Quote Originally Posted by jszymczyk View Post
I keep fish whenever I want to eat them and it is legal. I love to eat fish of nearly every type and I am not ashamed of it. I do NOT "HARVEST" fish and game animals. I KILL them and EAT them. It is a deeply emotional event to take the life of an animal and I do it with respect every single time. HARVEST is what a person does to plants. If someone can't come to grips with the fact that they are killing things, then no touchy-feely word such as harvest can change that. Get over it, I say.

I also release a hell of a lot of fish, and I occasionally pass up game animals while hunting. If we were not meant to eat fish, they would not taste as good as they do. I do not get to spend very much time on the water or in the woods, and when I cook and eat a meal of fish I caught, I give thanks and it takes me back to the time and place where I got them. It reinforces memories, I LIKE IT, and that's all the justification a person needs.
Pretty much my sentiments too. I say a prayer for every critter I kill at the time I take the animal in thanks to He who created us all. I don't care for the taste of trout, especially the stockers, normally releasing them unless I know they won't survive. Then I give them to the old timers or a needy family in the area. Now if they are fresh caught perch in the 12+ inch range, crappies about the same size, bull bluegills or walleye in the 15-22 inch range fresh from the water, well, on the table they go!

By the way, if you ask your local conservation officer or ranger they almost always know where there are needy folks in your area or an organization you can donate your wild killings to. One of the things I hate seeing the most is a roadkill deer going to waste because the driver that hit it doesn't like venison. If it is in good shape, as a lot of them are, you can donate them to a pantry, church or soup kitchen. Your Conservation Officer will know how to do this.