Gotta see!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! http://my.afterdawn.com/nephilim/show_image.cfm/16305/full Tnhe results of a 40 gr. Hornady V-Max coming out of my 26" bull barreled Savage somewhere around 4,000 fps. That particular hit was at approximately 250 yards. I can personally vouch for the outstanding prairie dog shooting in Wyoming's Shirley Basin!
LOL, I got announce this, and it's true, I have a sister in-law that detests hunting, so I sent her an e-mail with the same url Nephilim used, and as my heading I wrote, EXTREMELY IMPORTANT, Open right before diner.
@Neph That was refreshing. Now I need to go change my pants cause I peed myself laughing. I especially liked the two tiny protruding rib bones looking somewhat like miniature rib roasts. Down here in the swamps, someone would have made dinner from that and you would have like the taste of it. Cajuns eat nutria, a watery cousin to the prairie dog. Good one Fred, I'll send it on also.
The wee little rib bones are classic aren't they? I have it on good accord that at least one individual in northeastern Arizona will dine on prairie dogs from time to time. I gotta say that the dogs in Wyoming were in waaaay better health than some of the mangy, nasty ones I've seen here. If I had to eat one of them things it would definitely be one of those plump Wyoming dogs and I don't even want to imagine one of them wet prairie dogs you say the cajuns like. Ewwww! In two and a half days my second cousin and I popped just over three hundred dogs each. Those coyotes, hawks and badgers must have had one hell of a feast! Fred, you gotta let us know how the link went over! Makes me wish I knew someone that detested hunting too
I don't know nep, she might not talk to me or my wife for the next 6 months, but I would consider that a good thing lol. My wife is a hunter also, so she had as much fun with this as I did.
I don't detest hunting for food but I do detest killing for sport unless the varment is causing some sort of problem, I terget and skeet shoot myself!
I'm into the whole "catch and release" thing myself. After the picture is taken I release the prairie dog back into the wild. Rather slow runners after the picture though.................. Seriously though, I certainly respect your take on hunting but varminting is more than just blasting critters just for the sake of blasting them. To hit something as small as a prairie dog at 200 to 300 yards or more takes skill and that skill translates into being able to put the bullet exactly where you want for the cleanest most humane kill every true hunter is looking for when taking big game. On the subject of humane kills I can't think of a quicker death than being a varmint getting whacked with good varmint bullet. As for problems I can list two I'm familiar with, the Gamble's Quail population (that nest on the ground here in AZ) appreciates fewer coyotes eating their young and ranchers appreciate fewer prairie dogs digging holes that the cattle bust their legs in. Years back out on some ranch land I saw a cow with a busted front leg and the thing was near death from starvation. They can't bend down to feed with a busted leg.
Beg Pardon. Here we have "Sportsmen" who shoot Geese, Ducks and Teal just for fun and I can't abide with that, on the other hand my Dad has a farm and he shoots every Ground Hog he can for that very same reason, a danger to his cattle and other livestock. But still, I like to take a gallon jug full of water out where I can barely see it and shoot it to test my Markmanship!
C'mon man you know water's running out! Seriously though, why would you not eat the ducks? They taste pretty good.
The only duck that I have ever eaten has been at a Chinese restaurant and it was very good, however, they tell me that most of the ducks around here taste like mud. We live near a Paper Mill with many sludge ponds, and on the backwaters of the Hiwassee River. I guess this has something to do with the taste of the local birds or these yokels just don't know how to prepare them. My water comes from an artesian spring and I have LOTS of it!
They probably don't know how to prepare duck. It's not like frying a chicken. I'm no good at it myself, but I don't blame it on the bird. As for shooting Prairie Dogs, I'd probably pop a few if there was a good population of them around. After all, prairie dogs are just burrowing rodents, not game animals (though some folks may eat them). I've plugged a few ground hogs. (The wife won't let me shoot the "cute" little crew next door. LOL) Most of us use a trap or poison for mice or rats on out property. A good clean shot would be more kind. The wife probably wouldn't like the holes in the walls though. Prairie dogs are a food source for fox, badgers, hawks, and other predators. So they don't need to be hunted to extinction. The way they breed though, if there's a reasonable number left in a community, they will repopulate quickly. I suspect the deal about shooting them to preserve cattle may be questionable. Research has shown bison prefer grazing in areas where there's prairie dogs or where they've been. I've not personally met a cow that fell in a prairie dog hole. Surveys of cattle ranchers also turned in some interesting info. Seems the critters didn't break many legs. There didn't seem to be a direct link between the prairie dog populations and cattle with busted legs. That cow or bull Neph saw could have just as easily slipped in a gully. They're rough on farms though. Lets look at them for what they are, pests. What do we do with pests, or would like to do anyway? LOL Good shot Neph. I had just finished a good cheeseburger when I caught your pic. LOL I've got a sound stomach and guts are nothing new. For all the tree and rodent huggers, the sight of butchering cattle for all those Big Macs isn't a pleasant sight either. What're you gonna do when the kids want to go to Micky D's?
heres another one for you pulsar lol have you guys seen this!! AA-12. World's deadliest shotgun! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p4ebtj1jR7c
