Swiss hobby hunters once again as criminals

The recently concluded investigations by the Cantonal Police of St. Gallen against four suspected poachers once again show how fragile the self-image of the “responsible hunting community” actually is.

What began as a regional hunting offence has by now turned out to be a comprehensive criminal case involving illegal kills, prohibited technology and massive violations of the animal welfare act.

It is yet another case in a long series of incidents demonstrating that hobby hunting in Switzerland is not the natural and traditional heritage it likes to portray itself as. Rather, it is a system that repeatedly attracts people who regard animals as fair game and would rather indulge in nocturnal shooting adventures than abide by legal rules.

Illegal kills, prohibited technology and utter unscrupulousness

The four accused Swiss men are alleged to have systematically killed wild animals in the Toggenburg outside the regular hunting seasons between 2020 and early 2021. Affected were red deer, roe deer and foxes – precisely those animals that hobby hunters officially claim to “tend”.

The men's methods read like something out of a manual for organised poaching:

• Use of prohibited night vision sights
• Hunting with impermissible weapon accessories
• Shooting in another's hunting ground
• At least 28 illegally killed wild animals
• One participant without a valid hunting permit

Much of this is not only illegal, but directly contradicts the supposed principles of hunting ethics. Yet such violations have long ceased to be isolated cases; they are an expression of a hunting practice that often resembles a criminal hobby with weapons rather than a responsible approach to wild animals.

Animal cruelty included – the system looks away

The accusations of animal cruelty weigh particularly heavily. The use of night vision technology and shooting in darkness massively increases the risk of severely injured, fleeing animals. Such hunting methods mean suffering, agony and often hours-long death throes – a price that for some hobby hunters is evidently of secondary importance, as long as the adrenaline rush is right.

It is therefore hardly surprising that the accused men later divided the meat of the killed red deer among themselves. Wild animals that died under questionable circumstances became private prey. A system that monitors itself invites abuse – and delivers it time and again.

A structural problem – not just “isolated cases”

The hunting lobby regularly tries to present such events as rare exceptions. But the reality looks different:

• Time and again, hobby hunters are convicted for illegal kills
• Time and again, prohibited weapons, traps and technical aids turn up
• Time and again, massive gaps in knowledge are revealed in dealing with animals and nature
• Time and again, people die because of hobby hunters

The current case from the Toggenburg is merely the tip of an iceberg. It shows that hobby hunting is not a guarantor of nature conservation, but rather an area in which criminal energy and traditional free rein make for an explosive mixture.

The St. Gallen public prosecutor is now examining criminal measures against the four men. That is necessary, but not enough. The case clearly shows how inadequately self-monitoring works within this militant hunting scene. Where the use of weapons, animal suffering and personal interests come together, what is needed is not less, but state oversight, stricter controls and more consistent penalties.

According to IG Wild beim Wild, annual medical-psychological assessments are needed for hobby hunters following the Dutch model, as well as an upper age limit. The largest age group among hobby hunters is 65+, those with deficits in age, cognition, vision, concentration and reaction times, as well as training and practice shortcomings. From the age of 45, the number of accidents involving people and animals rises dramatically. The alarming reports of hunting accidents and fatal crimes committed with hunters' weapons show: it is high time to abolish hobby hunting! Deadly firearms do not belong in the hands of senile hobby hunters, who can use them entirely unchecked! Hobby hunters represent everything that is going wrong in the world.

Hobby hunters live out speciesism. Speciesism is comparable to racism and sexism, and that is neither culture nor tradition.

Especially when it comes to hobby hunting, it is essential to look very closely. Nowhere is so much manipulated with untruths and fake news. Violence and lies are two sides of the same coin.