Shortest shot

[flatwater]

Mine was 15 ft with my lymans 54 cal black powder. This was during the rut and this big ole buck just had one thing on his mind and walked right past my blind. When I used to bow hunt during early season I had a four month old fawn (guess) come up and sniff my pant leg.

[CastIronCook2]

Hubbest's shortest shot was when this pesky ground squirrel kept trying to get into the city house and he popped it at 6 feet with an air pistol.

[rice paddy daddy]

A pack of feral dogs had invaded the property (we weren't fully fenced then) chasing a female in heat. I grabbed the wife's Remington 870 and went out to protect the chickens. Everything seemed quiet and on the way back to the house the wife yelled out a warning. Less than 10 feet away was a big pit bull at full speed without a sound, mouth wide open wanting a piece of me. 20 ga, #6 birdshot at a distance of 5 feet, once in the head and he went straight down with just a small whimper. I've still got my target aquisition skills, didn't even have to think, just reflexes.:)
Put the rest of the magazine into him just to make sure.;)
I now keep buck shot in all the shotguns, even the 410.

[CastIronCook2]

Sure wish I coulda seen that. I'd have been cheering you, fer shure!

[hunter63]

Shortest shot(s), Big doe at about 6 ft, would have been shorter, but I got up and let her pass, then shot her. Almost got run over (good camo, I guess).
Anyway, the fork buck right behind her ran right pass me and her, then stopped about 10 ft away, turned to see what happened to the doe, so I shot him too.
Too close for the scope, so I just pointed and shot them.

Nephew, my hunting partner, still is talking about how fast the shots were with the bolt gun.

BTW, both shots were w/ the 7 mag, didn't perf thru, only meat ruined was the heart and lungs.
Both dropped 30 ft off a loggong road, so I was able to pretty much drive up and pick them up.
Now if I could just get them to run over by the truck first............................

[rAcErRicK]

Four point buck from about 20' to much less. A race of dogs bringing him directly at me when the barking suddenly stopped, and I thought the trail had gone cold, or he had turned and they were checking up, when he exploded out of the brush coming directly at me. I was carrying an 1100 Rem. 20 Ga. at the hip (my race gun), with a slug, a buck shot, and another slug, there was absolutely no time to shoulder the weapon so I fired all 3 in very short succession from the hip. He was running directly at me but after the first round steered just to my left or he would have run completely over me. As RPD eluded to, military training saved my buttocks ! He piled up not 10' away from me, all shots scored, head on, center mass. Whew, it still makes my heart pound to think about it, thought I was road kill for a second there, and would have never lived that down !

[Dawgus]

Somewhere around 10-12 feet. Out rabbit hunting one day and the neighbors not-so-friendly shepard/dane mix got loose and came after the beagles. Suzy ran to me, and the dog chased her. Before I knew it, he was 15 feet away, and took 2 loads of 20ga #6's in the head.That belelli montefeltro sure outperformed itself that day. The owner heard the dogs barking and the shots and called the police. I wasn't on his property, and the cop told us both it was completely justified. 13 years later and that guy STILL talks about how I "murdered" his dog, geeez.

Another was a poor pheasant I got at less than 10 feet as a kid, maybe 12. He jumped up right in front of me, and I got so excited I just pulled up and shot. Needless to say, there wasn't much left to make much of a meal, lol. OOPS

[longshot]

15 ish feet, beach rat with a pellet gun. one shot, crack barrell, to the head he fell in some bigish rocks and was pulled out of sight by something quickly. i hightailed it like the dickens, i wasnt taking on what ever could drag a 2 or 3 pound rat away like it was nothing, next time i went in that particular peice of beach i had a repeater.

dean

[Kilroy]

Does a reloading mishap count?

My wife's brother put one into the arm of a couch from about 3/4".

A guy I used to work with shot himself in the butt when he sat down on a Jennings .22 in his back pocket. So...point blank?

Several years ago I was turkey hunting, awfully cold and windy day, I fell asleep under a spruce tree in the sun to be woke up by a turkey pecking at my boot lace. When I dropped him he was about 5 feet away. I think I've still got feathers in that coat.

[jim]

Well, this wasn't with a gun, but RPD's Pit story reminded me. The wife, son, dog and I were going for an evening constiutional, and some new people had moved in on the back side of the neighborhood. The owner was letting her dogs (a Pit and a Collie) just run loose. Both her dogs charged us growling in full attack mode. I popped the Pit in the jaw with the walking stick I carried and they both left kiyi-ing. She now calls them to her whenever she sees us walking. I'd say the range was about 24".
jim

[BUBSDAD]

Mine, about three feet. Cut a copperhead in half with 12 ga.#4 birdshot. I was fourteen years old and scared to death.

[Watonga_Jim]

I learned a lesson about placing a hunting blind to close to a major trail, when on two straight mornings, I had three deer appear three feet from my blind. I froze both times and never took a shot. I then moved the blind back about 20 feet but the deer never returned in the following days.

[Pitdog]

Number 6 Nitro Mag, 6ft on a mountain boomer squirrel who was a killer of baby birds in their nest. No remains to recover, evaporated.

[Phillip]

`Possum, three feet with .22LR.