gun/bow dilema already

[hawkeye]

without having shot 1 game animal with a bow i am already at a stumbling block as i actually start contemplating doing so.

it'll be a lot of practise before i spit a shaft at a deer or big boar, but a fox is tempting as spring is here and have whistled and shot a few before and all close to where i live.

however, foxes and feral cats aren't like deer, big billys and boars to me and if i called one up and then missed a shot at it (or it wouldn't come within recurve range) i'd be pretty upset/angry about it. no doubt the fox would unfortunately be a hell of a lot more cautious next whistling as well.

the thing is that i personally don't mind a deer or big billy getting away when trying to bowhunt one, but a fox or feral cat running off would extremely annoy me and i'd be fuming that i hadn't gone the shotty/rifle option instead of the recurve.

just my own ethical dilema i guess - i hate the buggers and if i call one i want to blast it dead, quite different to a game animal i respect.

be different if stumbled upon a fox/cat when stalking deer/boar etc, but specifically trying to target them with a bow is uneasy with me?

i wonder if this dliema will dissolve when i actually get confident and competent with with archery??

a related question to the above waffle - what is the effective max. range for a 'good/competent' (not me (yet)) recurve bowhunter to confidently attempt to kill a fox... ??? ( about 10 metres??) :roll: :?:

any thoughts/feedback... ta. :)

[adam]

I remember My first bowhunt like it was yesterday mate. Prior to discovering the bow every weekend I'd be out spotlighting and rifle shooting vermin. Anyways This first bowhunt seen me whistling foxes on a local property with two mates. I remember this fox coming bolting in and I clean missed it, not like rifle shooting thats why I like it so much, it was hard. But what else wasn't like rifle shooting was there wasn't any loud bang that followed that miss and we shot a fox on the next whistle and only 100 meters beyond that we shot 3 goats with the bow. Plus what ever other game we seen on that short walk.

My mate Dave has shot 100 foxes with a traditional bow so far. I've done my share of whistling and I'd say on average I whistle them to about 6 meters of the hunter or myself before growling to get them to pause.

And if you miss a fox thereÃ*s always another day and another distress call you can use to trick them into coming in. Now that makes for a good hunt.

I actually like the old fox, its just his way of getting by killing native birds and picking of the helpless(lambs). I also love deer and hunt them :wink: Foxes are high on my hit list and moggys even higher.


Cheers mate and I think you'll change your view on bow and rifle once you become at one with shooting.

Adam

[pdrwired]

i still love my rifles
but nearly any idiot with a centrefire can blow away a feral at 200m

but its the extra challenge that bowhunting has that really sucks you in.

and if you do miss , it makes you even more determined not to let it get away tommorow.

[jindydiver]

My family lives on the meat I bring home so my rifles get plenty of work, and I consider it just that, work. When I want to hunt though, I pick up the bow.

[AdamK]

After 20+ years of rifle shooting and some pistol shooting too, I was getting sick of the distinct lack of challenge associated with rifle shooting.

Nailing ferals at distances out past 400m takes a steady rest, good trigger control, and a quality bit of gear.

Nailing ferals with a bow takes some serious hunting (camo, wind, cover, stealth), good bow technique, distance estimation, understanding of anatomy, and confidence in your shooting ability. The skills and work associated in taking a feral cleanly with the bow is a clear demonstration of what hunting is all about.

I still love my rifles (alot). But they have been locked up for close to 2 years now while I hunt with the bow.

Cats and foxes. I have not seen a cat for a long time, but I missed a fow with the bow at 3m a few months ago that pissed me off no end. I'm happy he got away cause it's going to make it all the more sweet when I do finally nail one.

If you need to do some pest extermination, a rifle is the hands down winner but if hunting is your intention, take the bow!

[hawkeye]

AdamK mate - i couldn't agree more and i've hardly shot (waiting for my wonder bow) a bow - least of all nailed a game animal!!

i'm hooked on bowhunting mate - the challenge/stalk is everything.

after a recent good stint of goat/pig blasting i've had my heart set on a .308 Remingto pump and been saving etc - now i don't really care as i'm begging for that BOW! :D :wink:

it's gonna be a bow beside a big boar/billy/buck when i finally get that BIG trophy photo. A 'blasted' beast can't adorn my wall now i've been exposed to bowhunting - analogy to me is cacthing a trout on a game rod from a big dam or whatever.. anyone can do that.

i'm gonna be manic on this site when i get it all together - where has 'bowhunting' been all my life. :roll: :roll:

this site rocks and is an absolute wealth of info... ta. :wink:

[AdamK]

Hawkeye,

I enjoyed looking through your photobucket album.

You've seen the light on land and come from rifle to bow.
Time to see the light on water and move from rod to spear.

It's more of an adrenaline pump than bow hunting where the hunter can be the hunted.....

[hawkeye]

no way adamK mate - can't compare spearing (more like hunting) to fishing for me mate.

each have place/are great but i can't make such comparisons.

i'd rather fight fish on the end of a long length of mono/braid than the end of a spear.

i appreciate the 'stealth' factor of spearing - just NOT the fight after the action (while with fishing the fight begins after the action (hook-up).

unlike hunting/spearing where the stealth is it (once arrow/bullet has hit home you've done your bit), with fishing the fight begins (not ends) on hook-up (unlike hunting).

each to their own on that one adamk - and being a bow site we'll just have to agree to disagree on that one cob'.

love me spearing but i would not compare it to fishing - completely different and both good in own way (and despite embracing bowhunting will always love blasting ducks on the wing with a shotgun and dragging in impossibly big land-based game fish on ridiculous tackle off big rocks regardless cob'. all extreme and all wicked stuff i reckon. :wink:

[sam hunter]

Hawkeye, what you say is something I have heard often and I always think it shows a lack of respect for the animal.
When you choose to hunt you take on the responsibility to make a clean kill regardless of what animal it is.
I have lost wounded game( so has everyone who hunts enough) and it's the worst feeling,one of the few things that can spoil a hunt for me.
Every animal deserves to be dispatched cleanly and it's good to hear that you are prepared to become a competant shot before you start hunting.
I'm a recent convert to bows after twenty plus years with rifles , I was using muzzle loaders mostly for the extra challenge of needing to get within 100metres.
Now its 40 meters with my sight equiped Hoyt compound and I hope to start hunting trad by next winter so will be looking for 20metres. Eventually I hope to file points on my teeth and just pounce on things!
My advise would be don't take a firearm when you bow hunt. The quietness is sooo cool you'll love it and you will get many second chances at a shot because of it.
:lol:

[RazorX]

I think that you become more at 1 with nature when you begin bow hunting. Even more so when you begin trad hunting because you get so much closer to the animals. It's the best feeling. You have to let go and just rely on your instincts and you eventually begin to track animals and understand them at a totally new level. Rifle shooting has the same principals but you are able to take down animals at longer distances and don't seem to get as close mentally and spiratually to animals. I've given up shots on goats, pigs and deer because I have stalked so close that I have been able to watch their quirks and behaviour and it really blew me away being so close to wild animals. You get to see their different personalities and who is the boss of the mob. It's almost like watching people in animals bodies. I used to love guns, but now I guess I like the tranquility of bow hunting and don't seem to get any enjoyment when I take an animal with a gun. I almost feel like I have cheated the animal and cheated myself.