to leave him until after the rut was over and possibly take him about October time. I was there again this weekend and set up in a freshly mown field hiding in a fallen tree to get at the bunnies. At the usual time I saw the buck emerge ( now only about 150 yards away) through the binocs I could see that he had a metre length of thick orange nylon rope tangled around his antlers and hanging down his side almost to floor level. I now had about 2 seconds to make a decision I grabbed the 270 and set up . Could I really let him wander about with that hanging from his head, all it would take would be to snag the rope in a fence or bush and that would be curtains for him, in a slow lingering starvation death. I made my decision, and the buck is now safely stashed away in my freezer. Everything was legal, (permission, calibre and season ) but my question is was there anything else I could have done. I looked on the situation as having a duty of care to that animal and strange as it may seem to non shooting people the only way I could see to prevent him from a slow lingering death was to give him a very quick pain free one. Comments welcome on what you would have done.
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Re: Ethical dilemma

Postby flintlok » Wed Aug 07, 2019 3:17 am

I would have taken the shot. It's unlikely that you could snare the critter anf freed it of the rope. We've freed seagulls of fishing lines where it was possible. When it's not they do experience a slow lingering death. It's not a pleasant thing to see.
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