Shotgun rabbit hunting questions?

[AmericaStandsStrong]

Got a 20ga pump shotgun, that I might use for a bit of rabbit hunting. My questions are, how much lead would you need to give a running rabbit to hit it good? What size shot, I can't use steel shot in mine, if that matters. What size choke? What size shot?

Blake

 

[Martlet]

Depends on what you're hunting, kinda. I mostly hunt snowshoe, and typically use #4, 1oz. Many suggest #6 for cottons. I like larger shot and few pellets, because I think it leaves more meat.

 

[Sprocket]

#6's will work just fine - as for leads, think about moving targets in general - the longer the distance, the longer the lead. Some like to use the "swing through" method - start at the butt, swing through the target and miss in front - how far in front depends on the speed and distance of the target but basically swing through the head then miss in front.

 

[Maxspeed]

[video=youtube_share;OiEUDzIrEQE]http://youtu.be/OiEUDzIrEQE[/video]

 

[AmericaStandsStrong]

Ahh yes the good old days when you could actually show a gun on a cartoon! The horror! Anyways, I am most likely gonna use my .22 rifle with CCI Velocitors 40gr CPHP. But figured I'd bring the shotgun in case I wanted it

 

[nateo]

Ahh yes the good old days when you could actually show a gun on a cartoon! The horror! Anyways, I am most likely gonna use my .22 rifle with CCI Velocitors 40gr CPHP. But figured I'd bring the shotgun in case I wanted it

In reading the abstracts, it seems that for me (in zone 10) I can use a rifle on rabbit, but not squirrel... So does anyone know if I am allowed to have both a shotgun and a rifle with me? or is that a no no? This is my first season hunting, so Im still trying to sort out the particulars...

 

[MisterHappy]

Have fun with the particulars.....

Honestly if you're going to be in an area where both are hunted, I'd call the EPOs and ask if two guns will jam you up. They might not have the "right" answer, but if they say "A" is a no-no, you may get cited even though it's a "bad" interpretation. The definition of "hunting" is guite loose in Mass., and a lot of the game laws pretty confusing.

You do NOT have to fire a shot to be "Hunting" in Mass......

 

[AmericaStandsStrong]

I've got another question guys. Here is the deal, I am going rabbit hunting with a friend of mine in his 20s who has a hunter license and a Class A LTC. I am 15 with FID and Hunting license. My dad has a Class A LTC, but no hunting licence. Could he come with us? He wouldn't be shooting anything, or holding any firearms at all, he just wants to be there to hang out with us and help us scout the little bunnies. Would that be legal? This hunting would be happening on a WMA in Northfield, MA. BTW Maxspeed or however it is spelled, is that your golden retriever? I have one who is 5 years old and he is the best dog ever really.

 

[MisterHappy]

Re: dad.

I'd say, "No.", or at his peril. EPOs (at least some of them) love toe "Write coupons"///

I was a beater on a falconer's hunt, and at the Hunter Ed. course I took (after th fact!) I asked the EPO if I could have been cited. He said that I was hunting, but "Falconers are weird, I'd not have busted your b@lls...."

In Mass., the term hunting is very broad....

 

[AmericaStandsStrong]

I e-mailed MassWildLife about it. I really hope you are wrong, I really want him to be able to come.

 

[BerkshireHunter]

I'll be honest, I'm not crazy about the law of "no hunting with any rifles" in WMA's that are stocked with pheasant during bird season, because most of the ones around me are stocked with pheasant even though the fields they have might be a small part of the territory. MA hunting can make me very .

I'd also be angry if they fined a friend who wasn't technically hunting and who didn't even have a killing tool.