A very bad place to be,

[Jjed]

I was down at my range working on my 300 aac ar trying out new cast loads. after fireing 3 different loads i looked through the spotting scope to check the the target when i saw something moving behind the target, this doe was just slowly eating her way through the hill side. look behind the top target, she was in no hurry even with the gun fire.111002

[Love Life]

I've had ground squirrels do the same out here. Narry a care in the world as you're blasting away.

[MT Gianni]

When I was in Missoula the standard practice was to chase the "wild" bighorn sheep off the range. Sometimes even with your best efforts they did not want to go far. The range was not in the wilds, we had to give up the 300 & 200 yard ranges due to complaints from the trailer courts on either side.

[DrCaveman]

Ill never forget, in Utah, a range near st george

A frickin ROADRUNNER comes trotting across the range...within 10 yds of firing line... Right after id finished shooting the Draco mini ak-47, about 60 rounds, pretty quick.

Me and the range guys just laughed and waited til it decided this rock pit at 102* wasnt the best place to be

I guess he had bigger concerns than humans flinging lead at 2000 fps.

Funny how small it was, taller than a chicken but much skinnier. Ill bet not more than 3-5 pounds

Man, im wondering if maybe these animals CAN read english. They dont act that way in season. Reminds me of an old myth about gorillas/chimps, other high primates...story goes, they can speak if they want to, but they are smart enough to know they would be immediately enslaved at gunpoint. Probably hogwash, but experiences like this one make you wonder if we give the "lesser mammals" enough intellectual credit.

Or too much!

[Bzcraig]

Mud hens aka coots or mud ducks are great for sighting in if your near a pond they gather on. You can fire rounds that just miss touching their feathers and they hardly pay any attention to you, okay they do sometimes look around a bit startled but still don't change their pace at all.

[MaryB]

My younger brother bough a brand new fancy deep V fishing boat with a 90hp motor. He took off next to me saying see those ducks? Bet I can chase them down. I didn't say a word and just took off for the spot I was fishing that day in my little 14 foot overgrown canoe with a 15hp engine. Watched as he got right behind this huge flock of coots who all took off at once... when coots take off they drop weight and defecate... his fancy new boat stunk for months

[44man]

I have often said deer do not fear gunfire unless you hit close to them or the snap of the bullet is close. One season opener for ML I was checking sights, just fired when a herd walked by. I could not load fast enough before they got in the brush.
One day I was working an 06 at 100, decided to try 200 and when I got near my bench, a whole herd got up.
Then the time I took a big doe out of a herd, she dropped and the rest of the deer laid down.

[kungfustyle]

This is the same thing that happens that they all get the memo that hunting season is off so they come out of hiding. Almost the ability to feel when you've set your gun down to take a p.....

[Whiterabbit]

Ill never forget, in Utah, a range near st george

A frickin ROADRUNNER comes trotting across the range...within 10 yds of firing line... Right after id finished shooting the Draco mini ak-47, about 60 rounds, pretty quick.

Me and the range guys just laughed and waited til it decided this rock pit at 102* wasnt the best place to be

I guess he had bigger concerns than humans flinging lead at 2000 fps.

Funny how small it was, taller than a chicken but much skinnier. Ill bet not more than 3-5 pounds

Man, im wondering if maybe these animals CAN read english. They dont act that way in season. Reminds me of an old myth about gorillas/chimps, other high primates...story goes, they can speak if they want to, but they are smart enough to know they would be immediately enslaved at gunpoint. Probably hogwash, but experiences like this one make you wonder if we give the "lesser mammals" enough intellectual credit.

Or too much!

A middle-school classmate had exactly this theory about cats. That they were once the top of the heap and intentionally put us on top with themselves as our wards so they get waited on paw and foot for the rest of eternity while we slave on to keep the world turning.

[bedbugbilly]

And then we have the opposite . . . . I have @$#%^# woodchucks that only come out when I don't have a rifle or handgun with me! I started carrying a .38 with me when I'm mowing and one day, it got to be a sort of a "game". (I should mention that I live on the backside of the farm.) I'd spot the little critter come out of his hole and watch me when I was clear across the field, too far away to shoot. As soon as I headed back in his direction, he'd pop back down his hole! His hole is off to one side of where I shoot and he is NEVER out and around when I'm getting some range time in.

We have the same problem with the deer as well - they show no fear at all. Enjoyed the photo . . sometimes I guess that you have to look at it this way . . . a higher power is giving you an opportunity to take a breath and "smell the roses" while enjoying a beautiful creature.

Now . . . as far as that #$%&^& woodchuck . . there's nothing "beautiful" about him as far as I'm concerned. I have no problem taking a crack at them when they are out in their natural habitat . . . . but don't ask me what I do when I catch one in the live trap and it's "up close and personal" when he looks at me with those big eyes. Then it's "transplant" time further down the road where he can build a home in the more primitive areas. :-)

[Tatume]

I've seen herds of deer wander onto the range at Marine Corps Base Quantico when 50 shooters were engaging rapid-fire targets. The RO would be screaming "cease fire, cease fire" as the deer nonchalantly browsed in front of the targets.

[BruceB]

I have often said deer do not fear gunfire unless you hit close to them or the snap of the bullet is close.

Yes indeed, and the same applies to bears ..... SOMETIMES.

I once stood toe-to-toe with a good-sized black bear, and fired THREE full-power .44 Magnum loads into the dirt between his hind feet (bear was standing up). The muzzle of that Ruger SBH was no more than four feet from his ears... LOUD!

After a couple of seconds (seemed longer!) he dropped to all fours and casually sauntered away... for about fifty feet, at which point he turned around and started coming back. I fired the fourth round just over his back, and he turned aside and stepped out of sight into the bush.

Any further, and my fifth (and LAST) round would have been for fatal effect.

On another occasion, I walked up within thirty feet on a young grizzly without his knowing it. I had a .30-30 M94, but no need or desire to shoot him. So, I just broke a dry twig on a nearby tree. That bear lit out like all the furies of Hell were snapping at his butt.... no pause to look around, no sniffing the air, it was Griz Express, RIGHT NOW.

I've long held the opinion that the one predictable thing about bear behavior is that ... they are UNpredictable.

As to the folks who believe that a bear will ALWAYS know you are in the vicinity before you detect the bear..... ????? Not quite so, amigos.

I've also had curious caribou come right up to me while I was field-dressing other caribou I had just shot. Sometimes, they'd come within ten feet!

[quilbilly]

At the club I belong to in Port Townsend, Wa., two large bucks and several does are a permanent fixture on the 100 yard range and will let you walk right by them within 15 feet when you head downrange to fix your target. They don't seem to care about the noise.

[Elkins45]

This young fellow sauntered behind the 25 yard berm at my range from L to R. There's a fence separating the trap and rifle/pistol ranges and he caught me just a little bit off guard when he appeared. I didn't get my phone out in time to get a picture until he reappeared from behind the berm on the far side.

http://i292.photobucket.com/albums/mm35/elkins_pix/f2df9039-8f18-4e46-9fb7-a96f56cf7a82_zps630fa531.jpg

[dondiego]

Deer and turkeys walk out of the brush all of the time at my club right during a trap shoot. They are of course protected while on club property. The woodchucks that make holes in our shooting berm.........well, that's another story.

[osteodoc08]

I've had deer, turkey, foxes, coyotes, all kinda birds on the ranges while shooting. Where are they during season?

[dondiego]

They are at the range! Where are you hunting?

[Ironduke]

I recall having to cease fire tank gunnery because of a herd of stag on the range in Grafenwoehr, Germany. For those of you who have never been around tank gunnery, the 120mm smooth bore main gun is no joke when it comes to muzzle blast. But these dang elk-like beasts were oblivious!

[303Guy]

I went to a range on a farm once. There was a herd of cattle in a paddock to the side of the range in front of the firing line. As soon as the firing started they all came rushing up to the fence facing us. Mind you, cattle would mob us when we walked through their paddock. Older bulls do the same but I'm not sure of their intentions so I don't go into their paddocks!

[country gent]

At the club weve had deer turkeys and fox come out while the line was hot, several tmes while cold and people were down range. In the spring ive ran diesel tractors working ground to with in 10-15 yards of deer turkeys fox woodchucks and pheasants. As long as the equipment doesnt change its pattern or stop it dosnt even phase them. Animals get used to noises and people being around and become used to it.

[MaryB]

Animals are off limits at the range I go to except for the gophers digging in the berms. They are open targets. When you hit a gopher with a 50 grain vmax from my 223 they kind of explode... I had to scrape parts off the target board one day so it wouldn't gross people out. Keep a shovel at the berm to bury them so they don't stink. Would think the other gophers would get the hint and move...

[MT Gianni]

And then we have the opposite . . . . I have @$#%^# woodchucks that only come out when I don't have a rifle or handgun with me! I started carrying a .38 with me when I'm mowing and one day, it got to be a sort of a "game". (I should mention that I live on the backside of the farm.) I'd spot the little critter come out of his hole and watch me when I was clear across the field, too far away to shoot. As soon as I headed back in his direction, he'd pop back down his hole! His hole is off to one side of where I shoot and he is NEVER out and around when I'm getting some range time in.

We have the same problem with the deer as well - they show no fear at all. Enjoyed the photo . . sometimes I guess that you have to look at it this way . . . a higher power is giving you an opportunity to take a breath and "smell the roses" while enjoying a beautiful creature.

Now . . . as far as that #$%&^& woodchuck . . there's nothing "beautiful" about him as far as I'm concerned. I have no problem taking a crack at them when they are out in their natural habitat . . . . but don't ask me what I do when I catch one in the live trap and it's "up close and personal" when he looks at me with those big eyes. Then it's "transplant" time further down the road where he can build a home in the more primitive areas. :-)
Most of us change body posture with a gun. We go into seek or hunt mode and exude that with posture and maybe pheromones. It would take a lot of practice not to but in your case it would be worth trying.

[303Guy]

That's an interesting thought. I've noticed that when we've kinda given up finding anything and start talking as we walk along we often walk right up to or past animals.