An American hunter provokes online outrage with photos of a goat hunt in Scotland

[Eugene]

Source: ABC News

An American hunter provokes online outrage with photos of a goat hunt in Scotland

By GUY DAVIES LONDON — Oct 25, 2018, 11:26 AM ET

Scottish government officials will be reviewing the nation's hunting laws after a social media post of a self-styled American “huntress” posing with a wild goat she had shot and killed went viral.

Television host Larysa Switlyk, a “professional huntress and angler” according to her Twitter bio, was widely criticized online after posting about her “fun hunt” on Isley, an island off the coast of Scotland.

“Beautiful wild goat here on the Island of Islay in Scotland,” the post said. “We hunted hard for a big one for 2 days and finally got on this group. Made a perfect 200 yard shot and dropped him with the @gunwerks and @nightforce_optics.”

Wild goats are legal to hunt in Scotland, but the post was criticised heavily online. It has been commented on twitter over 15,000 times, with many people saying that Switlyk was glorifying animal cruelty.

-snip-

Read more: https://abcnews.go.com/International/american-hunter-provoked-online-outrage-photos-goat-hunt/story?id=58740433

[Raine]

1. Repulsive disgusting

person this "huntress" is!

[oberliner]

8. Are you a vegan?

[LanternWaste]

11. It's convenient to ignore the relevant contrast

It's convenient to ignore the relevant contrast between simply eating as opposed to killing a sentient animal for entertainment.

But I've little doubt you'll imagine for us a most creative distinction lacking a relevant difference to better maintain the presumptions of other poster's own menus.

[oberliner]

12. What goes on at factory farms across the US is animal cruelty of the worst kind

I would hope that people who are disgusted by cruelty towards animals might consider going vegan, if they aren't already.

[Doremus]

30. This is the reason people hate vegans.

Here's a clue: People who aren't vegan can feel disgust about hunting and other animal cruelty.

I am a vegan btw. One who hates haughtiness.

[Raine]

40. Yes I am

I have been a vegetarian since I was 9yrs old and since then have become a vegan..

[democratisphere]

2. It is unfortunate that wild goats can't hunt human huntresses!

Provide the right for wild goats to keep and bear arms to protect themselves from human huntresses!

[oberliner]

9. Is it safe to assume you are vegan?

[democratisphere]

13. I avoid eating all mammals but I do eat poultry and fish.

My preference is vegetables, grains and fruits and in particular Indian Food.

[oberliner]

15. There is some pretty serious animal cruelty going on at factory farms

Especially with respect to poultry. I would encourage you to consider going vegan!

[democratisphere]

19. I am aware of the abuse of livestock farm animals. It is horrendous!

I appreciate your suggestion of going vegan; I try to stay that course every day.

[oberliner]

21. Thanks!

I always take the opportunity to encourage people to go vegan when they are repulsed by these sorts of incidents. Sometimes people are less aware of the cruelty that goes on across the factory farm industry than with respect to hunting, which tends to get more media attention.

[Denzil_DC]

20. What a nonsensical (and repetitive) argument!

Are you seriously trying to claim that cruelty in factory farming means that nobody can object to the pointless cruelty depicted in the OP?

Ridiculous.

[oberliner]

22. As I wrote above, I try to take these opportunities to encourage people to go vegan

Often the compassion felt for the animals that are killed during these hunts will lead to some folks examining the cruelties that go on in factory farms that they might be less aware of.

[Denzil_DC]

23. Repetitively replying in this way to anyone expressing revulsion at this type of "hunting"

does nothing to promote veganism.

I speak as someone who has been vegan in the past.

In particular, it's unconvincing as you've voiced absolutely no objection to the revolting conduct depicted in the OP and detailed in my own reply downthread.

[Blue_true]

38. There are farms that field raise poultry, beef and pork.

I use one in Florida for skinless chicken breasts and sweet Italian sausage. The meat is expensive once the basic price and special shipping is taken into account, but I only eat a small amount of meat, so the choice that I make works for me.

[PatSeg]

3. "Beautiful wild goat"

So she shot it? Maybe she should get a camera.

[orleans]

4. exactly n/t

[orleans]

5. let's just call that bitch what she really is:

a heartless, soulless, fucking asshole!

[oberliner]

10. Are you a vegan?

[orleans]

28. does that matter?

[oberliner]

31. I encourage those who are disgusted by the cruel treatment of animals to consider going vegan

If they haven't already.

[orleans]

32. so are you vegan or are you okay with this story?

[WhiskeyGrinder]

14. Get ahold of yourself.

[orleans]

33. really? that's what you have to say to me?

[WhiskeyGrinder]

34. Yeah, I'm generally not a fan of gendered slurs.

[orleans]

35. generally, neither am i

i made an exception in this case

do you take any offense at the story in the op (not in reference to "gendered slurs" but in reference to context)?

i ask because i noticed while you're telling me to "get ahold of" myself (which i find rather condescending, btw--and would appreciate it if you refrained from telling me such a thing in the future) i didn't see you commenting on the op

[WhiskeyGrinder]

36. I'm curious, do you make exceptions for racial slurs?

I take no offense to the story in the OP. I didn't comment on other people's reactions in this thread because they didn't use gendered slurs.

[orleans]

37. no i don't make exceptions for racial slurs--do you?

never mind.

i don't care.

[WhiskeyGrinder]

39. I'm curious why you make exceptions for one but not the other.

[The_jackalope]

6. I wonder how she'd like it if they dressed in camo and carried rifles?

There isn't enough Lagavulin in the world to heal this sadness.

[safeinOhio]

7. So culling can be used to keep a healthy population of wildlife?

“I don’t like seeing it, but I’m not willing to duck the realities,” he said. “If you don’t do these things you will see diseased populations, overpopulations, habitats being lost, vulnerable animals overrun by successful breeding animals.”

In that case, it might work if you are culling old and sick members of that population, not the healthiest members of it.

[leftyladyfrommo]

16. That's the problem with that argument.

Culling is to take out the old and sick. And to lower the population count. You don't take out the strong and healthy animals.

Trophy hunters go after the biggest and best.

I have never inderstood how you can stand behind dead animal and talk about how beautiful it is. It's dead and it won't ever be beautiful again.

I eat a little meat. Not much. And I wish I didn't eat any at all. I really don't think eating meat is good for you. And it certainly isn't good for the animals. Abd it isn't good for the Environment.

[Denzil_DC]

17. It certainly has caused a stir here in Scotland.

There's a difference between a controlled cull and and what Switlyk and her cohort were crowing about on social media. A cull is arguably necessary for the red deer (though at this time of year, during the rut, it's difficult to walk wherever they hang out and not encounter them, so they're hardly a great challenge) and for the goat population, which is not indigenous but has been there for a couple of centuries - goats were originally imported to the island to improve the footing on cliff paths for free-range sheep (another import).

Link to tweet

One hardly needs to strut around the hills with "sniper rifles" and designer camouflage to target these creatures.

Link to tweet

It's also not necessary to stalk and fire at them from a distance of hundreds of yards, decreasing the chances of a clean kill.

Link to tweet

Link to tweet

One of her photos showed her posed with a dead blackface ram.

Link to tweet

It was evidently a free-ranging farm animal, as it showed signs of having been shorn earlier in the year. She and her party were boasting about having shot a domesticated sheep!

And before "someone" pops up in reply and asks whether I'm a vegan - no, I'm not, and neither are many of those in Scotland incensed at this.

I eat venison from time to time - it's either farmed (in which case it's subject to strict regulation on how the deer are killed and processed) or wild-shot (in which case you try to source it from a reputable estate where the kill is performed clinically).

I don't eat goat. I seriously doubt whether any one - perhaps even the estate dogs - would have eaten such an old goat killed in the breeding season, when you don't have to hunt for them - you can smell them from a mile downwind!

As for the ram, the suspicion is that it was released specifically to be hunted, as a domestic ram wouldn't usually be allowed to run with the ewes at this time of year. Again, it's hardly suitable for eating.

All in all, a pathetic spectacle, and one that hasn't done much for the reputation of the Scottish estate where all this took place, let alone Switlyk's.

(I'm short of time at the moment, but on request, I'm happy to transcribe any of the tweets above for anyone who doesn't do Twitter.)

[Mendocino]

18. She isn't interested in animal

conservation. She only wants a dead head on a wall.

[Alhena]

24. I wouldn't hunt ANY animal, but I'm kinda confused about the outrage in this specific case

How is this any different than killing a deer? I'd feel bad if I killed a squirrel, so I can't relate to any form of hunting as sport (though I'd certainly be willing to do so to feed my family).

But I see no moral difference between this and hunting a magnificent-looking buck, which people do all the time with no outrage. There's no apparent difference in the suffering of the animal.

[Denzil_DC]

25. See my reply above.

You may not agree with me, but I do try to address some of your arguments.

[Paladin]

27. Times change.

50 years ago, deer hunters here in Texas would strap the deer they had killed to the front or top of their vehicles and drive home with them that way, to show them off to everybody. That sort of loutish behavior doesn't happen any more---for one thing, it spoils the quality of the venison, and for another, it's highly offensive to many people. If you're a properly taught hunter, one of the first things you learn is that most people don't hunt, and that a sizeable number of people would just as soon see sport hunting disappear, preferably tomorrow morning. The last thing you want to do is enrage non-hunters with your actions---like this stupid woman and her pictures from Scotland have managed to do.

And I say all that as someone who hunted for many years. I know whereof I speak.

[Paladin]

26. Gunwerks rifles start at $5700. Nightforce scope: $2000+.

She may be a clueless animal killer, but at least she isn't a cheap clueless animal killer. Those brands are marketed to the sniper wannabe crowd, about which the less said, the better. Hope that goat appreciated the fancy equipment that was used in his demise.