Dear Shawn, my goodness do you talk sense! I entirely agree with everything you said. Although I’m a vegetarian of 40 plus years I still accept the necessity of killing to survive. At the moment I have a choice. Not everyone does. I know that if I had to I would kill for food to survive. If one kills a living organism to survive then one is duty bound to use as much of it as possible. I grow fruit and veg on a rented plot of land and love the connection with the natural cycle. It keeps me grounded. We should have respect for everything we consume or use. Can’t stand those who kill for sport, but that is nothing like those who kill for food - to survive. I have nothing but admiration for you.

What saddens me is the number of animals that have lost their lives only to have their meat thrown away. Think about the amount of meat grocery stores throw away when it goes past a certain date, restaurants and people throwing away spoiled meat. Now imagine that happening all over the world. We are such a wasteful species.

People tend to believe that eating plants is more ethical than eating animals. They lose sight that plants are just as alive as animals. Like animals, plants can detect heat, light, sound and touch. For example, Scientists have discovered that carrots can “hear” themselves being eaten. That said, we believe that science/biology supports your position. We support it, too. Cheers, blessing and many thanks for the time you put into these interesting videos!

"outsourcing the slaughtering of animals doesn't make our hands less dirty" - precisely

More and more commonly, there are kids growing up who never saw a farm animal, never caught a fish at the end of a fishing pole, never went hunting with their father, never saw their mother cutting up a chicken or a rabbit to feed their family, or never saw a butcher doing his work behind the counter at the local meat store. Sad really. And not a thing unusual or shocking about the process. Thank you Shawn, for bringing this to our attention. It needed to be said.

We open cans with disregard as to how the food got into it. But watching you we are forced to remember how some of that food got into that can. Sometimes the truth hurts.

I remember when I (a city kid) was 19 sitting in a church meeting in a small town in Rexburg Idaho seeing a grown man (potato farmer) break down crying and sobbing as he proceeds to tell the other men in the room that he wasn't able to find and kill a deer and how his family won't have meat for the Winter after which a handful of men stood up and said that they were willing to share a portion of their successful kills to help this man's family. One of the men said he'd share if the crying man's wife will make her famous cinnamon rolls for him. With gratitude the man balled louder but was able to control himself and promised cinnamon rolls for everyone. Prior to this experience I was a firm believer that no animal should be killed for any reason, but given this new and unexpected perspective I had to re-evaluate my original feelings, because I wouldn't want any man to feel inadequate because he's unable to feed his family with limited resources.

It seems Cali would appreciate it if you would please plant her toy so that an abundance of toys may be harvested then played with.

God placed animals on this earth for our survival not just for pets.

Same old neighbour knows what's best for you syndrome ... yup

I like the title you selected. When we lose connection with our food sources, we tend to lose gratitude for them. Part of living a sustainable lifestyle wherever we choose to do so is maintaining a sense of gratitude for our food shelter and clothing.

I think you hit the nail on the head with this discussion. We need to not lose track of where we came from and keep nature in our lives to fulfill our needs and maintain this planet where we all need to survive together, hunting ,fishing, farming are required for life!

I remember hearing you say, that the man, whose cabin you visited in Alaska, would go to the scene of where he had heard hunters and salvage for food, from what they 'left behind'. As I see you doing, using everything of the food you kill or harvest, is in my opinion being very honorable to the animal or source. I lived and worked in Europe for almost 30 years. I learned to cook and love liver, kidney's and all the cuts most Americans have never even tried. Broth from beef bones and cold cuts from the blood. The pelts and having nothing to 'throw' in the trash is a good thing. My deep disregard goes to the trophy hunters all over the world. I believe they have put a dirty smudge on people like you, who hunt the way our forefathers did, to eat and prepare for winters. Thank you for your honesty and kindness towards nature.

Everything in moderation is a good standard to live by including harvesting wildlife or fish. Good points well taken.

Growing a small garden has so many advantages, not only does it perpetuate a connection with nature's cycles but also makes you feel a part of those cycles as well as being the cheapest and healthiest way getting exercise, de-stressing and of course there's the quiet satisfaction you get from eating what you've grown.

Love to see Cali running in the background.

Myself and my finance are a young couple and have been saving up for a home and like it was said on the video, we can not afford it due to the price of properties. It’s been a long two years in saving up and we’re still on the road to saving for our “one and done” house. For us, buying a home has put everything on hold. We want to be married at our home so it’s cheap and make memories where we plan on living for the rest of our lives. Once this happens we plan on kids being in our lives shortly after.

A wise and balanced view, it's good to be connected to nature. Taking the life of a plant or animal for our life is a trade-off. Like you said, it will happen whether we are involved or not. Gardening, fishing and hunting are good ways to be involved with the cycle of life and appreciate the cost of it. Thanks, Shawn. Cheers.

LOL.....when I first saw the title to this video, I thought you meant that you were going to lose you internet connection!

Some of the best meals I have had and shared with family and friends came from food gathered from my garden and the waters and woods I have been blessed enough to roam. Now that I am older and unable to get around as well i really miss the outdoors. I still get to wet a hook from time to time and enjoy some freshly caught fish. Trying to pass along that heritage to my two grandsons.