I've had a 44 International for more than 50 years.
It does what it was designed to do quite well, kill medium game at ranges out to 100 or so yards. If you still-hunt in tight cover it might be close to the perfect tool. It is short light, accurate enough, and the minimal recoil makes it easier to send multiple follow up shots at a moving target if necessary. When I moved from NH to NE in 1990 I didn't think that I would us it, but found that still-hunting in tight cover calls of the same skills and gear in Nebraska creek-bottoms as it did in the woods of ME, NH, and VT.
I have a picture somewhere of my Father and Bearrr264's Father with 2 big, over 200 lbs., NH whitetail bucks on top of an old green Jeep Wagoneer on Main Street in Colebrook, NH, in the late 1960's. They were standing next to the Jeep in falling snow, both dressed in green plaid wool and holding Ruger 44 Carbines. That was probably a common sight in that town, at that time, such nobody walking by would think that two guys holding guns on Main Street was out of the norm.
I've shot a couple of Iowa whitetails with Remington 870s, a 16 gauge shooting Brennekes and a 20 gauge rifled slug gun shooting sabots.
