1. If it is farm-raised, there is no exploitation of "wild animals"
2. And if it was wild:
a) this is no different to all the other wild game of various species that is sold in the UK
b) if we look at humane farming initiatives, such as the RSPCA's Freedom Foods campaign, many recommendations point to improving animal welfare by reproducing to the fullest extent the conditions under which animals live in the wild. It can be argued that wild animals enjoy a better life, therefore it is more humane to eat them rather than factory farmed animals.
Also, why should a wild animal have greater rights than a farmed animal of the same species or of a comparable species?
I think the hoohah derives from the Rudolph references. It is mixing the killing and eating of animals with a cosy children's song, made all the cosier because it relates to a cosy family-centered holiday.
This makes people feel uncomfortable, in the same way that eating horses makes Anglo-Saxons feel uncomfortable, and eating cats and dogs makes the vast majority of Caucasians feel uncomfortable.
Most meat eaters, and I include myself in this, are hypocrites. We do not want to make connections between cute fluffy baa-lambs, calves with huge limpid eyes etc and the roast on our plates. We go through all sorts of mental acrobatics to avoid this. Now someone is making a connection between a tin of pate and a reindeer who has a name, appears on Xmas cards and other Xmas stuff. People are feeling uncomfortable and thus are reacting in what is actually a very illogical manner.
