ABOUT 3:30 A.M. THIS MORNING MY SPOUSAL UNIT WOKE ME UP OUT OF A CONTENTED DEEP SLEEP. SHE SAID THERE'S A POSSUM IN THE GARAGE AND SHE WAS AFRAID IT WOULD HURT THE KITTENS. I WENT TO LOOK AND SURE ENOUGH HE WAS IN THERE . SO I GOT MY MODEL 27 LOADED IT WITH THE SHOT SHELL HANDLOADS I HAD MADE UP WITH SPEER CAPSULES AND #2 SHOT IN .38 SPL CASES. AS SOON AS HE SAW ME COMING HE TRIED TO FIND A PLACE TO HIDE BUT HE WAS CORNERED. HE GOT ABOUT 2 HISSES AND A GROWL OUT BEFORE I HIT HIM WITH 2 SHOTS FROM THE MINI SHOTGUN. HE WAS DEAD IN ABOUT 2 SECONDS. SCARED THE SH!T OUT OF THE CATS BUT THEY WERE SAFE FROM THE DANGER OF THE HUGE RAT LOOKIN PREHISTORIC CRITTER. THE #2 SHOT SURE WORKS ON THAT SIZE ANIMAL.

THE FUNNY THING IS I THOUGHT SURE I'D GET A VISIT FROM THE TOWN COP TO SEE WHAT I WAS SHOOTING AT 3:30 IN MORNING. I WAITED HALF AN HOUR AN HE DIDN'T SHOW UP. OH WELL I GUESS EVEN IN A SMALL TOWN YOU ARE ON YOUR OWN.

THATS 6 POSSUMS I'VE SHOT SINCE I'VE BEEN HERE.

I'M GOING TO USE SHOT SHELLS FROM NOW ON TO TAKE OUT CRITTERS IN TOWN AS THERE IS LOTS LESS CHANCE FOR A RICOCHET TO SMACK SOMEONES HOUSE CLOSE BY.

Darned things love cat food.

They are ugly, nasty, smelly, repulsive creatures.

I like the #2 shot-in-a-capsule idea. May
have to try that one myself.

BigIron

My German Shorthair went for a run and brought one back and dropped it at the dorstep befor I let him in. I scooped it up with a shovel and carted it down the drive. It woke up just as I finished digging a hole for it. A 22 LRHP put it back to sleep. Shoot,shovel,shut up.

Here's a funny story -

A friend heard is dog barking in the middle of the night, so he got up and found a possum cornered by his golden retriever, apparently already dead. Terry is about 5 foot 2, 45 or so, balding and a full black beard. (Just so you can visualize better...)

So he went to the garage, and got a shovel to scoop it up and put it in the garbage can. Well, it "came back to life" as he was carrying the shovel and tried to climb along the handle towards him, hissing the whole way. He yelled and flipped that thing in the air, and as it came down, did his best Sammy Sosa immitation and knocked it flying over the fence into his neighbor's yard.

His neighbors had 2 pit bulls... it woke up the whole neighborhood as the dogs first fought (shortly) the possum and then fought over its body...

Opossums are easy to catch - just pick them up by the tail, just like a snapping turtle....

Back in the good old days ('70s), returnable soda bottles were worth a nickle, and a nickle was worth picking up. A dear friend of mine had caught an opossum, and put it in the tool box in the bed of the pick up to take care of it later. He went into town a couple days later, and one of the kids asked him if he could have his soda bottles, he said "sure".... He had forgotten all about that opossum - which was in a very foul mood and eager to exit that toolbox!

Of course, he told the story better than me....

Regards, Bill

My dogs barking woke me up in the middle of the night last year, had a possum cornered under the car. I called to dog off, and put 1 1/4 oz's into it at 10 feet. A few weeks later my neighbor said he heard my shot, thought I had an animal problem. He thought I shot the dog because it was barking.

BIGIRON I LOAD THE CAPSULES WITH #2 SHOT OVER 4GR BULLSEYE SEATED JUST SO IT FITS IN THE CYLINDER. I HAVE SOME LOADED WITH #9 SHOT TOO BUT I'M THINKIN THE BIG SIZE SHOT WORKS BETTER ON THIS SIZE OF CRITTER. YOU ONLY GET MAYBE 30 PELLETS IN A LOAD BUT THEY DO WORK WELL. I USE THE SAME LOAD OF BULLSEYE FOR BOTH. THE WOUNDS WERE ABOUT THE SIZE OF A QUARTER WITH ALL THE SHOT STAYING INSIDE THE ANIMAL. HE WAS SHOT FROM ABOUT 3 FT AWAY SO THE PATTERN WAS A SMALL ONE.

Thanks, Tasco. I'll be loading them into a .44
capsule, so I might get a few more in the pattern.



BigIron

THAT AUGHTA WORK! WHAT POWDER CHARGE YOU GONNA USE ON THAT LOAD? SOMETIMES THE SHOT LOAD IS LIGHT AND THE PRIMER UNSEATS AND CAN TIE UP THE CYLINDER ON A REVOLVER BUT I HAVEN'T HAD THAT TROUBLE. TRY EM ON CLAY PIGIONS TOO!THAT CAN BE A CHALLENGE.......

I've used Green Dot for such things in the past.
I think I used something in the neighborhood of 5.5-6.0 grains in .44 Special brass.

If that doesn't get the job done, I also have 231 and Unique available. However, I've had generally good results using Green Dot for handgun loads in the target category.

I've found it difficult to get a crimp good enough to hold the capsules really tight. I kinda wish they had a crimp groove of some sort.

BigIron

[ 09-27-2003, 03:38: Message edited by: BigIron ]

Thanks Calif.,

I laughed good and hard over that visual!

I JUST GOT THAT POSSUM'S MAMA I THINK. THE SPOUSAL UNIT SAID "THINK I SEE ANOTHER POSSUM IN THE BACK YARD". SURE ENOUGH THERE WAS ONE OUT THERE SNEAKIN ROUND. HE WAS A LITTLE TOUGHER THOUGH..TOOK 3 SHOT SHELLS TO TAKE HIM OUT. I'M SOLD ON USING SHOT CAPSULES IN TOWN.

GOT ME ANOTHER LAST NIGHT!! THATS 7-8 IN ABOUT 6 WKS. I THOUGHT MAYBE THEY WERE ALL GONE BUT I GUESS NOT.. THIS SUCKER WAS HUGE..ABOUT THE SIZE OF A COON...LOOKED KINDA FUNNY, THE POSSUM AND CAT OUT THERE EATING SIDE BY SIDE JUST LIKE OLD FRIENDS OR SOMETHIN.

I'm surprised your cats tolerated the thing. Apparently possums don't communicate much - word hasn't gotten around that going to your place is committing possumcide!

BigIron

A few years ago I found a 2 large possum out in the front yard. Being that I can't stand those things I started to look for a weapon that would dispatch such a creature. As it turned out I had bullets but my 22 was still at my cabin(I had forgot it). Being that it was about 2am and the neighbors were not going to be happy when a 338-378 discharges 10yrds from their bedroom window I was forced to look for a solution. I then found that I had some air left in my paintball gun tank and about 300 rounds for it. With solution in hand I snuck outside and got within about 7 yards and started shooting. I lot of growling and 30 or so rounds later one of the possums made it to saftey, however the other had taken refuge under my deck. That was a monumental error in judgment on the possums part. I haven't seen a possum since.

EricH, what color was that possum?

Green

I've got one coming up on my porch and eating the cat food, but my dog alway sees him through the glass in the back door, and barks, which scares him off before I can shoot him. I normally shoot 5-6 a year off the back porch. I don't bother them when I'm out hunting though, because they don't really hurt anything, and they clean up gut piles and road kills, I just don't like the ones that want to live in my barn, under my porch, in the crawlspace under the house, etc.

This always reminds me of the time my friend and I were bowhunting in PA. We were eating spaghetti at a picnic table when a skunk came over to us and came under the table. We had a huge amount left over so I put it on a paper plate and led the skunk over to the woods. Darn thing ate all of it and waddled off like a beach ball. We had a good laugh over that and was glad we were leaving that night because we expected a family of skunks the next night.