Can you please explain to me the “pleasure” of killing an animal?
Probably. Shrinks say that there are three overwhelming drives which govern most activities of higher animals, i.e. food, sleep, and sex. But in reality, there are a couple of others, including hunting. It’s built in.
Yes. However, I would not associate the "pleasure of hunting" specifically with the culmination, the kill.
I man/woman must enter into the wilderness, un observed by the creatures that call it home. Whether it be turkey, deer, rabbit, pheasant, quail, etc. when you are hunting, you are in their house. Most game animals know their predators, they are me. To hunt is to become one with nature.
When I deer hunt, I wake up at about 4:30 in the AM. I have already prepared all the clothes that I will wear that day. They have been washed in baking soda, twice, and line dried in the woods where I will hunt. Then they have been secured in airtight bags until this morning. I shower and scrub in baking soda in a feable effort to remove as much of my human smell as I can. I get dressed and enter the field. I have already scouted this 70 acres of land for three months (about 4 times) leading up to deer season. I have observed where the deer eat, where they drink, where they bed down and what routes they take. I have observed two particularly mature bucks that are old and wise. They do not get seen often in daylight. I have chosen my spot in the woods and it will take me about 45 minutes to get there on foot as I want to approach my stand into the wind. It is pitch black outside and bitterly cold. I walk slowly and quietly through the woods trying to not be noticed by the natives. A turkey startles me as it goes plowing through tree tops. Coyotes howl in the near distance. I see eyes glowing at me now and then from my flashlight. Fox, deer, raccoons, rabbits, etc. are all out there and are unsure of what/who I am. They may know I don't belong but are unsure of the level of threat I am. I don't resemble the human threat they are used to. Quite frankly, I am nervous, a little intimidated, walking to my spot. Once there, I settle in to remain as quiet and still as possible. I wait in ambush. If I have done everything right, there is a chance that one of those two bucks I observed will not notice me as they come to check their tree rubs. I see a couple of doe frolicking at daybreak. Too far to have a good shot. But exciting because at this time of the year I know, Bucks are horny and may be close by. FINALLY! One of the 10 point bucks I know walks up from my left and stops at the edge of the field before crossing in pursuit of the doe. I don't quite have a good shot. I patiently wait. I can see the buck's ears flick, lips curl as it tastes the air for danger. It waits. It takes two steps into the clearing and stops again, looking for danger. It does not know that I am a mere 100' away. I have fooled the deer in his own house. Finally, the buck slowly starts to enter the clearing, I am able to train cross hairs on his heart from a perfect broadside shot. I must work to control my breathing as my heart races. I am in a full buck fever pitch. My hands are shaking as this beautiful animal walks. I can see the steamy breath pushing from his nose. A bird calls from overhead. I finally make myself calm, take a deep breath, hold it...hold it, gently start to squeeze the trigger while I keep the cross hairs trained perfectly on the deer's heart. The 20 gauge report surprises me when it goes off and time seems to stop. I know instantly, the shot was perfect. The deer leaps high after being struck. Runs a short distance and lays down in the weeds. My heart is pounding, I am breathing hard as if I just finished a 100 yard dash. I am shaking. And chills are running down my spine.
I have done it. All the season's work to become one with nature. All the studying of all the behaviors of the animals in the woods has paid off. I wait 45 minutes to give the deer peace and quiet. It was a good shot so the deer will not suffer. The hunt is over. Now I move to properly field dress the deer and prepare it for processing. I will be able to feed my family from the 220lb animal for a good part of the year.
See, the "pleasure" is not in the kill. It is just the kill that is the thrill, the culmination of the effort. The "pleasure" in hunting is all that leads up to the kill. The "pleasure" is becoming part of nature. It is sneaking into their habitat unnoticed and being able to kill food for myself and my family as our ancestors did thousands of years ago to survive. It is a freedom and a rush. It is a right of passage. During the hunt, there is a wide range of emotion. Most hunters will candidly admit that they get a little nervous walking into the woods on a pitch black morning all by themselves. It takes an incredible amount of discipline and patients to hunt correctly.
So, the reason, we like to take pictures of our "trophies" is to be able to have that moment captured to remember for the rest of our lives. Most hunters can tell you very specific details of most hunts they have been on, whether they killed anything or not; and whether they have hunted 2 times or 200 times. Each time is unique and anything can happen. I hope this helps you understand why some of us hunt.