HEY! I'm a total n00b!!

[Jess]

Hey there! :mrgreen:

Well I guess I should give you all a bit of background as to why I'm here.

After a while of being vegetarian and it not really working out (my fam is full of complete carnivores) I finally decided that if I'm going to eat meat, I'd much rather it be something I had to shoot, kill, clean, and cook myself opposed to something in plastic from the grocery store that probably didn't live a very nice life. And it sort of ties in nicely to my life goal of being self-reliant. Hunting/gathering is pretty much one of the most basic and essential life skills there is, but hardly anyone these days seems to know how! So that is why I'm joining you guys. Luckily, I've also got a few family members who hunt. I think resource-wise, that makes me pretty much set.

I'm hoping to get my Core within the next month or so.

Also, I should mention..
Only want to kill things that I will eat, so duck is out (reallllly not a fan. Apparently prairie duck is nicer?), and I think I'd like to start with something small. Rabbit? Not too sure yet, I've got some research to do.

So I guess that's about it!
Thanks for reading this,

Jess.

[Shooter]

Get yourself a little shotgun and start off with some grouse if you want to start small. Grouse are delicious!

[Steeleco]

Welcome to the better side of the dinner table. Lots to read and learn.
BTW, Duck is delicious!!

[moosinaround]

Welcome to the site! Now a vegetarian joke would be fitting??!!:wink: Moosin

PS where do you hail from??

[Kid Hunter]

HAHA there's a successful conversion story! Welcome to the site, you'll find lots of great info on here. Don't be afraid to ask questions!

[Gateholio]

Get a rifle and shoot a youngish bear (not a cub) this spring. Make sure it is not close to any salmon bearing streams. You'll have some good meat and you can get at it in 4 months or so.

Google how to skina nd butcher a bear, lots of ino out there.

[Tripitaka]

One of the most heartening posts I've read in a long while. Personally, I have real issues with the hypocrisy exhibited by most vegetarians; the only reasons I consider justifiable are not liking the taste or texture of meat. Folks who don't eat meat because "they don't like to take a life" are still happy to drive cars that kill bugs on the windscreen or step on insects while out walking. I have no issues with vegetarians - just the hypocrisy of most of them and you are clearly not part of that mindset.

I think your open-minded approach to the subject is worthy of congratulation, Good luck on the hunt!

[Gateholio]

Vegetarians insult their family.

Your ancestors didn't claw their way to the top of the food chain so you could eat a carrot...

[Surrey Boy]

Congratulations on deciding to hunt, eat animals, and joining the site!

Self-Reliance mean loading your own ammunition by the way.

[JAFA]

Salad ain't food, it's what food eats... :)

Welcome to the site.

Did I miss your welcome joke?

Jim.

[Singleshotneeded]

:-D Hey Jess, welcome to the site and congrats on deciding to switch to real food! If you're starting small, get a 12 or 20 gauge shotgun and hunt grouse mornings and later afternoons...tasty! You can practice on snowshoe hares that come out just as the sun is setting, their season starts August 1st, and they're great in stew or roasted! Just ask around about good spots close to where you live. I'd go with #6 lead pellets in the shotgun, they're plenty for grouse and rabbits, and give you a bit more reach than 7 1/2 shot if the critter's a bit further away. Have fun and enjoy our great sport!

[fearnodeer]

My brother turned vegan, it great having over for dinner more meat for me.
Welcome hope it works out for you and food for thought, years that i have not been able to get out or just no succes i turned to bison, look it up.

[MB_Boy]

Vegetarians insult their family.

Your ancestors didn't claw their way to the top of the food chain so you could eat a carrot...


:mrgreen::mrgreen::mrgreen::mrgreen:

Ha ha.....great line Gate! :-D Can I use that?

[weatherby_man]

Vegetarians insult their family.

Your ancestors didn't claw their way to the top of the food chain so you could eat a carrot...

Another awesome quote from GH.

Welcome to the site and dont be afraid to ask questions the guys on here are great. You may get razzed from time to time but its all usually in good fun.

[Blair]

A vegetarian, a meat-eater, and a cannibal walk into a bar, the veg' orders a salad, the other orders a burger, than the bartender asks the cannibal "anything for you?", so he replies, "no thanks, i'll wait till they're done."

[brian]

I was the opposite to you. I said to myself if I don't have the cahones to kill what I eat, then I'll become a vegetarian. Since then I have found that hunting has changed my life in many surprising ways. Welcome aboard.

[blackford]

Best meat out there is the one you shoot

Enjoy the sport... One recommendation is start putting money aside. It's a expensive hobby

[TimberPig]

One of the most heartening posts I've read in a long while. Personally, I have real issues with the hypocrisy exhibited by most vegetarians; the only reasons I consider justifiable are not liking the taste or texture of meat. Folks who don't eat meat because "they don't like to take a life" are still happy to drive cars that kill bugs on the windscreen or step on insects while out walking. I have no issues with vegetarians - just the hypocrisy of most of them and you are clearly not part of that mindset.

I think your open-minded approach to the subject is worthy of congratulation, Good luck on the hunt!

The real hypocrisy of vegetarians/vegans is that they may not be eating meat themselves, but they are still responsible for killing animals. In order to grow their veggies, a large number of animals are killed to keep them from eating those same veggies.

While most don't see it this way, whether you eat meat or veggies, you are still consuming another life in some form or another to eat, it's just that humans have decided that the life of one animal is worht more than a hundred carrots.

[greenhorn]

Hey welcome to HBC!

Nice to hear your thoughts on the food you eat and where it comes from. Sounds like your opinions were formed after some serious thought and reflection..... that's getting rarer and rarer these days ! :mrgreen:

[Jess]

Thanks everyone!

Oh man okay. Joke time.
This was pretty much a favourite of mine when I was a kid.

What did the fish say when it swam into the wall?

DAM!

Har har harr okay sorta lame I know, but I truly can't say it without smiling.

Anyways, I haven't got a lot of time on the computer so I can't repsond to all of you but I do appreciate all the responses! Seems like a pretty sweet group of people on here. As for now I've got to go check out the recipe section because a friend was kind enough to give me some moose meat to try in the smoker!

[Mountaintop]

Welcome to the group. Great bunch and always willing to help.

Thinking about it, moose are vegetarians so will be a good transition for you

[bruin]

A fantastic success story. I would definitely suggest starting small like grouse that's been suggested. Another thing I could suggest is tagging along with an experienced hunter and learn the ropes. There's far too much stuff to learn than you can gather from a website. Then again learning is a great part of the journey. Where abouts do you live?

[J-F]

Wow! Impressive conversion!

The funniest is that I did about the same 15 years or so ago. After being a vegetarian (not a hard core vegan though, there are limits to madness) for around 2 years, something was missing. But I didn't like to buy packaged meat... I needed to get my hands dirty.

I went goose hunting. Back then, I was living Québec City and geese were invading the sky, the St-Lawrence and the nearby fields by the thousands. It was great to shoot some down. Cooking them demanded faith...

Now, I'm working on my wife. I got her pheasant hunting last fall!!! I didn't shoot an elk, nor a deer nor anything else but birds, but my wife shot a few pheasants!!!

You'll find the site full of information. If you risk yourself in the "for sale" section, you'll find again most guys are helpful and easy to approach (that's been my experience) and this may be one of the best place to get your first guns.

Enjoy

[Jess]

Bruin -- Thankfully my brother has been hunting for a few years and seems to be pretty excited on taking me out for some small game, so that will definitely make things easier. I live in Delta, so there's no shortage of fields 'round here.

J-F -- That's great! I imagine it being something great to be able to do with your husband/wife. I've also found that since deciding I wanted to hunt, my research has led me to a whole raft of projects outside of the hunting world, but related to a several things I'm interested in. Solar panel ovens for example. I didn't realize any ol' joe with a bit of patience and know-how could build a skookum and reliable oven! Like what the heck?! What have I been doing all these years?