We go to South Dakota and shoot prairie dogs every June for three years now. Where do you guys go?
John.
I think they are protected in Canada because they are at the extend of their range up this way.
When I was stationed out in South Dakota, we used to hunt Prairie Dogs!
We used to go out, South of the Airport, and take Hwy 44, and go out around Farmingdale, towards the Badlands.
Quote from: SwampDonkey on February 20, 2015, 05:16:20 AM
I think they are protected in Canada because they are at the extend of their range up this way.
Most ranchers out here in the prairies will supply all the ammo you need if you'll sit out in the pasture and knock off gophers (Richardson ground squirrel). From what I've read this is different than one species of prairie dog found in the grasslands park here in southern Saskatchewan. If you see a gopher out here...... GIT IT. So what I'm trying to say I guess is that the Richardson Ground Squirrel is not protected but the one in grasslands is.
I think it's the black tailed one.
Something similar, only not colonizers is the ground hog, they are fair game, shadow or not. ;D
No dogs here. We have woodchucks and the coyotes keep those in check. I don't think I've seen a chuck hole in a hay field in 20 years.
I've shot them with rifles, pistols and bows. Now found a used vacuum truck used to suck them up, supposedly to transplant them, now that sounds like fun. :D
So we go on the east side of South Dakota in the chamberlain area. I would be interested to know what other places and states might be good to look into.
Never saw a ground hog hole in a field either. They are in the brush, under a rock pile and often under a building. When they get under a building they have to go, post haste. ;D
I go to south west North Dakota know some rancher's thy have two rule's close the gate and don't miss
Quote from: goose63 on February 21, 2015, 09:38:02 AM
I go to south west North Dakota know some rancher's thy have two rule's close the gate and don't miss
:D :D My neighbors had a town just east of their house and couldn't get enough people to come shoot them to keep them in check. 2 years ago they started poisoning them and got rid of them, but every once in awhile a few will show up again, no idea where they're coming from. The original ones showed up after a different neighbor poisoned the town he had, they thought it was neat having a few out there, didn't take long for them to expand over 20 or so acres. I farm about 5 miles away and pulled into my field one day and there was one running up the trail in front of me, never saw one there before or since ???. It's amazing how fast they can expand and how bad they ruin things.
Another friend has a town on one of his places and told me one day a few years back during a drought we were having "to heck with farming, I'm going back to the hill and start mining lead" :D.
The ranch I work for in south east Montana has one town that's maybe 10-15 acres that we spend a little time on occasion and I doubt we'll ever win that battle without poison.
On a side note a few years back (sitting in the bar) a buddy of mine was telling me just how fast he could run when he was younger. He said he had the kids out shooting prairie dogs and the kids kept bugging him that they wanted to see what one looked like up close, so he tells the kids he'd try shooting one, hand one of the kids the shotgun and run up and grab the prairie dog before it could fall back in the hole. He says he found one real close, dumped both barrels at it, handed off the gun to his kid and run up and got the prairie dog by the neck just in time to catch both barrels right in the backside. Now that's fast folks.
Quote from: justallan1 on February 21, 2015, 02:29:50 PM
On a side note a few years back (sitting in the bar) a buddy of mine was telling me just how fast he could run when he was younger. He said he had the kids out shooting prairie dogs and the kids kept bugging him that they wanted to see what one looked like up close, so he tells the kids he'd try shooting one, hand one of the kids the shotgun and run up and grab the prairie dog before it could fall back in the hole. He says he found one real close, dumped both barrels at it, handed off the gun to his kid and run up and got the prairie dog by the neck just in time to catch both barrels right in the backside. Now that's fast folks.
:D :D :D Paul Bunyon perhaps?
How tall was he?? :D
Do they taste like chicken ???
Quote from: Corley5 on February 21, 2015, 07:50:24 PM
Do they taste like chicken ???
:D :D ;)
I have no idea what they taste like. However I bet the only thing they would be good for would be fajitas because the ones I have seen up close look just like shredded fajita meat, with some fur still on.
John
I ain't ever seen one, let alone shot any.
Quote from: Small Slick on February 22, 2015, 12:36:54 AM
Quote from: Corley5 on February 21, 2015, 07:50:24 PM
Do they taste like chicken ???
:D :D ;)
I have no idea what they taste like. However I bet the only thing they would be good for would be fajitas because the ones I have seen up close look just like shredded fajita meat, with some fur still on.
when I hit them with my 120 grain hollow point from the 25-06 you don't even get much
I'd like to try it. I shoot groundhogs around the house.
On a side note, we were on a fire dispatch in far west Texas a few years back. We were in the desert, the locals said it had not rained in almost a year. We had drove to this little town called marathon, hadn't seen any surface water in 6 hours of driving. And this guy had a fishing rod in the bed of the truck. I asked him about it, and he said they went prairie dog fishing. I asked him to explain. It appears you make a slip like cable, kinda noose like, and open the loop and place it around the opening to a prairie dog hole. String out the line and sit and wait. One sticks his head out and you would "set the hook". I never saw it in action, but I can only imagine what that would be like. I'm sure the line would break against the rocks and the cable would slip off, but for a second or three it would be on.
Poor little prairie dogs :).
I used to enjoy shooting whistle pigs. I haven't done it for many years. I just got a beautiful Browning high wall in 25-06, and after working up some handloads; I think I'll try to scare a few ;)
Groundhogs are shot when found. Sometimes find them in a thick hay field with the swather. Actually have put some past the conditioner rollers, they make the machine thump a little ;D
I know nothing about them dogs. But woodchucks,been fighting them things for years. But way to find thier holes,a 6 foot cutter bar on a 1954 NAA Ford tractor. The wife mows the fields and keeps the grass down and them woodchucks are living in the stone walls and the woods. I lost my woodchuck dog a few years back.
When I was a kid, the 22LR was the tool and shots were limited to under 100 yards, now the 22 cal, the 20 cal and the 17 cal, the distance can be out to 500 yards and more!
When the centerfire 22 caliber rifles caught on, they pretty-much eliminated the woodchucks in this area.
It's rather unusual to see a woodchuck in this area now a days!