Who carries a small handgun with them when deer huntin

[UpTheIrons]

I carry a 1911 with me while hunting because I can. Texas allows a CHL holder to carry concealed during archery season, and any centerfire round is legal during rifle season, so I keep it mainly for 2 legged predators and also on the hopes that I can take a deer with it (hopefully next season).

I'm not hiking all over creation, so the extra weight isn't an issue for me, as some others have said, which I understand completely. If I were out and about that much, I'd think twice about it, too.

 

[ArmedBear]

I've carried a .357 Model 60 while bird hunting. #7.5 and #6 birdshot might not stop a badger or a coyote getting into it with my dog, but a full-house .357 load with a Keith-style bullet in it will.

Like Texas, I can carry while archery hunting. However, I've never hunted with a bow. If I do, I may well carry that same .357.

(That said, I have a rule against shooting animals that make me laugh as much as badgers do, unless absolutely necessary.)

 

[CajunBass]

I carry a Ruger Bearcat. Mostly "just becase." I suppose I could use it to finish off a criple, but never have. The times I've had a cripple down, a load of No. 8 birdshot to the back on the head did the job.

 

[Nico Testosteros]

I'm only a newbie hunter but I'm with Whelen and Mountain Walk.
I've thought about taking along my 681 but I can finish off an animal with my rifle if need be. That, and it's an encumbrance to have it on my hip while getting in and sitting in the stand.
But I may take it next season so I can try it instead of my rifle on close in shots. That'd be fun!

 

[Nicky Santoro]

Yes, but not for the reasons noted in the poll. Sometimes you may encounter odd people in the woods. My BIL was approached by someone who claimed to be a game warden and was told to put his shotgun on the ground and put his hands behind his back. He held the gun at high port and asked to see a badge and ID. At that point the "game warden" fled.
I no longer hunt but I always carried my 1911 in a GI shoulder rid under my coat.

 

[kdean]

I always carry a 357 when going into the woods. Never had to use it for finishing off game. I did fire a shot into the ground to scare off 2 of my neighbors pit bulls that walked up on me. The coyotes around here have more balls than they use to also.

A friend of mine told me a story that made me think twice of ever leaving my revolver behind. He was on a huge piece of public land and way back where no one should have been. When a meth head popped up out of no where asking him for a lighter. He simply pointed his 270 at the guy and told him he didn't have a lighter. But where alot of us hunt is the same place these meth heads go cook up there drugs.

 

[MCgunner]

My CCW. I usually stop for coffee at a convenience store on the way home if hunting the morning. Can't be unarmed, ya know.

 

[RumRunner]

i carry one, usually a .22 whenever legal. i dont carry it for 'finishing off wounded game', its for small game on the way back (ie squirrel, rabbit, coon, ect). if i have wounded game i shoot it with my rifle/bow (if i can hit it with a handgun i damn well better be able to hit it with my rifle). if i recover an animal that is down but still breathing i use my knife. i carry a KA-BAR with me at all times when hunting. only had to use the knife once, the only animal i have wounded (fingers crossed) so far.

 

[Supertac45]

It's not for finishing off game.

 

[IveSeenEnufDeer]

wow.. that's crazy.. and the meth head wanted a "light" huh?

What else do they do in the woods besides cook drugs? We had a guy in our town who finished off his own dad, cuz he wouldn't lend him money no more for drugs! Watch out for the druggies!

And the coyotes have become that aggressive huh? Strange, cuz they used to be a rather shy breed around humans! guess cuz there's so many fewer wolves around now, they are taking on a new precedence in the hunting world!
Wonder how many wild wolves are out in the woods now? we got some wolf urine to scare off all the bucks coming near our house..
I don't want wolves wandering around outside, but have never heard of them coming near our area, honestly!
I bet the dog would get along better with a wolf than he would a wild buck too! His bark always changes to something deeper and rather sinister sounding when the deer are around! I don't think he likes the deer honestly, though he likes all sorts of other domesticated animals, even horses,

 

[dmazur]

Washington State has finally relaxed the regulation that prohibited carry of a pistol during archery and muzzle-loading seasons. Now a hunter is permitted to carry a pistol for self-defense, but not for hunting or for dispatching wounded game (during those seasons.)

From the regulations (red showing the new language), language for archery similar -

A modern handgun may be carried for personal
protection if that person possesses a concealed
pistol license as defined in RCW 9.41.070.
Modern handguns cannot be used to hunt big
game or dispatch wounded big game during
a big game hunting season for muzzleloading
firearms.

So, while it might be legal for me to use a 1911 for "dispatching wounded game" during modern rifle season, I just don't think along those lines. The rifle is for hunting, and dispatching wounded game if necessary. The pistol is for protection, during the journey, while hunting and at camp.

 

[content]

Hello friends and neighbors // +1 to post #4

If you consider a 6" model 586, .357 small.

 

[wyohome]

When I lived in Washington and Oregon, I carried a K-22 for grouse. It isn't an issue here so I don't carry anything unless I am in grizzly country.

 

[noob_shooter]

it's better to have it and not need it than need it and not have it. That's what goes through my mind every time. So yeah, i always carry...

 

[d2wing]

.357 is the minimum allowed here for deer hunting. I've carried one and used it. A head shot at close range with a rifle can wreck a rack and turn a skull to mush.

 

[LeontheProfessional]

I do carry my Glock22 but I just got a Buckmark so I think I will be using that for now on. Plus it will give me something to drop those pesty squirrels with.

 

[Joe Demko]

I did a couple times, but it was just excess weight. The .243 and the .300 Savage put deer down with enough authority that I've never even had to do much tracking, much less "finish one off."
I have, though, hunted with just a handgun.

 

[lgbloader]

Just remembered... there was a time we were teaching my cousin the how to at calling in 'yotes and one came in from the side so close, I could have slapped it. Exaggerating a bit but.... , you know what I mean...
We only took one rifle, a 22-250 which my cousin was handling.

I had a 357 Mag with me which I quickly pulled, but I didn't take the shot. It wasn't my kill. But the fact that it was handy made me feel better because the 'yote could have took a snap at us.

LGB

 

[22-rimfire]

If I carry a handgun in addition to a rifle deer hunting, it is primarily for taking shots of opportunity at deer. Essentially, if I were in position, I would take a close shot with the revolver over the rifle. The reality is unless you are in a blind and have a lot of cover, you seldom get the opportunity to use the handgun if it is the secondary gun as you often make the sure choice to use the rifle and then the deer just comes close and you take the shot.

I carry a handgun often as my primary gun and do not carry a rifle for a coup de grace.

 

[BMF500]

Some times a S&W .38, sometimes Heritage .22Mag, most of the time .44Mag Redhawk

 

[2ndAmFan]

Texas law allows carrying a handgun while hunting. Since I habitually carry all the time anyway I carry a .357 while hunting. Also carry a good knife for field dressing. The .357 is not for finishing off a wounded deer, it's in case I encounter two-legged varmints while field dressing a deer, and my rifle is not within my immediate reach.
I've never had trouble with two-legged varmints while hunting, but I've had to run some off my property at other times so I always carry a handgun.
No, I've never needed it, but if I ever do I won't be able to go to the truck or the house and get it so I carry it.

 

[kgbowhunt]

so.cal, yep hand gun ok, just not during bow season

 

[baldeagle93]

I always carry my 1911 while hunting for many reasons, two legged predators as well as four. Growing up, we had many instances of people being robbed in the field, therefore I wanted to have a surprise, just in case! Second I keep it for the occasional instance that I might be mauled by yotes while dressing a deer...you may think I am crazy, but a study that my hunting club conducted by putting field cameras over gut piles showed that on most occasions predators made it to gut piles within 20 mins...I'm not taking chances of trying to get to my rifle if I'm surrounded by dogs.

There was also a story a few years back out of Dothan, AL where a hunter was attacked by a bear while he was getting down from the stand. He had lowered his rifle to the ground to make a safe descend and low and behold a bear comes and begins to climb the tree after him. He obviously can not retrieve his rifle as quick as the bear can climb the tree. He drew a pistol from his person (if my memory serves me correctly it was a .22lr) and emptied it into the bear. The pistol was not enough to put the deer down, but it did knock it off the tree and allowed him a chance to retrieve his rifle and finish the bear off. Sad part of the story was they tried to charge him for killing the bear... LIBERALS!!!

In my state it is illegal to carry during bow season...but I take my chances, I'd rather be tried by 12 than carried by six!

It is legal however to kill a deer with a pistol so long as it is larger than .22 cal and has a 4" barrel, thus the reason I carry my 1911. I have not had the chance yet that I felt like taking a deer with my 1911, but do want to do that one day...stupid does are generally the only ones that get that close and I'm generally waiting for big bucky to come into my cross hairs.

I know that this is a long post, but the story is worth telling as it relates to deer and hand guns...

Three years ago I was in the stand on a particularly blustery day. Tennessee has a split rifle season (stupid in my opinion, but that is another topic all together) and it was the last day of the first season and I had yet to put any meat in the freezer. I had decided that I was killing something more than time for my efforts in the first season so when three does walked out with less than 10 mins of legal shooting time, I had no choice to attempt a 320 yrd shot with a 15-20 mph cross wind. My shot dropped her, but as I got out of the stand I realized that my shot was about 8" to her rear and had broken her spine, not hit the neck and finished her (I don't like wasting meat on deer not going on the wall, head or neck shots!).

As I approached her I realized I was going to have to finish her with another shot...I elected to do it with my 1911 loaded with Hydro Shocks...I took steady aim and put one in her head...she took it like a lazy jab and tried to get up! In shock, I gave her another...she gave a loud bellow and laid out.

I got my truck and proceeded to load her up. When I grabbed her legs and picked her up for the heave to the truck she bellowed again, scaring the bejesus out of me! I shook it off as the last bit of air in her lungs, grabbed again and tossed her in the truck.

When I got to the check in station at the club I thought to myself, "self you haven't put a tag on that doe and someone is liable to throw a fit if you don't have her tagged." I opened the tail gate to tag her and she jumped up and was trying to get away>>>!!! I'm thinking to myself...this doe has just taken a .308 (which although it hit high in the back and broke her back striking no vitals is still a wallop of a shot to take), not one, but TWO 45ACP Hydro Shocks to the HEAD and she is still trying to escape...I've never seen a deer with such a will to live...but there is more!

Parental Advisory: Animal rights wacko's please refrain from reading and if your children are reading, you may want to stop them at this point of the story!

I pulled her out of the truck and realized I was going to have to do something I HATE doing...cut her throat. I grabbed my K-Bar and grabbed her by the ears (starring into her cranium wondering how in the world she is still alive) and attempted to cut her throat. I will admit, I couldn't do it! I've never been able to do that! So I tuck my tail and head into the club house and ask one of my peers to come do it for me...yeah, that's manly! So, one of the guys come out to finish her off! He makes a beautiful cut and she is bleeding and gurgling like you wouldn't believe. I drag her off to a corner and help another hunter get his buck unloaded and scored for the club.

About 10 minutes go by so I figure she must be expired by this time and I can go get her to check her in. I shine my mag light over to check on her...SHE'S STILL TRYING TO GET AWAY!!! I'll save you the details, but we the next scene ended much like the end of Mel Gibson's movie Braveheart.

I tell you that story to conclude with the fact that there are some vampire/undead deer in the woods, if you are going to use your pistol to "finish" an animal, put in the vitals...although the story gets a lot of laughs and attention, it wasn't that fun to live out...and you'll never live it down around the camp fire!

 

[devildog32713]

I was told recently by a guy at the gunstore to carry a small derringer or NAA with birdshot for snakes, that's justifiable in my area...

 

[wgp]

I carry a S&W 329PD .44 mag. This is the ultralight revolver that weighs so little I hardly notice it's there, and I carry it for finishing and really just because I want to. In Kansas you cannot carry any firearm while firearm deer hunting that is not by itself legal for deer in that season, and in handguns in Kansas that basically means .357 mag, .41 mag or .44 mag. When bowhunting here you cannot have any firearm in your possession. Having a carry permit here does not exempt you from these rules.