Posted on 08/12/2003 3:49:12 PM PDT by demlosers
PRINCE William killed a small deer with a spear while on holiday in Africa, it was revealed yesterday.
He skewered the antelope, which resembled the large-eyed animal in Walt Disney's Bambi, after taking hunting lessons from a Kenyan tribesman.
Last night, animal rights activists reacted with fury.
William, 21, made the kill during a visit to a village near the home of his friend Jessica Craig.
Witnesses said he crawled up behind the tiny dik-dik - which was no more than 14 inches tall - and speared it.
Masai warrior Legei, 18, said he taught William how to hunt the animal using a 7ft- spear made from acacia wood.
He added: "Then we took him out hunting and he crept up like we do on the first prey he saw, a fully- grown dik-dik.
"Using the Masais' silent approach, he followed it, took aim and speared it in one go. I was proud of him.
"He picked it up by the tail and presented it to me. At home, we eat such animals but I don't think Prince William would even consider it."
The prince is known for his respect for tribal customs and cultures and he is learning the African language Swahili.
However, the deer killing has sparked yet another controversy over the prince's attitude to blood sports, which are favoured by his father, Prince Charles, but were hated by his late mother, Princess Diana.
William was just 14 when he shot his first stag in Scotland.
He is believed to have been "blooded" - a hunting tradition where a youngster is smeared on the forehead with the blood of their first kill.
Last night, a spokesman for Buckingham Palace refused to discuss the matter.
But animal rights groups were quick to condemn the killing.
Writer and anti blood-sports campaigner Carla Lane said: "The idea that our future king is going to glory in killing animals depresses me greatly and is everything our nation hates.
"These animals mate for life and it is just so cruel.
"Let us have a monarchy that does not hunt, shoot or kill."
A spokesman for the pressure group People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals added: "That animal had the right to live a life in peace.
"The prince killed when killing was not necessary. His mother would not have approved."
Jonathan Owen, of the World Society for the Protection of Animals, said: "My first thought is, `Why would somebody feel the need to kill an animal while on holiday, and why do it in a way which has a very high chance of being quite inhumane?'
"Spearing an animal is crude and not guaranteed to kill the animal quickly."
Looks like William needs to find the mate and finish the job. That should make the PETA people happy.
Otherwise, no problem. :)
Do they taste like chicken.
You get them by the passel and eat them like chicken wings.
I would think this would make the gay rights crowd very happy with the monarch-to-be.
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