The rabbit I got yesterday I got in daylight; I've never shot a rabbit in the day before - I've only ever got them when I'd camped in ambush as dusk turned into dark - and one or two things struck me. The first one is wildlife-related: rabbits, I discover, have got fleas! I've never noticed them when I'd been gutting rabbits in the field after dark, but in broad, bright daylight the rabbit I approached with my knife revealed a lively colony of the little jumping critters all keen to leave the warm ship that had borne them up till now. Oh, gawd, I thought, this is it: back to being a damn vegetarian or getting meat from Tesco's in pink, plastic packages. In the end, though, I flicked a few away with the blade of my knife and waited a while until the majority of the rest had hopped off before I quelled my yucks and set to work gutting the rabbit.
The next thing that struck me was - ach! - guts in daylight! Once again, I'd never really noticed them, I've only ever flung them away at night - but now I could see what was there and - oh dear - it's pretty awful!
Since I've started shooting, I've tended to sneer at buying meat in supermarkets: Pah! I'd exclaim, It's all alienated! It divorces you from the reality of how animals move from the field to your plate!
Sometimes, though - like in broad daylight with a freshly-killed rabbit in front of you - the attractions of the alienated supermarket can begin to seem rather more obvious.
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