First of February, time to clean up your hunting equipment and time for that “other white meat” —rabbit.
At one time, shotgun shells had the size of shot printed on the end of the shell or around the side on the paper wrapping. Shells that were years old could still be boxed according to the size of shot as well as the gauge. Now with the plastic shells and the lack of game, shotgun shells are loaded and unloaded from your gun many times each day and rubbed around in your pocket or shell vest, so at the end of the season you’ve got a mixed handful of shells.
In years past, I bought my shells a different color outside, green for 7 1/2, red for 6 and so forth so I could tell the difference at a glance not an eye-ball look. Then shells got expensive so I bought what was on sale and stopped shooting several boxes a season and went to shooting a box every two or three years.
The biggest change in the number of boxes shot was when steel shot came along and you could not shoot the same size shot for pheasants and ducks. I also found out about that time that shells don’t spoil and you could shoot shells several years old with the same success.
This time of year I check every pocket on the hunting coat, plus the game bag, hunting pants, shirts, coveralls, blind bag and items in my vehicle where I dumped shells in changing from steel to lead.
Many of those shells have been with me for years and the printing on the shell case is gone. Those shells I dump into a separate sack and during the days when we have snow in February I go hunting rabbits. Rabbit hunting can be done in a group line, like pheasants, but the best way to improve your shotgun skills would be to hunt them alone. No dog, no partner, no one to see or count the number of time you shoot.
The rabbit game will come up close, twist and turn, giving your shotgun skills a workout like no other. According to my Dad, it was not legal (in his eyes) to shoot a sitting rabbit, and to do so did nothing to improve your knowledge of lead on a flying target. Hunting this way and with a daily limit of 10 it’s nearly impossible to carry enough shells to finish the limit.
Rabbits can be found just about every place pheasants hide, I’d stay away from CRP fields, and permission to hunt is almost always given. When rabbits first jump hold back from shooting, just like pheasants, give the game a chance to pick the way it’s trying to escape and continue the swing after your shot. (Follow through)
I guarantee you that one or two good rabbit hunts will clean up your supply of mystery shells, improve your bag of pheasants next fall and the back straps and de-boned back legs in a slow cooker give you a meal not soon forgotten.
Pratt, Kan. —
