Well, while I don't really need to deer hunt anymore, I do enjoy bird hunting. Just upland these days. So, yes, I need my shotgun and dog. There is a reason that ruffed grouse are called the King of the Table. And I live in the middle of the best area to hunt them. And I really, really like eating them. But I also forage the forest and garden and fish too. Everything I do shrinks my food budget spent. The fish I caught Saturday ice fishing is one less meal I need to buy. The 6 grouse, (possession limit), is 6 fewer meals I need to buy. Though the 25lbs of bacon I smoked this year is a wash. Still, it's a tradition I still do.

That said, there are families here that need to hunt, forage, and garden here. And if the hunt is poor, it can well determine not only how good a Christmas they will have, but how warm the house might be this winter and maybe getting new winter boots.

And there is the tradition of the hunt. Families get together and small towns around here have "hunter's breakfasts and suppers" to build community. And you haven't lived until you stand in a classroom and listened to a bunch of 5th grade students, (boys and girls both), talk about getting their first deer rifle. Almost always a hand me down from Grandpa or an Uncle. It's both a tool and an Heirloom passed down.

So yes, where I live, firearms and hunting are necessary tools to living.