My house is in the suburbs (20 minutes from downtown KC).  We have a pond and forest area behind my home that splits 2 Streets in half instead of a Terrace in between them.  I have lots of squirrel and doves in my back yard.  Every morning at least 20 doves, 5-10 squirrels, and 2-3 rabbits.  They're really getting active as well.   My wife's grandparents also have dozens of squirrels in their yard and live nearby.

I have a RWS 34 pellet gun that I'm comfortable with taking tree shots as it's very accurate with a scope.  Most shots would be on the ground however unless I get one squirrel on the ground and tree 2-3 more.  More than likely I would take the rabbits with a .22 and cb caps.

When the season starts for these animals (Dec 1st I believe) can I legally take them on my own property?  I'd much rather sit on my porch all day in my backyard shooting gallery than walk the nearest public conservation area full of other hunters with 12 guages taking squirrel and rabbit.  I could also be lazy enough to just shoot out of a cracked window.

Anything wrong with this?

Also, would squirrel and dove from the burbs be more contaminated than country ones?  My thoughts is that they both eat the same diet, but the city ones might have contamination from oils and crap on the road that washes off whereas the other ones might have farming chemicals in their system.

Dunno about MO, but in AZ it is illegal to discharge even a pellet gun within city limits.  They actually confiscate the pellet rifle and there is a fine that goes with it, IIRC.

Call your local Game and Fish and ask them would be about the best advice I could offer.  I have to admit, there is a part of me that would love to sit on the kitchen counters with a cold beer and snap squirrel for dinner...  

But then, hunting is mostly about getting outdoors and away from it all, to take time with nature and one's God to settle the usual commotion of life.  So in that respect, I'd rather drive a few hours to a secluded spot, hunt all day, and come home a happy and refreshed man and then have that cold beer, even if I never squeezed off a shot.

I mean, dude!  You live in MO for crying out loud!  You drive an hour in any direction and you'd surely be able to find some solitude and decent hunting, yes?  Take a day off and go to God's country as a reward for all your hard work.

ETA:  What are .22 cb caps?  I don't think I've ever heard of those before.  I can't see shooting a .22 being legal anywhere within 2 miles of any occupied structure, and I sure wouldn't do it just because of the safety risk.  

Yes, check the game laws.  Here in Texas, it is ILLEGAL to hunt game with an air rifle.  Seems like people were finding BBs in squirrels.

But it is legal to hunt rabbit with an air rifle since they are not considered game.

Me?  I still hunt with mine because the game wardens I have spoken to say it is not enforced unless the hunter is violating other laws, mainly without a license.  The game warden I spoke with was knowledgeable about high performance air rifles and their effectiveness on squirrels.

If you are using a pellet gun nobody will even hear it.

What are .22 cb caps?

Here y'a go!   www.22ammo.com/bbcb_caps.html

Cliff notes version...They look a lot like  a .22 short, but  with only a primer as propellant, some have the tiniest amount of powder. Bullet weight of 17 to 29 grains.  They are even quieter than an air rifle, subsonic at about 700fps.  Only caution with them, with a really long barrel rifle they may not make it out the muzzle, so be aware of a squib.

They come in two varieties, CB and BB.  The CB are conical cross section and have a propensity to drill right through a squirrel.  The BB version are a blunt cross section and more stopping power.  Great fun!  They won't cycle a semiauto and are a bit of a pain to load in a rifle that doesn't have a feed ramp.

Lazy hunting.

I will never get the point of sitting on your ass with a weapon and calling it hunting.

Hunting should always involve stalking/tracking.

I can tell you from experience, don't use Aguila Colibri's.

I shot a cat in the head, twice, and all it did was hiss at me.  Followed up by a High velocity, and that did it.

I'm sure that cat was pissed to start with.  It had a .45 hole in it all night.

Quoted: Dunno about MO, but in AZ it is illegal to discharge even a pellet gun within city limits.  They actually confiscate the pellet rifle and there is a fine that goes with it, IIRC. Call your local Game and Fish and ask them would be about the best advice I could offer.  I have to admit, there is a part of me that would love to sit on the kitchen counters with a cold beer and snap squirrel for dinner...   But then, hunting is mostly about getting outdoors and away from it all, to take time with nature and one's God to settle the usual commotion of life.  So in that respect, I'd rather drive a few hours to a secluded spot, hunt all day, and come home a happy and refreshed man and then have that cold beer, even if I never squeezed off a shot. I mean, dude!  You live in MO for crying out loud!  You drive an hour in any direction and you'd surely be able to find some solitude and decent hunting, yes?  Take a day off and go to God's country as a reward for all your hard work. ETA:  What are .22 cb caps?  I don't think I've ever heard of those before.  I can't see shooting a .22 being legal anywhere within 2 miles of any occupied structure, and I sure wouldn't do it just because of the safety risk.

It is only illegal to fire a firearm within the city. You can sit in your backyard and plug away with any non-firearm. I specificly inquired about this because I have a couple of decent air guns from arizona air gun (they sound like 22 shorts) and did not want to feel the wrath of Shannon's law. (look it up, terrible story)

Backyard hunting is fun!

I live in the Cleveland suburbs and have killed any number of squirrels with airguns and .22's .  Shooting into trees with an airgun should be ok (as long as the angle is high enough) as the little pellet will have almost no energy on the way down.

I also will shoot into trees with super colibris, as the bullet is only 20 grains.  I have found that CB caps are richocet hazards near houses and such.

There are two regs you need to review: (1) the game laws of your state (as to what game can be shot with what weapon) and (2) your local ordinances.  In my case, I can shoot whatever I want, as long as it is done safely.  I don't think I can legally take a dove with a rifle, but I don't have many of them right here anyway.  

The key is to be safe and descrete.  Breaking a window on a car or nearby house will not make you popular and put an end to your fun real quick.

Quoted: Lazy hunting. I will never get the point of sitting on your ass with a weapon and calling it hunting. Hunting should always involve stalking/tracking.

Quoted: Lazy hunting. I will never get the point of sitting on your ass with a weapon and calling it hunting. Hunting should always involve stalking/tracking.

What are your opinions on trappers?

Quoted: Lazy hunting. I will never get the point of sitting on your ass with a weapon and calling it hunting. Hunting should always involve stalking/tracking.

In theory?  Perhaps.  And it sounds great in the monthly SOF magazine for the practice of super-secret nija warrior skills for that fateful day when the .gov calls you up for that Columbian assassination mission you can't talk about.

Remember to shape the bone for the spear tip with flint, as limestone will pit the edge.  

But some of us are disabled or just plain tired.  We don't have desk jobs, and working 10 hours a day in construction 6 days a week will leave a man drained.  

I see absolutely nothing wrong with hunting from a fixed position.  We can enjoy the hunt without draining our bodies further and making the next week more miserable than it already will be due to the physical demands of our jobs.  And disabled people have the right to enjoy the hunt as well, and may not be able to stalk and track.

To say it is not hunting without those two components is to speak from ignorance and arrogance.  

Hunting is the taking of game.

Stalking and tracking is called hiking and bird watching.

Quoted: Quoted: Dunno about MO, but in AZ it is illegal to discharge even a pellet gun within city limits.  They actually confiscate the pellet rifle and there is a fine that goes with it, IIRC. Call your local Game and Fish and ask them would be about the best advice I could offer.  I have to admit, there is a part of me that would love to sit on the kitchen counters with a cold beer and snap squirrel for dinner...   But then, hunting is mostly about getting outdoors and away from it all, to take time with nature and one's God to settle the usual commotion of life.  So in that respect, I'd rather drive a few hours to a secluded spot, hunt all day, and come home a happy and refreshed man and then have that cold beer, even if I never squeezed off a shot. I mean, dude!  You live in MO for crying out loud!  You drive an hour in any direction and you'd surely be able to find some solitude and decent hunting, yes?  Take a day off and go to God's country as a reward for all your hard work. ETA:  What are .22 cb caps?  I don't think I've ever heard of those before.  I can't see shooting a .22 being legal anywhere within 2 miles of any occupied structure, and I sure wouldn't do it just because of the safety risk.   It is only illegal to fire a firearm within the city. You can sit in your backyard and plug away with any non-firearm. I specificly inquired about this because I have a couple of decent air guns from arizona air gun (they sound like 22 shorts) and did not want to feel the wrath of Shannon's law. (look it up, terrible story)

I defer to you, then.  I always thought it was illegal to shoot a pellet gun in city limits.

Sounds like I am a victim of one of those "This .45 will pick you up 6 feet and throw you back 10 feet as it rips your arm off" rumors.  Since you've done the research and I only have what I've heard, I'll take your word for it.

Thank you for the correction.