The American Beagler Forum

Didn't want to hijack cburchett77's post but wondered if any of youall take notice of the sex of the rabbits you kill.Last 2 years I've been keeping track .Last year I took 79 rabbits and all but 2 were bucks.The 2 does were killed the last day of the season around an area full of holes.This year so far I've taken 46 and everyone has been bucks.This leads me to believe that a lot of rabbits that hole up quick might be doe rabbits.Anyone else have thoughts on this?

That is a good thing to do. I have never thought about checking my wild rabbits. That is something I am going to try and start doing. Hopefully in the morning.

Thats a good idea. Some of you guys that live in the heavily populated states that are able to kill 10 or more a day on a regular basis should check them out. It would be interesting to see.

was always told my a very reputable houndsman. if you jumpshoot youll kill more does. if you let the hounds circle the rabbit you will kill 9-1 bucks. Leave the SEED DONT JUMP SHOOT>....lol

We are finding the same thing in Nova Scotia, if you shot the hare ahead of the hound it usually is a buck, problem is they are smart here and run by other hare some time's you can actually see multiple hare (5) moving a head of the dogs. Hard not to shoot a female in these conditions. I have found 1 female in 60 so far.

we are up to 79 rabbits total right now and we've got 67 does and 12 bucks but the season is just now starting to get better seems like scenting is weird right now.But the old saying is it's called hunting not getting it will get better it allways does.

Ive killed 1 rabbit so far, it was a Buck Swamper.

Just curious les,were these rabbits killed around dozer piles or areas that are full of holes?

Years ago I noticed that most rabbits killed were bucks, if you let them be circled at least once before shooting. About 90% bucks if I recall correctly.
Speed can also be a factor. I've hunted with people who ran slower Brace type hounds, and the sex ratio was pretty close to 50/50, maybe even a few more does. I always attributed this to the rabbit never being pressured enough to even think about holing up. Had about the same ratio when I used to jump shoot rabbits before I had dogs.
Used to go down to Kansas for a late March hunt. We would only shoot rabbits that ran large, due to the bucks expanding their territories in the spring. Nearly 100% would be bucks. The few does killed were the rare stray shot by accident before the buck the dogs were on came through.

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bigjohn wrote:Just curious les,were these rabbits killed around dozer piles or areas that are full of holes?

some dozier piles,but mostly briar patches,and edges of wood lots.my old buddy that is since past on told me once if you watch
a rabbit run off if the tail is bumping the ground it's useally a doe and a high flying tail is a buck i've put this to the test and you know what it's mostly true 90% of the time.

Istarted checking a couple of years ago also and find that about %95 of the rabbits I shoot are bucks. I think a buck runs a truer straighter circle (less zig zags and such) I think the does are used to trying to elude predators during nesting season but try not to get too far from the nest, thus using more tricks. A buck has nothing to loose and just hauls azz. Also I think a buck has a stronger scent. This would explain why the dogs run one rabbit as if they were tied to it and then the very next one they act like they never smelled or ran a rabbit in their lives

I've often thought about this same topic. This week my dad and I killed nine, and I checked each one to see what it was. I was convinced that I could tell the difference in gender by the way the rabbit ran (circle pattern, circle size, and number of doubles). Needless to say I was dead wrong. 6 of the 9 were females.

BeagleRun

I kill mostly buck rabbits and mostly male squirrles too.
Keith

It's interesting that you started this topic because I am 60 years old and have been rabbit hunting since I was 12 years old and I have been checking this most of my hunting life and I would say 90% of the rabbits I have killed have been buck rabbits. Most of the does that I kill are usually killed near the last of the hunting season.

I have hunted 2 times sense this post and have killed 5 rabbits and 4 where bucks. The one doe was a monster caincutter. I bet she weighed 10 lbs.