Tom,
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<br>Personally I would say it is ethical to kill any animal with one shot. Unfortunately that isn't reality. To error is human. We all make mistakes. As long as they are non-intentional mistakes I don't have a problem with them. Personally I do everything I can to minimize my mistakes when making a shot on any animal.
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<br>When I aim on a deer, whether it be 75 yards or 420 plus yards I have to have a certain level of confidence in myself for that moment to squeeze the trigger. If the confidence is not there, I simply don't shoot.
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<br>You stated: "The reason I am opposed to the general discussion of long range shooting is that not everyone can do it." I would politely ask: Can everyone kill a dove everytime they shoot at one? Somebody told me, and I am not sure if the numbers are correct or not, that it takes, on average, 12 rounds to kill one dove. Do we call that unethical? Is it unresponsible? My intention is not to slam you or anybody by asking this. Anybody that has hunted for any length of time has missed and anybody that has hunted for any length of time has or will have lost an animal. I have, in both cases. I was extremely upset, with myself, when I lost an animal. When I missed I was glad it was a clean miss, or at least I was hopefull it was a clean miss. If I was not sure, and most times I wasn't, I always go over to where the animal was when I shot and spend a lot of time looking for any indication of a hit. To me, thats being responsible for my actions. I am hopefull that most hunters will do the same.
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<br>I have a higher level of confidence shooting a deer at 400 plus yards (off a bench) then I do shooting a deer at 50 yards (offhand). In fact I won't shoot at a deer (offhand) at 50 yards since my level of confidence is so low for that shot. I shake like a dog [bleep] razor blades, thus for me to shoot offhand (unless the deer is very close) is futile, at best.
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<br>By getting into the longer range hunting it has enabled me to continue to hunt. A sport I truely enjoy.
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<br>I think we have to be carefull when blanketing the LR Hunters. I do not have the skill of these guys that can kill a deer at 1000 yards and further. These people have obviously done their homework and practice a LOT at their craft. For me to make a general statement that what they are doing is in any way wrong, would be wrong, of me. IMO.
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<br>Becuase of my physical limitations I doubt I will ever get anywhere near their level of precision shooting/hunting at the distances they do all the time but I can still be interested in it and learn from them. To me, part of the joy of it all is the learning process.
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<br>Have a good one,
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<br>Don
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