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Airgun rat hunting
- Thread starter scr1be
- Start date
are you serious? i doubt any farmer would let a random guy onto their property with an airgun to shoot rats ... right?
if anybody knows ANYONE that would seriously let me do this anywhere within 2 hours of Boston, MA, please let me know!!!
Sorry, I'm about 2 1/2 hours away and my small barn is visited by a small number of rats at night (2 or 3 maybe) so not worth your trip. My cat gets one every so often. Besides one of my horses is far too curious and they all love people so they'd be all up in your face looking for attention anyway.
the usual rule is 'don't shoot a hole in my barn' but kill all the starlings and rodents you want.
Very, drive by any property with old buildings. Worst case is you get a NO.
We used to be able to shoot at the landfills before they opened on Sat mornings. Problem is rats like darkness. We also used to go down to the old buildings in town and spot light rats in the abandoned buildings.
Check with local pest control. If your really good with your pellet gun you might get to do more than just rats. The key is you need to take out pest quickly with out blasting away to take out a few rats.
Most pellet guns won't go through old board barns but will go through many of the sheet metal barns. The pest usually rest in or around stuff you don't want to be missing to many shots. If your taking them at distance pellet damage is,minimal.
You can always get your hunting license and go out for red squirrel and other open season pest English sparrow, starling, chipmunk,
flying squirrel, red squirrel, weasel, porcupine, skunk, woodchuckst. At least last I checked you could hit these all year with no limit.
Back in the late 70s as a youth pigeons where never ending in JP.
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MisterHappy
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#ratlivesmatter
If one gets a hunting license, where can you go to hunt? Are there areas of the woods that are sectioned off for hunting?
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yeah, but walking around Boston with an air rifle is definitely not a good idea.
There are mass wildlife areas all over the place. Any open space if not posted or town restrictions discharging a pellet gun or firearm. Be prepared to meet the police more than once if you hunt in a area that doesn't see it often.
Even down here on the south shore people still call the police if they see anyone with a gun.
Hmm, yeah I don't think hunting is for me. I would only want to kill what I eat and I don't eat any of these things (pheasant, rabbit, squirrel, etc).
I only want to kill rats that are causing problems.
Bump, any farmers or anybody know farmers that would let me shoot their rats with an air rifle?
I only want to kill rats that are causing problems.
Bump, any farmers or anybody know farmers that would let me shoot their rats with an air rifle?
MisterHappy
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To get a hunting license. you need to take a Hunter Ed course - where and when will be made clear.
Boston ain't one of those places.
yanici
NES Member
Just because you are on private property does not release you from being governed by town/city ordinances. I cannot legally shoot air guns or even paint ball guns on my own property.
Why this overwhelming desire to shoot at rats? Usually, that is just a problem that people would rather NOT deal with. Maybe you can go out to the Pioneer Valley, and find some farmers who want some crows shot.
Oh, I should look into this then, thanks!
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ah nice!
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Oh, it doesn't have to be rats. I just don't want to get a hunting license and kill a squirrel or anything bigger (because I don't eat it). Seems wrong. At least I know people don't eat rats so I wouldn't feel as bad.
Crow hunting is tricky, they are hard to take by surprise, have a short season, and there are special rules for taking them as a nuisance. Fish & Game may look the other way for small rodents, but migratory birds are in their own class.
This varies by state -- Make some friends up in New Hampshire; statewide preemption means zero town ordinances can apply.
Once spring arrives, you can find somebody proud of their rock walls an garden, happy for assistance keeping down the local chipmunk population. Anything bigger than that, and you might want to get a hunting license just to keep the game warden off your back.
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