Best livestock defense rifle

I would say go with the AR platform as well. An AR-15 would be a good start and you can get the conversion kit to make it .22 LR so you can learn. If you have larger predators, an AR-10 in .308 should handle pretty much anything else.
 
So, I live in Northwestern Washington...
Click to expand...
It's nice to be on good speaking/cooperational terms with your neighbors.
Get a trap or two for the coons... every farm should have some traps.
Get some trail-cams and coordinate with your neighbors for good locations to place them. Far easier to make a case for a depradation tag with tons of pics of the same bear or lion snooping near your fencelines. Check them regularly.
Every year, every season, buy tags for everything you can... just in case you do surprise something during a season, there's no legal issues.

Have a gun ready to go at all times. Get a scabbard for your quad or gator for when you're away from the house. Have it near you religiously. In 6.5 acres, there's nothing out of range of .223, but if you're gonna take a shot at a bear from the house at 400yds that is in the process of killing your animals, you're gonna want something bigger. LONG-ACTION! Nothing worse than a .223-wounded haunch-hit bear running around. An AR is a good choice for the rest of the farm. If you want to step up the power in case of the surprise bear, then 6.8spc is also a good choice (Hornady 120sst's are fantastic). For the size of your place and possible targets, I don't see any limitations to a 30-30 lever-gun except ammo capacity.

Also... you can pick up a Maverick 88 for about $180 or less a lot of places. No reason not to have one stashed out in the barn or wherever... a 1oz slug solves a lot of problems. You can leave it just about anywhere next to a can of WD40... hose it down and cycle the action every couple of months.

An M&P Shield (9mm or .40) is a decent choice for farm carry. Small enough not to get in the way, but enough caliber to get something to stop whatever it's doing. Make sure you've loaded hollow-points that you know function in the gun... the more energy the better. Gold Dot 124's are good for half the law enforcement in the country, good enough for me. A piece of advice... if you ever pull it on a bear or cat, shoot 5 or 6 rounds initially, then at least a couple follow-ups unless you know it's done.

So, to sum up:
Be a good neighbor
Traps and game-cams
Buy tags
.270 or .30-06 bolt-action at the house
.223 or 6.8spc AR15 when you leave the house
12ga shotgun back of the property
+P rounds in your carry pistol

Oh... more dogs can't hurt.
 
rickyrick said:
If you’re gonna trap raccoons.... they can’t resist marshmallows
Click to expand...
You don't even need a trap if you feed them enough !
Get a industrial Costco size bag and after they eat about half they just lie on the ground in a sugar induced coma...easy pickins then !
Gary
 
What y’all think of the Smith&Wesson M&P 15 Sport 2? Seems like a good rifle, reasonably priced and ammo isn’t expensive at all, so it would be a good target shooting rifle and seems to have good reviews. What do y’all think? Anyone have it?
 
FarmerIvan said:
What y’all think of the Smith&Wesson M&P 15 Sport 2? Seems like a good rifle, reasonably priced and ammo isn’t expensive at all, so it would be a good target shooting rifle and seems to have good reviews. What do y’all think? Anyone have it?
Click to expand...

I have the S&W M&P Sport I which lacks the forward assist and dust cover, but was added for the M&P Sport II. Great little rifle. It is well made and has been reliable, for the little I have shot it. As you mentioned, .223 is pretty cheap to shoot. Recoil is very manageable and mag capacity is great.
 
An AR is a good choice.

Just remember, most ARs do not come with sights (I do not know if the M&P sport comes with sights)

Just keep that in mind when figuring your costs and budget.
 
The gun is going to get beat up, wet and dusty. Hauled around on the quad, tractor,
horse and truck. We have had an old Winchester 94, SKS, 22 magnum lever gun---and the current AR carbine. AR's are cheap right now. I've got a relatively cheap 1-4 scope
on it (old eyes), and decent nylon scabbards are under $30.
 
If you are really serious about it look into a combo gun, shot gun with an additional rifled barrel for center-fire cartridges and learn how to use it.

When I was a young man I had to pass on a double barrel (one 12 ga, one 20 ga) with a 7mm Mauser rifled barrel running between and under the shotgun barrels. I was told it was a gun Rommel issued to his officers during the Africa campaign during WWII. It was one of the best crafted guns I have ever seen. Being a lowly airman in the Air Force it was way beyond my financial abilities. I still remember handling it 42 years later.
 
Pray for predators that read all the books and only prey on the old and weak.
For all others a .204 is an accurate laser for the light fast ones that are hard to get a clear shot at. A 22-250 is right there with the .204 but screws up hides and/or meat. A .308 will do most anything as long as you know ballistics of your load.
I raise sheep and need all the help I can get. I carry a .308 and a P250c 22.
The .308 is there because deer are targets of opportunity 365 days a year here. The 22 is just handy and I actually kill more varmints with it than anything else.
I wish you luck and good hunting.
 
In NW Worsington the majority of critters to be bothering your live stock is gonna be coyotes and bobcats, maybe a cougar, don’t know if y’all have the wolves yet. All of these are thin skinned, “easy” to kill animals. That being said they are al quick moving as well, I’d want a gun that’s accurate and makes quick follow up shots, therefore the AR15 really is a good choice. Personally I recommend stepping up from the most economical options just a little bit so you can get a free float rail (or add on later) and a 1-6 scope with the ACSS retical for quick shot determination. A 20 round may and you have a darn accurate rifle that’ll serve for a long time.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top