Although this year was poor crane hunting because of storms, I usually take several every fall.
Our fall waterfowl are only OK table fare as they haven't been into the grain fields yet and need a few more weeks to fill out nicely. The cranes are at least as good as our ducks and geese. You may want to use a slow-cooker for the old ones as they can be tough.
I shoot steel shot [#2-T} through a Patternmaster choke tube depending on if pass shooting or over decoys. Your 870 will work just fine.
Don't put your dog on cripples as they will try to peck the eyes out of the dog! They are ornery buggers! I've watched coyotes try to get cripples after season and the bird kept em away.
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