Squirrels and rabbits are two of the most hunted animals in North America and are ideal game for first time hunters looking to gain some practice or seasoned hunters looking to hone his or her skills. Due to their small size and skittish nature, hunting both rabbits and squirrels is much like a game of cat and mouse and provides a good opportunity for hunters of all ages and skill levels to work on hunting skills such as precision and accuracy. ProSmallGameHunter understands this and offers a large selection of firearms and accessories to help aide you in your next small game hunting excursion.
One of the first things you need to consider before you begin your hunt is what kind of firearm you want to use. While everyone has his or her preferred firearm for hunting rabbit and squirrel, many people choose to use a
.22 LR rifle or
.20 gauge shotgun. Unlike other firearms, these will not alert the entire woods of your presence with a loud blast after firing and unlike pellet guns, which many hunters choose to use; you won’t have to waste time removing a bunch of pellets once you’ve caught your game. Both rabbit and squirrel will move quickly when spotted, leaving you with very little time to react. For this reason, purchasing a quality scope for your firearm is a good investment because it will allow you to aim more precisely and increase your maximum range.
Once you have selected your firearm, your next step is to determine the best location to find your prey. The best way to find squirrels is to look for feeding areas. Squirrels live primarily on nuts. Seeking out trees such as walnut, oak and hickory is your best bet when searching for squirrels. Once you locate such a tree, check the ground for empty shells. Empty shells indicate that squirrels have been feeding, and unless the tree is completely bare of nuts, the squirrels will most likely return.
The easiest approach to hunting squirrels is to locate a promising looking group of trees and to simply sit down and wait for a squirrel to show itself. This is known as “still hunting,” and could take quite a while as squirrels are very good at keeping still and hiding. If you are having troubles locating a squirrel, try looking in the treetops for branch and leaf movement, as this may indicate that a squirrel is moving up above. One thing to keep in mind when still hunting, do not leave a tree simply because you can not spot a squirrel right away. Like many hunters, squirrels also get bored in one spot and will often move around in search of a better tree or location, which will help expose them and provide you with a shot.
Another method of squirrel hunting involves walking or stalking quietly and slowly through the woods and then stopping in likely squirrel inhabited areas and waiting for up to half an hour to see if a squirrel will emerge. This can be done with either one or two hunters. If you are hunting with a partner, one of the hunters will act as the eyes while the other will act as the feet. One hunter moves around slowly, trying to stir the squirrels out of hiding, while the other hunter stays put and waits for the squirrel to expose itself and then takes the shot.
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Many of the same principles that you utilize in squirrel hunting can be applied to rabbit hunting as well. Like in squirrel hunting, it’s important to determine the location of your game. Most rabbits can be found in covered areas such as fields, woods, brush and briars. It may be helpful to go out prior to your hunt in order to scout for rabbits. This can be done by simply walking around at dawn or dusk and searching for rabbit prints and making a note of where you see them.
Once you’ve narrowed down where to locate the rabbits, it’s time for the actual hunt. As with squirrel hunting, there are various approaches you can take when hunting rabbits. One such method can be done either alone or with a partner and simply involves walking through possible rabbit hiding locations while kicking or stomping areas of possible coverage in the hopes of scaring the rabbit out of hiding.
Another way to hunt for rabbits is to walk slowly through suspected rabbit hiding areas by taking around ten paces, then pausing for about thirty seconds and repeating the process. In most cases the sound of the approaching hunter will work to flush out some rabbits, but more often than not it’s the standing silent for thirty seconds that does the trick because during this time the rabbit believes it’s been spotted and so it tries to run to a new hiding place.
Both squirrel and rabbit hunting can be done by using a hunting dog. When hunting rabbits, a dog is used to sniff out the scent of a rabbit and alert the hunter. In some cases the dog will chase the rabbit into a hole so the hunter can then take a shot, but many times, the dog is the one to actually do the killing. Likewise, when it comes to squirrel hunting, a dog is once again used to scent out the prey and ultimately tree the squirrel so the hunter can then take a shot.
Whether you’re new to small game hunting or have been enjoying it for years, ProSmallGameHunter has everything you need for rabbit and squirrel hunting. From .22 LR rifles to .20 gauge shotguns, ammunition, scopes and accessories for both you and your hunting dog, ProSmallGameHunter has all the firearms and accessories you need to catch these fast and challenging animals.