# "Varmit" hunters. **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [March 11, 2012, 6:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/varmit-hunters/615473 "2012-03-11T18:29:22Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Shagnasty](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9dc877/32.png) [@Shagnasty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shagnasty)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2012, 11:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/varmit-hunters/615473/21 "2012-03-12T23:50:23Z")
> [@Chronos](#): > > And what makes a critter a varmint is that you’re killing it primarily because it’s a nuisance if left alive. You might eat if afterwards (waste not, want not, after all), but that’s not the primary reason you’re killing it. True but people hunt squirrels in the Eastern and Southern U.S. actively and spend money to do it just like deer. Squirrel hunting is usually done deep in the woods not in a park and it isn’t easy. They aren’t nuisance animals anymore than ducks and quail are but the numbers need to be managed to ensure a healthy population over the long term. Most people that invest the time in hunting them eat them. ---
**Author:** ![mangeorge](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/d78d45/32.png) [@mangeorge](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mangeorge)\ **Post date:** [March 13, 2012, 12:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/varmit-hunters/615473/22 "2012-03-13T00:08:16Z")
> [@Shagnasty](#): > > True but people hunt squirrels in the Eastern and Southern U.S. actively and spend money to do it just like deer. Squirrel hunting is usually done deep in the woods not in a park and it isn’t easy. They aren’t nuisance animals anymore than ducks and quail are but the numbers need to be managed to ensure a healthy population over the long term. Most people that invest the time in hunting them eat them. Why do they need to be managed by us? I hear this a lot but don’t know why we need to interfere, especially in the deep woods. Have we killed off all their natural predators? Our city squirrels seem to do okay without being hunted. I’m pretty sure there’s no abatement program, but I can check. ---
**Author:** ![Saint\_Cad](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/saint_cad/32/18907_2.png) [@Saint\_Cad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Saint_Cad)\ **Post date:** [March 13, 2012, 12:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/varmit-hunters/615473/23 "2012-03-13T00:24:53Z")
> [@Shagnasty](#): > > but the definition of varmint hunting is to get rid of nuisance animals so the usability aspect isn’t as important as in sport hunting. As someone who lives in No. Colorado, I can tell you that the “mighty hunters” that shoot prairie dogs do it to kill something. They are rarely a nuisance since you have to go out to their warren to find them. ---
**Author:** ![Shagnasty](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9dc877/32.png) [@Shagnasty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shagnasty)\ **Post date:** [March 13, 2012, 12:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/varmit-hunters/615473/24 "2012-03-13T00:39:37Z")
> [@mangeorge](#): > > Why do they need to be managed by us? I hear this a lot but don’t know why we need to interfere, especially in the deep woods. Have we killed off all their natural predators? > Our city squirrels seem to do okay without being hunted. I’m pretty sure there’s no abatement program, but I can check. The full answer is complicated but the basic answer is that most animals didn’t evolve with a mix of natural and man-made ecosystems in mind. We wiped out most of their natural predators and created an extreme opportunity for some species that thrive at the fringes of human activity yet they will overpopulate to the detriment of their own well being if allowed to do so. White-tailed deer are one of the best examples of that among managed species. They will overpopulate to the point in which much of the population will starve in a bad food year. Many of them will starve or become unhealthy or diseased if they aren’t managed well. That wouldn’t be the case if humans didn’t exist but their well-being as a whole species is dependent on not letting them breed out of control. Squirrels can’t destroy a vehicle like a deer can but they can interfere with other species survival and with each other. Most game species are carefully regulated so that it is in best interest of people and the species to cull the herd every year with the wildlife biologists determining the numbers with the best science available. The point isn’t just to appease people that like to hunt animals. It is a job that needs to be done one way or another and the people that determine the bag limits are very educated in wildlife biology and have the best interests of the species at heart (as do most serious hunters in general). ---
**Author:** ![psychonaut](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/psychonaut/32/4655_2.png) [@psychonaut](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/psychonaut)\ **Post date:** [March 13, 2012, 8:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/varmit-hunters/615473/25 "2012-03-13T08:10:11Z")
> [@Chronos](#): > > Squirrels aren’t fit for human consumption, but Mom would cook them up for the cats. [One of the most famous and respected chefs in Britain](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fergus_Henderson) disagrees with you. When in season, squirrel is always prominently featured on the menu of his London restaurants. It’s even got a long history of consumption in the United States; squirrel recipes have appeared in some editions of _The Joy of Cooking_. ---
**Author:** ![sweeteviljesus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/898d66/32.png) [@sweeteviljesus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sweeteviljesus)\ **Post date:** [March 13, 2012, 2:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/varmit-hunters/615473/26 "2012-03-13T14:25:31Z")
> [@mangeorge](#): > > There are mountains in Texas? Yes, the Davis Mountains. We have swamps, too. And I have never owned a cowboy hat :). ---
**Author:** ![mangeorge](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/d78d45/32.png) [@mangeorge](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mangeorge)\ **Post date:** [March 13, 2012, 2:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/varmit-hunters/615473/27 "2012-03-13T14:46:13Z")
> [@sweeteviljesus](#): > > Yes, the Davis Mountains. We have swamps, too. And I have never owned a cowboy hat :). I know. You guys have adopted the ball cap. Fashionably backwards, even. 🙂 Oops, I forgot, y’all \*invented \* the backwards ball cap. It was Garth Brooks, iirc. ---
**Author:** ![sweeteviljesus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/898d66/32.png) [@sweeteviljesus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sweeteviljesus)\ **Post date:** [March 13, 2012, 2:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/varmit-hunters/615473/28 "2012-03-13T14:57:18Z")
It’s “y’all”, not “you guys”. Actually, I almost never wear a hat (except as protection from the sun) and I don’t like Garth Brooks, but then again, I live in Austin. And I grew up in San Antonio, so I like heavy metal, ese. 🙂 Rob ---
**Author:** ![Dallas\_Jones](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dallas_jones/32/3277_2.png) [@Dallas\_Jones](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dallas_Jones)\ **Post date:** [March 13, 2012, 5:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/varmit-hunters/615473/29 "2012-03-13T17:22:59Z")
> [@Shagnasty](#): > > I am not sure what you could do with a mountain lion if you managed to shoot one legally for personal or property protection. You usually have to report things like that and the state wildlife officials take the body. I am sure that plenty of people would stuff some or all of it if they could. You really don’t want to be caught with parts of a protected species without the right documentation. Legal cougar hunting season in Oregon is open year round over the entire state. You need a hunting licence and a cougar tag. When you bag one it must be examined by the ODFW within 10 days. That’s it. Then you can go buy another tag and keep hunting. And I also hear that they are good eating. > **[ODFW Hunting Cougar](https://www.dfw.state.or.us//resources/hunting/big_game/cougar/index.asp)** ---
**Author:** ![Tangent](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tangent/32/3098_2.png) [@Tangent](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tangent)\ **Post date:** [March 13, 2012, 7:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/varmit-hunters/615473/30 "2012-03-13T19:12:51Z")
> [@mangeorge](#): > > It was Garth Brooks, iirc. Not a Texan. ---
**Author:** ![mangeorge](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/d78d45/32.png) [@mangeorge](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mangeorge)\ **Post date:** [March 13, 2012, 8:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/varmit-hunters/615473/31 "2012-03-13T20:59:56Z")
> [@sweeteviljesus](#): > > It’s “y’all”, not “you guys”. Actually, I almost never wear a hat (except as protection from the sun) and I don’t like Garth Brooks, but then again, I live in Austin. And I grew up in San Antonio, so I like heavy metal, ese. 🙂 > > Rob I love Austin. I’ve been to other Texas cities, but Austin is closest to Berkeley in temperment. And the music scene is unsurpassed imo. Great food too. Too damned hot, though. BTW, Van Halen is touring, With Dave. BTBTW, I said “y’all” in my second sentence. ---
**Author:** ![mangeorge](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/d78d45/32.png) [@mangeorge](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mangeorge)\ **Post date:** [March 13, 2012, 9:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/varmit-hunters/615473/32 "2012-03-13T21:22:11Z")
> [@Tangent](#): > > Not a Texan. I see. Oklahoma. Same thing. Note that I’m thousands of miles away from Texas, and therefore safe. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![Fear\_Itself](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fear_itself/32/19637_2.png) [@Fear\_Itself](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fear_Itself)\ **Post date:** [March 13, 2012, 9:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/varmit-hunters/615473/33 "2012-03-13T21:42:06Z")
> [@mangeorge](#): > > I thought if you eat them, they ain’t varmits (sic). But they is vittles! ---
**Author:** ![KneadToKnow](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kneadtoknow/32/3999_2.png) [@KneadToKnow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KneadToKnow)\ **Post date:** [March 13, 2012, 9:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/varmit-hunters/615473/34 "2012-03-13T21:54:50Z")
> [@mangeorge](#): > > Oklahoma. Same thing. You fight dirty. ---
**Author:** ![Scumpup](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ce73a5/32.png) [@Scumpup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Scumpup)\ **Post date:** [March 13, 2012, 10:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/varmit-hunters/615473/35 "2012-03-13T22:13:14Z")
The skid marks leading up to the coyote… ---
**Author:** ![PatriotGrrrl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/9dc877/32.png) [@PatriotGrrrl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PatriotGrrrl)\ **Post date:** [March 13, 2012, 10:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/varmit-hunters/615473/36 "2012-03-13T22:37:31Z")
> [@Saint\_Cad](#): > > As someone who lives in No. Colorado, I can tell you that the “mighty hunters” that shoot prairie dogs do it to kill something. They are rarely a nuisance since you have to go out to their warren to find them. They can be if they’re on your grazing land. Horses and, I think, cattle can break their leg from stepping in a prairie dog hole. They also damage crops. (Or so I’ve heard, there aren’t any around here.) ---
**Author:** ![sitchensis](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sitchensis/32/4892_2.png) [@sitchensis](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sitchensis)\ **Post date:** [March 13, 2012, 10:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/varmit-hunters/615473/37 "2012-03-13T22:41:28Z")
Technically yes, but I generally do it just to kill stuff. ---
**Author:** ![Tangent](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tangent/32/3098_2.png) [@Tangent](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tangent)\ **Post date:** [March 13, 2012, 11:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/varmit-hunters/615473/38 "2012-03-13T23:35:28Z")
> [@mangeorge](#): > > I see. Oklahoma. Same thing. Hey, now that’s a low blow! ---
**Author:** ![mangeorge](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/d78d45/32.png) [@mangeorge](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mangeorge)\ **Post date:** [March 13, 2012, 11:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/varmit-hunters/615473/39 "2012-03-13T23:46:03Z")
> [@PatriotGrrrl](#): > > They can be if they’re on your grazing land. Horses and, I think, cattle can break their leg from stepping in a prairie dog hole. They also damage crops. (Or so I’ve heard, there aren’t any around here.) I’ve been told by shooters that that (the break a leg thing) simply ain’t true, and I’ve seen their burrows. they are very large and [obvious](http://www.google.com/imgres?q=prairie+dog+burrow&hl=en&biw=1002&bih=498&gbv=2&tbm=isch&tbnid=ivi-aGMJxmmQ8M:&imgrefurl=http://www.meridian.k12.il.us/middle%2520school/student_work/bmmm_mammal_project/prairie_dog.html&docid=niRquiml3coB8M&imgurl=http://www.meridian.k12.il.us/middle%252520school/student_work/bmmm_mammal_project/prairie_dog_burrow.jpeg&w=259&h=194&ei=BttfT4H7MYr50gH3v4mpBw&zoom=1&iact=hc&vpx=756&vpy=116&dur=7543&hovh=155&hovw=207&tx=131&ty=102&sig=107511667638956893959&page=3&tbnh=148&tbnw=186&start=23&ndsp=14&ved=1t:429,r:4,s:23) and easy to see. ---
**Author:** ![Tangent](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tangent/32/3098_2.png) [@Tangent](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tangent)\ **Post date:** [March 13, 2012, 11:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/varmit-hunters/615473/40 "2012-03-13T23:53:20Z")
> [@mangeorge](#): > > I’ve been told by shooters that that (the break a leg thing) simply ain’t true, and I’ve seen their burrows. they are very large and [obvious](http://www.google.com/imgres?q=prairie+dog+burrow&hl=en&biw=1002&bih=498&gbv=2&tbm=isch&tbnid=ivi-aGMJxmmQ8M:&imgrefurl=http://www.meridian.k12.il.us/middle%2520school/student_work/bmmm_mammal_project/prairie_dog.html&docid=niRquiml3coB8M&imgurl=http://www.meridian.k12.il.us/middle%252520school/student_work/bmmm_mammal_project/prairie_dog_burrow.jpeg&w=259&h=194&ei=BttfT4H7MYr50gH3v4mpBw&zoom=1&iact=hc&vpx=756&vpy=116&dur=7543&hovh=155&hovw=207&tx=131&ty=102&sig=107511667638956893959&page=3&tbnh=148&tbnw=186&start=23&ndsp=14&ved=1t:429,r:4,s:23) and easy to see. No, they’re not always that obvious–especially in grasslands–and there may be hundreds of holes in a few acres. My parents’ land in New Mexico has prairie dogs and a person can definitely torque an ankle if you’re not watching carefully where you step. We don’t have horses. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/varmit-hunters/615473.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/varmit-hunters/615473.md?page=3)