cammogunner
Member
hey guys this maybe i stupid thing to ask but would a 22 mag revolver kill a cougar up close i want to know because i live in cougar country and want to know if i can use the round
22 mag
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Simple answer: Yes.
Long answer: I would advise the use of a different cartridge. Should you actually be attacked and shoot the cat with a .22 mag, it may kill it. But odds are, the cat will have done plenty of damage to you long before it dies. Also, you better check local game laws. Just being around one or seeing one up close doesn't give you legal justification for killing one in most states. Ranchers and farmers are a different matter because they have the right to protect their livestock.
Long answer: I would advise the use of a different cartridge. Should you actually be attacked and shoot the cat with a .22 mag, it may kill it. But odds are, the cat will have done plenty of damage to you long before it dies. Also, you better check local game laws. Just being around one or seeing one up close doesn't give you legal justification for killing one in most states. Ranchers and farmers are a different matter because they have the right to protect their livestock.
rcmodel
Member in memoriam
Of course it will.
A head shot will be instant dead kitty.
A body shot will take longer, but the end result will be the same dead kitty.
Just so you know though.
To my knowledge, there have only been two cougars killed in Missouri in recent history.
Recent being the last 100 years or so.
And they were both road kills on I-435 in K.C. in the last five years.
Sightings:
http://mdc.mo.gov/discover-nature/w...-lion-reports/confirmed-mountain-lion-reports
Your chances of needing to kill a cougar that attacks you there are much lower then having a tree fall over and kill you in your driveway!
Or a slip in the shower, or a car wreck, or lightening, or killer bees, or drowning, or lots of other things.
It's also worth noting that if a cougar does attack you?
It will be from behind, and you will not have a clue it was there, let alone time to draw and shoot it.
Until it already has claws in your back holding on.
And your neck in it's jaws, crunching your vertebra, and shutting down your blood and air supply.
rc
A head shot will be instant dead kitty.
A body shot will take longer, but the end result will be the same dead kitty.
Just so you know though.
To my knowledge, there have only been two cougars killed in Missouri in recent history.
Recent being the last 100 years or so.
And they were both road kills on I-435 in K.C. in the last five years.
Sightings:
http://mdc.mo.gov/discover-nature/w...-lion-reports/confirmed-mountain-lion-reports
Your chances of needing to kill a cougar that attacks you there are much lower then having a tree fall over and kill you in your driveway!
Or a slip in the shower, or a car wreck, or lightening, or killer bees, or drowning, or lots of other things.
It's also worth noting that if a cougar does attack you?
It will be from behind, and you will not have a clue it was there, let alone time to draw and shoot it.
Until it already has claws in your back holding on.
And your neck in it's jaws, crunching your vertebra, and shutting down your blood and air supply.
rc
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kimbernut
Member
.22 mag
I've heard that the .22mag. has the same energy as a .38 Special but I'd prefer something a bit more powerful.
I've heard that the .22mag. has the same energy as a .38 Special but I'd prefer something a bit more powerful.
witchhunter
Member
Yes, dead. But you have to hit him right. I carried a S&W 651 in 22 mag for years as a guide in Nevada and California. At 20 feet, it will kill anything in my area.
rcmodel
Member in memoriam
Believe it or not, a .22 WRM HP to the head will probably kill a cougar deader faster then a .38 Special.
In this case, Speed does kill.
There was a professional government hunter in the mountain states years ago that racked up a very impressive number of one-shot kills on treed cougars using a S&W .22 Mag revolver.
rc
351 WINCHESTER
Member
That S & W .22 mag. probably had an 8 3/8" barrel which back then was good for about 1700 fps. Modern .22 mag. ammo is downloaded (with the exception of RWS which no one can afford). I carried a Ruger super single six for a while with a 6 1/2" barrel. It was heck on critters like armadillas, coons, possums, rattlers, cottonmouths and wild turkeys. I killed many a wild hog with a .22 mag. rifle and a ton of other stuff. I have a lot of respect for that round. It is a very potent round for sure, especially from a long barrel revolver or a rifle.
rcmodel
Member in memoriam
No, 6 1/2" barrel as I recall.
rc
rc
351 WINCHESTER
Member
Even with a 6 1/2" barrel it's sending a 40 gr. bullet at about 1550 fps. (again, the original loading by Winchester which all have been downloaded somewhat).
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So where did you meet my X-wife ?
Situation awareness and a bit more gun would be my preference. For the cat that is ! I do have a lot of respect for the .22 mag. but I think a head shot would be almost required to stay out of trouble if you have to meet one.
230RN
2A was "political" when it was first adopted.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_fatal_cougar_attacks_in_North_America#2000s
There are enough fatal (non-fatal not counted) attacks that when one of them was spotted near a nearby school, and when during the following winter I found some tracks in the fresh snow out by the pasture, I figured I'd look it up to see how bad a problem they might be. T
They're sneaky devils and even though none are seen, they could still be around. (I am told, but cannot verify, that even though cats are definitely present, game and fish folks sometimes deny it.)
They're most active near dawn and dusk and according to what I read, they'll try to attack from the rear. Wearing a backpack discourages them.
I always figured a knife might be more effective than a gun in that kind of contact sport. Nevertheless, I never go out to the car at night or take out the trash without a DA .38 special revolver. And I wave a powerful flashlight around the pastures before actually going out to the parking lot. I also kick the dumpster, ready to jump back, if the lid is open.
Routed a couple of small unidentified beasties (probably raccoons) doing that. Learned that technique once when I tossed a bundle of trash in there one night from ten feet away, just for the fun of it.... but acquired 3 dozen more grey hairs when a beastie jumped out and ran off. Startled the heck out of me.
While the chances of an attack may be less than getting hit by lightning, I don't hang out under trees in a storm either.
Terry
Ref:
http://www.bear-tracker.com/caninevsfeline.html
There are enough fatal (non-fatal not counted) attacks that when one of them was spotted near a nearby school, and when during the following winter I found some tracks in the fresh snow out by the pasture, I figured I'd look it up to see how bad a problem they might be. T
They're sneaky devils and even though none are seen, they could still be around. (I am told, but cannot verify, that even though cats are definitely present, game and fish folks sometimes deny it.)
They're most active near dawn and dusk and according to what I read, they'll try to attack from the rear. Wearing a backpack discourages them.
I always figured a knife might be more effective than a gun in that kind of contact sport. Nevertheless, I never go out to the car at night or take out the trash without a DA .38 special revolver. And I wave a powerful flashlight around the pastures before actually going out to the parking lot. I also kick the dumpster, ready to jump back, if the lid is open.
Routed a couple of small unidentified beasties (probably raccoons) doing that. Learned that technique once when I tossed a bundle of trash in there one night from ten feet away, just for the fun of it.... but acquired 3 dozen more grey hairs when a beastie jumped out and ran off. Startled the heck out of me.
While the chances of an attack may be less than getting hit by lightning, I don't hang out under trees in a storm either.
Terry
Ref:
http://www.bear-tracker.com/caninevsfeline.html
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bhk
Member
Actually, at least three mountain lions have been shot within the last five years in Missouri, and MANY have been captured on trail cameras (see below link from the Missouri Department of Conservation detailing shootings/sightings and the attached map of those incidents). The yearly rate of sightings has been much higher in recent years.
http://mdc.mo.gov/discover-nature/w...-lion-reports/confirmed-mountain-lion-reports
That said, most of the sightings/shootings are of 'transient' young male lions run out of South Dakota and headed for who knows where. No females or kittens have been VERIFIED by the Conservation Department (doesn't mean they don't exit). A lion can cover a huge distance in a matter of days. We may have no lions in Missouri today and four tomorrow. No human in Missouri has been harmed by a lion in like FOREVER. I would be more worried about being struck by lighting on a sunny day.
An interested 'side point' in this type of discussion is what a wonderful service trail cams have done in helping us understand what is really 'out there.' Last year I was having a Missouri bobcat I shot tagged by my local agent and he showed me three new (less than a week old) trail cam photos of a lion in my area and adjacent to the farm I was going coyote calling on the next day. I, of course, didn't see that lion but turning on the electronic coyote caller was a different experience that day.
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Can a 22 mag kill a cougar? Of course it can.
The question to ask though is what are the odds it will stop a cougar instantly with one shot taken quickly under stress? Not very good.
Then ask would the odds of achieving this goal improve if a more powerful cartridge was used? Yes, they would.
BTW, if you should ever shoot a cougar out of season with no tags, it had better have powder burns on the fur.
cammogunner
Member
hey guys thanks for the helpful replies.. i realise that a cougar would attack from behind but i just would rather a gun to a sharp stick in that situation
.. and i hunt where there are cows so if i saw one i would shoot it probly if it seemed like it wanted to get at cows..
.. and i hunt where there are cows so if i saw one i would shoot it probly if it seemed like it wanted to get at cows..
WestKentucky
Member
I once met a guy who claimed that cougars were a problem in his home town. I didn't believe him until he started showing pics. He said folks around there practice the 3s rather than the 5s we were talking about (industrial setting) of shoot, shovel, and shut up. I asked his choice in sidearm since he told the whole auditorium that he carried a handgun for protection. I expected him to say either 44 or judge, but he surprised me. 30carbine single action revolver. He said "it's the loudest damned thing around so I will scare it off with noise, wound it and shoot it again as I back away, or not be able to hear my own screams as it shreds me, or worse my kids". He also said local runners are known to wear skullcaps or stocking hats with eyes sewn into the back as it confuses the cat who is by nature tuned to attack from behind.
Mauserguy
Member
Just to be clear, mountain lion attacks are extremely rare, but then again, if you mountain bike in suburban Orange County you may want to be careful...
Mauserguy
http://usatoday30.usatoday.com/news/nation/2004-01-12-cyclist-update_x.htm
Mauserguy
http://usatoday30.usatoday.com/news/nation/2004-01-12-cyclist-update_x.htm
J-Bar
Member
I love it when the Missouri Dept of Conservation says there are no breeding mountain lion pairs in Missouri...
I guess they take a vow of celibacy when they cross the state line.
I guess they take a vow of celibacy when they cross the state line.
bhk
Member
They say this because all the VERIFIED mountain lions are young males. Kind of hard to make babies! Actually the closest verified female coming from the Black Hills region has been verified somewhere in central Nebraska. That doesn't, of course, mean that they don't exist further east. It just means they haven't been verified. The midwestern states have established a sophisticated Mountain Lion Response Team that reacts immediately to sightings, photos, tracks, etc. DNA samples are immediately taken when possible (hair from a fence crossing, etc.). So far no signs of females.
These guys are pretty good at this game. Through DNA they tracked a single young male lion from sightings (and resulting DNA) that was pinpointed in Illinois, Ohio, and finally to its death (by car) in Connecticutt. These young males really, really travel while the females have not strayed very far from the local populations around the Black Hills region.
Trail cams are a wonderful thing. So far no mountain lion kittens have been photographed in Missouri. At some point, this will change.
moonzapa
Member
Uncle Ted Nugent uses a 10mm Glock to protect himself from mountain lions, etc. Actually, the mountain lions should be looking out for Ted Nugent. 10mm pistol is pretty good medicine. To answer your question, a 22WMR is plenty of gun to kill just about anything, as long as you hit what you are shooting at in the vitals, heart, lung, head. It would not be my first go to gun of choice but it would get it done. I know of a human being that is dead from a shoulder shot with a 22WMR Marlin bolt action rifle. It's a whole lot more than a 22LR.
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J-Bar
Member
bhk:
I understand, and I appreciate your post. I agree with your last statement, that they will be confirmed.
I just think it is unrealistic to think that that it has not already happened.
I understand, and I appreciate your post. I agree with your last statement, that they will be confirmed.
I just think it is unrealistic to think that that it has not already happened.
bhk
Member
Thanks. I find it hard, though, to imagine that Missouri and all the surrounding states would have a reason to hide the existance of confirmed females. What on earth would all these states have to gain by hiding this information. Also, if you know 'fish and game' biologists from any state, they are not the type to keep secrets well. Not part of their make-up. Not even close.
That said, there was a time when Missouri was reluctant to believe we had wild cougars moving through our state. I don't think they were hiding anything, they just couldn't buy it themselves. Once verification processes became the norm, MDC has been very upfront about every sighting, usually reporting them to the press within hours of confirmation. It took awhile, though, for them to get to this point.
To make an on-topic remark, Elmer Keith (Mr. Magnum himself), once stated he thought a .22 magnum handgun was an ideal gun for shooting treed lions. I would want something a little more powerful.
That said, there was a time when Missouri was reluctant to believe we had wild cougars moving through our state. I don't think they were hiding anything, they just couldn't buy it themselves. Once verification processes became the norm, MDC has been very upfront about every sighting, usually reporting them to the press within hours of confirmation. It took awhile, though, for them to get to this point.
To make an on-topic remark, Elmer Keith (Mr. Magnum himself), once stated he thought a .22 magnum handgun was an ideal gun for shooting treed lions. I would want something a little more powerful.
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