Babe Winkleman’s What Would You Do?
Posted by Bryan on January 25, 2008
This week’s What Would You Do comes from one of the hunting world’s greatest ambassadors - Babe Winkleman…
————————————————
I found an interesting article written by hunting great, Babe Winkleman. In this article, Babe discusses interesting What Would You Do Scenarios in light of the fact that ethical decisions sometimes contrast with the law. For example…
Be sure to check-out the full article for more fun examples, including whether or not you should tag a buck with a child’s deer tag or tracking a buck onto posted land.
ONE MORE THING: I’m always looking for new What Would You Do Posts. If you have any ideas, drop me an e-mail at deerPhD@gmail.com. Any contributors will receive a free link back to their site in the post.
———-UPDATE: 1/29/08———-
Many thanks to all who commented on this ethical dilemma presented by Babe Winkleman. This might be the first time that everyone agreed!!! As many pointed out (see comments), often times our decisions are driven not by what we think we ‘ought’ to do because it’s right - but by what the law says. This brings to mind some interesting Psychological theories and other fun stuff I hope to expand on in the near future. But for now, I’ll say that I would likely do the same as everyone else - stick to the law because I want to keep hunting!
Thanks again to everyone for commenting - have a great week!
Babe Winkleman, buck, deer, ethics, hunting, What would you doIf you enjoyed this post, make sure you subscribe to my RSS feed!
Those are some interesting scenarios. I’m really torn on a few of them and what I would do. It might sound a little crazy, but I’m such a law-abiding guy that I would tend to lean towards that side of the situation.
January 25th, 2008 at 11:00 am
Arthur - I’m right there with you. This is actually something that has been studied fairly extensively in the world of Psychology. Probably the most popular theorist was a guy named Kohlberg (stages of moral development). Thanks for your comment!
January 25th, 2008 at 2:28 pm
Interesting article. I always try to obey the law, not necessarily because I agree with it, but breaking the law could end in me loosing the hunting privileges.
-ov-
January 25th, 2008 at 10:44 pm
Great question. It also can apply to fishing when you deep hook a fish that is out of season or under the size regulation. Do you take it home and throw it back knowing that it is going to die?
I have to vote with following the law. Not necessarily because it is the ethical thing to do but because of the consequences of not following the regulations. Trying to make the case to a game warden that you shot the buck because it was the humane thing to do is most likely not going to get very far.
January 25th, 2008 at 11:26 pm
That is a tough decision and one I ran into last year except it wasn’t injured. What I did was sit there and let the buck walk.
In the end I think it all falls on the laws.
January 26th, 2008 at 1:32 am
Bryan - I would obey the law…and let the buck walk!
January 26th, 2008 at 11:49 am
I hate to see any animal suffering, but i would have to do as the rest have already said: let him walk. Like Othmar, I will not do anything that endangers my hunting privilege. Like Chris said, I don’t know too many game wardens who would accept this as an excuse for shooting a deer.
January 26th, 2008 at 2:13 pm
I’m with everyone else. The law always wins.
January 26th, 2008 at 8:29 pm
I wouldn’t risk losing my hunting privileges. No tag=Deer walks.
January 27th, 2008 at 10:10 am
I shot an injured deer this season when I had a tag for it, but without the tag I would have to bite my lip and let it go. It is very easy to loose your hunting privileges and where I hunt the police always find their way to me to make sure I have my license, permission slip and required orange. Deer are incredible survivors and I think in most cases a deer would survive most injuries. Deer have been shot dead and skinned only to discover a broadhead and slug buried within the animal from previous hunting seasons. Just this season, for example, I shot a buck that I thought was a very interesting non-typical buck. Once I picked his head up though I realized his skull had been cracked in half from fighting and one antler simply was hanging by skin in front of the deer’s face. How this deer didn’t suffer brain damage and die is completely shocking to me. Deer live in a natural world where every moments goal is to survive and survive they will.
January 27th, 2008 at 11:21 pm
Awesome comments everyone! I really appreciate your points of view!
Othmar - I agree that we do what we need to do to keep hunting!
Chris - nice application to fishing as well!
Rick - glad to hear you actually do what you say you would do in the real world!
Marian - right there with ya!
Kris - same to you - we all agree on this one!
Matt - again, we all seem to be on the same side.
Same goes to you, Southern Adventures.
Marc - That’s neat that you had the tag for it. I know some people may have passed on an injured deer - glad you did what you did!!! I definitely know what you mean by the deer police finding their way to you…(oh the stories I could tell…)
January 29th, 2008 at 3:14 pm
Since it’s walking, I’d let it go. If I it was down and can’t walk/get up, I would shoot it. If anyone has seen a deer suffer and try to get up but can’t, they would do the same thing. I would sleep better at night knowing I did.
January 30th, 2008 at 6:00 pm
Jayson - you make a good point. Thanks for your thoughts!
January 30th, 2008 at 7:02 pm