First Squirrel

gravertom

gravertom

Joined
Jun 4, 2004
Messages
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No time to say much, and pics later, but my boy got his first squirrel last Sat.

:D

It tasted good!

Tom
 
gravertom said:
No time to say much, and pics later, but my boy got his first squirrel last Sat.

:D

It tasted good!

Tom
Click to expand...

Congrats to you and your son Tom!:thumbup:
You found out that they're little boogers to skin, eh? ;)
How did your son do after his first kill? Regretfully way too many kids have a queasy feeling after their first experience at taking an animal's life and even more regrettable are those kids who never get over having the feelings and so refuse to ever shoot anything else, even a target.:(

Too go off topic a bit but important to everyone's potential shooting skill and especially kids or new shooters....:o
Something to be aware of when a kid gets his/her first gun and can't seem to hit anything they aim at whether they are right or left handed, or right or left eyed. My son Sam is right handed....

My old man bought a BB gun for my son at a little too early age so he was only allowed to shoot with an adult's supervision which turned out to be a very good thing as well as me having eye problems at an even younger age! :eek:
In spite of everything I told Sam to do he couldn't hit the broadside of the proverbial red barn! It finally dawned on me that Sam might be having the same problem I once had and still have to some extent ---- so I had him act like he was shooting a pistol by putting his arm straight out with his finger pointing at what he wanted to shoot with his opposite eye closed and then opening the other eye so both were open and then tell me if his finger moved off the target.
Then to put his other arm out, close the opposite eye and do the same thing and again tell me if his finger moved off target.
Naturally Sam started by putting his right arm out and closing his left eye. When he opened his left eye his right finger moved, "Way off the target!!!!" his words. Then Sam put his left arm out, closed his right eye, and no surprise to me his left finger remained on target when he opened his right eye!!!!:thumbup:
Even though Sam was/is right handed he was/is Left Eyed! I then had Sam try shooting left handed and his aim improved remarkably and instantly, problem solved! :cool:
Sam has thanked me over and over and especially when he went into the Army and had to qualify with a rifle, he told me, "Dad if it wasn't for you teaching me to shoot left handed I would never have qualified with the AR-15 and I want you to know just how much I appreciate you taking the time to figure out what my problem was. I owe my career in the Army to you and I thank you for that!" Made me feel really good, still does.:D At least I was able to give him that.:thumbup:



....
 
Yep Yvsa there's another one of us left eye dominant folks here. Had to qualify with my M-16 left handed as well. except it was something I had to figure out on my own.

Marc Adkins
 
Tom, thanks for the update! Bet you guys had a great time. Funny how the Ruger 10/22 isn't considered accurate enough for target shooting but it's great on Squirrels and the like. If it will take an itty bitty squirrel it's good enough for me. :thumbup:

So, where are the pictures???

Heber
 
Pics are still in the camera, I'm at work right now.

Yvsa, I did carefully watch him, and sort of gently interrogate him a few times during the day. I had him gut the squirrel after we sat for a while more.

he handled it well. You all must remember, i am NOT an experienced hunter at all. We are learning together. It was tougher to skin than I thought it might be. Glad it just wasn't us.

he seemd OK with the whole thing. he did not want his pic taken with the squirrel, but he did want to keep hunting for anoter few hours. I had a couple of opportunities, but couldn't drop the hammer. i have to get over my careful range habits, but OTOH, I would rather pass than take a hasty or unwise shot.

Everyone enjoyed a bit of the squirrel and dumplings that night. We had that and some tomatos from the garden, along with other things.

A long way to go, but we are getting there!

Now, today, on the way home i will work on the shot loads for my brown bess, and try some different ball loads. I hope I can get a Deer this year. My son doesn't seem ready yet. I won't rush him into it, that's for sure.

Talk to y'all later!

Tom
 
BTW, I have caved on the Finn MN's.

I have a M27 "project" coming together, and an antique M39 coming soon...

I had to trade two of the M44's, but still have one, plus a 91/30 I traded an Ishapore for.

4 and counting...

Also, picked up an OM Sinlge Six a month ago. Sweet little gun, with the dovetailed rear sight. A tack driver!

T

:D
 
I learned to shoot by myself, and I'm another right-hander that shoots southpaw. Not only am I left-eye dominant, but it feels most natural for me to control the weight of a rifle with my dominant hand. Another thing I have found to be tremendously helpful was when I learned to use my arm, wrapped in the sling to lock a rifle into position. Some people think a strap is just for carrying a rifle, but used properly, it'll help steady your sight picture a lot.

I still enjoy target shooting, but feel sorry for animals I've shot. Especially shotgun with steel shot vs rabbit -- that's almost never resulted in a single shot clean kill for me. One shot and they drop like a stone is good, but when an animal is injured, scared and thrashing around until you finish it off, that's quite another for me. I can hunt if I absolutely need to, but I'd much rather target shoot for recreation.
 
gravertom said:
Pics are still in the camera, I'm at work right now.

Yvsa, I did carefully watch him, and sort of gently interrogate him a few times during the day. I had him gut the squirrel after we sat for a while more.

he handled it well. You all must remember, i am NOT an experienced hunter at all. We are learning together. It was tougher to skin than I thought it might be. Glad it just wasn't us.

he seemd OK with the whole thing. he did not want his pic taken with the squirrel, but he did want to keep hunting for anoter few hours. I had a couple of opportunities, but couldn't drop the hammer. i have to get over my careful range habits, but OTOH, I would rather pass than take a hasty or unwise shot.

Everyone enjoyed a bit of the squirrel and dumplings that night. We had that and some tomatos from the garden, along with other things.

A long way to go, but we are getting there!

Now, today, on the way home i will work on the shot loads for my brown bess, and try some different ball loads. I hope I can get a Deer this year. My son doesn't seem ready yet. I won't rush him into it, that's for sure.

Talk to y'all later!

Tom
Click to expand...

Naw, Tom...

you don't have a long way to go. :)

You're there. Now, just taking steps of learning and great shared experiences. No telling what sticks in a kid's head, but you are making memories.

kinda neat



Kis
enjoy every sandwich
 
Pics...


1022squirrel.jpg



squirrel.jpg


Thanks,

Tom

PS I buried my dog last night. We had her for more than 12 years. She went pretty quick.

She was a great dog.

...
 
Nice squirrel, cool layout.

Real sorry about your dog. What breed was she?

I have a Beagle that's 17, I know it's going to happen to her some day in the not distant future.
 
Thanks,

she was a mutt, part lab, part husky. very good natured , very loyal, but protective at the right times.

My childhood dog made it to 17. She died while I was in basic.

Tom
 
Great to hear about the shared memories with your boy. Smoke up for your dog friend.

Mark
 
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