Prarie dogs

A

AndABeer

New member
Father-in-law is making noises about a Wyoming prarie dog hunt at the end of this month. My hunting experience consists of Tennessee terrain and African bush. Never taken a shot longer than 100 yds on a live target. I have always wanted to be in a hunting situation where my shooting skills would be adequately tested and a prarie dog hunt sounds pretty close to what I am looking for. I have a 700 .308 that I have absolute confidence in out to 200 yds as that is the longest range I can find around here to shoot on. I also have a relatively new M70 .25-06 that I am still learning about.

I think I am pretty short on time to get up to speed with the .25 but I do have gobs of components for it (87gr & 100 gr). Will the .308 do or is it just too much?

Are prarie dog hunts fun? Subjective question but I am interested in all opinions.

Any other comments, info, or suggestions are welcome.
 
Prairie dog hunts are a helluva' lotta' fun . . .

but, IMHO, you're badly overgunned with a .308 and 25/06, even with the lighter bullets. On a decent PD hunt you will shoot at least 200 to 300 rounds per day. With those calibers, recoil will soon become a significant factor and fatigue will quickly make it difficult to enjoy the hunt.

I made three PD hunting trips to Montana and West Texas and used a .220 Swift, a 6 PPC and a .223 Remington. My favorite, by far, was the .223 'cause it was easier to shoot all day. If I went now, I would also take a .17 Remington but didn't own that gun at the time.

My advice would be to go PD hunting, but use the time remaining to locate and sight-in a varmint weight .223. Purchase ammo from Black Hills or another good supplier and enjoy the opportunity to do more shooting in a day than most of us shoot in a year.

Oh . . . and take the .308 and 25/06 . . . you can use them while the barrel is cooling on the .223! :)
 
I suppose my AR would get me laughed off the plains. I am not opposed to buying a new rifle but I'll bet that Erich has an additional .223 bolt or #1 he'll let me borrow if need be.

Might be the second step in the creation of a personal ritual: take a hunting trip, buy a new rifle for it. Bad first step though, the M70 I got for Africa did not see much use on the trip it was bought for, nor does it see much use here, I am just not masochistic enough.
 
this late in the year, you may find 300 shots/day tough to come by...

part of my load development and target practice is carried out on a dog town. i've sent many, many 162 grain bullets out of a 7 mag downrange, 150's from a 308, and 100's from a 25-06.

most of the time, i just bring one larger bore and a small rifle (22-250, 223, etc). i start shooting my bigger gun, and usually give it a break after shot #50, then resume later in the afternoon and put it away for the day at shot 100.

couple weeks ago i shot my 7 mag exclusively on a town... my primary target practice for deer season. oh, yeah, my shoulder was bruised, bad, but i have absolute confidence in drilling a deer out to my max range.

if you are not used to shooting a lot, then perhaps you'll tire of shooting the 308 or 25-06...if your ar is accurate, then why not??

part of the reason i go dogging is to really stretch my personal range envelope. i let the close ones go. i search out far away dogs and let the rifle buck. doing this, i don't shoot as much as others who do not discriminate against their targets.

if you're not going to be shooting from a bench, i'd suggest a bipod for ya.
 
I have never had the opportunity to shoot prairie dogs. I sounds like a lot of fun. It would be nice to see if my Remington 788 .22-250 is up to snuff... Well, Ok, to see if I am up to snuff too. I would guess that my 3x9 scope would be a bit small. The longest shooting I have done on varmits is at ground hogs on my relatives farms back east. There, you camp out in a chair in the back of a pickup truck sippin' iced tea, glassin' the area around the varmit's hole. They don't usually sit still too long so a lot of shots are taken with them moving, off a couple hundred yards away. I've churned up a lot of dirt, but I did manage to get a few hogs. :D
 
I thought my partner already had contacts in that part of the country but it seems not. What would be the best way to find a good hunt? Web search gets several hits for outfitters but no way to get feedback I can trust.
 
i shoot on private land...i gained access the first time by knocking and asking...2nd time by stopping him on his tractor and giving him a frosty beer...after that, access has been a phone call and a 12-pack every once in awhile...

not sure about outfitters for dog shoots...try contacting the gf&p and see what is available...sometimes the gf&p can be an extremely valuable resource.
 
I am planning a prarie-dog hunt on my upcoming elk-hunt in Colorado...

I'm taking my .17 HMR, and my SKS... why not... both are fun to shoot!
 
PD hunting is fun

I like to use my tricked out 10/22, 100 yards and be really still. The 220 swift and 22-250 are king, .223 has to much drop, unless you are a master of the wind and laser range finder. .17 Hornady in one those Turner Customs would be nice.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top