The Transformation of Hunting: From Life's Calling to Leisure Pursuit
Hunting is changing. As a symbol of status and retreat, it is increasingly regarded today as a recreational activity — one where people prefer to be occasionally invited rather than investing and managing a territory themselves.
In the past, many recreational hunters were on waiting lists to acquire a hunting territory.
It was not only a place of retreat, but also a hobby to share with grandchildren and to invite friends along for the hunt. Many incidents and scientific findings in recent years have significantly tarnished the appeal of this bloody tradition.
More and more young people no longer see in hunting territories what their parents, grandparents, and generations before them once saw.
The survey by Werner Beutelmeyer, hunting expert and board member of the market research institute Market in Austria, clearly illustrates this shift. While in 2011 still 42% of domestic recreational hunters regarded hunting as a life's calling, by autumn 2024 that figure had fallen to just 14%. More on the Psychology of Recreational Hunting.
Lifestyle and Status Symbol
Today, recreational hunting is regarded primarily as a leisure activity, which is leading to a decline in commitment among recreational hunters. Beutelmeyer speaks of a “superficialisation of hunting.”
Nowadays recreational hunting is more of a status symbol — people are more likely to be invited along than to lease or purchase a hunting territory themselves. Among younger people, the enthusiasm has simply gone; they seemingly just want the action of firing a weapon.
On one hand, there are surprisingly many people under 30 who fly as far as Africa to shoot animals. And then there is another large group that holds entirely different values.
As a result, the “invitation hunt” has gained significantly in importance. While in 2011, 37% of recreational hunters invited friends to join them on the hobby hunt, it is now a majority at 51%. By contrast, participation in cooperative hunts has declined sharply, from 69% in 2011 to 34% in 2024.
Current trend: Loss of knowledge and declining engagement
Recreational hunting is becoming more difficult. This development is also being reinforced by the recreational hunters themselves. The leisure-oriented approach to recreational hunting is leading to a decline in hunting knowledge. Future recreational hunters are less informed on many topics than their current counterparts. Knowledge gaps are likely to be especially pronounced in hunting culture and in practical craft skills. The recreational hunters of the future have less time for recreational hunting and may therefore resort to illegal hunting methods. For example, the use of night-vision devices and other technical aids has increased. Support for recreational hunting is declining and could soon turn into a disadvantage for the recreational hunting community. More on crime in the context of recreational hunting.
When asked whether they view recreational hunting as a “lifelong calling,” recreational hunters increasingly indicate that they regard it as a leisure activity. This leads to a reduced level of engagement in recreational hunting.
The traditions and craftsmanship of recreational hunting are losing even more of their significance. Less attention is being paid to tracking wounded game, and the concept of fair chase — the ability to hunt responsibly — is becoming less important.
At present, many recreational hunters wish to see greater use of night hunting and bow hunting. As studies demonstrate, recreational hunting fails as a means of population control.
In summary, according to Beutelmeyer, one could say: the current hunting system produces holders of hunting licenses, but few genuine recreational hunters. Craft skills and species knowledge are being lost, and recreational hunting is becoming ever more barbaric.
In the view of IG Wild beim Wild, hobby hunters annual medical-psychological fitness assessments modelled on the Netherlands system, as well as a binding upper age limit. The largest age group among recreational hunters today is 65+. In this group, age-related limitations such as declining visual acuity, slower reaction times, reduced concentration and cognitive deficits increase statistically and significantly. At the same time, accident analyses show that the number of serious hunting accidents involving injured persons and fatalities rises significantly from middle age onwards.
The regular reports of hunting accidents, fatal errors and the misuse of hunting weapons highlight a structural problem. The private ownership and use of lethal firearms for recreational purposes largely eludes continuous oversight. From the perspective of IG Wild beim Wild, this is no longer justifiable. A practice based on voluntary killing that simultaneously generates considerable risks for humans and animals forfeits its social legitimacy.
Hobby-hunting is furthermore rooted in speciesism. Speciesism describes the systematic devaluation of non-human animals solely on the basis of their species membership. It is comparable to racism or sexism and is neither culturally nor ethically justifiable. Tradition does not substitute moral scrutiny.
Critical scrutiny is especially indispensable in the field of recreational hunting. Scarcely any other field is so thoroughly shaped by euphemistic narratives, half-truths and deliberate disinformation. Where violence is normalised, narratives frequently serve as justification. Transparency, verifiable facts and an open public debate are therefore essential.
More on the subject of recreational hunting: In the dossier The Role and Criticism of Recreational Hunters we shed light on the training, power and self-image of recreational hunters. The scientific evidence is presented in the overview Studies on the Effects of Recreational Hunting.
The position of IG Wild beim Wild: IG Wild beim Wild rejects recreational hunting. Our model is the canton of Geneva, which has managed without recreational hunting since 1974: without hunting seasons, without hunting dogs, without driven hunts, without high seats, without the animal cruelty and crime that go hand in hand with hunting season elsewhere. What has worked there for over fifty years disproves every position paper by JagdSchweiz. An association that bases its policy on claims it refutes in its own documents is not a professional organisation, but a factory for misinformation.
