Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Hunter's Campfire Critters you killed but don’t eat

Morning Dwayne!

Those are black tailed jackrabbits.

VERY plentiful out west, and usually a non-game animal with no closed season, and no bag limit.

DAMN... that looks fun...

Dwayne,

Happy Fathers Day to you too my Friend!

These are all Jacks.

Cottontails would be worth eating unlike nasty old jacks, and I lay into the Jacks. I normally give the little Cottontails a free pass unless I am going to eat one. There are but a fraction of them as compared to the desert jacks, which are just vermin, so we let the little Cottontails go and hope they survive.

When I do shoot a cottontail I only take what I need for a meal, no more.




The old Flattop is what I call my "Taffin" gun in honor of writer John Taffin. Many years ago I traveled over to Boise to go to a gun show with a friend who is the co owner of Milt Sparks. He built the holster for the gun:





Anyways Jim and I had breakfast with J.T. and I told John that I was looking for a shorter barrel and some grips for the gun as it came with a 6.5" barrel originally. Long story short, John invited me over to his house, and gave me both a grip frame and shorter barrel. He showed me how to swap frames on the gun and we swapped the frames in his kitchen. So since then I have referred to the gun as my Taffin gun. It was a very rough old thing when I got it, and appears to have been in the bottom of someone's truck box for a long time, but internally it is solid and shoots straight, as the rabbits will attest.

I never worry about taking it out in crappy weather or getting a bit of rust on it.

Red squirrels

It took several pages, but somebody finally mentioned Viet Cong. Our favorite weapon was a 750 pound bomb from a B-52!

Lynx is our traditional Christmas dinner. Usually sweet and sour. Mountain lion is also very good.

Worst I ever tried was sea otter. Even fall brown bear was better!

Muskrats were called marsh hare for years.

I used to run a trapline when I was a kid and we targeted coyotes, foxes and bobcats. All we took were pelts to sell so we never kept the meat. We would catch a few coons, muskrats and beaver and could give those to people that would eat them. I have eaten bobcat since then and wish I had kept the meat but I was a kid and that was how I got spending $$$.

The only thing I have actively hunted that wasn't eaten was a Vaal Rhebok in South Africa. After I shot it and had it skinned for a lifesize mount the PH told me they would leave the carcass in the field, which was unusual since they always took the meat back to camp on other animals. I asked why and the PH took out a knife and sliced into a hind quarter and it was crawling with worms in the meat. PH told me they a host for a fly larvae and that they all had them in the meat and that they are the only small antelope in Africa that is not utilized. If I had known that beforehand I wouldn't have shot it but it was already skinned when I found out.

I’ll eat almost anything if it doesn’t smell bad and someone else cooks it. 😎

When we lived in Florida my summer trap line was moles. I am pretty sure this is where I deal the line. 😂

Mackay;
Thanks for the reply and further photos, I appreciate it.

We've eaten a couple Saskatchewan Jack rabbits back in the day and I don't recall them being wonderful table fare at all, no...

That said Mackay, I did know I'd married the right woman when she'd answer my VHF radio call from the tractor announcing I'd "shot something for supper" in a positive if not sometimes tentative manner!

As an aside and off topic, I really love the bound edge hat too. I've never owned one or even tried one on, but like a big Buckaroo straw hat they look right on some folks.

The Taffin revolver has a wonderful story and I enjoyed reading about it, so thanks again.

All the best to you all down south and God Bless you on Father's Day sir.

Dwayne

rockinbbar;
Morning sir, I hope the day's a good one for you in your part of Texas.

Thanks for the info on the type of bunny, I appreciate you answering my query.

All the best to you and Happy Father's Day too.

Dwayne

Anybody mention feral cats?
Lots of feral cats.
Although I don't think the ones wearing collars were all that feral.

Had to protect my baby chicks and ducklings.

Mackay:

Do you ever take your revolver and wander up the Pahsimeroi Valley looking for jacks? That would have to be a cool adventure.

Greg Perry

The local oriental restaurant will buy those things- - - - - -"Filet Meow"

During the depression my great grandfather used to head shoot cottontail rabbits with a .22 rifle, field dress, and sell them to local grocery stores. He had to leave the ears on and unskinned to convince them he was not selling cats. With the skin and head off, cats and rabbits look surprisingly similar.

That is one ugly Chihuahua 😁

There's no critter i wouldn't eat if i was very very hungry, but i avoid Aoudad, and Javelina, normally. Rio7

Copperheads

Greg,

Yep.


I have spent countless hours on the Pahsimeroi.

I don't think I have pics of that particular revolver, but plenty of others.




And this is Horse Heaven Pass, same place Keith took this Jack.





Sorry for the "sanitized" I was working a different job back then.





Same .44 I use to kill elk I use to kill Squirrels

Pahsimeroi Valley