Rabbits & New to me Ruger 77/22 K Hornet

[Von Gruff]

Stoats and ferrets as well, but as has been said they all found easier prey than the rabbits. Many farmers were driven off thier land because the rabbit and hare had made the farming economically untennable and in fact my grandparents had to walk off their farm in the early thirties when my father was a boy. He rememberd hare drives when thousands were driven and killed against the fences and rabbit numbers that were uncountable. Numbers have increased again now with viability again becoming a question for some.

[Just Duke]

Can you eat the rabbit there? I ate rabbit as a youth when I was really poor. If I remember correctly I dipped them in Bisquick and fried them in olive oil.

[Von Gruff]

During the depression the rabbit was called underground mutton and was what kept many people going. For my wife and I it is one of our preferences and our hare which I believe you call a jackrabbit is also very good eating. I dress out the rabbit as I kill them and it only needs a wash and jointing when I get home. There are quite a few people that I drop of pieces of rabbit for as they really enjoy them, and I would eat rabbit over chicken any day. In fact with the cold snap we have had over the last few days I cooked the two back legs of a hare as a stove top casserol and thoroughly enjoyed it.The forquarter I cook and shred the meat from for sandwiches, as I do for the rabbit, and with a coldslaw makes a very nice lunch.
This is our hare


And rabbits with the shooting aids

While I do not get numbers like Euan does (as I am only shooting them for my table) a run up to rabbit country every so often will ensure we never go without our treats in the freezer.

[starmac]

I have only ever killed and eaten rabbits in the winter months, is it the same there or can you eat them year round?

[Just Duke]

I have only ever killed and eaten rabbits in the winter months, is it the same there or can you eat them year round?

Yea same here.

[Von Gruff]

There seems to be no difference in the rabbit from one season to another although it is mostly the younger animals that are taken home for the table with the older ones left lay for the hawks etc. The knife through the skin on the back as a prelude to tearing it both ways as a shirt up and pants down skinning method very easily diferentiats between the young and the old. Young tears easily - old does not and the young always taste good.

[JeffinNZ]

No seasons here boys. All the hunting animals are considered pests. You can shoot rabbits, hares, wallabies, goats, deer, pigs, chamois and tahr till yer blue in the face.

[starmac]

I have always wondered, do you eat the wallabys. I have no idea what a chamoi or a tahr is. lol Well I actually do know what a chamoi is, but we use them when we wash cars, and never shoot them. lol

[TXGunNut]

We don't often eat rabbits in my part of the world because they generally have obnoxious parasites in all but the coldest parts of the year. I've eaten a few cottontails but have always passed on the jackrabbits. I understand some folks eat them but most folks around here don't bother.

[cdet69]

How much open space is there to hunt in NZ? I aslo see a lot of you use suppressors on your rifles. Is this encouraged to help reduce the noise as not to disturb the peace.

[Von Gruff]

Some of the hunting areas are on high country stations that may be 10's of thousands of acres. There is a high proportion of farmland to city land with a reasonable low population percentage wise so for those who hunt there is probably better opportunities space wise than many other countries. Small game pest species abound in almost the whole country and there are many public access areas for larger game hunting. Supresors just make plain common sense for their sound reduction helping in hunting situations for multiple target aquisition without undue disturbance. Good for our hearing longevity as well so wins all round.

[Shooternz]

A friend of mine lives on wild meat the only shop meat he eats is bacon and the odd roast pork or beef when he visit me, He lives on a Kiwi fruit orchard just out side town gets plenty of rabbits for himself and possums for the dog the possums get their fur plucked sells for $155.0 a kilo, Over the Christmas break he shot four Sika deer in the "Kaimanawa Forest Park" Central North Island, a twenty kilometre hike each way made two trips with the meat, most hunters here still do it the hard way, I am trying to get him to use Boolits most of his shots are inside 100 metres. Robert.

[Boosted98gsx]

.22 hornet sounds fun. I might pick one up as a rabbit / coyote / bobcat rifle after the craze dies down.

[jp1]

Kangaroo is the best meat I have ever eaten before or since our trip to Australia.

[JeffinNZ]

If you look at the size of NZ on a map then consider that on a good day there are only 4 million of us and a 1/3 of them live in Auckland you can we have a lot of hunting space. I farm I used to spend a great deal of time on was 17000 acres. I had been going there for 10 years and had not seen all of it.

[jp1]

My wife and I have a friend who was born in New Zealand. She spoke of being raised on a sheep station that had many thousands of sheep. She now lives in Dublin, Ireland. Dublin is a lovely city.

I seriously think that if I literally shot piles of rabbits the way Euan does I would have no appetite for rabbit.

[Tom_in_AZ]

Judging by your pictures, you found a combo that works well. Nice pics!

[Tom_in_AZ]

No seasons here boys. All the hunting animals are considered pests. You can shoot rabbits, hares, wallabies, goats, deer, pigs, chamois and tahr till yer blue in the face.

Sounds like paradise!

[gandydancer]

If I was not so dang old and used up I think I would move there. lol this is on gunbroker #425036178 17 H Hornet sounds real good to me.lol

[Von Gruff]

Simple field dressing in this short vid the way I do it.

http://s667.photobucket.com/user/Von...96b14.mp4.html