Will a .22 LR take a cougar?

[rswartsell]

As true as that is Dig and believe me I don't dispute you, there is still no reason not to look into the wide variety of .357 available and select what you can with confidence do the most damage with.

Secondary? Yes.

Irrelevant? No.

Original Post -"I was looking for some .357 Magnum ammo for my trail excursions in Colorado cougar country."

 

[bestseller92]

It is true that the cougar is an ambush animal, and you might never see one before it attacks.

Then again, you MIGHT, and I'd rather have an effective weapon in that eventuality.

 

[Waldo Pepper]

Not sure I would feel safe in cougar country with my FN Five Seven or my S&W model 48 WMR, I would want at least a 38 Special minimum. Since I have a G29 (10mm) that would be my choice for hiking in black bear or cougar country, or maybe my DW 15-2 357 if I was actually hunting.

 

[twoclones]

Good point...

If the event can occur at twilight or darker you must consider the extreme muzzle flash from a full house magnum through a 3" bbl. You don't want to be temporarily blinded by your first shot.

Thanks for pointing that out.
I work in remote wilderness locations and am shopping for a new revolver for protection from large predators. On the occasions when I camp on the job site, muzzle flash could be a real issue.

We {the dog and I} have either heard, smelled or found tracks and skat for lions, wolves and bears during a single work shift. A 22LR might be useful if I needed to kill and eat my dog while dragging my broken self back to the truck after being mauled... Otherwise, I want more fire-power.

Butch

 

[Jeff F]

A .38 spl will do a number on a mountain kitty. They are not all that tough when it comes to taken lead. A .357 with 158 grain swc bullets would work to stop one real fast. I have friends that hunt them and they kill them with .22's or .22mags. hunting them and getting hunted by them are two different things so yea I would carry bigger then a .22.

 

[Deadmanwalking_05]

Okay I own a 22lr revolver,I also own a 38spl revolver,if I'm bumming out in the woods where cougars are known to be I take the 38.

If I'm target shooting out there I shoot the 22,but still carry the 38 just in case.

A 22 is fine for small game and thin skinned pop cans but not a large wild dog let alone a Predator like a mountian lion.

 

[mp340dude]

I have spent quite a bit of time in Montana where fishing usually brings about fresh cat tracks. If you saw the size of those feet you would want to carry a .454 Casull. I carry a S&W 686 with real hot heavy loads. And I still watch the banks as much as my dry fly. The cats scare me more than the bears. They don't call them mountain LIONs for nothing....

Cheers

 

[Jeff F]

This is crazy. The whole idea of shooting a lion with a .22 is ridiculous. Why would anyone take the smallest caliber he could think of carrying to dispatch a very dangerous animal

When they are hunting they don't want to make a big hole in the fur, they want the pelt. They also do eat the meat.

 

[OregonJohnny]

From wyocarp: "This is not an opinion with experience."

Thank you for further explaining why my post was an opinion, as I stated, and not a fact or anything from personal experience. You'll get awfully tired if you try and point out all the opinions without real world experience on THR...

You have shot a cougar, and I have not. From your experience, 3 hits from a .500 caliber gun won't stop a cougar. So, why are we even discussing .357s and .44s?

 

[444]

Get the .357.
Put a lot of thought into which one, what load you are going to carry, and what holster to buy. Game various senarios in your mind....................
I realize that is the purpose of the thread to begin with.



However, look at the vastly different answers you get from people who have shot mountain lions or are close friends with people who shoot mountain lions as opposed to the people speculating about shooting mountain lions.
I'm just saying.


"When they are hunting they don't want to make a big hole in the fur, they want the pelt. They also do eat the meat."
Ding Ding Ding, we have a winner.


FWIW: When I am out bumming around the woods, I carry a S&W Model 29 with a 3" barrel in a Threepersons holster by El Paso Saddelry.
Most of this bumming around is done in areas where there actually are mountain lions.
I have never seen one and am pretty certain I never will. If one stalked me for dinner, I am also pretty certain I would never know it. I would be walking along, see that light at the end of the tunnel............. A mountain lion doesn't hunt like an enraged Cape Buffalo. It uses stealth and is very good at it.
I carry the .44 because I bought it for that purpose and it has a cool holster. I actually bought it to carry deer hunting with the hope that someday I might have the opportunity to put down my rifle and plug one with the pistol. So, I was thinking more along the line of shooting big game animals when I bought it.

 

[Diggers]

As true as that is Dig and believe me I don't dispute you, there is still no reason not to look into the wide variety of .357 available and select what you can with confidence do the most damage with.

Secondary? Yes.

Irrelevant? No.

True rswartsell, but it seems pretty simple, pick whatever full power .357 that you fancy. I think pretty much ANY .357 is going to kill a Mt. Lion at point blank........you just have to hit it.

THEN practice shooting over your shoulder at something on your back as you are face down in the dirt. THAT is the real trick here.

 

[444]

THEN practice shooting over your shoulder at something on your back as you are face down in the dirt. THAT is the real trick here.



That's funny right there.
I don't care who you are.

 

[cliffy]

Firepower for Mountain Lions

A Professional Hunting Guide from Canada's Yukon told me all he uses for Mountain Lion Hunting is a .223 Remington, which produces 1400 ft/lbs of muzzle energy. I'd rather carry a .243 Winchester @ 2100 ft/lbs of energy. I should think any pistol that has an equivalent ft/lbs of force between 1400 and 2100 would suffice against any PUMA going. This scenaro would bring the Ruger Alaskan .454 Casull into positive play. A .22 LR, even with the most potent (CCI Velocitor) ammo seems a bit light on firepower to assist one's continued survival against a 150 pound wildcat. All big cats are unpredictable, and often consider people as a food source. Shooting at big cats keep them in line, but stop shooting at them and they gain boldness. They simply don't fear an unarmed human. Cliffy

 

[heavyshooter]

"Just as a sidenote, Louis L'amour wrote once that, during his extensive ramblings through the southwest, doing research for his books, he used to carry a .22 revolver. Then he had a close call with a cougar and started carrying a .357 instead." -- bestseller92


I had a similar experince that led to the same conclusion. We carried the Kimber LifeAct Guardian Angel pepper spray and then we saw a cat about 400 yards away and I felt as though the pepper spray would be little more than seasoning for his meal. After getting back to the car I made a mental note; the Ruger comes on all hikes.

Coincidentally, the next day I was watching one of those "When animals attack" shows and they showed a couple that was attacked by a mother grizzly that was protecting her cub and the husband distracted the bear away from his wife so he could "incapacitate her with bear [pepper] spray." After he sprayed the bear, she turned and attacked his wife again. At that point my Kimber LifeAct seemed even more ridiculous.

 

[heavyshooter]

"Did'nt read the rest of the posts, so I hope I'm not repeating anything. He's CRAZY!!!!!! I shot a pit bull at about 12yards with a 10/22 using stingers. Hit him right under the left eye. He fell in his tracks, got up and ran off, he came back later that night with no ill effect, never died." -- surjimmy


GOODNIGHT!!! You have reminded me of something that settles the matter for me. When my brother was eight he was attacked by a 100 lbs. Black Labrador Retriever. My father chased the dog home and shot him under his left eye with a 22LR. His owner never took him to the vet and he lived for another three years. I believe he died of old age! He never even lost sight in his eye! He wasn't wild, rabid, starving, and until my father shot him, he wasn't wounded! On the off chance that I am attacked by a wild, rabid, starving, wounded cat, I want to put him out of my misery. This 22LR thing is seeming like a bad idea.

 

[rondog]

Man, shooting dogs in the face with a .22 is just wrong. If you need to dispatch a bad dog, use enough gun to do it humanely willya?

AFA the lions, all I have are .45's filled with 230gr. Ranger SXT's, so that would have to do.

 

[Jeff F]

Thread Hijack On:

I carry the .44 because I bought it for that purpose and it has a cool holster. I actually bought it to carry deer hunting with the hope that someday I might have the opportunity to put down my rifle and plug one with the pistol. So, I was thinking more along the line of shooting big game animals when I bought it.

444
You defiantly have to try hunting with a handgun. I have taken a few mule deer and quite a few wild hogs with sidearms and it is the best adrenaline rush there is. All my shots have been mostly under 25 yards and some as close as ten feet. For a few years I put a rifle down all together

Thread Hijack Off:

 

[Big Boomer]

ABSOLUTELY NOT!

Luck aside, my friends dad was out trapping and had his ruger 10/22 with him there behind him was a cougar stalking him. He unloaded all 25 rounds into him and only with the last shot did the thing lay down and die about 5 feet from him. The shots were slow and placed.

He would shoot a couple of rounds and the thing would stop, growl and keep coming. If it had decided to actually run towards him and attack he would have been done for. The shots all impacted head, neck, and chest. Not a single miss.

He no longer only carries a 22 with him. Now he carries a 22 pistol and a minimum of a 243. He actually had the 243 in the truck but it was about 50 yards away at the time.

 

[heavyshooter]

"You have shot a cougar, and I have not. From your experience, 3 hits from a .500 caliber gun won't stop a cougar. So, why are we even discussing .357s and .44s?" -- OregonJohnny


I was thinking the same thing. Three rounds from a .500 is making my .357 Mag question seem futile. Maybe I will have to hike with a patriot missile.

 

[chriso]

have you considered one of those 410 revolvers? that seems like it would be a good cougar gun. But i would go with the 357 more controllable than 44 mag and you already have one correct? and are familiar with it to boot.

 

[Jst1mr]

I'm sure you could kill an elephant with a .22 if you could hang on his ear long enough and empty enough magazines into his eye/ear/whatever...but why? A high-cap 9MM or wheelgun .38 and up will do the cougar justice-IF you see him, and IF you can shoot straight. PS - they will usually try to clamp on to your face or neck to suffocate you, so save a few rounds and wear ear plugs !!!!!! I have also found that cats hate to be scratched near the base of their tail...if you're desperate!

 

[Jst1mr]

I'm sure you could kill an elephant with a .22 if you could hang on his ear long enough and empty enough magazines into his eye/ear/whatever...but why? A high-cap 9MM or wheelgun .38 and up will do the cougar justice-IF you see him, and IF you can shoot straight. PS - they will usually try to clamp on to your face or neck to suffocate you, so save a few rounds and wear ear plugs !!!!!! I have also found that cats hate to be scratched near the base of their tail...if you're desperate!

 

[Loomis]

Well, you know how those macho special agent kinda guys like to say they can kill you with a ball point pen, or other such seemingly harmless objects? I suppose you could do the same with a cougar and not even bother with a firearm at all...after years of training that is.

But why?

Hunting an animal from a safe distance, and stopping that same animal while in mid charge for your throat are two different things.

You could probably walk up to a buffalo that is being kept busy by 6 large angry dogs and shove a sharp stick into it's ribs and kill it. With a little luck. A matador can do it with a puny little sword and no dogs at all.

So I guess if I was going to defend myself against big cats with a 22 LR, I'd want at least 2 very very tough dogs along with me to keep it off me long enough to take careful aim. Or...if no dogs of required toughness are available, then I guess I'd want a matador along with me on my hike instead.

Know any good matadors with cat experience?

Me either. But if I ever meet one, I'll send him your way.

 

[rswartsell]

heavyshooter

One factor of Wyocarp's related experience is something called over penetration. Reread his post and he points out that his hunting loads had bullets not for thin skinned animals. He was hunting bear with a hand cannon and used bullets that would not easily expand and dump their energy, but keep on moving against very heavy resistance (bear body). A lot of the tremendous energy exerted by the round was NOT absorbed by Mr. Kitty but still motivating the bullet well on the other side. A bullet that expands in its target and stays there has gone from whatever energy bestowed by the cartridge to zero. That energy went somewhere and Mr. Kitty would be the recipient.

I believe his experience was also unusual. Don't think many cougars will take 3 S & W .500 and keep moving but such is possible.

-.410 revolver? With .45 Colt maybe but .410 shotgun round? Better be a slug and 3" magnum and I still don't like it. .410 is kind of a lightweight.

 

[Brasso]

I've personally never seen a couger, but one was just recently hit by a car here in Alabama. It weighed 260 lbs. Granted, this one was a tad on the large side. Just food for thought. I wouldn't feel safe with a .22.