Ruth and I got back from a run to Pizza Hut about 8:30. When she got out to open the gate, there was a possum in the driveway. Looked weird, acted weird, didn't seem interested in running away. Ordinarily I'm pretty nonhostile toward possums, but this one didn't seem right. Flashlight from left rear pocket, .38 S&W Terrier from right front, problem solved. Left him lay until in the morning - get gloves and shovel and to the brush pile he goes.

Might not have been anything to be concerned about, but with all the weird stuff around these days I don't take chances with critters that don't act right.

ALWAYS have a gun.

Sounds like a good move to me. You never know.

saw a racoon like that once...... it definitely had rabies. [ Rx: treated with charter arms pathfinder...took 4 rounds of CCI minimag's to put it down for good ]

Another real world example of the effectiveness of 40 grain bullets from short barreled pistols on something bigger than a cottontail.

Another real world example why .22s are the poorest possible choice for self-protection.

Byron

22s are for squirrels and think what you would want to stop a mad pit bull with. It certainly wouldn't be a 22.

I had left the door open and it had laid up inside where it was cool. The growling from a out-of-sight corner alerted me to back up and I grabbed the nearest loaded gun, a Ruger 22/45. When it came around the bench in attack mode I shot it eight times in the head as fast as I could pull the trigger. First shot at six feet, last at three feet. DRT.

Now, a 22lr isn't going to work if you shoot *anything* around the edges. Nor is it a round to shoot once and survey your work - although, years ago near here a guy was robbed at gunpoint while withdrawing money from a walk-up ATM. Reached in his pocket to give the inner city yute more money, came out with a NAA Mini and shot the thug in the center of the forehead at contact range. In that instance, one shot sufficed.

While stats indicate that most shoots are within 5' it is a stretch to think that getting a derringer up against your mans forehead is something to count on.

Byron

And if that's all I had I would figure strafing mode rather than single shot.

It has never ceased to amaze me when you see video clips of people being attacked by Coon's, deer...etc.

If it lives in the woods, it need's to stay in em'. I don't care how cute or what size it is.

Murphy

A family friend. Her friend came along too and was one of the "become one with the animals" nuts. She tried to walk up and pet a bull elk. My wife handed me the video camera and said if the elk tries to stomp her into the ground, I want a picture of it! That woman was the kind who would become one with a bear - a meal, that is.

...

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Sincerely,

Hobie

I guess the point of this discussion is that carrying a gun is not necessarily always for defense against human assailants. Only once in my 68 years of life have I had to use a gun for that purpose, but I have lost count of the times I have encountered "critters" that needed to be either put out of their misery if injured, prevented from doing something harmful to people or pets, or just discouraged from being a nuisance around the place.

I really don't like killing stuff, but it's gotta be done on occasion. I believe we as humans have a responsibility to intelligently control our environment, and sometimes that requires removing things that do or may do harm.

I've heard of parents trying to set their kids on top of Yellstone bears like they were ponies. Stupid. Or the the kid's insured....heavily.

The ONE time I'd been to the farm w/o a gun in ten years, I get crossways with a pit bull somebody dumped on the gravel road. This was back before we lived here. Anyhow I saw it run under an old trailer when I pulled in, it growled when I got out to feed and I decided I wasn't leaving it there with horses & an 85 year old lady.

Figured to rock it off the place but that didn't work... bastard came in hard until I lucked one into its noggin, which put him back under the trailer. I dug around in the barn and found a busted shovel that still had the metal on the end of the handle. Got more rocks and went at it again... got the job done but had to wash off with the hose when it was all over.

Snubby in the pocket? Hell yes. You don't fully appreciate these things until you have to make do w/o them.

Had a similar experience a couple of years back.

I live in a rual area next to a state forest in the Florida panhandle...always have critters to deal with.
One Saturday about mid-morning I looked out the kitchen window and see three possums in the backyard just standing around not moving much. As I watched them, they seemed to be sorta swaying back and forth...acting a little strange.

I loaded up my Ruger K-Hornet 77/22 and eased outside behind the workshop thinking that I could at least whack one of them before the other two took off. Whacked the first one and the other two just stood there "swaying in the breeze". Ended up whacking all three, they never moved. Something wasn't right with them being out that time of day and not being spooked by the rifle fire. Have wondered if it was rabies or maybe distemper.