[BarryLee]

I gave up hunting several years ago for a variety of reasons and mentioned to a coworker how I missed it. One issue was that I never ate the meat and it just seemed wasteful. My friend then suggested I consider squirrel hunting which has a fairly long season and high daily limit in Georgia. He then went on to tell me he simply shoots them and leaves them where they fall since he has no use for the meat. His reasoning was that scavengers will benefit more from the carcass he leaves behind than if he bags them and tosses the bag in a dumpster.

So, do you think it is ethical to shoot even squirrels and simply leave them laying dead on the ground? Initially I thought it seemed wrong, but then I sort of understood his reasoning. However, now I’m just not sure. If you shoot squirrels do you gather them up? If you have no desire to eat them do you just toss them in the trash? Also, since there is a daily limit does the law require you to collect the dead squirrels?

Please let’s avoid any anti-hunting rants.