Quote:
Originally Posted by Cazador
Stefan,
You did a great job of explaining how it could happen without approving it. Your interpretation was clear and well thought out. Good job, and thanks to Thamnophis for enlightening all of us about the way frog legs are processed  .
I mentioned on another thread that I often feed my garter snakes scraps of caribou meat. It's from animals that I've personally killed and processed. Many people would find hunting distasteful, but I consider it a personal and private way to provide extremely healthy and well-cared for meat for myself and my family. Perhaps, as GarterGuy suggested, the difference lies in the way that the animal is killed. The goal of most hunters is to make a quick and clean kill and to pass up shot opportunities that might lead to suffering or a wounded animal. That shows respect for the animal and provides a great deal of satisfaction. I think THAT's where the difference lies between hunting and providing frog legs... It's the respect shown for the animal during the kill.
Rick |
I don't disagree with GarterGuy, but as I see it, it's also the culture we live in that gives a high priority to the reduction of animal suffering. The western civilization is a civilization of pet lovers and it's relatively easy for us to identify with the animals we keep. But you really don't have to go that far back either to find a generation that had no problems with using what would now be considered questionable methods of killing animals. Less than 50 years ago (and by this I mean that it was the rule rather than the exception it is now) rabbits were killed by breaking their necks (by hand) or you crushed their skulls, now you either give them an injection, or you use CO2 or electricity. In fact, you don't have to go back at all, all you have to do is have a look at how snakes are usually killed and compare it to how snake keepers kill them.