# After Thanksgiving Day walkabout



## MrShane (Jul 21, 2019)

A solo Utah limit of wild roosters with my 28.
2 shots fired.
6.5 hrs and I don’t know how many miles.
Was a lot easier to pull this off when I was younger.
My knees are going to pay for this tomorrow.


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## taxidermist (Sep 11, 2007)

Great day afield!


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## CPAjeff (Dec 20, 2014)

Looks like a great time!

REALLY thinking about picking up a 28.


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## MooseMeat (Dec 27, 2017)

Very Nice. Looks like fun, and definitely better than any day at work. 

fyi, you are contributing to the depletion of a very fragile and unsustainable resource that has been in sharp decline for decades. 😉


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## MrShane (Jul 21, 2019)

MooseMeat said:


> Very Nice. Looks like fun, and definitely better than any day at work.
> 
> fyi, you are contributing to the depletion of a very fragile and unsustainable resource that has been in sharp decline for decades. 😉


Nah, I only shot roosters and let the hens fly free ( I wish that was all it took to bring them back).
I hope I live long enough to see some miracle happen that easy limits come back to us.
So many farms that use to grow grain and corn now all have alfalfa in them, that certainly does not help.


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## MrShane (Jul 21, 2019)

CPAjeff said:


> Looks like a great time!
> 
> REALLY thinking about picking up a 28.


If the Benelli Ultralight 28 was made in a 28 bbl. I would place my order immediately.


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## colorcountrygunner (Oct 6, 2009)

It always blows my mind when I see Utah hunters bag wild pheasants. I think I saw my last wild roosters around Cedar City in about 2010. Pretty sure they are extinct in those parts now. I still see a wild one now and again in Utah County. I don't believe I have seen one this year though.


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## TomU (Sep 11, 2021)

Back in October folks in my neighborhood here in Cedar City started posting photos of a Rooster and some hens walking around in the streets. That's before the state started stocking. I wondered if it was possible some may have survived from last years season?


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## MooseMeat (Dec 27, 2017)

These are the times when we all should be asking the question: if we have to dump supplemental quantities of a certain bird in order to maintain satisfaction rating among hunters, should we really be having this hunt in the first place?

there’s still a pile of birds in utah county if you know where to look. They certainly arent near any road though.


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## colorcountrygunner (Oct 6, 2009)

TomU said:


> Back in October folks in my neighborhood here in Cedar City started posting photos of a Rooster and some hens walking around in the streets. That's before the state started stocking. I wondered if it was possible some may have survived from last years season?


I would guess they are pen raised birds that got loose from somewhere, but I suppose it's possible there could still be a few wild stragglers hanging around.


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## toasty (May 15, 2008)

MrShane said:


> If the Benelli Ultralight 28 was made in a 28 bbl. I would place my order immediately.


Put extended choke tube in a 28ga UL and you now have 27.5" barrel or you could go the SBE 28ga route and get one with a 28" barrel. I have taken 3 wild roosters this year and it is a down year for me. There are still plenty of wild roosters around and shooting some roosters doesn't affect pheasant population at all. I attached a link that 93% of the roosters could be harvested without affecting the pheasant population. I would wager a bet that much less than 50% of the wild roosters are shot in utah.

I would also agree that dumping pen raised birds does not help the pheasant population at all and I would support using that money for other upland projects instead of releasing pheasants. May as well just offer vouchers for a pheasant farm hunt, that would be better for wild birds.



http://www.pheasantsforever.org/habitat/Pheasant-Facts/Effects-of-Hunting.aspx


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## MrShane (Jul 21, 2019)

toasty said:


> Put extended choke tube in a 28ga UL and you now have 27.5" barrel or you could go the SBE 28ga route and get one with a 28" barrel. I have taken 3 wild roosters this year and it is a down year for me. There are still plenty of wild roosters around and shooting some roosters doesn't affect pheasant population at all. I attached a link that 93% of the roosters could be harvested without affecting the pheasant population. I would wager a bet that much less than 50% of the wild roosters are shot in utah.
> 
> I would also agree that dumping pen raised birds does not help the pheasant population at all and I would support using that money for other upland projects instead of releasing pheasants. May as well just offer vouchers for a pheasant farm hunt, that would be better for wild birds.
> 
> ...


Scheels has that SBE in 28”, very nice gun.
Just not as nice as the Ultra, too bad a guy can’t even find one in Utah to fondle before plunking down his hard earned dough.
If we want wild Pheasants back, start by putting an airgun pellet in every cat you see wandering your fields.


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## toasty (May 15, 2008)

MrShane said:


> Scheels has that SBE in 28”, very nice gun.
> Just not as nice as the Ultra, too bad a guy can’t even find one in Utah to fondle before plunking down his hard earned dough.
> If we want wild Pheasants back, start by putting an airgun pellet in every cat you see wandering your fields.


Don't bother to fondle a 28ga UL, I have one you can borrow for a hunt to see if you like it. I will use my 20ga 24" UL that doesn't get used nearly enough. I will warn you, after you hunt with it, you will have to buy one.


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## backcountry (May 19, 2016)

Cedar is going the opposite direction and releasing strat cats after capture. There is strong evidence when you bring them in, register them, spay/neuter and then release them the long term trend is better than euthanasia.

I'm skeptical but we'll see if it drives the long term stray population down. I know I'm tired of the cat parade every night on our street and finding dead ones my dogs get in the backyard. I wish "outdoor cats" were outlawed in most towns. They are a nuisance to game and migratory songbirds, that need all the help we give them.

I can't help but wonder what's going to happen as Cedar expands and more sprawl spreads into former wild and agricultural land. Our feral cat problem is going to spread before it gets better. And our limited game bird habitat is going to suffer.


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## backcountry (May 19, 2016)

TomU said:


> Back in October folks in my neighborhood here in Cedar City started posting photos of a Rooster and some hens walking around in the streets. That's before the state started stocking. I wondered if it was possible some may have survived from last years season?


If it happens again glass for bands or ask if folks saw one or a streamer.

Those aren't required for commercial field trials but they are for the average joe training their bird dogs.

*Either way they become the possession of the state if they survive intentional or accidental release


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## AF CYN (Mar 19, 2009)

Nice job! Killing a limit of wild roosters is a big deal!


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## MrShane (Jul 21, 2019)

toasty said:


> Don't bother to fondle a 28ga UL, I have one you can borrow for a hunt to see if you like it. I will use my 20ga 24" UL that doesn't get used nearly enough. I will warn you, after you hunt with it, you will have to buy one.


I actually had the 28UL ordered and was one day from shipping when I changed my order to that Beretta 28 in my Pheasant pic.
Funny thing about that Beretta is I started to break it in with clays and I was very disappointed with how many I would miss, but on live birds it is outright deadly.
I tried to order that Beretta in 30” bbls. but they could not guarantee delivery so I took the 28 incher they had in stock.


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## MrShane (Jul 21, 2019)

backcountry said:


> Cedar is going the opposite direction and releasing strat cats after capture. There is strong evidence when you bring them in, register them, spay/neuter and then release them the long term trend is better than euthanasia.
> 
> I'm skeptical but we'll see if it drives the long term stray population down. I know I'm tired of the cat parade every night on our street and finding dead ones my dogs get in the backyard. I wish "outdoor cats" were outlawed in most towns. They are a nuisance to game and migratory songbirds, that need all the help we give them.
> 
> I can't help but wonder what's going to happen as Cedar expands and more sprawl spreads into former wild and agricultural land. Our feral cat problem is going to spread before it gets better. And our limited game bird habitat is going to suffer.


Wonder no more about your feral cats vs. game bird issue as Cedar spreads.
Just take a drive through SL, Box Elder, Cache Valley and see what the cats have done to our Pheasants as those 3 counties have sprawled.


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## Gordon (Sep 11, 2007)

MrShane said:


> A solo Utah limit of wild roosters with my 28.
> 2 shots fired.
> 6.5 hrs and I don’t know how many miles.
> Was a lot easier to pull this off when I was younger.
> My knees are going to pay for this tomorrow.


What load are you using? I have shot a lot of farm birds with my 28 but no wild roosters.


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## MrShane (Jul 21, 2019)

Gordon said:


> What load are you using? I have shot a lot of farm birds with my 28 but no wild roosters.


Fiochi 3/4 oz #6’s.
Last year during some trips in the Dakotas I killed 16 wild roosters, a couple Sharpies, and a Coyote and used exactly one box of 25 shells.
The 28 is a bird killin’ gauge for sure.


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## MrShane (Jul 21, 2019)

MrShane said:


> Fiochi 3/4 oz #6’s.
> Last year during some trips in the Dakotas I killed 16 wild roosters, a couple Sharpies, and a Coyote and used exactly one box of 25 shells.
> The 28 is a bird killin’ gauge for sure.


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## Gordon (Sep 11, 2007)

Where you finding that ammo? All I can find in 28 is Federal Top Gun lately


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## MrShane (Jul 21, 2019)

Gordon said:


> Where you finding that ammo? All I can find in 28 is Federal Top Gun lately


I bought that about a year ago.
Scheels has some Winchester X in #5’s that are also excellent on wild roosters.


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