At the age of thirty-three, I moved from the suburbs of Chicago to a small rural town in north central Montana. Though an avid shooter for almost twenty years, my hunting experience had been extremely limited; all that was about to change. While I had been hunting pheasants with my Golden Retriever for the past 3 or 4 years, I had only just taken my first ever deer the prior fall; I was pretty much a novice at best when it came to hunting.
So as I pondered the move out, I gave my rifle battery some thought. Antelope, deer, and elk rifles- check. Shotguns for bird hunting- check. Handguns for home defense and as a “truck gun” when traveling- check. Accurate heavy barreled .223 for shooting in prairie dog towns- NONE! Realizing the void, the last thing I did just before I packed up my truck for the drive to Montana, was go to my local gun shop and purchase a Remington Varmint Special, popped for a Leupold 6-18 scope, and bought a thousand once-fired military brass, powder, primers, and a large bulk bag of .224-55 grain soft points. I had no idea what I was getting into!
Incredible Opportunities
Having never even seen a prairie dog, much less a prairie dog town, I had no idea what I would be facing. I had moved to a very rural area in north central Montana, just to the north of the Charles M. Russell Wildlife Refuge with the Missouri River running right through it. The refuge was a haven for antelope, deer, and elk, and home to prairie dogs, too. But they were not huntable in that restricted area. As soon as I got to town, I found and headed to the sporting goods store to ask about prairie dog hunting.
The most obvious thing about the area was the vastness of the land.
The first thing I learned was that you hunt antelope, deer, and elk; you shoot prairie dogs. They are considered pests, there is no season on them, and so year-round shooting is possible. Ranchers despise them. The holes they make can result in injury to livestock, should they step in one. Also, they have incredible appetites. And if a group moves in on the fringes of an alfalfa field, and they begin to consume the crop, they have a noticeable impact on it in the ranchers’ eyes.
The most obvious thing about the area was the vastness of the land. How would I ever even begin to know where to go shooting? Would ranchers openly allow me to hunt on their...
land? How do you even get their permission? Most ranches had only small signs at their gates off the highway, and their homes could be back miles down a dirt road.
As I gazed at the map, it was easy to see that there were over a hundred prairie dog towns within an hour of my new home!
“You can buy a map of the prairie dog towns on BLM (Bureau of Land Management) land in this area. The towns are all numbered, the map shows the dirt trails to take, and they also post little signs along the way to show where to turn to get to each one,” the guy in the gun store offered..
Reaching around, he grabbed a map off the shelf and opened it up, spreading it across the counter. It was pretty big, around two and a half feet square and literally peppered with designated prairie dog towns. I could clearly see what roads to take to get to each one, and every town was numbered. As I gazed at the map, it was easy to see that there were over a hundred prairie dog towns within an hour of my new home! I could not wait to set up my reloading bench, load up some ammo, and head out with my new map.
Bring Enough Ammo
I figured that would be great for a whole afternoon of shooting.
As soon as I set up my bench and gear, 100 rounds of .223 were cranked out. I figured that would be great for a whole afternoon of shooting. With my BLM dog town map in hand, I took off from home to see my first prairie dog town. I quickly learned that a “road” on the map was at best a bladed dirt road, and to get to most towns, tuning off that resulted in following only two tire tracks on unbladed ground. As long as it had not rained, that really was not an issue at all. If it had recently rained, I quickly found out that I did not want to even leave paved roads. The locals called the wet roads “gumbo”, which was a good sound for the conditions. Even if only the very top layer was wet with dry soil just below it, I quickly found it was like driving on grease. Not only was it easy to slide off onto the shoulder, but the gumbo stuck like glue to the tires, quickly turning even aggressive mud tires to slippery slicks.
When I first moved out, I ordered a big set of BF Goodrich All-Terrains and wider aluminum wheels too, for my Ford 4WD crew cab diesel. I thought the locals were not that “cool or...
savvy” to have the latest and the best big, wide tires on their rigs. Everyone drove stock, skinny tires on their pickups. The first time out with my “bragging” set of big tires that stuck out past my fenders about an inch and a half, I realized the wisdom of the locals. Massive amounts and chunks of mud soon plastered my windshield and hood. And when I tried to back up to get out of a mess, both of my side view mirrors looked like you had frosted a layer cake with mud. The wheel wells soon also became plastered with the gumbo, as did the inside of the back bumper. It took over an hour in a car wash with a power wand and a huge amount of quarters to clean the gumbo off from all over my truck. The very next day, I ordered a new set of standard sized tires and put the big wide set up for sale. Score one for the wisdom of the locals..
OR wonderfully, one that has not been shot at for a very long time, though that was very rare.
So as long as I followed the map and the two-track tire path in the dirt, sure enough, there are tan BLM 6 x 9” signs directing me to the dog towns. I would be driving down a trail, and a sign would appear with an arrow indicating for me to turn this way to get to #84. At times, I wasn't too sure where the path was, but if I looked real hard, I could at
least see a “ghost” of a trail. Following that, and using a bit of instinct, I was always able to eventually find the town. Sometimes a mere whisper of a path resulted in a dog town that was long since shot out, or abandoned… OR wonderfully, one that has not been shot at for a very long time, though that was very rare.
So here I was, a city boy from the Chicago suburbs, following a map in my 4WD pickup, with my heavy barreled varmint .223 and a hundred rounds of ammo, when I came up to my first prairie dog town ever. Barely a hundred yards to the edge, I saw an area almost barren of any vegetation, with little mounds about 4 to 5 inches tall, and around a foot in diameter, there was only maybe 6 to 10 feet between them… and they went for as far as I ccouldn see! Just a quick sweep of the town, and I could see hundreds of prairie dogs- some standing up tall, some kneeling and munching on grass, some playing with each other, scurrying back and forth from hole to hole. And they were chirping and barking up a storm. By turning the truck and lowering the driver’s side window, I could rest my...
left hand on the mirror, left elbow on the window sill, right foot up on the hump on the floor, right elbow on that knee… and I was almost benchrest solid.
I started slowing down to condition and train my brain.
The gun got quickly loaded, and the shooting began. Of course I first took the close ones, and by close I mean only 50 to 75 yards. After a few shots all the close ones not hit, dropped inside their burrows, then I had to start shooting out to 100, and then 150 yards, and finally 200. When all within that range were taken, I just started up the truck and moved 200 yards further into the town, and the whole process started all over again. In less than a half hour I was out of ammo, my barrel was scorching hot, I’d barely made a dent in the town, and realized that I needed to bring a whole lot more rounds the next time I came out!
Slowing Down
Each time I went out I was learning more and more about the best way to approach a town. The one obvious thing though, was that I was missing more than I would like. Early on I was maybe 50% successful on first shot hits. However, I was often shooting high or low, and shooting with the wind blowing, pretty common in Montana. I was clueless about where to hold. So for that first entire summer, I took a new approach that really paid off in the end. I started slowing down to condition and train my brain. I installed a bipod and would walk the towns, only shooting prone.
My longest shot was at a dog quite a ways out there.
Picking out a target, I would guess the range to be maybe 225, estimate a half body or full body width of hold-off into the wind, and take the shot. If I connected, I left my rifle where it was and paced the shot. This was before the time when laser range finders were readily available and affordable. If it paced out at only 175… or 265, I made a mental note of that, and also how much I held into the wind. By the end of summer, I was consistently able to estimate distances and windage required, resulting in my hit ratio increasing dramatically.
My longest shot was at a dog quite a ways out there. The wind was blowing a fair bit, right to left… so I held a full dog high and around a foot into the wind. At the shot, he did
a head-over-tail flip. I paced him to be 436 steps from my rifle, and at...
over 6-feet tall, I consistently have a 36” stride when I pace to measure distance. With my confidence built over that summer, antelope or deer, come fall, would be so easy at 300-plus yards.
Towards the end of summer, I could regularly go out after work, and shoot up 500 rounds in less than four hours. From a city boy who had just taken his first deer ever at the age of 32, to a Montana marksman who can whack a dog at over 400 yards on the first shot, I had come a very long way.
Friends and Family
My two friends back east and my brother would go crazy with my phone calls detailing all of the fun I was having shooting the dog towns. Finally late that first year they all piled in a truck and drove the almost 1,400 miles to come shoot with me. About three weeks before he came out, I was on the phone with my friend, Tim, who had doubts about the volume of shooting I was doing.
“Yep, I have 60 rounds for my 6mm Remington… and 80 for my 220 Swift!” Tim was an old woodchuck hunter from back east, where on a good day he might get 4 or 5 groundhogs..
So I asked him, “And what are you going to do after the first hour when you are out of ammo? You better order up at least a thousand brass and bullets, or you will regret having to just sit and watch everyone else shoot!”
The day came when they finally showed up. The back of the truck was loaded with guns and ammo, and they were all too eager to get out to their first dog town. We wasted no time and headed out right away, with me also driving to have only two mento a truck. As we crested a slight hill, a large dog town appeared on the horizon. They all bailed out and put sandbags on top of the hoods and started shooting. After all of the obvious ones were taken, the shooting stopped. When I asked them why, they said every dog they could see had been shot.
“How far are they and where should I hold?”
As I looked out, I still saw dozens and dozens within range, but their big city, eastern eyes could not make them out. Sure, if one is standing up tall, anyone can see them. The...
average prairie dog is about the size of a squirrel but without the big bushy tail. Younger ones are similar in size to a chipmunk, but a large older one is perhaps 50% larger than a squirrel.
After several months of doggin’, I had grown to know what to look for and started calling them out using reference points such as, “See that dark rock between the sage brush, about 250 yards out? Now go back at 2 o’clock, about 15 feet. (We always used the clock system for directions; 12 o’clock being straight ahead, 3 o’clock to the direct right, and so on.) On the light colored mound, there are two dogs- one looking at us, the other one quartering away. Take the far one first, then the near one.”
“How far are they and where should I hold?”
“Hold just over the head, and about a body width to the left side for wind,” I directed.
And you see most with the naked eye…
Whop- the first…whop- the second one went flying. “How did you even see them?” they all ask.
“Well, the ones standing up are obvious; you just have to know what else to look for. Mostly I see color or contrast differences.”
So the afternoon continued on, and the ones in plain sight were easily taken, but I kept calling out the hard to see ones, and giving them elevation and windage corrections. The months of pacing my shots had really paid off. By the end of the day, they have shot over 1,500 rounds total, when Tim turned to me and says, “Gez- you’ve got predator eyes! They don’t stand a chance with you looking for them. And you see most with the naked eye… only using the binos to confirm and count them!”
I was just so happy they were having a great time. I hardly shot at all. When you are doggin’, it is just as much fun to watch someone else whack one as it is to do it yourself. And as it is almost in my backyard anyhow, it will always be there for me after they leave.
Doggin’ 101
Living within an hour’s drive of over 100 prairie dog towns has a lot of advantages, besides being fun. While living there I would see many people come from over 2,000 miles away, bringing all kinds of gear and 5-gallon pails and pails of .223 ammo. Hopefully, they chose right on their loads, and did not try larger cases or bigger calibers. I’d like to share some of what I learned over six years being...
able to experiment on a regular basis.
- The 17 Mach2 is great out to around 100 yards, as I later saw when living in New Mexico. It does not cause extensive external trauma, but seems to “turn off the switch” with a good hit. No flipping or flopping around- just lights out.
The awesome .204 Ruger did not come out until I was long gone from Montana.
- 17 HMR- is a little more of the same thing, only it offers the same performance out to 150+ yards, and is more destructive up close, but dead is dead.
- 17 Hornet or Fireball, or 17 Remington- I used the 17 Rem just a bit, and the factory hollow points were nowhere near as impressive on dogs as a .223 is. Tipped bullets may offer more in the way of terminal performance, but it is easier and far more affordable to pick up military .223 brass, than to come up with 500 or 1,000 in either of the 17s. Any of the 17s would make a good third rifle.
- The awesome .204 Ruger did not come out until I was long gone from Montana. I think there would be no finer second rifle to take along than a .204. Fast, flat shooting, and in a heavy barreled rifle you would see all your hits. Trying to come up with 4,000 of so empty brass to load would be a problem unless you are filthy rich. That is where the .223 wins hands down.
- A .22 LR is OK, only if you are in areas that are truly infested with dogs that have not been shot at in a longtime. 50 to maybe 75 yards with an accurate HP and you will send them to the great beyond, but your gun mustbe extremely accurate to place shots with precision.
.223 Remington- is the King of the Hill for many reasons.
- The .22 WMR is not as fast or flat shooting as the 17 HMR, but it whomps them and moves the critters around afair bit more due to greater bullet mass. Several Marlin bolt guns I owned shot around 3/4” at 100 yards with 40 grain JHPs. They produced a very audible “whop” on impact.
- The .22 Hornet in an accurate gun might be good out to perhaps 200 yards. The 35 grain Hornady V-Max is“tender” and very expansive,...
even at lower impact speeds.
- A .221 Fireball would be great out to 250+ yards, if you stay with a tipped 40 grain bullet, having a relatively highBC (ballistic coefficient- ability to retain speed over distance, and buck the wind).
- 223 Remington- is the King of the Hill for many reasons. Cheap brass, universally accurate, low recoil and modest blast, and slower to heat a barrel, makes shooting easy and fun. AND in a heavy barreled rifle YOU WILL SEE EVERY HIT YOU MAKE! Why is that so important?
Though hard to believe, at times it is more fun to spot for someone else shooting dogs, as you clearly get to see the “fireworks” as each shot connects. I got carried away and tried a .22-250, .220 Swift and even a .243 and .25-06… but in every case I never saw my hits, nor could I call my misses and learn where I need to aim the next time.
Bullet terminal performance is extremely important when loading your .223 ammo.
Imagine shooting trap or skeet, if the moment after you fired, you had to close your eyes? Imagine NEVER seeing the clay bird get smoked? That would not make a round of either, very fun or interesting. That’s why the low recoil of a .223 in a heavy barreled gun is so advantageous for shooting in a dog town.
Recoil is also the downfall of heavier kicking cartridges- you never see the hits, and can’t call or then adjust, when you miss. The barrels also heat up much faster, calling an early end to your fun. I would not recommend it ever as a second gun, but it could be brought along as a third rifle with only a hundred rounds or so to have a whack at a real far dog. Realizing ahead of time that while your spotter may see quite a fireworks show with a good hit, you never will.
- Bullet terminal performance is extremely important when loading your .223 ammo. I once had the chance toguide a very famous gun writer for two days. He was shooting two rifles with scopes that together cost almost as much as the truck I drove him around in. He had never even shot the rifles until coming out and shot only a bunch of factory ammo sent to him for the shoot. As I spotted for him the entire first day, I was saddened by the terminal performance. All day long it went like this: “Yes you hit him, but he crawled back in the hole.” I must have said...
that over 400 times that first day.
That night I loaded him up around 300 rounds with Speer 50 grain TNT bullets. They offer explosive performance, but at a lower cost than tipped bullets. The next day after seeing him shoot the first two dogs with the same performance as the day before, I casually hand him some of my loads, suggesting he give them a try. At the first shot the top half went left, and the bottom half went right.
“Gez,” he exclaimed, “now THAT was really impressive!”
“Haven’t you ever tried them before?” I asked.
“No, I only shoot what they send me.”
You owe it to the critters you are shooting to use an extremely humane bullet. A good test is a gallon milk jug full of water. When shot with a good frangible bullet, the back side should either be peppered with very fine bullet fragments or none at all, proving your choice has rapid and complete breakup. In fact, a highly frangible bullet can result in doubles or even triples with just one shot. It almost looks like a giant hand is sweeping the mound clean.
- Scopes and Spotting Scopes- At the time, I bought the highest power variable available. You do need a modest low end of magnification, as at only 50 yards, 18 power makes it hard to find small critters. On the top end, I soon realized that heat mirage is greatly magnified the higher in power you go.
Low and behold, I ended up doing almost all of my shooting at “only” 12 power.
Mirage comes from two sources: 1) from the heat waves rising off the sun baked ground, 2) from the scorching heat of your barrel because you can’t get yourself to stop shooting and shooting. Either way, I found the image quality of my target when cranked all the way up was so poor I had to keep dialing down to reduce the visible mirage. Low and behold, I ended up doing almost all of my shooting at “only” 12 power.
As a guy, I know that we all want the biggest, fastest, and most powerful, and nowadays, you can go way beyond 18 power in magnification. You should know in the real world… when working over a...
massive prairie dog town, you’ll find yourself dialed down to around 12 power to ensure good visuals and targeting abilities.
A really good spotting scope is invaluable and fun for spotting for your friends as far as windage and elevation adjustments they need to make. It is far easier than trying to do this while looking through your riflescope. It also will give you the best fireworks show in town!
- Nothing goes to waste- It is entirely possible to take several hundred dogs out in a small area. When you comeback the next day, there will not be a trace of any at all. Coyotes, foxes, and birds of prey will clean the area up so not a scrap can be found. Also of interest is that prairie dogs are cannibalistic. Time and time again, I have seen them feeding on prior carcasses.
- Cleaning and Cooling- Yes it will be really hard to stop, but after 100 ~ 150 rounds it would be good to give your barrel a good cleaning in the field. So be sure to bring along rods, brushes, jags, patches, and solvent to freshen things up for the next round. It also gives/forces you the time to allow your barrel to cool.
Cooling Tip-A great trick is to place your empty rifle, bolt out and muzzle up, in the middle of the front seat with all vents directed at it. Turn the air conditioning up to MAX, and usually, in about ten minutes or less it will be cold to the touch. Using two or more rifles in rotation, you can keep from burning any barrels out.
You can easily overheat a 6-shot .223 bolt gun when prairie dog shooting.
- ARs- while they were available when I hunted dogs in Montana, back then there was no such thing as a precision AR capable of half inch groups or better, at 100 yards. Nowadays you can, in fact, buy ARs in .223 or .204, which can shoot well under a half inch; I see only one issue with that.
You can easily overheat a 6-shot .223 bolt gun when prairie dog shooting. How hot can your fancy AR barrel get if you are tempted by having a 20 or 30 round magazine in it? You would have to exercise extreme control in not blazing away as fast as you can to empty a high capacity mag, or your supper accurate barrel will soon be relegated to “spray and pray” only duty.
...
- At a minimum, I would bring two main rifles- as this allows you to alternate and always gives one a chance to cool off. Besides that, you can bring one rifle in a lesser cartridge from the above list. If you also want to bring one rifle bigger than the .223 to whack an occasional dog, then by all means do. Your first prairie dog safari will teach you many things such that your second trip will be even better. And once you have gone on your first, I promise there will be a second, and a third, and…