Expert: Dave Nyce - 4/9/2005

Question
I have heard from some of my friends that it's unsafe to shoot at a squirrel at a tree with a .22 rifle because in case of a miss, the bullets may travel very far and there is the danger of injuring someone. Is that true? If so, what kind of guns should I use to hunt squirrels? Thank you.

Answer
.22 LR bullets can travel more than a mile when fired into the air.  This can be dangerous.  The only way that I think is safe to hunt squirrels with a .22 rifle is to do what I do:  I sit in a tree stand and only shoot at squirrels that are at a sufficiently lower elevation than I am, so that I can see where a missed shot will end up, and that it's a safe impact area.  The advantage to using a rifle is that I aim for the head, and don't damage the meat.

Otherwise, use a shotgun with #4 or #6 shot.  The pellets from a shotgun will come down at a relatively safe velocity when fired into the air, and they won't go very far.

Hope this helps!

Dave