Where have all the small game hunters gone?
 

My pap tells me that he can remember a time when small game season was just as popular and anticipated as deer season. To me, small game hunting is just as fun, if not a whole lot more fun, than deer hunting. I especially think parents should get their kids involved in small game hunting. It' s a great pastime and teaches kids safety. Not to mention squirrels and rabbits are very tasty. Does anyone have any theories on why not many people hunt small game?




Great squirrel gun
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RE: Where have all the small game hunters gone?
 

Not very many rabbits around .Some tree rats but not as many either compared to 15 years ago.

RE: Where have all the small game hunters gone?
 

there are a host of other things that kids can do nowdays as compared to 20 or 50 years ago. now, we have soccer, other scholastic activities, plus the amount of homework these days is much more than it was a few decades ago.

i graduated h.s. in 85, i was a sophomore the first time i had homework. now, kids in 4th grade have homework.

parents are working more, and working more irregular hours.

habitat and places to hunt are being lost.

traditions aren' t being passed on like they used to.

take a kid hunting. a kid who otherwise would have no other opportunity to go hunting. when we are too old to go, these kids will be voting and can keep this whole thing going.

RE: Where have all the small game hunters gone?
 

Another thing to consider is that rabbits, at least in my neck of the woods, have declined in numbers in the last 10 or 15 years. I was wondering why the other day, but then I realized that I have seen more predators around, especially birds, than I ever saw as a kid. On a short 30 minute walk this summer around a field I used to see 50 rabbits. This time I saw 1 rabbit. But I did see a red fox, two hawks and an owl. Perhaps it is the natural swing of populations, perhaps getting rid of PCBs and other polutants have allowed the predators to thrive, I don' t know.

But, I DO miss the taste of free range rabbit. Squirrel is good, but it just does not compare.

Chubber

RE: Where have all the small game hunters gone?
 

A couple of things were already mentioned. Parents working crazy hours and loss of small game habitat. One thing that wasn' t mentioned - Play Station. That probably keeps a lot of the potential hunters locked away in their bedrooms instead of out in the field. I' m sure instant messaging, chat rooms, cell phones and all that other stuff has saved a squirrel' s life on more than one occassion.

Scott Meier
White Oak Lodge

RE: Where have all the small game hunters gone?
 

I love smallgame hunting, tree rats and rabbits thrive around here in Oklahoma and make for some great fun. Cant wait till my daughter is Old enough to go with me.

RE: Where have all the small game hunters gone?
 

there ain' t nothing like hering a pack of hounds chasing a rabbit. i love rabbit hunting go all the time whene cool whether arrives. coon hunting is fun to. i love small game hunting.


go deep hunt hard.;)

RE: Where have all the small game hunters gone?
 

They are making couchs and recliners to comfortable these days. Computers and playstations are replacing the enjoyment of being outdoors.
I don' t know about you guys, but I have a 8 year old boy that love to spent time outdoors with his dad hunting and fishing. There is no other place I would rather be on a Saturday afternoon. It' s a time that we will both cherish for many years.

RE: Where have all the small game hunters gone?
 

I' ve grown up rabbit hunting and plinking squirls when they eat to many of moms plants and too much bird seed. Every year we get the family uncle' s and cousins together for a rabbit hunt. When i started and before i was old enough, we would come back with 25 or thirty rabbits for just one afternoons work. Now we are lucky to get five for a weekends work. I think it might be that the weather hasn' t cooperated, but more so that a trend has swept our area. All the habitat is disippearing. All the bunny hangouts are dissapearing. The farmers think they all need the extra two acers and plow up the fenceline hotspots and thickets. Sure there are still places they have a hold, but not like it used to be. Hope we don' t have to resort to bustin' clay. They don' t taste as good.

RE: Where have all the small game hunters gone?
 

im right here