prairienights

Hey everyone I'm a new hunter. Very very new, lol. I learned things like what a bolt action is and what quartering away means this year. I shot my first rifle. I'm a newb, lol. I've been learning, observing, and spending as much time in the field as I can. I've always been an outdoorsy gal, and I can tell you which fly to use in which part of the river at what time of the year, but I'm definitely inexperienced in hunting. That said, I took my first deer this year as well as some upland game birds. I'm pretty well hooked, and I constantly have the itch to be out romping around in the hills.

I'm considering purchasing a .22 or possibly a .223 and doing some small game hunting. Rabbits and squirrels are what I have in mind, and possibly coyotes. I want to improve my marksmanship, game spotting eye, we could definitely stand to have a few less bunnies in the world, and quite frankly, I just want an excuse to play outside, lol. A lot of you guys grew up hunting squirrels and moved onto bigger game. I missed that step in hunter development, lol. I have no qualms with skinning/cleaning/eating whatever I hunt, including squirrels and rabbits.

Anyways, I guess I'm just looking for some direction. For a new hunter looking to gain some experience, practice, and time in the field, would going after small game seem worthwhile? What kind of rifle should I think about getting? Also, any ideas on what sort of license I might need for small game? I seem to remember that there's a small game license and possibly even a predacious species license in Wyo. I'm wondering if it's a seasonal thing? I was so focused on getting my deer, that I kinda blew over that stuff, lol. I'm about to look the regs up on our game and fish website.

Any advice or thoughts would be much appreciated

Bernie P.

Everyone needs a .22 Lr for small game,plinking,and just fun shooting.I would recommend a bolt action from CZ or Savage.For coyotes and such you'll want a centerfire like the .223.Here again CZ and Savage are good choices though most any brand will do.A shotgun is IMO another must have as they can do it all and in many cases better.Either a 20 or 12 gauge.I prefer pumps but you'll get less recoil from a semi auto.Remington and Mossberg offer good pump and auto shotguns at reasonable prices.Good luck!

Terasec

I wouldn't recomend using small game as targets,
That's what targets are for.
If your going to kill an animal should be a reason for it.
Food, predator control, etc. Noit for the sake of shooting.
Small game is great hunting, and coyote hunting helps support the tastier critters, but they are not target practice

halfbakedi420

i agree with the 22lr...however ya might wanna check with the dnr about small cal sizes like the 223. alot of northern states have minimum requirements for cal.
here we use the 223 fer deer...drops em cold in their tracks, and 300's( 22-250, 223) on the yotes, cause we aint eatin em. so yer deer rifle makes a good yote gun.
however, what ever excuse i need to buy a gun is a good one.
when gettin yer 22..make sure you get a bolt or lever action. i cant tell ya how scary an automatic is in the hands of a beginner.
rabbit is good eating..i have a good recipe if ya need it? you see my name, u know i can cook

prairienights

I certainly wouldn't just be out destroying animals for the sake of shooting them. But I do think there is some value in small animal hunting in terms of "hunting practice." I'd like to gain more experience with hunting, but I'll probably only be shooting one deer/year. That's all the venison I need for a year, no point in shooting more. But I don't think my hunting needs to be limited to that one animal each year.

I mentioned that I'd be happy to clean and eat any animal I shot, including squirrels and rabbits. I know how to cook both. I'd honestly much rather eat a rabbit than a store-bought chicken. I'd be thrilled to exclusively eat meat that I harvested as opposed to store bought meat. Rabbit and squirrel is as good as anything else. We also have a vast overpopulation of cottontails in my area; I don't think I'd be violating any kind of wildlife management theory by taking a few out. No matter how fancy our chicken wire set up around our garden gets, we still lose veggies to bunnies.

So yes, I would be hunting for food and for management purposes. The additional benefits of getting more time in the field and more experience at tracking/shooting/processing game are just bonuses. But I'm not ashamed of acknowledging those bonuses. As long as I'm hunting legally and ethically, planning on using the meat, have a management purpose in mind...so what if I get some field time and target experience on a bunny?

halfbakedi420

i dunno bout that..paper is for practice. if yer good shooting, you will be ok. but when shooting an animal, its hunting, not practice.
that bein said, its experience. so i agree, nothing wrong with hunting bunnies.

prairienights

Yes, I absolutely agree that paper is for target practice. And in this past year, I have spent many o' weekends at the range doing just that, practicing shooting. Dang, I shoot a can with a BB gun out my back door just to practice steadying myself. Happily, of course, it's immeasurably valuable. That being said, there is a difference between "target practice" and "field experience." A person who has spent 10 years shooting at paper isn't going to be a better hunter than a person who has spent 10 years hunting game. (Not saying that target shooting isn't important to make an effective hunter).

I certainly didn't mean to imply that I'd be wreaking havoc on every bunny I saw just for target practice. My bunny hunting plans aren't in replacement of actual target practice at the range. In addition to the reasons I've mentioned (I would like to eat bunnies and we have too dang many), I see no problem with acknowledging that I would also gain experience. Experience that I can't get while shooting at paper at the range.

So I apologize if I anywhere implied that I'd be snuffing bunnies for giggles because it's more fun than shooting at a target. I have more respect for animal life than that. I want to hunt small game because I'd be thrilled to have some bunnies in the freezer, to make even a small dent in the over-saturated population, and also to have the opportunity to hunt more throughout the year instead of just taking one deer. Done legally, I find no ethical problem with it.

country1

You already have a coyote/deer rifle with the .243 so IMO there is no need for a dedicated coyote rifle. If you stick to the heavy bullets that are used mainly for deer, you can take coyotes at longer distances.

I highly recommend that everyone have at least one .22LR. One that I would take a look at is the bolt action Savage Mark II. The Savage Mark II is reasonably priced and accurate. One thing about a bolt action .22LR is that you should not run into any feeding problems so all you need to do is find the ammo that is most accurate in the rifle.

I suggest setting up your .22LR as closely as you can to your .243. If you shoot the .243 with iron sights stick to iron sights on the .22LR. If you use a scope or optic, use the same model and magnification of scope or optic for the .22LR.

Do you have any gophers or prairiedogs in your area? I have shot many gophers with a .22LR past 100 yds. The Winchester XPert High Velocity HP does a good job on gophers at longer distances. Check and follow your local game laws.

Here are some links that may be of interest to you.

Shooting fundamentals and techniques for a rifle. Follow through is one of the fundamentals that most people do not do. They are in a hurry to see where or if they hit, and they end up affecting the POI of the shot.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BGs_GuPiDbI

Setting up your scope
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=COoXVpGfXQE

Long range coyote shot with a .243 Winchester
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w0KY-X1e-Vg

One of the very important factors in hunting is using a load that is accurate with the right bullet for the job. IMO, the .243 gets a lot of flack because some do not use the proper bullet for the load and/or distance.

In another post you asked about meat loss. Typically, the slower, bigger and heavier bullets will have less meat loss; but again matching the proper bullet for the load, cartridge and game is key. I use to reload for a person who used a .25-06 for deer. I used a high quality and heavy for the caliber bullet. Every shot was a DRT, but he did not like the amount of meat loss. He eventually sold the .25-06 and went with a .270 Winchester.

If you do a broadside, double lung shot, there is minimal meat loss. However, the animal may run for a distance before it expires.

GTOHunter

As mentioned a .22LR Caliber would be tha way to go if Your wanting to Hunt Rabbits and Squirrels,they are easier on the meat and can carry a long distance,one thing to remember is where Your bullet will hit or end up past an Animal or Target,always be careful because a .22 Caliber can travel a very long distance some 1 to 2 miles away.


Another caliber to consider would be a .22 Magnum,it has more knock-down and will shoot further out and flatter and can be used for Coyotes also.A Savage bolt-action Rifle would be a good choice and reasonably priced,Marlin and Ruger are also good brand name Rifles.

For Hunting Predators like Coyotes,Foxes and Bobcats there are many Calibers out there to choose from,a lot depened on how far You plan on shooting and how much knock-down power a Gun/Rifle has and how much recoil too.

.17 HMR Rim-Fire (flat shooting but not much knock-down power for larger Predators)
.17 Remington Fireball Center-Fire (flat shooting and minimal knock-down power)
.22 Magnum Rim-Fire (will reach out a little with some better knock-down power)
.22 Hornet Center-Fire (flat shooting a little further,good for most Predators)
.204 Ruger Center-Fire (fast-flat shooting Caliber with good knock-down power and little damage to hides/pelts). light recoil
.218 Bee Center-Fire (flat shooting good for distances)
.222 C-F (long distances,good knock-down power)
.220 C-F (another good caliber)
.223 (good caliber with nice knock-down power)
.22-250 Center-Fire (flat-shooting good for long distances and great KD power)
.243 Center-Fire (good caliber with good KD power),little harder on hides/pelt tho.

I'm sure there are a few more Calibers I have forgotten or left out but these are all good Caliber Rifles that would work great for Coyote Hunting,depending on Your needs and Hunting situations,some will reach out further and flatter than others.

Great thing about different types of Hunting is You get to have an excuse to buy a New or Different caliber Rifle.

Nomercy448

First off, in most states, you have to have a hunter's safety certificate (take a class one time) plus a hunting license (purchase annually) to be able to hunt ANY species. Then, of course, you have to follow designated seasons for specific game. For that, I would direct you to the Wyoming Game and Fish Department:

Wyoming Game & Fish Department: Hunting

One thing that always makes me nervous about calling coyotes out west (i.e. cougar country) is that if I DO call in a mountain lion, 1) it creeps me out EVERY TIME, and 2) I want to shoot it EVERY TIME. The problem is that mountain lions have specific seasons and big game tags in most areas, so unless it rushes me, I wouldn't be legally allowed to shoot it.

With all of that out of the way...

Apparently a lot of our members must have grown up somewhere much like yourself, because anyone that recommends AGAINST learning marksmanship skills by hunting small game is nuts. 99% of hunters I've ever known did this exact thing. Sure, we were kids with BB guns or .22lr's, but we all learned how to shoot "well enough" by knocking cans off of a fence rail, then learned how to HUNT by hunting rabbits, squirrels, and birds. Rabbits are absolutely legal "huntable game", so if you want to hunt them to practice "hunting", that's your right to do so. Now, EVERY state has "wanton waste" laws, so if you get caught with a pile of 300 rabbits and aren't going to do anything with them, that's a problem, but there's no problem with someone who goes out occasionally and shoots a few rabbits or squirrels just for coyote bait.

(On that note, that's how I used to get all of my coyote bait as a kid. We'd go hunt rabbits on saturday morning, then go call coyotes over the dead rabbits saturday evenings.)

To clarify one thing, coyotes aren't necessarily on the "small game" list, even though they might have the same laws/regulations. While a .22lr is capable of hunting rabbits at any normal hunting range, coyotes require a bit more umph to take down, and will generally be at much greater distances. Getting within 20yrds of a rabbit or squirrel to take them out with a .22lr is literally childsplay, but shots on coyotes will more often be in the 100yrd range rather than the 20yrd range. A .22lr CAN kill a coyote, but for hunting coyotes, I would recommend you stick with that .243win.

For small game, I'd highly recommend you pick up a .22lr. The .22lr is basically ideal for small game like rabbits, squirrels, coons, skunks, oppossums, crows, etc etc. Then your .243win will cover off coyotes and deer quite nicely.

If a hunter had a .22lr and a .243win, as much as I LOVE the .223rem, I would not recommend it to them. A .223rem and a .243win are both far too over powered for a casual "bunny gun", so really, you NEED a .22lr. But then if you HAVE a .22lr and a .243win, the .223rem is too close between these two, and would really not be worth the money.

Another great option for a small game hunter is a .410 or 20ga shotgun. A single shot .410 shotgun is a GREAT learning tool for new hunters. A 20ga has a little more recoil, but the ammo is cheaper, an the round would be more versatile for other types of hunting (upland game).

So, again, get yourself a .22lr, or at least a good quality air rifle/pellet gun, and go take out some rabbits and squirrels.