# Cottontails?



## colorcountrygunner (Oct 6, 2009)

I was just wondering if anybody had very good success going after cottontails during the 2016-2017 season. I've kinda started a new goal to primarily eat wild game and to eat far less store bought meat, and I thought it would be nice to blast some cottontails this fall. How are cottontail numbers in the state right now? If you just wanna kill a heap of them for the freezer are you better off with a shotgun for the ease of hitting them, or a .22 for a little extra range? I've shot mountains of jacks, but I have never really targeted cottontails.


----------



## Critter (Mar 20, 2010)

Between two of us we bagged somewhere around 20 of them in 30 minutes coming out of the Book Cliffs last year during the elk hunt. But then that is a little bit of a drive for most. 

We were shooting them so fast that we kept one person busy skinning and gutting them. Shotguns were the choice weapon, they were moving too fast and not sitting still for 22's.


----------



## DallanC (Jan 13, 2009)

Really? Wow... I didnt see a single cottontail during my wifes Books Rifle deer hunt this year.


-DallanC


----------



## colorcountrygunner (Oct 6, 2009)

Critter said:


> Between two of us we bagged somewhere around 20 of them in 30 minutes coming out of the Book Cliffs last year during the elk hunt. But then that is a little bit of a drive for most.
> 
> We were shooting them so fast that we kept one person busy skinning and gutting them. Shotguns were the choice weapon, they were moving too fast and not sitting still for 22's.


I figured a shotgun would be the way to go. Maybe a light game load of #6 shot out of a modified choke from my Remington 870 12 gauge.


----------



## Bax* (Dec 14, 2008)

I went out last season and shot two. Both had a fleas in their ears and this was after the first freeze, so I stopped shooting them.

In the hour that I was out hunting, I probably saw 10 cottontails and about as many jack rabbits.

I was concerned that the fleas were holding on even after the cold weather set in. 

On a side note I found an area that jack rabbits jump up and start running at about 100 yards out. That was a lot of fun with high powered rifles!


----------



## Critter (Mar 20, 2010)

DallanC said:


> Really? Wow... I didnt see a single cottontail during my wifes Books Rifle deer hunt this year.
> 
> -DallanC


We got into them at the bottom of East Canyon before the private property. The caretaker from the property even heard all the shooting and came up to the property line thinking that he was going to chase someone off of his property be we were on the BLM side. We also got into a couple large flocks of chuckers and bagged a few of them for the pot in the same location.

We did find a few up on top but didn't shoot any of them. Quite a while ago we got into a lot of them up on San Arieo (sp) ridge.


----------



## BPturkeys (Sep 13, 2007)

At the end of January I saw a ton of 'tails in the Enterprise area(25 mile radius). Shot a few for the freezer. I prefer .22 and only shoot them after the snow piles up. They don't run much on a nice bright sunny day and can usually be picked off while sitting warming themselves in the sun at the edge of their hole. Head shot's are preferred with eye hangers counting double points. Have a 4 foot piece of barbed wire to snake 'em out from there holes if they dive in dead.
Cottontail rabbit is about as good-a-eaten as it gets.


----------



## 3arabians (Dec 9, 2014)

colorcountrygunner said:


> I figured a shotgun would be the way to go. Maybe a light game load of #6 shot out of a modified choke from my Remington 870 12 gauge.


Yes! That is what I use. 22s are hard on them unless your a sniper with it and can manage head shots. Cottontails are weak, so I have found that even at fairly long ranges for a shotgun you can drop em. It only takes a few bbs to bring em down. I shot a few with my 870 by spotting them while they were sitting still and getting them out to 30 or so yards with my 870 12 gauge with 6 shot. If you want to make sure you're bringing a few home to eat - shotgun is the ticket.

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-G891A using Tapatalk


----------



## Kwalk3 (Jun 21, 2012)

You should give the jacks a try too! You might be pleasantly surprised.


----------



## DallanC (Jan 13, 2009)

Am I the only one now using a 17HMR for bunnies? Its really fun. 100 yard eyeball shots are pretty easy with steadystix. My savage shoots dimes at 100 yards if I do my part.

The kid gets to shoot at the close ones, he misses or lets one get out past 40 yards its my turn 

-DallanC


----------



## Kwalk3 (Jun 21, 2012)

Those .17 HMRs are pretty sweet! I've had my eye on one for a bit 

Sent from my SM-G930T using Tapatalk


----------



## Critter (Mar 20, 2010)

I'd need to pick up a new rifle for the .17. However I do go after them in the winter with my Ruger 1V in 22-250. Calling head shots at 200-300 yards is fun.


----------



## Bax* (Dec 14, 2008)

DallanC said:


> Am I the only one now using a 17HMR for bunnies? Its really fun. 100 yard eyeball shots are pretty easy with steadystix. My savage shoots dimes at 100 yards if I do my part.
> 
> The kid gets to shoot at the close ones, he misses or lets one get out past 40 yards its my turn
> 
> -DallanC


 I have one and use it occasionally, but it is a scoped heavy barrel that isn't very enjoyable to hunt with. So I prefer to use my .22 Mag.

I would like to get a Henry .17HMR to hunt bunnies with though. I think that would be the bee's knees.

But I keep holding out for the day that maybe, just maybe Henry decides to make a leaver action .17 WSM. I think that would become my new favorite varminter.


----------



## johnnycake (Jul 19, 2011)

I am a sucker for bunny hunting with a scatter gun, driving through the thick sage in a line...ahh! 

I like to use a heavier shot than most, 2 3/4" #2-3. Fewer pellets, and they also tend to travel all the way through the rabbit without getting stuck on the far side. The ideal thing about cottontails is usually once you kick one up, it won't run very far. You just have to keep an eye on what bush it runs to and then try to find it as it is hiding. Then you can artfully decapitate it with a well placed shotgun blast and voila! no damage. But it is hard to fight the impulse to hit the moving target when they first bust out!


----------



## Bax* (Dec 14, 2008)

johnnycake said:


> The ideal thing about cottontails is usually once you kick one up, it won't run very far. You just have to keep an eye on what bush it runs to and then try to find it as it is hiding. Then you can artfully decapitate it with a well placed shotgun blast


I have always thought that this is why cottontails are considered game animals as opposed to jack rabbits. They are so easy to hunt that they could easily be decimated by hunters in a short amount of time.

Conversely, jack rabbits will keep running for as long as it takes to make them feel somewhat safe.


----------



## LostLouisianian (Oct 11, 2010)

BPturkeys said:


> At the end of January I saw a ton of 'tails in the Enterprise area(25 mile radius). Shot a few for the freezer. I prefer .22 and only shoot them after the snow piles up. They don't run much on a nice bright sunny day and can usually be picked off while sitting warming themselves in the sun at the edge of their hole. Head shot's are preferred with eye hangers counting double points. Have a 4 foot piece of barbed wire to snake 'em out from there holes if they dive in dead.
> Cottontail rabbit is about as good-a-eaten as it gets.


Try rabbit sauce piquante...your tongue will slap your head silly from licking it off your lips!


----------



## Critter (Mar 20, 2010)

Bax* said:


> Conversely, jack rabbits will keep running for as long as it takes to make them feel somewhat safe.


Back when I was in high school in the dark ages we used to go hunting rabbits in Dog Valley west of Nephi. When I got tired of shooting them with a shotgun I moved up to a 22. Then I got tired of shooting them with the .22 I took my .30-06 deer rifle out. I'd let the shotgunners shoot, then the ones packing the .22's. Then once the rabbit felt like he was safe and out of range I would pull up and shoot him with a 150 grain Sierra bullet. All you would usually see is a puff of fur when I hit them.

That was some great practice for the upcoming deer season.


----------



## KineKilla (Jan 28, 2011)

In our spot the jacks were more prevalent this year. Last year there were tons of both so I think that was the peak year for our cycle. If all holds true, I expect major declines in rabbit numbers until around 2022 or so.

We use shotguns primarily


----------



## BPturkeys (Sep 13, 2007)

LostLouisianian said:


> Try rabbit sauce piquant...your tongue will slap your head silly from licking it off your lips!


I am not a Facebook guy so I can't give this post a "like"...non-the-less..I like it!


----------



## LostLouisianian (Oct 11, 2010)

Critter said:


> Back when I was in high school in the dark ages we used to go hunting rabbits in Dog Valley west of Nephi. When I got tired of shooting them with a shotgun I moved up to a 22. Then I got tired of shooting them with the .22 I took my .30-06 deer rifle out. I'd let the shotgunners shoot, then the ones packing the .22's. Then once the rabbit felt like he was safe and out of range I would pull up and shoot him with a 150 grain Sierra bullet. All you would usually see is a puff of fur when I hit them.
> 
> That was some great practice for the upcoming deer season.


I had a friend practice on a jack once before his safari. I believe it was a .300 win mag. I don't think the jack cared what it was. The remains were unrecognizable however.


----------



## Critter (Mar 20, 2010)

I have shot numerous cottontails with calibers that are better suited for use on the dark continent of Africa while deer and elk hunting. The only problem that I've had is that the round that I have shot them with usually would cost more than the meat I get out of the rabbit, that is as long as I head shoot them. 

But then this also goes to say about all the grouse that I have shot the heads off of with a high power rifle.


----------



## gdog (Sep 13, 2007)

Rifle...Pffftttt.....


----------



## Wasatch Wings (Sep 29, 2015)

And three points to Gdog! Head west out of manti, ephraim, Willard, or west out of anywhere really and I saw tons last year.


----------



## colorcountrygunner (Oct 6, 2009)

gdog said:


> Rifle...Pffftttt.....


Cottontails with trad gear?! How many cred points for this, Goob?


----------



## wyogoob (Sep 7, 2007)

colorcountrygunner said:


> Cottontails with trad gear?! How many cred points for this, Goob?


0 for the hat

0 for the goatee thingie

I'd go 9.5 cred points for the rest

Hey, I made those arrows.

.


----------



## wyogoob (Sep 7, 2007)

Remington's only lever action firearm, the model 76 .22lr:


5mm Remington Magnum:


2015 was like nothing I'd ever seen for rabbits:




This year doesn't look all that good.

.


----------



## wyogoob (Sep 7, 2007)

I shoot a lot of rabbits with an open-sighted 17 HMR S&W model 657:


Has an 8 3/8" barrel. They didn't make many of them.

.


----------



## wyogoob (Sep 7, 2007)

Handgun...Pffftttt.....


----------



## gdog (Sep 13, 2007)

wyogoob said:


> Handgun...Pffftttt.....


Thats about how much noise that handgun makes with the Sparrow screwed onto it...


----------



## Bax* (Dec 14, 2008)

Oh how I wish the 5mm would make a comeback!


----------



## DallanC (Jan 13, 2009)

wyogoob said:


> I shoot a lot of rabbits with an open-sighted 17 HMR S&W model 657:
> 
> Has an 8 3/8" barrel. They didn't make many of them..


Geeze just when I think you've shown all your cool firearms, you had to show this... I didnt even know they made one. That would be really fun!

-DallanC


----------



## wyogoob (Sep 7, 2007)

DallanC said:


> Geeze just when I think you've shown all your cool firearms, you had to show this... I didnt even know they made one. That would be really fun!
> 
> -DallanC


It's a 647, not 657. I have a 657 though, 41 MAG with 8 3/8" barrel.

Yeah, the Model 647s from the Smith n Wesson Performance Center are shooters. Great triggers. A little hole in a heavy barrel. No recoil, zip, none.

.


----------

