Wild West in Germany

There is truly nothing good to report about hunting in Germany, when you consider the fact that various animal species have become extinct or been severely decimated as a result of hunting.

Or that non-native animal species were introduced into the wild in true Wild West fashion, including by hunting associations, thereby disrupting the ecological balance.

Hobby hunting is the only sport that injures and kills people. Nature does not need hobby hunters, but wildlife wardens. Hobby hunters now admit themselves that they cannot truly regulate animal populations and that “stewardship,” “nature conservation,” and “wildlife damage prevention” are merely pretexts for a bloody hobby.

Cases that made it into the media this week:

Wild West in Saxony

On 30 July 2020, a hunting accident occurred during harvest work in Rebesgrün. When an 80-year-old hobby hunter fired at fleeing wild boar, the projectile struck a 68-year-old man who was lying on the sunbathing lawn of an outdoor swimming pool.

The field bordered directly on the swimming pool grounds, where police were able to recover the projectile shortly afterwards. The 80-year-old hunter made a confession to officers.

According to an officer, the swimmer sustained a minor skin injury to the abdominal area. He was taken to hospital and was able to be discharged after outpatient treatment. A complaint was filed against the hobby hunter for causing bodily harm.

Wild West in Lower Saxony

In the trial concerning the arson series in the Celle district, the accused hobby hunter has surprisingly spoken for the first time. The defendant is a former police officer. He faces 29 criminal charges, including eleven counts of arson and two attempted arsons. He is also alleged to have committed twelve thefts, primarily involving wildlife cameras. Before six witnesses testified as victims of the arson series on Tuesday, 28 July 2020, Gorch U. entered a confession through his defence counsel. His attorney Jonas Hennig stated that his client would «admit to a large part of the accusations made against him«. His second defence attorney Franziska Mayer quoted U. as saying that he had taken care during his actions to ensure that neither the forest nor people or animals would come to harm.

In 2019, four elevated hunting blinds belonging to a hunting leaseholder from Nienhagen, only a few years old, burned down — most likely attributable to Gorch U. The 75-year-old estimates the total damage at 5,000 to 6,000 euros. Affected hunters from Wienhausen, Bockelskamp, and Altencelle-Burg were also summoned as witnesses in Lüneburg. Some of them know the defendant. «I want nothing to do with him«, said one witness, who describes the former police officer as «very mouthy».

Wild West in Bavaria

In Schwarzenfeld in eastern Bavaria, hobby hunters are celebrating a grey partridge project. Captive-bred grey partridges were released in order to counteract the disappearance of this farmland bird species in Germany.

The most popular measure among hobby hunters who initiate such projects is the so-called "keeping predators in check" — targeting animals such as foxes, martens, and others.

This is why the hunting cooperative in Schwarzenfeld in eastern Bavaria has also called for "keeping vermin such as foxes and goshawks in check in order to protect the grey partridges" (Mittelbayerische online, 29.07.2020). The fact that the fox is not classified as "vermin" but rather as predatory game will be set aside for now. By publicly calling for the intensive hunting of the goshawk (which is what "keeping in check" means), the hobby hunters have likely committed a criminal offence.

Wild West in Lower Saxony

On Tuesday morning (28.07.2020), a resident was injured in a hunting accident on Deepener Strasse in Westervesede, Lower Saxony (municipality of Scheeßel, district of Rotenburg), according to a report by the Rotenburg Police Inspectorate.

At around 7:30 a.m., the retiree had entered an extension of his home and subsequently heard a loud bang. In shock, the man discovered that he had a bleeding wound in the hip area. The injured man was taken by ambulance to Rotenburg Hospital for treatment. During the crime scene investigation by the Rotenburg criminal police, a projectile was found in a wall of the extension. According to an expert from the Lower Saxony State Criminal Investigation Office, this was most likely hunting ammunition.

Further investigations revealed that a person licensed to hunt from North Rhine-Westphalia was likely responsible for the unintentional injuries through the firing of a shot. Criminal proceedings were initiated against him on suspicion of negligent bodily harm.

Wild West in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern

On Saturday evening, July 25, 2020, a hunting accident occurred in a wooded area near Groß Vielen. As reported by the Neubrandenburg Police Inspectorate, a 70-year-old man and a 59-year-old hobby hunter were out hunting in the aforementioned woodland. At around 10:30 p.m., the two men wanted to stow their weapons back in their vehicle after finishing their hunt. According to police, a shot apparently discharged from the 70-year-old's weapon, causing him to shoot and injure himself. Since the traces found at the scene cannot rule out that the shot may also have come from the 59-year-old hobby hunter's weapon, both weapons were confiscated and are to be examined further.

The hobby hunter was taken to Neubrandenburg Hospital with serious injuries to the genital area and underwent emergency surgery there. He is no longer in a life-threatening condition. Due to the still unclear evidence as to which weapon the shot came from, police have initiated criminal proceedings on suspicion of bodily harm.

Wild West in Bavaria

Excitement in Jettingen-Scheppach in the Günzburg district: As reported by the police, an altercation between two men was reported on Thursday evening, July 23, 2020, in the Ried district: one of the two men was drunk and destroyed the other's apartment. Because initial reports also mentioned that shots had been fired, a large police operation followed, for which forces were even drawn from surrounding stations. Apparently there had been a dispute between a landlord (54 years old) and a new tenant in a two-unit house. Whether the shots had been fired in the course of the altercation had been unclear. It was said that the landlord, who is a hunter, had fired a rifle in the courtyard.

The tenant was brought to safety by the arriving police officers. The hunter had meanwhile apparently retreated to his apartment. The man was said to be in possession of long-barreled firearms. A special unit of the Bavarian police was alerted.

Wild West in Baden-Württemberg

They were drunk, reckless, and completely overwhelmed when they encountered a capercaillie during a folk festival in the Black Forest. Two young men were convicted in Germany on Tuesday in the trial concerning the violent death of the protected bird.

A 21-year-old, who the judge was convinced had beaten the capercaillie to death in a meadow on the Feldberg last August, is to serve one week of detention under juvenile criminal law and pay 1,000 euros to the nature conservation organization NABU. A 23-year-old man received a fine of 1,300 euros for violating the Federal Nature Conservation Act.