[prototypicalDave]

I read all of the 'never draw down on something you don't want dead or destroyed' warnings. Totally agreed with them. Thought that I understood them. I believe myself to be an intelligent and humane person of moral integrity.
Despite this, I unintentionally killed a seagull from well outside my accurate range with light rubber ammo shot from the lightest bandset that simple shot sells.
"It's just a seagull you wimp!". Yep tell that to my niece who was begging me to leave it alone only to witness her idiot uncle murder a bird for being annoying. I thought that there was no way in hell that there was any real risk to the bird other than the receipt of a sharp sting.
I have a lot of respect for "good" hunters and appreciate hunting as one of the foundational human skills, but I am no hunter and don't aspire to become one. If you were to tell me that a 10mm rubber ball fired from rubber bands stood any chance at all of killing a large bird, I wouldn't have believed it. There's obviously a whole lot that I need to learn. That gulls life and my nieces tears are a small price to pay if it prevented me from seriously injuring or killing someone's beloved pet in a fit of arrogant ignorance.

The moral?
1. Don't draw down on anything that you don't want dead or destroyed.
2. You are not smarter than that advice.
3. Your annoyance with the seagull is less important than your niece's feelings you childish idiot.

And yes I'm going to keep shooting. Just with more respect for the energies involved.

 

[Cass]

Hi, I learned that lesson when I got my first bb gun. Didn't think I could not a bird, but I did. Terrible feeling. I went on to hunt and trap later, but I have not taken the need, and the squirrel around here know this. Many times when I am shooting, they come out to taunt me, but I go in. No need yet to kill, unless I will eat it.

 

[wll]

A very well written and thoughtful post !

wll

 

[Heifereye]

I feel your guilt and at the same time super impressed with your shot. The white rubber training ammo? Wow.

 

[prototypicalDave]

It was a freak shot. I barely aimed. I don't even know exactly where I hit it. It just fell over, snapped it's beak a couple of times and died. Not a mark on the poor thing. I was and still am shocked. It's entirely my fault, but that ammo description and the customer reviews plus my inexperience and overconfident attitude allowed me to form the belief that it was barely more dangerous than shooting marshmallows. All I know for sure is that my intuition for the damage potential of that setup was way way off.
(Edited to make it more clear that I assume all responsibility for my actions. No vendor bears any of it. I am only describing the chain of thought in an attempt to clearly illustrate the circumstances of my mistake in hopes that it might prevent others from making similar errors in judgement.)

 

[treefork]

Another cautionary tail for beginners is that seagulls are protected by migratory bird treaty act of 1918 . Penalties by law for harming them . I know of a case in my town by which a man was arrested for hitting them with his car in a store parking lot .

 

[Tobor8Man]

Slingshots, even w/ light bands, are capable of generating remarkable force. Thanks for posting.

 

[AppalachianFlipShooter]

Probably clocked it in the head. You're right on though, and people need to really take heed when the draw back

Sent from my IN2025 using Tapatalk

 

[Tag]

Thanks for sharing

 

[MOJAVE MO]

The regulations against killing a migratory bird sort of tells me that they must taste pretty good. Just a reflection, not a mockery of your experience. Thanks for sharing. 🤔

 

[Ordo]

Do not worry. Perhaps the seagull will be reborn as a human and you will be reborn as a seagull.
Karma is inexorably fulfilled, always.

 

[cromag]

Tragic as it was for the bird and traumatic as it was for you and your niece, neither hold a candle to what Mother Nature had in store for that bird some where down the road.
Few things are worse than the starving to death or being eaten alive that Nature dishes out for most animals.

 

[snydes]

I have a similar story I'm not proud of ... a few years ago we had rabbits all the time in our backyard (before I discovered slingshots). One day there was one bouncing around in our backyard & I got my one pump pellet pistol. I thought I would just sting him. Well, I hit him in the back leg and broke his leg. He limped off, back leg dragging - I never felt so bad in my life. As the OP said, I never expected such a thing to happen. Worst part was my wife witnessed the incident. So, I learned my lesson on small animals. I still get after the deer that are always in my backyard destroying my wife's flower garden - only with clay ammo (never steel) - being very careful to only go for "butt shots" - nothing near the head / eyes.

 

[cromag]

Yet we stomp roaches and poison spiders with reckless abandon. Oh , the irony and hypocrisy of wicked man!!

 

[MakoPat]

I feel like you learned a valuable lesson that we all have learned and likely learned again due to our "confidence ".

But you also learned a new shooting level is possible. You brushed up against a type of shooting that is very reflexive and relaxed. Now all you have to do is find it again and make it repeatable.

So while you have experienced the guilt and disappointment you also have touched on the " magic" of that Jedi like reflexes.

Also I'd like to acknowledge your open acceptance and clarity of responsibility. This is what the Cool Uncle is really teaching your niece.

Carry on now.

 

[KX4SAM]

Very good post.

 

[SteveJ]

the older I get the less inclined I am to want to take the life of a creature than can do me no harm. If I NEEDED them to eat, all bets would be off. And yes my squirrels temp me, but Im not hurting for food, I you feel exactly opposite of me,, that cool,,,, if everybody thought like me, we would have a overabundance and game would starve,, but if everyone thought different than me we could decimate .like the buffalo hunters did. I kill wasps and venomous snakes in a second, dont believe in karma or reincarnation so whatever. Believe me Ive felt the temptation to test my shooting on a squirrel or bird , but a can or spinner will do. Not trying to take any moral high ground , just my thoughts

 

[MikeyLikesIt]

A valuable lesson. Thanks for sharing. And as sad as it is for the gull, the lesson garnered by it's death won't be wasted and so neither will it's life. As silly as it seems, I gave up butterfly collecting in part because it just felt wrong to capture and kill these simple creatures for my own amusement. I'm no naturalist, it was just a hobby. I was midway through pinning one I thought had been euthanized when it woke back up. It's just a bug but man... it tore me up.