The runnin and gunnin crew over in Georgia

The first one
"The runnin and gunnin crew had their first hunt this past Saturday. It sure was warm and dry. we had 8 dogs on the ground in a small area and the dogs had made 2 passes with the rabbit when a deer decided to get up and leave. you couldn't make me believe a deer had held that tight. Anyway we jumped 6 and killed 4 and had an evening full of muscle cramps. Guess the dogs aren't the only ones who need to get into shape. Good luck. "

and the second
"How are things on your end??? We had a rough day on Friday. Hunted all day, jumped and bagged 3. Well killed 3 the dogs beat us to one so we only bagged 2. Hunted again on Sunday and it was great hunting weather. We went 7 for 7 and had some really good runs. We hunted hard, but the rabbits are getting scarce. I sure hope it picks up because I hate those days when there is a considerable amount of time between jumps cause I’m afraid they will jump on the first thing going the opposite direction. Been lucky so far. Well hope you’re having better luck on your end. Drop a line when u get a chance and rest assured the runnin and gunnin gang will keep things rolling on this end."

"what about the small game hunter"

This is the reply

"We at extenddeerseason.com do not wish to take any days away from the small game hunters. The majority of those hunters who have responded to our initiative actually suggested splitting deer season and taking ten days from December by closing it for the stalk or still hunters at that time. Deer hunting with dogs would be allowed during that period on a permit basis only. All small game hunting would continue the entire time the deer season would be closed in December. Currently small game hunters have a 151 day hunting season. If opossum or raccoon are included it is a 181 day season. Deer hunters, to include bow hunters, have a 108 day season. Based on these numbers, small game hunters already have a much longer season than deer hunters. On private or leased land, what one hunts is decided by the owner or lessee. On public land, in the south Alabama area, the small game hunter has as many or more opportunities to hunt small game as the deer hunter has to hunt deer. In closing, I personally think there would be little impact on the small game hunter in south Alabama if deer hunting season is extended. Everything seems to be working well in Florida and Mississippi where deer season extends into February. So actually you wouldn't be loosing any days in this scenario. "

Want to take a guess on how many leases would let you on the property during the ten day shutdown?

The Alabama Conservation Advisory Board will hold its first scheduled meeting of 2012 on Saturday, February 4, in the State Capitol Auditorium in Montgomery, Ala.

Yeah, I know, all of us small game hunters will be in the woods. I fussed about the date before, but the general attitude was "tough"

If the weather is to bad to hunt, try to make it. The deer hunters will be there in droves demanding a February deer season, permission to shoot over corn and other perks

"We" got 9 on the Tuskegee hunt today

The annual East Alabama Rabbit Hunters & Souse Eaters Social Clubs Martin Luther King Memorial Day Rabbit Hunt was a success though there were a few hitches.
Yellow line on the left
When your host tells you that, you might want to ask “when going in what direction?”

Or, file it away with other excuses like, “my dogs don't run deer, they just got lost”, “ I don't know where that last sausage biscuit went”, “my gun jammed” or “Sorry, I wasn't cutting you off, I didn't see you standing there.

As a matter of fact, I'm optimistic tinged with worry.

Myself and most of the dogmen I know will sell out and quit hunting if the season is extended. It doesn't make sense to maintain a pack of rabbit dogs to hunt 2 weeks a year

Alabama’s deer hunting season currently opens in mid-October and ends on January 31
each year. Some Alabama hunters have requested an extension of deer season into part or
all of February.

I'm back
I'm changing hosting and I was beginning to wonder if all the old content was lost forever

Now, do I set the therabbitjournal .com/journal as a archive and use therabbitjournal .com as my main page using a new content management system

Any thoughts?

First the Short:
Brother and I, three old dogs, three hours, six rabbits, shooting my homade all brass .410 shells converted from British 303's in my Winchester Model 9410 Packer Lever Action, and got one with my 6 shooter 22lr Heritage RoughRider.

wishes that he hadn't passed on the BBQ hunt to go to the Auburn Georgia game.

And what made it worse was Plunker informed me that all BBQ fundraisers will now be limited to the spring.
One Dawg missed the last one.

It may have been the last East Alabama Rabbit Hunters & Souse Eaters Social Club Invitational morning hunt followed by the Ridge Grove BBQ Ridge Grove Volunteer Fire Department "All you can eat BBQ" fundraiser, but it won't be the last time that we hunt Plunker's property.



The members of the EARH&SESC in attendance were Middle Boy, Brag, Dilla, Steve and myself, rimfire.
Djmed said he felt to rough to attend. That's what happens when you live in a University town and your pushing 40

One Dawg, I've already explained.

Plunker was cooking the stew.

Cuz has pretty well quit hunting.

Dusty1, well, he broke up with his GF and since he attends Auburn, well,..........

The most important ones in attendance were The Rabbit Journal pack. The Guys stayed home along with Hammering Kate.
I brought Penny Sue, Sally Mae, Debra Kay, Lucy Lu (one of these days I'll run out of gf's to name the hounds after) Sister Sissy and Lil Bit.
They preformed outstandingly all morning long.
We had five races with three kills. If I remember right it took a single shot on all three. Our first race ended where it usually does when we start at the trash pile.... in a hole at the creek bed

First up was Steve with a running shot with a single shot .410,



followed by Brag. Then Dilla killed a big buck.



The luck didn't hold out on the last rabbit as Dilla and Brag cut loose with multiple shots. That rabbit is probably still running.

I'm hoping I can hold out the whole season. I'm having a epidural on Friday.
There is a recommendation that I have shoulder surgery on both shoulders.
Sigh......

is the sixth annual East Alabama Rabbit Hunters & Souse Eaters Social Club Invitational morning hunt followed by the Ridge Grove BBQ Ridge Grove Volunteer Fire Department "All you can eat BBQ" fundraiser followed by the couch and the Auburn/Georgia football game

The party started next door at 10 pm on Friday night. When I awoke at 5 am, admittedly earlier than I needed to, I could still hear the thump of music mixed in with voices though we were separated by a good 200 yards. By 5:30, the sounds faded away as I sat and sipped my morning coffee on the screened in porch. I'm pretty sure Drummer Boy and his friends started what I suspect was a alcohol induced slumber.

At 6:30, I left to meet Middle Boy at Mr Murphy's. Looking in my rear-view mirror, I could see the disappointed faces of the four little ladies I left in the pen. Heads thrown back, they were serenading the recently sleeping. While my house was a good two hundred yards from the source of the party, they were only fifty yards from my dog pens. Little Bit has been known to bark for hours on endless I use the collar on her and I needed it for the hounds that I took on the days rabbit hunt..
I doubt I will hear anything about it. Drummer Boy's family and I tend to irritate each other doing what we need or have to do, but that does gives the other a license to carry on with our own irritating activities..

With Penny Sue in heat, I decided to only take Samuel P Thumbsucker, his sister Sister Sissy, Along with the old lady of the pack, Hammering Kate and the three puppies, Teddy NoPass, Blondie and Debra Kay, we had a six pack.

The human component of The East Alabama Rabbit Hunters & Souse Eaters Social Club, at least for this hunt, consisted of Middle Boy, Steve, Dilla and rimfire, your gregarious host. I haven't heard from Brag, Dusty1,djmed,.....and others.
We, of the the EARH&SESC that were assembled, decided to start out on the parking lot rabbit. The big buck is one we've hunted for several hunts now. He fooled us last week and was destined to fool us again today.

Getting out of the old Pathfinder, I made a dang fool mistake. I left the electric pine limbs on the front seat. My reasoning was that the dogs were pretty much broke from running trash and I had the three most dependable dogs with me. Besides, Teddy Nopass never goes anywhere without Sammy P.

The first race ran it's usual course. No one was able to see, much less shoot at the brown rabbit running on brown pine straw in brush that still had their leaves on.

seem to always want things easier

They want to shoot deer over corn
They want to hunt in February
They want fences

Chemicals to remove odor, ultraviolet light

Infrared scopes are on the market

Scopes that gather the minutest amounts of light

Bows and accessories that make the primitive weapons more like rifles

And many other things that I haven't noticed

So the question for hunters is "is there a point in which you cross a line in fair chase?

where the deer hunters of Alabama are less concerned about fair chase and more concerned about getting a kill with whatever legal or illegal tactics they can deploy, it hurts to lose someone who has a sense of ethics about the blood sports

was a minor affair.
About the only thing that really stood out was when GF had to take me to the emergency room Saturday night. That had nothing to do with the hunt and more on that later.

There was only three of us, Saturday morning, myself (rimfire), Dilla ( our resident pre-teat and armadillo killer) and his dad, Steve. I haven't heard from Brag or Dusty1. Plunker was out of town. Cuz was working, yada yada yada
We were hunting Mr. Murphy's property near the site of the old Salem Shotwell Covered Bridge. Mr. Murphy who let Middle Boy hunt has passed and the family has decided to sell the property.
We figured we would wear the rabbits out until it's sold.

The end is near for our rabbit hunting at Mr. Murphy's near the site of the old Salem Shotwell covered bridge ( pictures of it after a tree fell on it and pictures of it "restored" at Opelika ) as well as Middle Boy's deer hunting there.
It was the site of the last place that Uncle NoPass rabbit hunted
The land is to be sold or put up at auction

Sigh!