Wolf killed by pellet gun

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d2wing

d2wing

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In today's news, a wolf was found dead along Lake Superior in Minnesota. An autopsy was done and a pellet from a pellet gun was found that caused death.
It penetrated between ribs, if it hit a rib it would have been stopped presumably.
Since it is legal on Tribal land where it was found, to drive a wolf off, it is presumed that someone shot it with a pellet gun to chase it away. I don't think anyone would attempt to kill a wolf with a pellet gun, but be careful what you shoot, even with a pellet gun.
The wolf may have had a radio collar, it had crossed the ice from Isle Royal.
A gun safety reminder too. Fluke kills happen. Do not point even a pellet gun at something you do not want to kill.
 
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Lots of pellet guns nearing/exceeding 22LR levels --be careful out there.

TCB
 
My first kill with a break barrel pellet gun supposedly shooting 1100fps was a rabbit at 30 yds. Headshot. Broke the skull into multiple pieces and ejected bits of bone in all directions. Quite messy. Pellet guns are stronger than 22s in some cases.
 
Our Outdoor News this week also had a conservation officer report on a deer found that was also killed with a pellet. They are certainly not toys...
 
I'm aquainted with two instances in which a person was trying to scare a deer off with a pellet gun and killed it.
 
a few times per year it makes it on the news about a person that was put in the hospital or killed by a pellet gun. what makes a deer or wolf so much different?
 
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Todays pellet rifles are pretty damn powerful. A person could easily get killed by one for sure. I just cant see trying to "scare" off an animal with a pellet rifle with a direct hit. A person could fire one off without the pellet and it sounds just like a .22 lr . As for a deer , shooting one with a pellet gun or bb gun,, it would be cruelty to animals and a nice long prison term.
 
Can't wait to get my Discovery with a TKO surpresser. Not asnrefinednasnthe Maurer, but not as heavy, and can hand pumped fairly easily to 2000 psi.

.22 cal PCP pellet guns get up close to 30 lbs muzzle energy.
 
Years ago an old woman who lived by Eagle Lake (CA) wanted to chase the pesky deer out of her garden. She shot it with a pellet gun. It walked away and died. Punctured lung. Opps.
 
I ran in to an elderly man in the sporting goods department of a store many years ago. We were both looking at the firearms section and there happened to be a fairly nice pellet gun for sale. The conversation turned to pellet guns and he mentioned ruefully that he had accidentally killed a large dog with a pellet gun in the past. Meaning to chase it away, he swung the gun at the running dog as it passed by him and pulled the trigger, hoping to "sting it". Instead it ran awhile farther and piled up. Like the wolf, it had taken a pellet through the ribs which killed it.

Pellet guns can be lethal, no question about it.
 
When I was in high school, another student was killed with one. Happened over a weekend; two boys were involved in a dispute. One came to the other's house, and was shot in the chest in the doorway. Not sure what the intent of the shooter was in shooting the other youth with what was reported at the time to be a "BB gun."

The victim collapsed shortly after uttering "you shot me!" The BB had pierced the heart.

This was in 1982 or 1983, in Riviera Beach, Florida.
 
Darn straight pellet guns can kill. However, even the heaviest 22 Cal pellets out of uber air rifles will not generally exceed the energy of a 22LR. I think the heaviest 22 pellet is 32gr. Muzzle velocity out of a high-end hunting air rifle will run around 1,000fps with a heavy pellet.

Like the lowly 25ACP proves, all it takes is 60-something lbs to kill and a lot less with a lucky shot.
 
I could see how the person wanted to use a pellet rifle to scare off the wolf. He probably underestimated the power they can produce or simply didn't think it would kill, but I doubt they wanted to kill the wolf. I for one wouldn't unless it was was attacking me. Or if it was getting my livestock, and even then they are such beautiful animals I would feel bad :(

Yes today's air rifles can be very powerful and lethal and should be treated accordingly.
 
I hate to read about any animal being killed senselessly, especially wolves. They're so beautiful. It's always important to treat all weapons with respect. Those that seem the most harmless are the easiest ones to misuse. :(
 
That's too bad. I was just reading about the Isle Royal wolves a couple weeks ago and wondering what would become of that particular one.
 
MedWheeler said:
When I was in high school, another student was killed with one. Happened over a weekend; two boys were involved in a dispute. One came to the other's house, and was shot in the chest in the doorway. Not sure what the intent of the shooter was in shooting the other youth with what was reported at the time to be a "BB gun."

The victim collapsed shortly after uttering "you shot me!" The BB had pierced the heart.

This was in 1982 or 1983, in Riviera Beach, Florida.
Click to expand...

30 yrs in or around Riviera beach, lots of crazy stories begin or end I mmen Riviera beach. ie, the child that took grandmas suv for a ride and hit dozens(?) of cars.

I still keep my old 10 pump bb/pellet gun for these situations. Squirrels made small holes in the screened porch, they come in & drink from our rain catching buckets we water our plants with. The little buggers are always tearing up our pots either burying or digging up acorns. My girl loves them and squirrel stew has been forbidden. With one pump & a bb instead of a pellet, hitting them on the ass is pretty safe. It doesn't penetrate at all, the sound is probably scarier for them. 2 pumps for larger critters.

If I tried that with my disco, we could line up 10 squirrels deep & it would probably go through all of them. I had to rebuild my target/pellet trap 3 times before the pellts stopped the going straight through it.
 
Mastrogiacomo said:
I hate to read about any animal being killed senselessly, especially wolves. They're so beautiful. It's always important to treat all weapons with respect. Those that seem the most harmless are the easiest ones to misuse. :(
Click to expand...

Senseless? I share you sentiment in general, but you've read a lot into the story with no info. Idiots abound who talk about the majesty of predators & how they should be reintroduced, from the safety of their condos & high rises. Just not in their city/backyard. If (& we have no idea if this is applicable) that wolf is stalking my 5yr olds school bus stop, I'm going to kill it asap. NYC had wolves that were pushed out by the invasion of humans, why not reintroduce them there? No, not happening through the eastern seaboard, I'm sure Cali had plenty of cougars.....well they've just exchanged the type of cougars there.

Anyway, I share your sentiment, but please be careful indicting acts as senseless without good intell. The person may well have been an ass, or protecting his/her family.
 
Not a lot of fans of the wolf here in Idaho....They have decimated the elk and moose and are now focusing on deer and livestock.

Luckily ,since they've started hunting them, they've become a lot more wary of humans.

I saw a 90lb wolf ( not particularly large) that had already been skinned out. It was way too long to lay out on a full size pickup tailgate ( not counting the tail). Very lanky, no fat, amazingly well muscled neck and jaw. Large jaw, large canine teeth.

I had always just assumed that it was basically just a lanky dog....but it is very different. I don't actively hunt them, but I do buy a wolf tag every year.......
 
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At what point do they stop being "pellets"?
Check out some of the Sam Yang PCP air rifles. They come in .357, .45 and .50 calibers. The big .50 throws a 225 gr "pellet" at just under 700fps. The .45 does a 200gr. at 730 fps. That's .45 ACP power......
 
I for one have no sympathy for the wolf. Since they have been allowed to multiply the Moose here are nearly wiped out and deer populations are way down in some areas. They also have killed a lot of livestock as they kill for fun. If all the wolves were gone, I would not miss them.
 
Assuming that the wolf was shot with a more common pellet gun.....

How close would the wolf had to have been to the gun for the pellet to penetrate as it did ??

Admittedly , the pellet didn't hit bone , but it still would have needed to penetrate the fur,the skin,an unknown amount of intra-rib muscle ( called intercostal muscle) as well as the pleura and still have the energy to puncture lung....

I'm thinking that this wolf must have been quite close. Probably damn scary for the shooter !!
 
I killed several possums with an Benigman 177 air rifle using some hard home made tire weight pellets. At 10 to 15 feet it dropped them dead .

IMO these new hi power ones are not kids toys .
 
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