“I write about hunting and other issues,” I said.As she speared a baby carrot with her fork, she looked me in theeye and said, “Well, I’m a vegan. I’m above all that killing.”I thought, Well, she started it, and asked, “Do all of your veg-etables come from no-animal-killing farms?”“What are those?” she asked, with her fork hovering in front ofher lips.“You look for the label that says ‘No-Animal-Killing FarmParticipant’ when you purchase vegetables, don’t you?”“Um, no.” She put her fork down. “You’d better ask the waiter if this restaurant’s vegetablescome from a USDA-certified no-animal-killing farm.”The waiter wandered by moments later and she asked, “Excuseme, I’d like to know if your produce comes from no-animal-killing farms.”“Uh, I’ll have to check.”He was back with a worried look. “I’m sorry, but the cookshaven’t heard of that designation. I’m sure the vegetables are safe.We get them from organic farms. They come in fresh every day.”She looked morosely at her salad, but then saw me smirking.“There’s no such thing,” I said.She started to get up. I stopped her by saying, “I’ve hunted onfarms all over America, and the farmers are always appreciative.”“So?”“They all have produce to defend. I haven’t met a farmer yetwho doesn’t kill geese, rabbits, or deer to preserve his livelihood.”“And your point is?”“Every cabbage or carrot you eat was raised by farmers whokill wildlife so you’ll have veggies to eat. It’s only natural.Defending a food source is part of living in this world.”To her credit, she said, “Well, I suppose that’s true.”

eople also hunt because it is a thrilling andchallenging experience that allows them to be a part of the wild (asa predator is).

Another reason everyone should support regulated hunting isthat farmers—and small organic farmers most of all—must controlwildlife populations.

Typically, hunters don’t want wildlife populations to exceed thecarrying capacity of the land. If there are too many deer, then thedeer will eat away the vegetation. When this happens, bucks lackthe nutrition required to grow large antlers.

The National Shooting Sports Foundation, the trade associationfor firearms manufacturers, estimates that, on a daily basis, about$3.5 million from these taxes and license fees goes to wildlife-conservation efforts.

Meanwhile, state game departments use hunters to controlwildlife populations. Wildlife biologists do their part by settingseasons and bag limits. This keeps our roads safer. Right now,even with American huntersharvesting between 4 million and 6million whitetail deer each year, an estimated 1.5 million car–deer collisions occur annually in the U.S., costing an estimated$1 billion and killing about 200 people.