Up until this year, the Skipper used a gun exclusively and did not use a club at all. And he has told me that most of the other sealers have been doing the same. This year he is required to have a hakapiks in case the seal does not die from the gunshot. This is to ensure that the seal is dead before it is skinned. JtS has some more information on the regulations regarding this. Most seal hunters use rifles to kill the animals, and most of the animals die from being shot.