Choose from Available Calibers for Groundhogs Under 100 Yards

I like my .22 Hornet for this. I have two, both Savage 23Ds They are the only two scoped rifles I have.

If I know a groundhog shot is 50 yards or less, I use subsonic match ammo and one of my more accurate .22 rifles. I take head shots only.

I try to match a cartridge to the game and terrain. At a distance out around 100 yards my choice of those mentioned and only those mentioned would be the 223 Winchester cartridge. At the distances mentioned I would not even consider a .22 LR as groundhogs have thick skin and at 100 yards I do not see a 22 LR as being effective let alone accurate. Great for other small game at close range but not my choice for groundhog at or out to 100 yards.

Just My Take
Ron

Having killed 1,000s of prairie dogs with several calibers, I would encourage you to use the .223 unless you want to change your mind and buy a 17HMR. That tiny 17gr bullet at 2550 fps does serious damage to critters. I've never shot a ground hog, but have killed several racoons with the 17HMR, all one shot kills. Have also killed 1,000s of p-dogs with .223 varmint bullets. The .223 is devastating and the best option of the ones you are considering. IMO

At 100 yds, with the choices you have put out there, the 223 would be my choice, with a varmint SP 55gr loaded with Benchmark. Just be careful of your background, and where the bullet could end up, as you don't want to make this problem worse than it already is.

22 LR hollow point Take your time and make a clean head shot.
BTW I've never eaten one but I think they're supposed to be pretty good.
Grandpa used to kill his butcher cattle with a old single shot Winchester and a 22 short with the muzzle right at their forehead.
Amazing what a .22 can do if the bullet hits the right spot.

Up to 100, .22 all day. Off a good rest most 22's should be capable of hitting vitals of a groundhog at that distance. If you need to get closer, get closer. I'd still plan on head shooting them though. If it's in such an area that you'd feel the need to load down a 30-30 or .223 to keep it in the yard, I wouldn't bother. Crossbow would make even less sense.

TCB= Take Care of Business

More importantly than caliber choice, check with the neighbor. They may not want you shooting that close to their property. Yes it is your mom's place and property. But in close border regions it is better to ask than play hardball with property lines.

If it were me, I would grab a 22mag bolt gun. I have plenty of those rounds on hand already. 22mag is a bit easier to make 100 yard shots with than 22LR, in my limited small bore shooting. And you don't have as much property damage risk compared to 556 if a round hits a neighbor's building. Rossi, Browning, and CZ make some nice and inexpensive bolt guns.

Out of what you listed I'd say .223.

Me personally I'd go with my 22WMR.

A pound of Tannerite next to their hole and a 223

Interesting video….



.22 LR blows through a 1/2” board at 440 yards….a vital hit on a gopher would kill it…

Quite a few years ago a friend of mine had a gunsmith rebarrel a Ruger No. 1 single shot rifle to .45acp. He called it his ground hog gun. He claimed it was no louder than a 22 and dropped them in their tracks.

DMW1116 said:

223 loaded at minimum level (55 grain soft point at 2650 to 2700 fps)

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Here ^ lets end this. Just buy a box of commercial varmint rounds such as VMax, they explode a split second after inside the target. Not much chance of over penetration with a 25yr + track record bullet, known for....'' '' '' '' '' inside the target. And it's humane, whereas the 22LR will most likely need a followup shot at those distances. Have you ever seen a pig go down the hole after a 22LR shot. 30cal for whistlepigs is just overkill, and the opportunity for ricochet is too high IMO.

223, horribly accurate, high enough velocity, bullet selections readily available, no richocet, and a quick safe humane dispatch of a really neat little animal, but very destructive at the same time.

DMW1116 said:

I am not familiar with TCB. What does that mean? The particular 22 I'm thinking of (Marling 60) is already zeroed for 50 yards, though I haven't shot it in a while and need to check to be sure.

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Take Care of Business.

DMW1116 said:

My moms place has a bit of a groundhog problem. They live on her property but are undermining the foundation of the neighbors barn. They generally hang out about 100 yards or less from her porch.

From the following calibers, which would be best for dispatching the little critters:

22LR in Interceptor, HV, or SV loading.
30-30 downloaded to 9mm level (135 grain cast bullet at 1100 fps)
223 loaded at minimum level (55 grain soft point at 2650 to 2700 fps)

Or should I invest in a crossbow. Through careful approach I could probably get within 50 yards.

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a 22 hornet is good to 150 yds. I have shot chucks with 223 and 22-250. they flip up in the air and most of the time can crawl towards their hole. this is at 200 -300 yds. every chuck I shot with the hornet while eating never moved thought I missed. if they were standing just fell over never moved. I never saw them die instantly like with the hornet

Of the calibers you listed, do you own all three? I think the 30-30 would be my last choice.
When I lived in NJ the houses were on 100' lots.
I used to shoot out the basement window ( almost at ground level) with a Winchester Widner musket. it had a 30" bbl and shot .22 short it was very quiet.
most shots were under 25 yards.
If you are looking for a new rifle the .17HMR is a good choice, although ammo might be hard to come by now.

Heck the .223/5.56 isn’t anything but a varmit round, regardless of loading.

DoubleMag said:

223, horribly accurate, high enough velocity, bullet selections readily available, no richocet, and a quick safe humane dispatch of a really neat little animal, but very destructive at the same time.

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I agree vehemently.
I have had many more ricochets with the soft and slow 22LR than any other cartridge.
A 223Rem loaded for high velocity with a thin jacketed varmint bullet won’t ricochet. They vaporize on impact.
I have loaded Hornady Super eXplosive varmint bullets in a seven twist barrel so fast they disintegrated before 75 yards. When shot through a target on a cardboard box at thirty yards there were only tiny perforations on the other side. The bullet completely disintegrated after passing through one layer of cardboard before reaching across a twelve inch box.

There will be no ricochet.

Ground hogs are what the 223 was invented for. Don’t download it. Zap those barn burrowers with the AR.

You guys are very misguided. It's so sad.

The movie Caddyshack was dubbed in German, which didn't quite correctly translate the word gopher. Notice the shoulder flag patch.

They have dangerous gophers also - even in Afghanistan. The Bundeswehr's designated marksmen rifles were still G3s in recent years - employed partly due to aggressive small mammals.

I've shot quite a few groundhogs on my place at 80 to 100 yards with a .204. It's extremely accurate and effective. Kills 'em DRT!

Of the calibers listed, .223, with a varmint round such as Hornady V-Max.
I've only ever shot groundhogs and woodchucks with shotguns, 12 ga. with Trap loads, or .410 with 2 1/2" 6's. These were generally shot at 50 yards and under, but DRT everytime, and no over penetration worries.