Ethics Quiz

Posted on November 22nd, 2008 by EDITOR

Situation 1: The Wounded Warrior

You live in the country, in prime deer habitat. You don’t feed deer intentionally, but they visit your bird feeder, eat the shrubbery in your backyard, bed in the dense windbreak not far from the house.
One day, long after the firearms season has ended, but with some days left on the bow-hunting clock, you notice a nice buck in your backyard.

He is limping noticeably and — although you can’t get a real good look at his hind leg — it appears to be broken; either hit by a bullet or side-swiped by a vehicle.

It’s legal to hunt on your property, and although you don’t normally do so, you decide to hang a stand on the border. The buck is a decent one and, your gut tells you, it’s not likely to survive what’s shaping up to be a tough winter. If he’ll just slide in past that stand one evening, you’ll take him. Not only will you have a chance to fill an unused bow tag, you’ll save the animal from suffering needlessly.

Unfortunately, the buck scents you the first night you hunt him and refuses to come near the stand. Repeat sits offer no buck sightings. However, the deer is still there; you see him at night near the bird feeder, or glimpse him limping off in the predawn as you get in the car to go to work in the morning. Each time his limp is more severe, his retreat a little slower. To your eye, he seems to be going downhill fast.