groundhogs,groundhogs and more groundhogs

[standingbear]

went out yesterday to sight in my ruger 77/22 mag heavy barrel/laminated.bout 110 yards downrange out pops a groundhog oblivous to me trying to sight in my rifle.i took 8 shots at the little booger moving back and forth(it wasnt sighted in..bummer)and thought i hit it.out pops another right next to it,and they both stood up and looked at me standing there in amazement then wandered around in the field.i gave up and went back to sighting in my rifle.15or so minutes into that another 1 stands up only 50 yards away and my paper target is 60 and its dead on now at 60-got that one.the first two were still meandering around in the field the entire time,some 110 yards out.i couldnt walk my shots in cause the ground was kinda wet and weedy,couldnt see where the shots were going.if i had prepared and brought along my m77 in 223,those other 2 wouldve been toast too.wind was beginning to pick up so i quit(not until i tried to get close to those other 2).they finally scooted bigtime just when i got within the 60yards range that its sighted in for now(i need to sight it in at 100-anyone know how much bullet will rise from 60 yards to 100 in a 22 mag hollowpoint?).out in that field,i counted 16 new groundhog dens with fresh dirt at the bases/bugs flying around the entrances(good sign they are moving around down there),6 more along the edge.scouted round the rest of the farm and surprised to find them everywhere i thought id gotten rid of last year and filled in all the holes.not anymore.

 

[redneck]

DANG!

You sure your in central Ohio ? Hardly see any ground hogs around here anymore. Haven't had any around the farm at home in years, seen maybe 5 or 6 on the farm I work for. Seems like the coyote have em thinned out pretty good, along with rabbits. Lots of squirrels and coons though. I killed two coons last weekend, trapped them.
I think I'm gonna have to get me a .22mag soon. The more I read about them on here the more fun they sound like. I've gotta see how well my great plains rifle I just built shoots too, it just seems like putting a peep sight on it and spanking varmints with a .54 lead ball would be kinda entetaining

 

[standingbear]

yup

the farm i hunt them on is in bucyrus.sandusky river runs threogh the back part and theres lots of hills mixed with wide open fields.killed 105 chucks there last summer and didnt hunt them much.i have yet to see a coyote.if i do,im told by the landowner,shoot them as they are destructive to all the other species there.deer are common as are turkeys back there.great fun.

 

[redneck]

That explains it. If I do see a groundhog its always near a creek bed or in the banks of a drainage ditch. The river and that terrain would draw quite a few of them.
They cause a lot of damage, but your almost sad when you clean them out
Definitely shoot any coyotes you see. Not only will they thin out all the other stuff you want to hunt but they can get out of hand quick. Things are unfortunately growing up around here as farmers get offered more money for land than they can make in a lifetime farming it. So there's alot less opportunity to go after them. There's been several instances where they killed/injured peoples pets. Go out in the morning and only find half the dog on the chain
My dad got hired to brush hog a lot where a house was going to be built that backed up to about 25 acres of woods. About 20 minutes into it he scared up a coyote, and watched her run in and out of the woods a few times like she was grabbing cubs. (didn't have a gun with him) Told the people next door and they said "yeah they come out in the backyard all the time, their cute!" ,. and she still sends her kids out in the yard to play :banghead:

 

[standingbear]

yeah,ive the same about

groundhogs.my wife says"oh,how can you shoot such innocent animals".i reply....1 word.."easy."there is a family near here thats just inside the city limits.the groundhogs came up to their porch and help themselves to anything in the bird feeders and any dog food .this was fine and dandy until the groundhogs started getting close to their youngsters in the yard.one fine day,the kids were on top of the picnic tables screaming and they called and asked me to shoot the things.i couldnt do anything but chase them off with a shovel.cant shoot them in city limits.these things stood up to me and snapped their yellow teeth.a swat from the shovel sent them waddling back into the treeline.they bought a crossbow and started shooting them that way.no noise and guess the groundhogs dont bother them anymore that ive heard.ive had a groundhog stand up to a tractor,plowing.they bite at the tires.theyre not real smart and can be very vicious.some have even tried making pets frm them.they will turn when they get older and bite.the funniest thing i heard was an woman hit a fat one near marion and thought it was a dog.took it in wrapped in a towel to the vet.opened the trunk and the vet saw what it was an not a dog and just laughed.euthenized it then and there.

 

[redneck]

Thats funny about takin the groundhog to the vet
I'd never heard of them gettin vicious like that, but then they've never lived too long around here Had racoons and possums get that way though.
Got your email about the rifle. Wish I had the cash.

 

[Horsesense]

Had a half Walker quarter Dalmatian quarter Pit Bull he killed hundreds of groundhogs, he would tree them sometimes.


To kill GH's get a flexible hose and fit it to the exhaust of your car, lawn mower etc and place other end in the hole, cover exits and gas them.


As far as figuring the drop/rise of your .22 mag, I'm sure there is a formula but the best bet is shoot lots of ammo starting close and working your way to longer shots, mixing short and long as you go. After a while you will get a feel for it (like making a bank shot in pool). If you get your wendage right, elevation will come.

I started out shooting at 10 yards and got to the point where fifteen shots made about a thirty-caliber hole.

 

[standingbear]

secret..shhhhhh

was talking with the guy that replaced our waterline.seems he has the old cure for groundhogs.he said"just drop a few pieces of strawberry or grape bubblegun down the holes and they will eat it but they cant digest it and die down there,underground"i told him that was a good idea but its much more fun shootintg them from afar.seems a guy he knows used this method to rid his land of prarie dogs..even had the local scouts dispense the gum..lol

 

[redneck]

I've heard that too, but it seems like it would take quite a bit of gum to get em clogged. They don't digest lead too well either

 

[standingbear]

lol

lead is better.im sticking to my m77 223 now.using 50 grain vmax,plastic tipped.blackhills.guaranteed a hit anywhere out to 350 yards(after that,i cant set still enough)packing a ruger comp 22 pistol for the close in shots(and chipmonks which there seems to be an abundance of back there too)shame to use anything bigger than a 22 l.r. on those little chipmonks.