I WAS A FISH KILLER

I first fished at age five, with my brother Greg, who is one year younger. Each of us caught a perch out of a lake in St. Paul, Minnesota.  Fascinated, we watched the two perch swim around in a small bucket until  first one and then the other died. I don’t remember what happened to  their bodies, but I know they were not large enough to eat. Perch are  plentiful, and easy to hook, and are therefore considered to be a good  species for practice fishing. Many members from both sides of my family were fishers, as well as hunters, trappers, and ranchers. A couple of  dead perch didn’t rate much concern. Like most children, we learned what  we were taught, setting aside whatever qualms we may have felt.

How Does a Former Hunter and Fisherman become the Founder of SHARK? Read more at I Was A Fish Killer. Initially published in Animal People, May 1996