Depends highly on the game. I wouldn’t take a body shot on a Possum, or Raccoon. I’ve had Possums that are like zombies. They just won’t die.
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Why headshots
- Thread starter Hard2hurt223
- Start date
I like chest, shoulder, and throat, but I am not against head shots. I use high power air guns though.
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I take the best shot I am given. I too use a high power airgun in 25 cal. Frontal shot I aim just above the nose side shots I shoot just behind the ear. Body shots work well for me too. When I see a rimfire I use sub sonic HP's. I too think lower velocities kill squirrels as well as anything.
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NSA 110gr from Benjamin Bulldog .357 at around 25 yards. The hole wasn't that big from the shot. I think a possum got to it and ripped out the intestines, which made the entrance hole bigger.
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Small game such as squirrels, rabbits, etc. I will always take a clean head shot if at all possible. If you have the confidence that you can consistently make a good head shot....why not? They don't go far after a pellet to the brain. Period. But, a lot of people don't really have that much confidence in their ability to make that shot...vs a "vital"/body shot. Thats ok. I say, make the shot that you'r most comfortable and confident in so long as your taking care to make it a good clean kill so the animal doesn't suffer and/or you don't recover the critter.
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Tired rooster I feel very comfortable accuracy wise taking a headshot but the animal that your hunting doesn't always present maybe I'm just not patient enough but that's not my argument I'm just tired of hearing about ethics if you take a bodyshot most guns can do it power wise but then you always have someone whining about ethics it's like if nothing else than at least it's my personal choice you know what I mean
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I much prefer head shots on rabbits and squirrels. Second priority will be a heart-lung shot. Minimal contamination of the meat with gut fluids, less spoiling, less destroyed edible meat, etc. Cottontail rabbits are usually easily killed; sometimes squirrels are not and I have seen them take take multiple hits from solid bullet .22 long rifle IF poorly placed. Killing is done primarily by two things, shock or disruption to the central nervous system or loss of blood pressure. Depending upon the angle of the shot, the "vital zone" hit can take out the heart, lungs, shatter the spine between the front shoulders and break the front shoulders. As good of an instant death as a brain shot. You can screw up either way, wounding a critter instead of a quick kill.
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The learning curve has been little long for me. I started hunting hard when I was thirteen. Where I live every thing ,I mean every thing was hunted with a shotgun. Yeha, I live in the South Carolina low county. Deer, ducks and turkey 12 gauge. Doves, marsh hens and quail 20 gauge. Maybe, late winter rabbits and squirrels with a 4-10. Rifles were considered dangerous. So after 50 years of reflex shooting and swinging thru shots it's hard to change. I learned early on about taking foolish shots cause I had to buy my own shells. Being patient is easier at my age and I am getting better using a scope. I bought my first pcp several months ago and have taken several squirrel. Made myself stay under 20 yards and make a clean kill. Ya'll look out . I am catching up.
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So that with a wimpy .25 one can terminate larger pest without them leaving your property and raising unwanted attention. Of course as others have stated one risks the chance that their head may move, or you will miss then the critter is wounded. However if you go for the boiler plate it is a highly likely they will leave your property. I hit a large rat at 24 yards with a 10g .177 at 720 fps at the muzzle in the lungs it still made it 5 yards.
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why, because ive hit squirrel with literally 10 rds of .22lr dragging its guts and having to club it to death finally .. its not humane .. headshots are more final ..
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I take head shots at the house to make sure it doesn't end up crawling into the neighbor's yard.
My first time deer hunting I was running 12 gauge slugs and from a stand I hit my doe in the fore head and it's whole head exploded like a watermelon. I turned to my brother and was like "I got my 1st deer!" His eyes were bugging out jaw on the ground lol. He says " yeah... don't have to track that one." He advocates for boiler room shots on deer, but he isn't the best shot lol. He missed a nice buck at 250 yards this year with his 25-06, went right over the shoulders. Buck just looked over like wtf? He never sights in before the hunt, probably why he hasn't got a deer in 4 years!
My first time deer hunting I was running 12 gauge slugs and from a stand I hit my doe in the fore head and it's whole head exploded like a watermelon. I turned to my brother and was like "I got my 1st deer!" His eyes were bugging out jaw on the ground lol. He says " yeah... don't have to track that one." He advocates for boiler room shots on deer, but he isn't the best shot lol. He missed a nice buck at 250 yards this year with his 25-06, went right over the shoulders. Buck just looked over like wtf? He never sights in before the hunt, probably why he hasn't got a deer in 4 years!
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I'm generally not a fan of head shots on anything, whether pest or for eating. Small target that can move a lot in the time of sear break until projectile gets there. I take head shots on pests when it is what is available due to position of pest,not choice. They are pests/destructive and I want them dead and don't lose sleep over a bad shot. Being honest on squirrels, probably about 1/3 of head shots I take don't end well.
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I got my 39th squirrel with a airgun today, less than a lot of you but I've done it in the last 3 years. It was my 4th with my new P35-177. I shot at the shoulder but it was a steep upward angle (it was high in an oak) and the pellet went up the neck and ended up under the eye on the other side. Only 1 of the 4 I've shot with this gun was a body shot and it was failing it's legs as it fell and my dog finished it off. I think it would have run but did not get the chance.
Overall about half my shots are body shots. I take them if I am a little shaky or that is all that is exposed. I've recovered the last 33 (total of body and head/neck). I've shot 20 with my two 25s and only two ran. Both were hit in the front of the chest and the pellet ended up under the skin behind a rear leg. The most they ran was about 15 feet. I got no runners on shoulder shots. I hit one with a 25 in front of the eye. Clearly missed the brain. It dropped at the shot, however. When I cleaned it I found the head had been crushed. I was using H&N FTTs. I kind of doubt I would have had the same result with my 177.
The only squirrels I've lost were with my Prod before I increased it to about 18 fpe. I am not sure if it was the power or my shot placement. But the next 11 after the retune were quick kills.
I think the easiest way to get a runner is to hit in the back half of the body. I doubt it matters much what you use. Conversely, I think a hit in the front half of the body with any reasonably powerful gun has a good chance of making a quick kill. I am not talking about a leg shot, I'm talking about a heart/lung shot or a head/neck shot. But head shots need to be the back half of the head. Neck shots seem to work the same as brain shots for me including the flipping around. I like to get a front shoulder on body shots. It won't stop them from running but will stop them from climbing and the shoulder is where the vitals are.
Overall about half my shots are body shots. I take them if I am a little shaky or that is all that is exposed. I've recovered the last 33 (total of body and head/neck). I've shot 20 with my two 25s and only two ran. Both were hit in the front of the chest and the pellet ended up under the skin behind a rear leg. The most they ran was about 15 feet. I got no runners on shoulder shots. I hit one with a 25 in front of the eye. Clearly missed the brain. It dropped at the shot, however. When I cleaned it I found the head had been crushed. I was using H&N FTTs. I kind of doubt I would have had the same result with my 177.
The only squirrels I've lost were with my Prod before I increased it to about 18 fpe. I am not sure if it was the power or my shot placement. But the next 11 after the retune were quick kills.
I think the easiest way to get a runner is to hit in the back half of the body. I doubt it matters much what you use. Conversely, I think a hit in the front half of the body with any reasonably powerful gun has a good chance of making a quick kill. I am not talking about a leg shot, I'm talking about a heart/lung shot or a head/neck shot. But head shots need to be the back half of the head. Neck shots seem to work the same as brain shots for me including the flipping around. I like to get a front shoulder on body shots. It won't stop them from running but will stop them from climbing and the shoulder is where the vitals are.
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I do know what you mean. Please don't read anything into what I said.....other than what I actually said. I'm not opposed to any one taking small game with a body shot. And I ain't the ethics police either. There are times when I will shoot a squirrel in the vitals area of the body if I can't get a good sight on his noggin. But I prefer, and normally do shoot them in the head. I will pass on opportunities to shoot a critter if I don't actually have a good, clean, lethal shot. I honestly have seen too many squirrels lost after being shot, with not a pellet, but a .22 Long Rifle more than once in the body. Squirrels are MUCH tougher than a rabbit. You can literally darn near scare a rabbit to death.
This is all just my experience and preference of course. When I kill squirrels, rabbits, etc., I actually eat them. They are game animals and I don't like losing them from a poor shot on my part. It actually bothers me a lot when it happens. And yes it does occasionally happen of course. But, I always try to do my part to keep it from occurring, due to my not shooting the animal properly. This is just me.......opinions vary.
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For me shooting ground hogs possums skunks even with my 50 Texan 460 grain slugs at 860 fps. It doesn't kill all the time unless you get a head or neck spine shot. Subsonic doesn't kill anything like powder burners at 2500fps up. A possums skunk and ground hogs have all ate big huge .510 slugs and crawled away. I have some pretty good videos taken with my sightmark wraith to verify. My Big texan is cool and quiet. But as far as killing power if its not a head neck break the spine shot recovery of game is extremely difficult. Also minimal meat damage .510 hole in out no bleeding. My results of using my 510 Texan the last three years..