Reid,

It is obvious that you do not have any experience with either. I hunt rabbits with a 20 gauge over and under shotgun, my wife uses a 28 gauge over and under. The rabbits we shoot are either flushed from a brush pile or are being moved by my beagles. Rarely do I ever get a shot at a sitting rabbit. To shoot a .22 in such a situation would be dangerous to both my dogs and to those hunting in my party. A .22 is prone to ricochet when shot into hard ground and such an occurance in close company is not welcome. Shot charges do not tend to ricochet in such circumstances and provide an added margin of safety to both dogs and hunters. Maybe if you had actually tried hunting rabbits under such circumstance you would understand the challenge that a cottontail or cane cutter (swamp rabbit) can provide to the hunter.

As for squirrels, I do enjoy hunting them with both rifle (muzzleloader and .22) and shotgun (muzzleloader and modern). In my neck of the woods during early season when the squirrels are cutting green hickory nuts and the canopy is full, a shotgun provides the only reliable way of bagging a limit for dinner. The foliage is so thick that one can't usually get a decent head shot with a rifle. As the canopy thins I generally shift to a rifle.

I will take you to task on a safety issue. Many hunters don't take into consideration the hazard involved with shooting a squirrel off a limb with .22. Typically there will be no back stop for a miss or pass through. In unsettled country this might be a non issue, but if you are in farm country a .22 bullet flying willy-nilly is not something to think lightly of. A shotgun under such circumstances provides effectiveness and safety. Most of my rifle shots are on squirrels on the ground or on a tree trunk. I will also remind you of the range advantage a .22 provides over a shotgun.

Don't under estimate the challenge of stillhunting squirrels with a shotgun. You just might be surprised.

Once again another hunter looking down on other hunters choosen method of hunting. When will this stop and we as hunters unite and be willing to support one another and the various methods of hunting and not be so close minded?

I hunt rabbits and squirrels with shotguns. I rarely see rabbits that aren't on the run and when they're sitting I wait until they run. I also think there is no more challenge shooting squirrels with a .22 than a shotgun, especially if the .22 has a scope. I actually have much greater range with the rifle than the shotgun. If you think its cheating, then I guess thats your opinion and you're entitled to it.

I hunt with both, but I actually prefer the shotgun. With the .22, you run a bigger risk of just knockin off a leg and sending the squirrel back to die a slow and painful death. With a shotgun, they just fall over dead every time.

IT really doesnt matter how we hunt its hunting enjoy it while u can.But also rabbit hunting with a shotgun is much better if u use dogs because u could hit one of your dogs with that .22 bullet AND u arent just going to hit a running rabbit with a .22 in less its running across a field and really aim..like febuary 28th was the last dat of rabbit hunting in virginia so i went to tappahanock and i shot at two different rabbits shot at one twice missed him and i had a open shot dont know how is missed just did with a shotgun.then i had one run straight to me and shot three times on him and still missed then i had no more shells in the gun so i was bout to put another shell in and he stoped 2 feet away from me and looked at me i was so mad.but as for squirrel hunting with a .22 shooting up with no cover is good.but if you are shooting on the ground and in cover then a shotgun would be ya best choice

Depends on the human population around, how remote are you!

Sorry guys, I didn't proof read my previous post. The grammar structure of my first sentence is rough to say the least.

I hunt rabbits with a shotgun in the timber. As I walk through they flush from brush. I have rarely seen one standing still. They are flying at about 20 mph and you have about 1 second to get off a shot before they are out of sight. It took a lot of practice to get to the point where I could hit them. When I have taken hunters out who are not accustomed to rabbit hunting, they rarely get one. I find that if you can hit a rabbit in the timber with a shotgun, you can hit anything because of the quick shot training you get. Blazing with a .22 would be both dangerous and inhumane in these conditions to say nothing about having to eat bushes at the end of the hunt because you sure won't have rabbits.

Only with a .410 barrel on a T/C Contender. You have to aim it like any other handgun. Otherwise either a .22 LR or a .22 Magnum. I don't like to eat shot.

I agree with you Reid. They are just to easy to hunt with a shotgun. I like shooting them with a .22. They are more of a challenge that way. Sure a shotgun will put it out of its misery, but I think the squrial wants a little competition before it dies.