Some serious groundhog hunting going down.

[YZ-80]

Well, my goodness!! This is very heartwarming news as there have not been many "Master Bedroom Woodchucks" as of late for me. Way to go @Ohlongarm! As I've always said: "Doin' right ain't got no end!"

 

[Pwbergen]

My dad showed me showed me a trick that improved my groundhog hunting. Groundhogs will stand up to look if you make a high-pitched whistle, which makes them easier to spot and shoot. The western groundhogs are known to whistle when they sense danger to alert other groundhogs, but adjust your volume down if they are close.

 

[Mike Matteson]

What fun day!

 

[nocannons]

Great shooting and great pictures. I hunted chucks for 50 + years with some breaks when I was in the Corps and living in HI.

Do a lot of the "new to the sport" chuck or PD hunters actually go out into the fields to pick up their kills? When we shot the chucks & PDs, we knew we hit them by the umph & impact especially through a scope shooting a .204! The bullet hit made the unmistakable sound and the chuck/PD dropped. When shooting slowed down in one field we went to another field for more chucks. Never wasted time driving or walking to pick up kills (once you walked/drove around you scared everything into their holes in that field) we just moved on. We knew what we got. I just may be old school .I may take a picture of a nice Buck, Bear, Moose, Elk, Turkey, Bobcat, and even a nice Coyote (maybe a hog or two if you never shot one or they are BIG they make great pictures & stories), but never took a picture blown/ripped in half/up PDs or chucks. I have taken pictures of squirrels and posted on this site, but they were Monkey & Fox Squirrels which most people have not ever seen in the US. Only post because these were for mounts and mount worthy - not damaged. I also have taken numerous pictures of the landscape/terrain of hunting or target shooting areas that I have been at.

By all means I am not knocking everyone that takes picture of chuck & PDs, even though it seems like I am. If it wasn't for pictures that are posted of Chuck & PDs a lot of hunters would never know what they look like or live vicariously through other hunters.

I really like ALL the stories on all these PD and Chuck hunts from this forum. You guys ROCK. Wish I was in your shoes at the hunts being described. Brings back a lot of memories

I got one for y'all. A chuck taken in NE PA. he was a Tri Color (grey, black, orange). Didn't take a picture -had him mounted! One of my best hunts with a man that was like my dad. Knew him for 54 years an had uncountable chuck, deer, moose hunts and countless fishing trips. No money or anything can compare with friendship hunting and fishing trips.

When we shot Pdogs in S.Dakota we were told not to even pick one up to look at it. Leave them for coyotes and other critters. One person told us they were cannabalistic and ate their own.

 

[smokey3]

Do you eat the younger ones or cut any for line bait, coyotes or catfish / turtles?

I've worked with a few guys here and there that wanted young ones to eat and there was a woman a few doors down that said her Mom made a real good oven baked groundhog. Her husband looked at me and rolled his eyes. Haha

I've never tried it.

Tastes like roasted beef, only more tender

 

[xsn10s]

Tastes like roasted beef, only more tender

I heard the same for raccoon also.

 

[Coyote Shadow Tracker]

My dad showed me showed me a trick that improved my groundhog hunting. Groundhogs will stand up to look if you make a high-pitched whistle, which makes them easier to spot and shoot. The western groundhogs are known to whistle when they sense danger to alert other groundhogs, but adjust your volume down if they are close.

Whistle Pigs in many southern and western states. There is a "Whistle" you can buy for hunting them. When things got slow we broke out the whistle or when you shot and missed. They sometimes stood up looking for the chuck that sounded the alarm. Get a second chance(sometimes)!

 

[Ol' Red]

I heard the same for raccoon also.

It has been 50 years since I ate racoon. It was probably cooked wrong, because it was very greasy. It wasn't long before it came back up. I ate a lot of young groundhog as a kid and thought it was pretty good.

 

[david g ranes]

I have a serious problem with ground hogs. They are digging underneath my shop concrete floor. I've put giant rocks by the opening and they move them, how do u catch them they seem to be very smart animals.

I had problems with one borrowed a live trap from a friend tried several different kinds of baits nothing then I took a couple apples cut one up the other one I stepped on and mashed put the cut up pieces to back of trap the mashed one in front caught it first night I used apples David

 

[SSgt G Cody]

Guys, I'm almost ashamed of most of you! Groundhog is one of the best tasting meats you'll ever eat! Are you guys city slickers? For many years the centerpeice of our family reunion dinner was my grandmother's roasted groundhogs! She was the dietician for our local VA Hospital cafeteria, and a tremendous cook! Our family kept her freezer well supplied with groundhog meat! Do yourself a favor and try it!

 

[iShoot17]

Great shooting and great pictures. I hunted chucks for 50 + years with some breaks when I was in the Corps and living in HI.

Do a lot of the "new to the sport" chuck or PD hunters actually go out into the fields to pick up their kills? When we shot the chucks & PDs, we knew we hit them by the umph & impact especially through a scope shooting a .204! The bullet hit made the unmistakable sound and the chuck/PD dropped. When shooting slowed down in one field we went to another field for more chucks. Never wasted time driving or walking to pick up kills (once you walked/drove around you scared everything into their holes in that field) we just moved on. We knew what we got. I just may be old school .I may take a picture of a nice Buck, Bear, Moose, Elk, Turkey, Bobcat, and even a nice Coyote (maybe a hog or two if you never shot one or they are BIG they make great pictures & stories), but never took a picture blown/ripped in half/up PDs or chucks. I have taken pictures of squirrels and posted on this site, but they were Monkey & Fox Squirrels which most people have not ever seen in the US. Only post because these were for mounts and mount worthy - not damaged. I also have taken numerous pictures of the landscape/terrain of hunting or target shooting areas that I have been at.

By all means I am not knocking everyone that takes picture of chuck & PDs, even though it seems like I am. If it wasn't for pictures that are posted of Chuck & PDs a lot of hunters would never know what they look like or live vicariously through other hunters.

I really like ALL the stories on all these PD and Chuck hunts from this forum. You guys ROCK. Wish I was in your shoes at the hunts being described. Brings back a lot of memories

I got one for y'all. A chuck taken in NE PA. he was a Tri Color (grey, black, orange). Didn't take a picture -had him mounted! One of my best hunts with a man that was like my dad. Knew him for 54 years an had uncountable chuck, deer, moose hunts and countless fishing trips. No money or anything can compare with friendship hunting and fishing trips.

The Uncles and Grandpa that taught me to hunt (including groundhogs) used to speak of glory days where farmers would pay them a bounty on every groundhog they took out of their fields. Rules were you could hunt them and shoot them, but you had to cut off their tail (as evidence) and bring it back to the farmer to get paid. The last step was you had to fill the hole back up.

Even though farmers aren't paying anymore, some still let us hunt on their property and my habits are still the same. I always check the kill site so I can push the hog back in its hole and so I can fill the hole back up. Farmers appreciate it - I'm sure it has saved some livestock limbs and tractor axles over the years.

 

[smokey3]

I heard the same for raccoon also.

There is no comparison between raccoon & groundhog IMO. Coon is tough and greasy tasting to me. Oh, I have had both growing up in WV, not my choice BTW, LOL.

 

[smokey3]

Guys, I'm almost ashamed of most of you! Groundhog is one of the best tasting meats you'll ever eat! Are you guys city slickers? For many years the centerpeice of our family reunion dinner was my grandmother's roasted groundhogs! She was the dietician for our local VA Hospital cafeteria, and a tremendous cook! Our family kept her freezer well supplied with groundhog meat! Do yourself a favor and try it!

^^^

 

[smokey3]

It has been 50 years since I ate racoon. It was probably cooked wrong, because it was very greasy. It wasn't long before it came back up. I ate a lot of young groundhog as a kid and thought it was pretty good.

It probably was not cooked wrong, that is just how it is. I do not like coon, kinda reminds me of an old boar bear.