Don't know where you live, but around here, there's lots of hunting with dogs (we don't) and we've worked real hard to advance the wild turkey population. The rule around here is, if you allow your cat to roam, best put a collar on it. If you don't, you're a fool. Love your cat? Put a collar with a bell on it. Period.
I didn't say they're a problem. Anymore. Haven't shot very many, really. Groundhogs, well that's another matter entirely. We never run out of them. They need thinning badly. Foxes too. One female fox can have close to twenty in a litter and they have 2 litters a year. That's astounding. And they like to eat baby turkeys. Can't have that. No, I'm looking out for the songbirds, quail, turkey, -all that. Yep. I have no love for feral cats, groundhogs, or foxes. They're all varmints and pests to one degree or another.
How about you stick to shooting those pretty little ducks which were not so long ago endangered til Ducks Unlimited started buying up water-lands and saving them. I'll stick to the way too plentiful deer that feed my family, AND the varmints and pests which destroy wooden buildings and eat up the songbirds and baby turkeys and quail. I've never shot anyone's pet. If you want peoples' pets shot, you just go for it. And you can post it in your siggy.
My cat doesn't have a collar and lives outside in the summer days. Unfortunately, she has caught birds, frogs and field mice, which she delivers to us as presents. I don't much like it but cats are natural predators and do such things. She has also woken up my wife in the middle of the night when I went into a diabetic coma. I have no idea how she could recognise that or when she jumps up on my wife's lap and settles her paws on the particular leg that is painful for her at the time. Thankfully, you won't be shooting my pet.
You can do that yourself. Feed them seeds soaked in whisky and when they wobble up to your door, do what you need to do.
We don't have prairie dogs around here, and they may be pests and varmints to people who do have them, but I agree, they're cute. [ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8of00uEVRRA"]Dramatic Moment - YouTube[/ame] This ^ critter has been called a groundhog and a chipmunk but it's a prairie dog. [ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kLLFTYM3c_8&feature=fvwp&NR=1"]Groundhog Staring Contest - YouTube[/ame] .......................................This ^ is a groundhog.
Yer so funny, honey. Tell ya what. I'll send them to TFM and maybe he'll cook 'em up for us. I think he's enough of a gentleman to oblige me.
I don't shoot pets. I said that already. Does this mean we're off for skinny-dipping this summer, Beevee?
Does 'off' mean we are going together or not going at all. I do wish you would make your mind up. These tantalising thoughts are driving me feral.
I hate that Puxatawny Phil, he see's his shadow every year, even when the sun don't shine, I'd like to shoot the little bastard myself.
Yeah, the little creep. I've noticed that too. Told ya they're nothing but pests. I could fix that for ya. Where's he at?
When I was stationed in the Aleutians, we used to shoot whistle-pigs constantly. A whistle-pig is also known as a marmot, it's essentially a large groundhog, weighing about 12 pounds or so. Kill them and field-dress them, take them back to the station for a good cleaning, cut the meat into little chunks and stew it with some potatoes, carrots, celery, and onions, add a little water and flour, some Worcestershire sauce... instant whistle-pig stew! We went through thousands of rounds of ammunition shooting whistle-pigs, they literally overran the island we were on, and we couldn't even begin to put a dent in their population! 22LR, .243, .308, 30-30, 30-06, .357Mag, .44Mag, .45ACP - you'd buy a firearm from the exchange, sight it in, and it was whistle-pig time! To paraphrase the old Merrie Melodies cartoon -- If you're looking for fun, you don't need a reason. All you need is a gun, it's whistle-pig season!
I got this kitten from the MSPCA and raised it as an outside kitten/cat. As it got older he could snatch and kill mice very easily. Then one day I noticed he was prancing around carrying a full grown wild live rabbit in his jaws. He played with the rabbit every day then let him go at night. The next day he would find the semi lame rabbit again and the tease/playing scenario continued for at least a week. But I'm with you, though I can't stand dirty pigeons and ankle biting lap-yapper dogs. I would shoot every one of those yapper dogs if I knew I could get away with it without the owners knowing it.
This is a good time to revisit this topic. I was talking about how people should keep their cats in at night, and make them wear collars with bells all the time. Looky > A "kittycam" is seen attached to the ruthless killer. Around where I live, they also attack the rabbits, especially the babies, the quail (which nest on the ground) and the baby wild turkeys. I've said it before, and I'll say it again. I'll shoot any feral cat that shows up on my property. It won't grieve me a bit. None.
Why God invented the Winchester Model 70, in .243,with a 12 X 50 Leupold scope..... Almost ALL mammal predators kill for sport; wolves will kill every sheep in a pasture just to eat off of one or two of them. Ever see killer whales playing "tennis" with seals and penguins? COLD BLOODED creatures don't have the energy to waste on such silliness, from what I've seen. That said, feral cats are a major rabies risk, as well.
I'm a "friend of th birds", too, until QUAIL/PHEASANT hunting season(s). You can keep your wild turkeys; I don't have much of a taste for them, anymore...