WE have squirrels, field rats, pigeon, crows, ducks & geese, snipe; but the real problems are coyotes, coons, rabbits,and bobcats. I generaly use my Mossberg 500for the birds and squirrels, but for coyotes, coons, rabbits, and bobcats i use whatever is closest cuz they dont slow down to give you time to go and pick which gun to use. When we spotlight coons & coyotes we normally use small caliber like .22's or .17's. WE use dogs for the rabbits and coons.