Why did Inuit hunters fear offending the spirits of animals they killed?

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Animism Edward Burnett Tylor, detail of a chalk drawing by George Bonavia, 1860; in the National Portrait Gallery, London.

Inuit hunters feared offending the spirits of animals because of the belief that animal spirits exist independently of their physical bodies and are capable of being reborn.12

According to this animistic worldview, an animal will not mind being killed if it is treated with proper ritual courtesy. However, if a hunter offends an animal spirit, the spirit may retaliate by leading its companions away, which would result in a scarcity of game and potentially cause the hunter and their community to starve. To prevent this, Inuit hunters took various precautions before, during, and after the hunt to ensure the spirits remained satisfied and would return in the form of new animals.12