Harvesting an animal is different. I do that too, and I don’t see a single thing wrong with it. I also go out and hunt on occasion and it’s a whole different animal, even if the species you’re going after is the same.
Fishing can be the same way to a lesser extent. You can sit in one place and harvest bream off the bed … or you can go out hunting a monster bass with big obnoxious topwater baits. I hardly ever feel anything but a thrill in pulling a bass out of the water because there isn’t much in a fish to identify with, but … on occasion, a special one comes up, a monster one that’s thrown your plug a couple of times, or made a perfect run and gotten loose… then it becomes a hunt. When you finally catch the old boy, it’s kind of a let-down too. To tell the truth, I dunno if the letdown has anything to do with killing or with identifying with the prey. It might be just a little regret that the hunt is over, and knowing you’ll never be able to repeat exactly … the experience and challenge that was so much fun. There are more experiences to be had of course, but each hunt is different.
Harvesting just doesn’t do much emotionally beyond giving personal pride in the mechanics your own abilities. To me, there’s not much thrill in sitting on the edge of a green field with a scoped rifle but that’s where I’ve been pigeonholed due to modern ways, age, and the desire for the cleanest kill possible. Truth be told though, I miss the days of shotguns with a mixed pack of red bones and blue ticks running a deer full bore through the woods. (Beagles were like a slow, cheap imitation with anemic barking to me.) I went on the drive with the dogs every chance I got… which was a lot since most preferred to take a stand and wait for the deer to come to them. That, and free-range hunting with a recurve were my favorites. Nowadays, the main thrill comes when I get the chance to grab the 30-30 and track down a wounded one. Sometimes I almost wish that a kid or visitor to the club will screw up and gut shoot one so I can have a little fun… odd mix of feelings there. Feeling a little bit guilty and wondering if I’m desiring an animal to suffer just so I can put it out of its misery, and have fun tracking it down … or just wanting the excuse to hunt.