The stealthy feral cat

Some may argue that the fox is our most cunning varmint and the crow the most clever, while I’d say the starling in the field is the most difficult to shoot with a centrefire rifle. Those who regularly hunt wild dogs would surely say they are the smartest. For me, even though a wild dog comes close, bagging a prowling feral cat gives me more satisfaction than any other of our pests.

When rabbits were in plague proportions before the advent of myxomatosis, large numbers of cats were released into the wild so as to reduce the bunnies’ numbers. However, this wreaked havoc on our native species, which were not adapted to ward off the feline threat, and continues to do so.

Sometimes feral cats will be attracted by a predator call, but I’ve usually found hunting them to be an opportunistic thing, coming across them when I’ve been on the trail of something else. And so it was, with this particular stealthy feral cat.

The first time I laid eyes on him was in the late afternoon when targeting a fox. He was on the other side of the creek to me and moving quickly. Then he disappeared into a depression in the ground. Hastily making my way across the creek via stepping stones and over to the hollow, I found that he had vanished. Now this feral cat had a distinctive tabby coat. Several times I specifically hunted the area for that cat but he evaded me.

I’ve shot feral cats with a range of calibres from .22LR up to .270, but if I had to nominate my favourite for hunting them, it would be the .222. A .223 would also fit the bill as would slightly less powerful cartridges. Larger calibres such as the .243 will certainly see the job done, but you don’t need that level of destruction. Save the .243 for the wild dogs on the run.

Feral cats are tougher than rabbits and although a .22LR works well most of the time, I don’t want to try to recover them from down a rabbit hole or underneath blackberry bushes. The .222 kills them on the spot. For longer shots past 80m, the .222/223 is vastly superior to the .22LR. I load 24 grains of BM2 with a 50-grain Sierra BlitzKing in the .222.

A rifle ideal for foxes will also be suitable for feral cats. The possibility of scoring a feral cat, or a fox, is a good reason for me to take the little Sako AI .222 out for a walk. This is a nice rifle/cartridge combination for wandering around after foxes and feral cats.

After several attempts at trying to take that tabby cat, I started to think I’d never see him again. Months later on a bright sunny morning, instead of taking the .222, I grabbed the Anschutz 1416 .22LR and loaded the 10-round magazine with 42-grain Winchester Power-Points. I was after some rabbits so as to make a rich tomato stew.

After crossing the creek, I walked along the embankment to where there were quite a few rabbit warrens. I spotted a couple of rabbits bouncing around enjoying the morning sun. They were only about 40 paces from me so I stopped walking. One of the rabbits had his back to me and it appeared that he started chewing some blades of grass.

Almost in line but only about 15 paces from him and staring intensely at the rabbit was the feral tabby cat. The feline stealthily moved a couple of steps forward and stopped. He was so absorbed at watching the rabbits that he hadn’t noticed my approach. I eased the .22LR off my shoulder and opened the bolt to feed a round into the chamber from the magazine.

With the noise of the cocking bolt the feral cat turned his head and looked at me. In an instant he had fled across the creek, somehow navigating a crossing without becoming wet and was soon among some small plants that lined the other side of the bank. He started to run parallel with the creek. By now I had the butt of the rifle against my shoulder with a Power-Point chambered and was looking through the 4x Pecar scope.

Swinging the cross-hairs so as to match the speed of the cat, I aimed just in front of his chest hoping that it would be the correct amount of lead. I shot at the moving cat through some bushes and had just enough luck that the projectile didn’t hit any branches. The bullet crashed through the shoulder and he was dead right where I shot him.

I used to rely on the 40-grain Power-Points, which were very good. The 42-grain Power-Points travel slightly faster, 1251 v 1314 respectively in my rifle with 23″ barrel, and hit even harder. This makes them adequate for close-range foxes and cats with accurate shot placement.

Feral cats come in a range of colours such as tabby, ginger and white but the most frequent where I hunt is black. If you want to keep the fur of the feral cats then using a .17 calibre and a projectile that makes a small entry hole and blows up inside the cat without exiting is ideal. This is the same principle that was used when fox pelts attracted a reasonable price.

With their great nocturnal vision, feral cats are less frequent in the day. Hunting them at night with a rifle mounted spotlight is one of the most successful methods. It’s often the case that foxes and feral cats exist in the same area and you don’t know whether you will see a fox or a feral cat.

When foxes are after game to eat, they often seem to be ‘busy’ checking out lots of places and covering plenty of ground. Feral cats on the other hand are more slow, deliberate and sneaky.

Much of the time I’ve come across feral cats near rabbit warrens. If those warrens are close to a creek, then that may be even better because the feral cats will also try to ambush ducks and ducklings on the creek bank. Often the remains of a wood duck or black duck can be found not far from the water’s edge. The cats kill a lot of our native wildlife, so every feral cat downed is good for our environment.

Hunting varmints is not just enjoyable but is also fine practice for seeking big game. It’s not always the case that you can go deer hunting for example and often with sambar you may pursue them for some time without firing a shot. Access to properties with pests is usually less restrictive than estates with healthy numbers of bigger game.

A big black prowling feral cat or a beautifully-coloured stealthy feral cat is certainly an admirable prize.