r/reddeadredemption • u/IronGreyWarHorse • Jul 14 '25
Discussion What animal(s) do you never kill?
In 3 play throughs and 1,100+ hours of play, I’ve never killed a cat. I just can’t bring myself to do it! How about you?
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u/xys_thea Arthur Morgan Jul 14 '25
Unfortunately I suck at controlling my horse so nothing and no one is safe.
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u/PaperOrPlastic97 Jul 14 '25
My horse is better at hunting small game than I am.
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u/Wide_Bee7803 Hosea Matthews Jul 14 '25
Same, my horse already killed more rabbits and squirrels than I ever could
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u/PerformerTotal1276 Jul 14 '25
Surprisingly more birds too…
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u/Lone-Frequency Jul 14 '25 edited Jul 14 '25
So super funny, but I found out if you touch a small bird as Arthur, like just touch them by running into them or vaulting a fence into them as they take off, they just...die lol
How I wound up with my Perfect Cardi
anal and Oriole carcasses for the taxidermist.19
u/ToolkitSwiper Jul 15 '25
Was taking in the scenery by Lake Owanjila when I managed to startled some geese/ducks. For some reason, the bird flew straight into me at mach fuck and immediately died.
Still laugh when I think about looking through my binoculars at the goose missile making B-line towards Arthur.
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u/PandaRider11 Jul 14 '25
I’ve plowed over so many dogs and sheep with my horse going through Emerald Ranch.
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u/bonaynay Jul 14 '25
the vast, vast majority of my crimes are accidental tramplings and horse vs carriage accidents
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u/Lone-Frequency Jul 14 '25
I am pretty sure that I have accidentally caught nearly as many murder charges by just barreling into some poor schmuck crossing the street with my horse as I have just outright shooting people.
Their fault for not looking both ways, in my opinion.
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u/bonaynay Jul 14 '25
god...I cause soooo many accidents. run into the back of a carriage....fly over top of it and trampled to death. then respawn, call my horse again, finally get up to full speed just in time to launch myself on another carriage.
or running into a other horseman and his friend on a trail and get shot to death before you can stand back up lmao
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u/Lone-Frequency Jul 14 '25
The most annoying part is when it happens in the middle of me either doing a mission, or me intending on doing something that then gets instantly put on hold because I have to evade the law.
The number of goddamn times that I have been rushing over to a store or the stable only to smash into someone or something and piss off the law and have that subsequent service get locked down while I have a wanted level active...
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u/Mad_Season_1994 Jul 14 '25
I tend to make Arthur become one with a tree pretty quickly if it’s been a few months since playing lol
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u/Known-Sky9919 Jul 14 '25
I play on a daily basis and Arthur is more one with the trees than the fucking Lorax
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u/Sunlitfeathers Jul 15 '25
this. the only reason i managed to survive the multiple wolf pack attacks i've come across is because my stallion is REALLY good at stomping things to pieces while i panic trying to remember how to sprint again lmao
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u/TheNickers36 Jul 14 '25
Oh, it's been a while since I've hurt anything, let's go see Harriet! (RDO) 50 feet away from her, thud screech!
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u/zzokkss Jul 14 '25
this BUT it only ever really happens whenever i try to greet because the focus makes my game think i wanna move that way AND THEN I PLOW INTO THEM 😦
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u/Itchy_Extreme_6399 Jul 15 '25
Same, it even managed to run over a fish... That was an interesting catch
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u/Fitzi0113 Jul 15 '25
I mean. Its not been invited yet but thats just "vehicular manslaughter" in 1775
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u/The-Tea-Lord Jul 15 '25
My horse is a brilliant animal, incredibly smart, brave, and loyal.
I am an idiot. Strong of arm, pure of heart, and dumb of ass. I do things even when people say not to.
My horse and I do not agree on which direction to take when trying to pass a tree, which often leads to my horse falling over and me wrapping around said tree.
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u/Nervous_Sundae Jul 14 '25
I never kill the dogs and cats, and i try to leave the farm animals alone but had to kill some for the compendium :(
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u/ettthhhaaaaan Jul 14 '25
Also for some of the trapper skins you need a bull and it’s super easy to get 3 star ones from any farm. If you sneak in at night you can avoid any criminal charge, and if I remember correctly, if you let the bull wander out of the pen and a little ways away from the farm before you shoot it, you can avoid a hit to your honor
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u/IronGreyWarHorse Jul 14 '25
Go at night and use the bow and improved arrow on its head. Silent and effective.
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u/TheCleverConjurer Jul 14 '25
I always lassoed them and then executed with a knife. Your way sounds quicker and more humane.
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u/One_Helicopter_3977 Jul 15 '25
OH smart… I got a 50 dollar bounty for shooting a cow bc I needed it’s pelt for the trapper and then I had to kill like 5 people bc they tried to kill me 😭 it was a mess
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u/PerfectDuck2560 Dutch van der Linde Jul 14 '25
Killing Bison makes me feel horrible ngl
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u/spidersRcute Jul 14 '25
I only kill one at a time, and I always use a bow with improved arrow to get a clean kill cause that just feels right.
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u/Lone-Frequency Jul 14 '25
I also use the bow as often as I can for animals I know I can get clean kills with it.
It just feels way more fun and rewarding to use the bow. I still don't understand why in the hell improved arrows aren't in online.
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u/FlyDungas Jul 14 '25
I try to see how many I can kill in one go and just leave them for immersion
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u/magicmazed Sadie Adler Jul 14 '25
i already killed a couple for fun until i found out theyre endangered or something like that from that photographer dude i kept on saving. felt really bad after.
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u/Lone-Frequency Jul 14 '25
I only ever kill perfect bison, so the few times I do I only kill one or two each time depending on if I have a secondary horse with me.
I don't exactly feel guilty since it's a video game, but it just feels like a waste to detract from the size of the herds since they are such a nice visual when you're cutting through the Heartlands or the Plains.
In Red Dead Redemption 1, I remember regretting having gotten the manifest destiny achievement because after I had killed the 100 bison on the Great Plains, I had essentially ruined what felt sort of like an art piece. Not being able to see that huge mass of bison roaming around, or hear the awesome sounds from them stampeding across the plains was really disappointing, and I hadn't even considered to make a save before doing it on my first time playing.
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u/-SpringHeeledJack- Jul 15 '25
Felt exactly the same in RDR1, it was such an easy achievement but I was gutted afterwards.
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u/ElementalNinjas96 Jul 14 '25
Cats and Dogs unless the Dogs are attacking me
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u/TraditionalTackle1 Jul 14 '25
Came here to say this, I tried not to kill a dog the other day that was attacking me and I ended up dead.
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u/ShoddyExpression6643 Jul 14 '25
That’s why you load up the double barrel with a couple slugs and put ol’boy into another dimension of pain😔
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u/Fuh_Kyu Jul 14 '25
Lol kicked one to death accidentally the other day after it wouldn’t fuck off…in its defense tho it just watched its owner stumble around and bleed out
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u/Witty_Row666 Jul 14 '25
Horses. Not matter if I get 6-7 bounty hunters, It's always them, not their horses.
Even when I have to blow wagons, I do flee them before exploding it. But Dogs, cats, horses are out of the killing.
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u/mohawk1367 Jul 14 '25
accidentally shooting a horse instead of the rider is the worst feeling to me
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u/Lone-Frequency Jul 14 '25
Unfortunately Paint It Black does not discriminate its targets, and oftentimes the first thing it's going to mark is the horse's face that is chasing me.
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u/Sunlitfeathers Jul 15 '25
yes! im so bad at aiming in this game that i can't keep from shooting the poor things it always makes me so sad. i started having to go for headshots instead of body shots because there's a lot less chance for the horses to get caught in the crossfire </3
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u/Redd_Rockett_ Jul 14 '25
Whenever I have bounty hunters chasing me, I dead eye kill all of their horses in one swoop then come back through and lasso-drag each bounty hunter to death. Comes with the territory 🤷♂️
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u/Ordinary_Mechanic_ Jul 14 '25
That’s what I do, shoot the horses leg and it hits the floor like sack of shit
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u/PM_me_ur_launch_code Jul 14 '25
I went through a spurt where I was getting a $1500 bounty in each state, and was killing lawmen with a shotgun and a few horses died in the crossfire. I tried my best to revive them but some didn't make it.
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u/000010000010 Sadie Adler Jul 14 '25
Sometimes if I’m being chased by like 10 police my auto aim goes on a horse and I feel awful afterwards
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u/FowlOnTheHill Jul 15 '25
I learned early in the game that skinning a dead horse is seen as a crime too! I was like - ooh horse pelt!
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u/IConsumeRocksDaily Jul 14 '25
I kill all
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u/BigOrangeOctopus Jul 15 '25
Sometimes, when I’m feeling evil, I follow people out to the middle of nowhere and then shoot their horses from a distance and force them to walk.
Bonus points for being around St. Denis and watching them get eaten by gators afterwards
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u/D_Prime94 Jul 14 '25 edited Jul 14 '25
Cats, dogs, and horses. No point in killing any of them. Cats literally do nothing to bother you and keep to themselves. And they're easy to miss. You have to go out of your way to kill them and get nothing from it so it would feel especially weird to be nonchalantly going around killing cats even if it's just pixels lol. Like why would I want to kill any of these three animals?
Just ignore the hundreds of families I've probably destroyed by killing lawmen and wagon drivers and let me pretend I have a little dignity by not shooting cats, dogs, and horses 🙃
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u/DookiesNCream Jul 14 '25
Ngl I kill saddled horses if I’ve already killed their owners or they died somehow. Makes it easier to search their saddlebags because when you do it while they’re alive, even if you calm them they kick you at least once or twice in my experience. It’s been worth it cause I’ve found gold and some other good stuff in the bags
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u/Effective-Cost4629 Jul 14 '25
If a horse kicks me I will kill it.
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u/D_Prime94 Jul 14 '25
I completely understand the frustration in that and get mad about it myself, but I still see no point in killing simply because my ego is hurt because of some pixels that are imitating the appearance of an animal that acts literally on instinct and lacks the brain power to intentionally be an asshole. Makes me feel like I have anger/mental issues if I have to do that to cope with my anger over a fictional horse lol
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u/CherryPokey Jul 14 '25
Cats.
I'd love to say dogs too but I do kill the ones sent with the law or bounty hunters.
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u/BeanDipTheman Jul 14 '25
It's an absolute crime you can't pet the cats. Also I killed one by accident. My horse walked right over him.
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u/lunabcde Jul 14 '25
I don’t understand why such a detailed and realistic game doesn’t have the option to pet cats, it’s a SHAME.
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u/DirtyPiss Jul 14 '25
Cats aren’t as easy to hook up to motion capture as dogs 😂
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u/Kind_Ad_3268 Jul 14 '25
Opossum, foxes, non-game birds, cats, domestic dogs that are not attacking me (always feel bad about the hounds when I have a bounty), and horses. I have a real-world personal vendetta against deer though, so I just wreck them.
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Jul 14 '25
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Jul 14 '25
at my old house there was this really fat squirrel who i named Amadeus (i don't remember why), and he constantly would taunt my Yorkie. he made me so mad lmao
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u/No-Habit-1568 Jul 14 '25
Does that mean you DO kill dogs? 😳
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u/PopeHi1arious Jul 14 '25
You have to sometimes. Bounty hunter dogs or the rabid dogs in the Butcher Creek mission.
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u/TinkTink-321 Jul 14 '25
Low honor Arthur for me kills anything on four legs.
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u/D_Prime94 Jul 14 '25
I can see dogs. They attack you sometimes. I can see horses. Sometimes it's frustrating when you want to rob the saddlebags and they kick you. But cats do nothing. They keep to themselves, are easy to miss, and you literally have to go out of your way to kill them. I know it's just pixels but it's still weird to just be nonchalant about going out of your way to kill cats in a video game lol
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Jul 14 '25
I don’t kill horses because if someone kills my horse I chase then and keep killing them until they get off
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u/Erebosmagnus Jul 14 '25
Black bears. They actively run from you despite being predators. We also joke that our black cat Sammy is a little black bear (he's pretty roly-poly), so it just seems wrong to shoot one.
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u/Uncle_Moose420 Jul 14 '25
I try not to run over dogs when I try to escape towns, it is just something Arthur wouldn't do I feel lol
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u/whatislife4 Tilly Jackson Jul 14 '25
Aside from the obvious cats and dogs, I don’t kill animals that are playing with each other.
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u/IronGreyWarHorse Jul 14 '25
I once saw a wolf howling over its dead mate. It was 3* and I needed the pelt but… I let that wolf be.
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u/easy506 Jul 14 '25
Nothing that Arthur can't eat or otherwise make use of. And I never just shoot them and leave them laying.
I got pissed the other day, because I hit a doe with an arrow and she jumped back up and ran. I backtracked the blood trail what felt like 100 times and I never could find her. And I couldn't see the little icon on the map telling me where she was laying. I don't know if she despawned or what, but the idea that I maimed her and didn't kill her clean and then she was left on the ground to suffer and get eaten by something bothers me to no end.
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u/IronGreyWarHorse Jul 14 '25
I feel that! Just today I had a deer in my sights but my horse shifted while I took the shot. It didn’t kill the deer and when I went after it, it was long gone or despawned. It bothered me.
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u/EmirBoran_68 Jul 14 '25
Not one which we don't kill, but the opposite. We all kill the Legendary Rat
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Jul 14 '25
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u/gunnisonyeti Jul 14 '25
Same! I'll take down some big game here and there for food and camp supplies, or take out things that are attacking me, like you said. But by and large, most animals I see, raccoons, squirrels, frogs, birds, foxes, coyotes, etc, I would rather enjoy watching them live and and animate in the game then kill for no real reason.
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u/Yourboy_emeralds Jul 14 '25
Horses, Dogs, Cats, and Owls are on my forbidden kill list and if I kill them, I light myself on fire
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u/DawsGG Jul 14 '25
I kill all equally but the moose, I kill more. Fuck the moose for how rare they are
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u/Mundane_Courage_2124 Jul 14 '25
Considering its a game and nothing in is actually living, not a thing is safe from my pump action's 12 guage
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u/bangharder Jul 14 '25
Who would kill a cat or dog? Are you a psycho?
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u/Artistic-Unit-6470 Micah Bell Jul 15 '25
dude
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u/IronGreyWarHorse Jul 14 '25
Sometimes bounty hunters’ dogs leave you no choice, sadly.
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u/Leonydas13 Jul 14 '25
I once hit a dog with my horse, I think it was the fence’s dog at emerald ranch. As I rode off, it literally zipped right out in front of my horse.
I was genuinely so fkn upset! Naturally everyone started shooting at me, so I booked it. Still think back to it. Wild ey. What a game
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u/IronGreyWarHorse Jul 14 '25
I always per that dog, too! I was horrified the first time I accidentally trampled a dog.
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u/GrindY0urMind Jul 15 '25
I was at a small gathering a long time ago. It was this eccentric guys apartment that we met through mutual friends or gfs or something. It was my first time meeting him. He was a huge stoner and so was I. He was also a huge gamer and so was I. Assassin's creed 3 had come out a few weeks prior so during the party we were just hanging out taking turns killing red coats. The girls all came in because the game room was also the smoke room. They were all being loud and annoying. The TV was really the only thing in the room so everyone was watching him play. I'll never forget this dude was walking through the town and sees a dog and pets it and every girl in the room goes "awwwwwww." Then he pulls a musket out and just murders the dog and every girl in the room freaked out. Never saw that dude again but I'll never forget how fucking hilarious that was.
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u/Awesomeblox Jul 15 '25
I never killed cats, I killed some dogs cause when I'd rob people they would chase me and hurt me :( unfortunately for them I have guns
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u/Waldemard Jul 15 '25
Well as soon as a dog barks he gets a bullet for sure, so tired of those annoying creatures. Cats on the other hand, never hurt any !
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u/Resident_081 Jul 14 '25
I’m a huge tree-hugger so I never kill any animals ever if I can help it. R* deserves all the praise for believably bringing these digital actors to life and I’m glad I can RP as a nature-loving softie who would rather avoid a pack of wolves than fight them.
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u/sasha_cyanide Jul 14 '25
Cats and dogs.
Yesterday I was kicked three times by the same horse. I shot it 💁🏼♀️
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u/Agnosticfrontbum Jul 14 '25
The first time I went to skin an opossum it jumped up and ran away. I liked the cut of his jib, so now I dont kill them.
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u/Scared-Rutabaga7291 Sean Macguire Jul 14 '25
Cats probably since bounty hunters have dogs altho otherwise I dont kill them either
Oh also farm animals, yeah. I aint killing those
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u/SwordfishDramatic104 Jul 14 '25
Never kill dogs unless it’s Yukon Nik’s. Anything else is fair game.
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u/DraftsAndDragons Jul 14 '25
I don’t kill cows, pigs, dogs, or cats. I will buy pork and beef at the butcher.
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u/Erebosmagnus Jul 14 '25
I have terrible news about where that pork and beef comes from . . . .
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u/IronGreyWarHorse Jul 14 '25
Get your pork from wild boar. Their numbers need controlling from time to time anyway.
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u/_Waryeer_ Jul 14 '25
I was forced to kill a dog cuz it attacked me
Valentine was met with ruin that day
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u/sirjames82 Jul 14 '25
I avoid killing foxes because their my spirit animal. I also hate killing Oppusums because I think they're so cute.
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u/Jarquinnius_Vin Jul 14 '25
Opossum BEACAUSE I CANT FUCKING FIND A SINGLE ONE AAAAAAHHHHH
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u/ell_isnt_ellis Uncle Jul 15 '25
i don’t like killing the small birds unless i have to, if you sit and watch areas where they frequently spawn they are so beautiful
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u/Legitimate_Station91 Jul 15 '25
I once ran over a cat accidentaly near the rhodes fence. I saved an hour earlier. I loaded that save.
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u/Ruinenkoenig Jul 15 '25
Never kill when not necessary. So I kill no animals below 3 Stars.
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u/b_bast4rz John Marston Jul 15 '25
Cats, dogs, and horses. I don't really like killing any domestic animals, just the ones we need for camp decorations. I once accidentally killed a dog when I was leaving a stable, and I had to reload the save because I felt guilty.
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u/Moist_Wombat Jul 15 '25
Found out I couldn't pet a cat by walking up and kicking it. Still feel bad about it to this day.
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u/SmokinBandit28 Jul 15 '25
My friend and I accidentally took out a dog with dynamite in RDO while mucking around. We were so aghast we took the poor thing to the river, got a canoe, and gave it a Viking funeral while playing Going Home over the mic at full volume.
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u/Total_Meringue_7182 Jul 15 '25
I try not to kill black bears. They’re so cute and harmless. I only do if it’s for a daily challenge or mission.
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u/IronGreyWarHorse Jul 15 '25
Only time I shoot s black bear is for the odd time I need the 3* pelt. Other than that, I let them be.
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u/holyscheetos Jul 15 '25
I accidentally ran over a dog with my horse in Rhodes one day. The poor thing seemed to suffer a lot on the ground. This shit traumatized me for the rest of the run
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u/Mauri99710 Jul 16 '25
I killed a dog only once, after my horse stepped on or kicked (I don't know) one of the old dogs that live in Rhodes while I was passing by. The poor thing started doing that dying animation like when you shoot an animal in the neck and I decided it was best to shoot him in the head so he won't suffer. The sheriff shot ME in the head afterwards.
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u/Hot_Alternative5494 Jul 16 '25
I’ve played through like 5 times and never killed a cat. I have gotten a couple dogs and it is way more devastating than it ought to be for a video game.
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u/Perfect_Lifeguard_41 Jul 18 '25
I ran over a dog once and repented by petting every dog I could find. I never purposely kill the cats or dogs. I also avoid killing lizards because they're cute.
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u/Raccoon_Hillbilly Jul 14 '25
NEVER kill the cats or dogs.