Deer Gun Exercise in Off Season
By Glen Wunderlich
Outdoor Columnist
Member Professional Outdoor Media Association
A friend of mine has been having trouble with foxes lately. Seems his newfound chicken raising has something to do with it. Funny thing for me, too. When I seeded a field with alfalfa and clover, I reckon somebody must have slipped a few woodchuck seeds in the bag, because they sprouted soon after the vegetation appeared. I guess if you plant it, they will come.
For me, it’s not a big deal to have a few of them devouring portions of the food plot, because none of it is harvested for cash; however, for a hard-working farmer, it’s a pig of a different color.
For example, a single woodchuck has the potential to consume up to an acre of beans in one season! And, it’s this time of year when they can do tremendous damage, because it takes plenty of small, tender bean plants to satisfy the appetite of an appropriately named groundhog. If you have difficulty locating woodchucks, active holes can be determined by simply looking nearby for a lack of vegetation in an ever-growing radius. It’s also easy to ask a frustrated farmer.
In addition to crop predation in hayfields and bean fields, these hogs create potentially dangerous leg-breaking traps for livestock and unsuspecting humans by digging their holes. They’ll also dull the knives on a haybine, when excavation mounds of dirt are run over. And, losing a wagon-load of hay, when it hits unseen obstacles, doesn’t endear them to farmers, either.
Hunting them this time of year can provide an opportunity to help farmers, while getting in a little practice with your favorite rifle. Many people don’t believe it, but any high-power, centerfire rifle caliber is legal anywhere in Michigan. Yes, it’s true that your .30-06 is illegal for deer in Zone III, but for ‘chucks, it’s good to go.
Certainly, high-stepping varmint rigs may be better for the job with their flatter trajectory, but if you don’t possess one, fear not; a deer rifle can do the trick with deer-hunting ammo, too. And, chuckin’ with your deer gun can help make it more familiar in November.
Begin by making sure you have enough ammo – the same type you’ll typically use for deer. Get enough of the same lot number, which is printed on each box so that you can sight it in properly and have lots left for the wily whistle pigs and the whitetails later this year. Acquiring the same lot number is important, because even ammunition made by the same manufacturer using the same bullets, may not shoot to the same point of aim, if you purchase more at a later date.
So many hunters only use their favorite deer gun once a year, that weird, kick-yourself-in-the-pants stuff happens when that big buck appears. One of those things is familiarity with the safety. How many shots are never attempted, simply because the once-a-year hunter fumbles away an opportunity? We’ll never know. But, the mere act of handling the firearm in off-season mode, may just prevent your being among the hapless.
So, get afield with your favorite firearm and help the farmers, while helping yourself in the process.
