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Jaxom · Senior Member

Okay, yeah, I mentioned that I'd like to see a recipie forum last year and havne't contributed to it.....yet. But I want to! I could use a bit of help from you long time small game hunter types to do so.

With my toy like 1077 I some how manage to take a few squirrels and I think I scared a pigeon to death by nearly missing it! I didn't have mush issue skinning and dressing the squirrels. But I did have some problems with the pigeon.

Honestly, I had never dressed a bird taken before. so I proabably mutaliated the carcass trying to dress it. Of course I had also forgotten that with foul you make the first cut going across the breast, not from throat to vent. I do believe that if I did it the right way, I won't waste as much meat.

Think I would really like to do is figure out how to dress foul in such a manor as I could stuff them. I know one of my ex scout masters did this with duck and pheasant, but I haven't seen anywhere on the net on how to do this.

What I mean by this is dressing a pigeon in such a manor it's like a store bought chicken or turkey where you don't cut the back or breast. And you end up with a cavity where you can add stuffing. I have no problem with plucking and the rest of dressing it. I even have a large coffee can with some wax ready to go to to help aid in this.

Next issue...attracting pigoens. I have NO problems with squirrels what so ever! But pigeons, I've tried different types of seed and stale bread on the ground. So far all I've managed to do is fatten every robin, sparrow, finch, cardinal, blue jay in my neighborhood! And here I thought pigions (sky rats) were scavengers! To add insult to injury, at the very end of my block there's a huge flock of pigeons that hang out on some wires between electrical poles. I swear there's at least 100 birds in this flock!

And while i'm thinking about it... I know most of you hunters have seen or even possibly planted food plots for deer. Um...what kinda seed could one use to attrack and feed rabbits? There was a bit of miscomminication between my mother and I. After tilling and leveling our back yards, we some how didn't have the cash to buy veggies. I can plant some seed, but that will still leave me with a huge muddy, semi weed laden area. Is there any particular grass or such that rabbits like?? I know we have them in the area, I actually watched 3 of them playing tag one morning across the street from my house!

Thanks!

Jax

Rogerflat · Silver Status Member

Most bird breasts taper down to a point right in their lower belly, under which is soft tissue. Make a small horizontal slit right under the breast and slightly above the genitals. This is where you will be taking the entrails out from--that is, sticking your fingers up in there and ripping out anything gooshy and bloody. You also would cut off the head, wings, and feet at that point too.

But if you stuff them, you have to leave the skin on them. And if you leave the skin on them, then you have to pluck them. I'd be god damned if I ever pluck a pigeon, but if you want to Jax, go for it.

I've never seen a pigeon attracted to the seed I've laid down, so I think you may have a hard time baiting them.

Jaxom · Senior Member

The trick I heard on easy plucking foul is to boil some water and add wax so it melts too...dip bird by the feet into this coating the feathers...when you peel the wax off the feathers are sappose to come with, any pin feathers left you burn off with a torch.

scroller99 · Veteran Member

I have taken several wild turkeys and I have plucked them, but skinning them is so much easier! and I know that the rabbits I have owned always flipped for clover not a good grass subsitute but maybe a patch in the corner of the yard in shooting distance Twisted Evil

good luck

Jaxom · Senior Member

hhmmm...clover, wonder where I'd get that?

Rogerflat · Silver Status Member

You can get ladino clover from any place that sells seed. I know its good for deer, and probably rabbits too.

One thing on those pigeons, since plucking is such a pain in the butt, you could just skin them, then wrap them in bacon or something else that will protect the outer layer of the meat during cooking.

Jaxom · Senior Member

Sounds delicious Roger! I love bacon wrapped steaks. My only problem is mom, for some odd reason, the smell of cooking bacon makes her nasuated now. This has only happened since she was diagnosted with cancer...before that she ate as much of it as I did!

Rogerflat · Silver Status Member

You can grill those things too Jax. So wrap it in foil, take it out to the grill or the smoker, and let it cook outside away from mom.

Damn it man, do I have to think of everything! Laughing

Jaxom · Senior Member

Um...I use my grill for "cooking" copper, ya don't wanna eat anything out of there after I've been using it to burn of wire insulation!

Done a bit more research! Seems bunnies LOVE clover. But I don't have a feed store near by...such is city life. Any of you running food plots for deer have a spare pound of clover seed??? Yard is 25'x25', that should be about enough. Keep the weeds out too! Pump the ground full of nitrogen I hear as well.

Jax

deecaig · Member

You will only need a handful of clover for that area in pasture we use about 2kg hectare. The only problem with clover in lawn is it flowers low and bees love it. It fixes around 200 units of nitrogin per year so your lawn will grow like f*** . New Zealand is one of about 2 countries that grow clover for seed the farm i am on has about 30 hectares for seed.

Jaxom · Senior Member

I totally forgot about a place near me, they had the white clover, so I got a pound. Not bad either! Only $4.00! Some of the online stores wanted as much as $12.00 for a pound of white clover.

Now all I've gotta do for the bunnies is provide some cover. Wonder if some of my neighbors would miss a few bushes? <Evil>

TONBON · Veteran Member

clover for rabbits is #1.
as for cover. see if you can find a short(2ft) section of corrugated plastic pipe. maybe 4 or 6" dia. make a small brush pile over/ around the pipe.
me and my neighbor have a few of these on our land.
the rabbits will den in the pipe.
Mr. Green

Jaxom · Senior Member

Ah...too bad I didn't have my 2300 me in the truck. Last week I did some tree trimming on tree in front of house, had this huge pile of branches I've been meaning to chop up and put out for collection. I get home from getting clover seed and here's this large bunny sitting right next to brush pile.

Problem with leaving a dead brush pile in my town is that would be concidered a blight issue and I'd recieve a citation and perhaps even a fine if I don't clean it up.

I can however get away with putting in some bushes. I'd really like a row of blueberries along our north fence line. The nieghbor on that side is the one with yappy dog and he dont' take care of his property at all. If I had a row or two of berry bushes, the rabbits wouldn't mind being so close to a dog...

Also thinking...if I can find some yews or some other short strain of bush to put infront of garage would also be nice hiding places for bunnies too.

fritz · Silver Status Member

Jaxom, you can eat robins. I know if you look there are recipes.

Jaxom · Senior Member

Is there any meat on a robin? Think i'd be wiser to stick with setting up the pigeons and doves...along with the sky and tree rats. Plent of them about.