.22lr & possum-one shot kill,what works?

[Tropical Z]

I need techniques and what ammo has worked for you.I most likely will be using a Remington 597.What have YOU found to be the quietest and most effective ammo out there? I normally use Remington golden bullet HP's in all of my .22lr's.I ask,as i soon will be moving from non-possum country to possum country and have never dealt with these vicious beasts.I may have a city house but then again i may not.What REALLY works?

 

[Matt G]

Longest barreled .22 you have, with CCI Mini Mags. They're not the fastest load out there, but they shoot a FULL-weight bullet, with extra oomph. One to the head does fine. Consider: 3 shots with a CB cap sound more like gunfire than a single shot from a full Long Rifle.

I'm moving this to Hunting Forum.

 

[Bravo11]

Any 22lr hollow point will probably do. The important thing is shot placement. I've been having some trouble with an arnadillo myself.
My entire yard is dug up and full of holes. I've seen him once early in the morning. I'm going to have to use night tactics on him I think. I feel like Bill Murray in Caddy Shack going after the gopher.

 

[sm]

Win 40.gr Powerpoint, is what I use for rimfire critter control.

Word is ahem- CCI CB longs are quiet. Word is a fellow had bushy tails falling from trees around his garden...coincidence? Not sure that bigger critters would 'fall' as easy.

 

[Carlos Cabeza]

Vicious ? They don't bother no one. Only if they are around the dogs or kids (around your house) should you be concerned. They are nasty and could carry diseases, but otherwise harmless unless you mess with it. A .22 will take care of the job, but be careful if your shooting around homesites. (you mentioned quiet).

 

[Bonker]

My recommendation is.....DO NOT USE A 22 ON A POSSUM !!!

I speak from experience. Trust me here. It is cruel and horrifying to watch. It can take 10 shots or more to kill one even with potent rounds such as CCI Stingers.
The only way to drop one in one shot it to hit it square in the brain and even that usually takes 2 or 3 shots. They make the most horrible screm when they are suffering and it will really bother you if you have any compassion at all for animals.

Rodents like possum and armadillos are tougher than you might think. There's no need to be cruel on that level.

Use a 223 and they die in the blink of an eye. If you can't use enough gun then don't shoot.

Also, a hollowpoint won't help. They won't expand much in such a small target. I've even tried Quickshock fragmenting 22 and it didn't work either.

There are lots of options for you. You can buy stuff to sprinkle on your yard that will keep them away. Don't leave tasty garbage where they can get to it.

Believe me when I tell you that killing a few here and there will make no differance in the population. You won't be helping as much as you think by shooting them.

They won't really hurt you if you don't confront them. We have them here and it's not a big deal although they do scare the crap out of my wife sometimes at night.

 

[Edward429451]

I agree with Bonker. We had one in our garage once in Ohio and dad shot it in the neck (missed the bobbing head) with a 45acp and it went into a frenzy like. They are very tenacious and are not to be toyed with. Shot quite a few in Ohio with .22's and I dont remember any one shot kills.

YMMV.

 

[charlie d]

I had one of those ugly suckers show up on my back deck one night.
Here's what I did to it.


http://frutsel.terrainhost.com/frutselapp/dump/charlied/general/porch33000a.jpg

 

[M60]

A .17 hmr within 100 yrds aught to do the job.....


The Pig

 

[Bobarino]

a .22 on a possum is just fine. they do indeed carry diseases and we've had a few kill our cats and mangle others. at the very least ,if the tangle with your pets, your pals will end up with infected bite marks. i have killed them in one shot with regular old round nose lead stuff. one shot behind the shoulder just like you would on a deer.

a .223 might be a little much for a house with neighbors within earshot. if you want more gun, consider something like the Kel-Tec Sub 2000 9mm carbine. should be good for 50-75 yards at least. or if you live in a state that allow suppressors, there are a few internally supressed pistol caliber carbines out there.

Bobby

 

[cratz2]

Never shot one with a 22lr. Winchester Supreme 22 magnums seem to work.

My favorite game bullet for the long rifle is the sadly defunct CCI SGB (Small Game Bullet). Heavy 60 Gr bullet doesn't seem to expand a whole lot but penetrates pretty well.

Funny, but I don't think I've ever even tried to take game with a Stinger or Yellow Jacket.

 

[IRONFIST]

I think that a plain old possum is the "terminator" of the animal world. They seem to be able to withstand terrific amounts of abuse. Someone hit one with a car outside my old workplace one night(I worked out in the country) and I went out to see what I could do to help it. It was sitting in the middle of the road, with a good-sized puddle of blood around it. At least 2 legs badly broken, back looked broken, and it had a HUGE wound in its side. It saw me and hissed very loudly. Even tried to take a step towards me. It would almost pass out and slump over, but would gather its strength and get back up... time and time again. I didnt have a pistol that night, so I had no easy way to end its misery. I stayed with the possum about 30 minutes until a big 4x4 approached. After flagging him down and talking about what to do, we figured the best thing to do would be for him to back up a ways(1/4 mile) and run the poor beast over. He hit the possum very hard but had to do it twice to kill it. Thats one tough animal and it was pissed and defiant right to the very end. One of the reasons that I now carry a pistol all the time is so I can quickly help an animal end its suffering.

Michael in Sandy, OR

 

[Double Maduro]

If you think that you might move to the country and need some 'possum control, keep in mind that there are many more 'possums that live in the city than the country. There is a lot more food for them in the city.

The 'possum has more teeth than any other land animal and they know how to use them.

Yes they on occasion do play possum, that's is usually to make you think they are dead so they can get you when you get up close to look.

They taste really good if you roast them nice and slow.

 

[GD]

Both the possums and skunks in my neck of the woods will usually take more than 1 hit to stop them. A single hit and they will take off. I still use .22 because they are cheap and won't travel as far as other calibres. I really don't like shooting at night (that's when those critters show up) so a small calibre is what I prefer.
BTW, I actually will start out with .22 birdshot. I figure I will give the critters a 1st chance. If they show up again, then I give them the full and final treatment.

 

[Selfdfenz]

"Rodents like possum and armadillos are tougher than you might think. There's no need to be cruel on that level."

No need to call'em rodents on that level either, as they aren't.

Any regular solid 22 LR. Look up a skeleton of one on the net to get an idea of where to place the bullet. They may be tough but I've seen several shot pretty much stone dead with head shots.

Pepper spray might be a better and quieter thing to try first. Don't just puff it at em....pour it on. They can move faster than you think.

S-
a picture, no less
http://www.skullsunlimited.com/American_Opossum_Skull.html
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[redneck]

Anything in a .22LR will work if you hit them right. Just bear in mind that nothing dies instanly, short of literally being blown to bits. Nobody thinks anything of a deer running 100 yards right after being shot. Small animals like possums and coons, just flop and growl. Its not a pleasant sight, but its the facts of life. Once in a rare while one will just keel over, usually if you shoot it again it will majically come back and start the flopping. It all depends on their nerves and where you hit.
Shoot it in the head if possible, or a good shot to the vitals or spine that should anchor it, and you can walk up and put another one in with the muzzle of the gun up close so it doesn't make much noise.

 

[Greybeard]

Tough little critters. Yep, Yep on head shots.

I noticed "quiet" as a criteria. IMHO, the CB's a little lacking in energy (only around 750 fps). Remington Subsonics keep a 38 grain pill under the speed fo sound, at least eliminating some "crack" and still cycle my semi for quick followup shots if needed.

Aquila's fairly new SSS is promising, especially on short range shots. 60 grain bullet at 950 fps.

 

[HadEmAll]

I dispatch skunks fairly regularly this time of year with CB caps out of a Browning rifle. I drew a skunk sized head on plywood and practiced until I could hit it consistently. CB caps WILL do the job. They'll penetrate up to the base of the bullet in plywood at 10-15 feet. Wonderful little inventions. I turn the possums loose, so don't know if the CB caps would do it, but I can't imagine why they wouldn't.

 

[Redfern]

This may be a little hard to believe, but I had a racoon up a tree, a Browning Buckmark, a flashlight and one .22 short.
The racoon took the shot under the jaw, danced on the limb for a few seconds and fell to the ground quivering. Musta hit the artery, because the blood was pooling fast. I think he was dead as he fell off the limb.

 

[Greybeard]

Had'em -

Agree that the CBs are a great little round for certain applications. And agree that, if quite close, they would likely anchor with good shot placment(s). CBs are indeed about the quietest load available without dropping down to Colibris or air guns (definitely neither recommended for possum).

However, the possum in these parts are at least twice the weight of skunks. And seem to have much more of a will to live. I've had good hits on crows with CBs (even 1000 fps Rem Subsonics) that still flew some distance before going down. Not that I've weighed either , but it might take a skunk plus a couple of crows to get in same weight class as a possum!

The SSS loads, altho "subsonic" are not necessarily quiet, but do have excellent penetration. In last testing done with them, after around 60 yards, they completely penetrated one 2X4 (actually 1 1/2" thickness) and dropped after hitting face of second 2X4. My thinking with them is similar to big game hunting - two holes generally better than one.

As stated tho, good hits to the brain pan with normal .22 rounds should do it. Either way, killing things does sometimes simply get unpretty.

 

[HadEmAll]

Greybeard,

I bow to your experience regarding the CB caps and anything other than head shots on skunks. The only reason I have to dispatch the skunks is that around April they start looking for places to have babies, and under my deck seems to be ideal for them. The scent wafts into the house and the family is miserable. I keep a Have-a-Heart trap baited out in the yard, and in addition to catching the skunks one at a time, I get a lot of cats, possums and squirrels. I turn everything but the skunks loose. No city agency will pick up skunks, and the one volunteer agency that does makes you feel so guilty about calling them that it's not worth it. So unfortunately I have to shoot them in the head through the 1 inch squares of the mesh cage, which is why I practiced diligently until I found out just how much front sight I had to hold up to be dead on with the CB's at 15 feet and shooting downwards. Being in the inner city does make quietness mandatory for me. If I was rural, I'd use a .243

 

[Greybeard]

Had'em -

I would be curious as to success you've had with putting down skunks while in the cage. Are ya able to do it without 'em dumping their load? If so, the technique might sure save some grief here.

Skunks sometimes decide to take up residence under a couple of structures, even start coming in the cat door into office/classroom and I have to "deal". To avoid what I've perceived as risk of really stinking up the place, last year I "engineered" some rigging with strings/ropes to the trap to be able to release from a distance (the roof) or slowly drag away. Caught a big old 'coon the first night tho and he decided that much of my "engineering" needed to come inside the trap with him. Sure glad it was not Mrs. Skunk.

The cat-door-invasions by various critters have not yet been a problem so far this year. But ... I figure they are comin' ... Sorta hate to set the trap too far from building as I don't care to catch anything that's not a problem.

 

[Tropical Z]

WOW!
This is gonna be an awakening.Im a city boy and have never had to deal with skunks,possums or racoons.Im sure i will have to soon.
I didnt know you could eat possum's,id always heard that they were greasy and awful tasting and even a hungry dog wouldnt touch one.By the way,i guess doggie doors are pretty much out of the question in areas with these critters huh?

 

[sm]

TZ

Them critters can get into the darndest places...and won't leave.

Here for raccoon , one must use a 22 short if treeing at night. Yes 22short. Gets back to shot placement, doable. 22 short is quiet form a rifle. 22 short for possum works. I'd see what my rifle liked as far as noise and accuracy. It ain't cheating to find to used single shot at the pawn shop that'll feed short,longs and long rifle btw. Excuse for a gun, cheap, will feed anything, fun, teaching tool, re-live your youth, and with iron sights you'll get back to basics and improve your shooting all around.

Shot placement

[whirrll...........TZ's off to the pawn shops folks...]

 

[Tropical Z]

I do have the single shot Garcia Bronco i bought about 8 months ago (remember when i thought i was such a smarty pants at TFL!)for all those who remember the thread.Alas i havent even shot it yet so i have no idea how accurate it may be.