Old Fashion Bunny Hunting

[sixshot]

When I was a young rooster & could go all day on snow shoes after Cottontails or Mountain Lions this is how I did it. The gun is an OM Ruger 357 maggie, using the Keith bullet with 5 grs of Unique in 38 special cases. Took a lot of rabbits & covered lots of miles. This photo was in the mid 70's while I was checking my trap line.
http://i84.photobucket.com/albums/k3/6shot_01/017_17-1.jpg (http://s84.photobucket.com/user/6shot_01/media/017_17-1.jpg.html)
Dick

[ammohead]

Good on you Dick. I love to chase the raggybuns myself.

[shaune1022]

Great picture. Got myself a cottentail today. Well sort of. Last Friday in our shop we had a rabbet jump out of a car we were working on. It took 3 of us to chase it out one of the bay doors, however it must of sneaked back in later. Today I found it at lunch time under the break room table, it must of found the Decon over the weekend.

[TCLouis]

That pic warms my soul!

[minimax357]

Thats a good picture always loved rabbit hunting and running a trap line.

[Larry Gibson]

Reminds me of hunting snow shoe hares in NE Oregon. I used a similar OM BH or my 5" barrel S&W M15. I used mostly issue (I was a LEO at the time) 38 WCs or my own 358477s cast of 40-1 over 3.5 gr Bullseye in 38 SP: cases. Always went for head shots as the snow shoes were so good eating. I used to soak them in milk for several hours, quarter them and then cook in a crock pot with mushroom soup......yum, yum......

Great picture, thanks.

Larry Gibson

[smoked turkey]

Great hunting story from good times past. I have hunted lots of rabbits over beagles and can say watching and listening to the dogs and seeing the bunny come back around was always fun. I have never had the opportunity to hunt them as you have described. For whatever reason we don't get the big snows here like we used to and in all honesty now due to older age (ahem..), I probably never will but wish I had. Larry your recipe sounds good. I would like to try it next time rabbits are on the menu.

[Dale53]

I consider hunting edible small game with a handgun one of the top most sporting activities one can do. I have successfully taken cottontail rabbits, snowshoe hares, squirrels, and grouse. All were extremely satisfying. My family truly appreciated the lack of small shot to pick out of their teeth.

My wife cooked all the wild meat I brought home - the above, plus bear from Canada (up there you cannot hunt with handguns) and local deer along with the muzzle loading match turkeys kept my freezer full for years. My kids learned early where food comes from and have been the better for it! I certainly enjoyed bird hunting with a shotgun, too, but handguns were always the tool for me when practical.

Dale53

[John Allen]

I consider hunting edible small game with a handgun one of the top most sporting activities one can do. I have successfully taken cottontail rabbits, snowshoe hares, squirrels, and grouse. All were extremely satisfying. My family truly appreciated the lack of small shot to pick out of their teeth.

My wife cooked all the wild meat I brought home - the above, plus bear from Canada (up there you cannot hunt with handguns) and local deer along with the muzzle loading match turkeys kept my freezer full for years. My kids learned early where food comes from and have been the better for it! I certainly enjoyed bird hunting with a shotgun, too, but handguns were always the tool for me when practical.

Dale53


Dale, I second that buddy I love it.

[Ole Joe Clarke]

My MBH (much better half) fried cotton tails and tree rats like chicken, with some gravy and homemade biscuits. Nothing better.

[Thomas Traddles]

My MBH (much better half) fried cotton tails and tree rats like chicken, with some gravy and homemade biscuits. Nothing better.

Indeed So! Goes well with corn bread, too!

[robinsroost]

Nice photo and narrative. It brought back a few memories of rabbit hunts in northern Indiana, when I wore a younger mans clothes. My dad always kept a pair of beagle hounds, that lived in the house with us. Contrary to what some believe, living in the house did not dampen their desire to hunt. When I was a teenager, if it wasn't for wild game we probably would not have meat on the table. BTW, I got the money for my first car by running a trap line, mostly for muskrats, with a few coons thrown in..........robin

[Huntsman]

Best of luck. My brother and I will be stomping the bush with our 32 flintlocks this Christmas.
Happy Holidays

[Wolfer]

My MBH (much better half) fried cotton tails and tree rats like chicken, with some gravy and homemade biscuits. Nothing better.

Doggone, your making me hungry. Throw in some fried taters maybe some pork and beans with a couple canned tomatoes and the rich people don't eat this good.

My ex mother in law could fry rabbit and squirrels that would make you want to slap yo mammy. (I don't know where this old hillbilly saying came from but I've heard it all my life )

We hunted rabbits with beagles and 22 pistols. We always killed enough for supper that night and if there's a better sport I don't know what it is.

[Geezer in NH]

Been hunting snowshoe hares, We in NH have no snow and it is nice and warm but the hares have changed to their winter color and are easy to find against the back ground.

I am using a 40cal flintlock I made 25+ years ago and my son is using his 10-22 built with a GM heavy fluted barrel and Houge stock. It wears a Leupold 2x7 rim fire with adj obj. He takes the longer shots and I am tacking the closer ones. No pics but we have had a couple of good feeds already.

Love the bunnies now that deer has been closed for 2 weeks we can chase them and have not seen anyone else hunting in our area.

[Markbo]

Sixshot is one of my favorite story tellers. He goes hunting WAY more than I get to and has a way with words and knowledge of sixguns that is just encyclopedic. I love it!

[sixshot]

Sounds like all of you have a fondness for hunting rabbits, thats great. And rabbits & the 32 maggie go together like bisquits & butter! Just slow that load down a whisker so it doesn't tear them up too bad & you've got a rabbit rapper thats the equal of a 22 LR. I know many of you prefer head shots on bunnies just like you do on squirrels but where I hunt you hardly ever see a bunny, you see part of a bunny. The brush, grass, weeds, rocks & willows are thick, the rabbits hold tight & if you want that rabbit you take the shot they give you, & most times that isn't much. If I can get a head shot I'll gladly take it & quite a few of these are taken that way.
Thanks for the new recipes, I'll try all of them!

Dick