Squirrel Hunting Methods

I’m a member of several different hunting forums and do my best to stay on top of the questions and answers associated with squirrel hunting. One of the most common questions or series of questions I see about hunting squirrels involves questions about specific squirrel hunting techniques or methods.

In this post, I will cover the specific squirrel hunting techniques I’m familiar with and my thoughts on each approach. Squirrel hunting methods are also a topic that is predominantly based on opinions, so I take my opinions with a grain of salt as these are approaches that work for me.

In my mind, there are really three different techniques for squirrel hunting, and they include the following:

• Stand Hunting (or Sit Still Hunting)
• Hunting on the move (which goes by several different names)
• Squirrel hunting with dogs

Let’s discuss each approach in greater detail:

Stand Hunting

Stand hunting is my term for finding a spot and hunting that spot for a certain amount of time. Over the years, I’ve heard it called several different things, including:

• Position hunting
• Still hunting
• Seated hunting

With this hunting approach, I like to find a spot with a good view of the surroundings and set up a comfortable (or as comfortable as possible) position. My preferred approach to this type of hunting has changed over the years, but I like to find a decent-sized tree to use as a support and sit at the base of that tree. I clear out a space at the base of the tree so I can move freely without making unnecessary noise. I also like to clear out space in a 360-degree pattern in case I need to move to a different side of the tree for shooting purposes.

Since I prefer to hunt with a rimfire rifle (usually a .22LR), one of the reasons I like to use a tree as a backrest is because it helps keep me steady while shooting (but I’ll get more into shooting and accuracy in a different post).

Once in position, I’ll stay in this spot for 30 to 45 minutes. If I haven’t seen or heard any squirrels in the area, I’ll get up and slowly relocate to a new position.

While I’m still hunting (at least, that’s my definition of still hunting), I try to keep my movements to a minimum and hunt with my eyes and ears.

If I successfully harvest a squirrel, I try to visually mark the spot where it fell and keep hunting. When the woods calm back down after a shot has been fired, squirrels in the area will return to their normal activities. Using this approach, I’ve been able to bag several squirrels from one spot.

Once the action slows down in a spot, I’ll recover my downed squirrels and move to another location.

This is my favorite and most successful approach to squirrel hunting. It’s also the scenario where I tend to shoot my best as well.

In a seated position with my back against a tree, I’m comfortable and confident shooting out to distances of 75 yards or so. For potential shots past 75 yards, I typically try to move closer for a higher percentage shot. Again, 75 yards is a distance I’m comfortable shooting for ethical one-shot kills with a .22, but your maximum shooting distance may be less or more. Not to get on my soapbox, but I always suggest only taking shots at distances within your comfort level that allow for humane kills.

If I happen to be hunting with a flatter shooting caliber like the 17 HMR or 17 Mach II, I’m comfortable extending that distance a bit further.

Hunting on the Move

For my definition, the hunting on the move technique refers to moving slowly and quietly across the terrain while searching for squirrels.

I use the term “hunting on the move” because I’ve heard so many different phrases used to describe this style of squirrel hunting. I’ve heard it called:

• Stalking
• Still hunting
• Sneaking
• Creeping

For this post’s purposes, let’s call it hunting on the move.

In my humble opinion, the key to this type of hunting is being able to move slowly and quietly through the woods while keeping your eyes open for squacks.

If I’m being honest, this particular hunting style isn’t my favorite because I struggle to move quietly through the woods. A few of my hunting buddies are exceptionally good at creeping through the woods, so I understand just how loud I sound while trying to do the same. I’m pretty sure I sound like an elephant coming through the woods. 😊

However, there are times when the squirrels aren’t moving much, so I hunt on the move in an effort to find them.

I have the most success with this approach using existing natural or manmade travel paths in the woods that offer me the best opportunity to move quietly.

Some of my favorite types of travel paths include the following:

• Game trails
• Logging trails
• Old roads or paths
• Creeks or dry creek beds

I find that I can move more quietly through those types of paths versus just trying to stalk through the woods.

The other conditions that work well for stalking include early mornings when the dew or frost has made things wet or right after a rain. When the fallen leaves are wet, quiet movement becomes easier (at least, in my opinion).

As I mentioned previously, I have a couple of hunting partners who use this approach exclusively and are very successful with it.

I tend to be most successful with this approach when the conditions are right, and I hunt very slowly. I have a theory that for every squirrel I locate on the move, I miss seeing another 5-6 that I walked right past. Stalking at a very slow pace makes me focus on being quiet but also gives me the best opportunity to spot squirrels on the move.

One of my hunting buddies strictly hunts on the move but takes a different approach than mine. While he is skilled at moving silently, he hunts at a much faster pace and prefers to cover as much ground as possible. Although his approach doesn’t work well for me, it works exceptionally well for him as he routinely bags his daily limit.

When hunting on the move with a rimfire rifle, I typically limit my shots to 50 yards or less as my max shooting distance since I’m usually shooting from a standing or kneeling position with this hunting style.

Hunting With Dogs

Before discussing squirrel hunting with a dog or dogs, I want to preface that while I’ve hunted squirrels over dogs several times, I’m certainly no expert in this area. I don’t own a squirrel dog and have no experience training a squirrel dog.

This squirrel hunting technique relies on a dog to hunt for and locate squirrels. If you are a squirrel hunter and haven’t had the chance to experience this type of squirrel hunting, I highly recommend the experience. I think using a squirrel hunting dog is a much different type of hunting than the other two techniques I’ve discussed.

With this approach, a trained hunting dog searches the woods for squirrels. When they locate a squirrel, they bark at the specific tree where the squirrel was spotted or scented. Then, the hunter or hunters respond to the tree and try to locate and bag the limb chicken.

In my experience, there seem to be two types of squirrel hunting dogs:

• Those that hunt on scent alone
• Those that hunt based on scent, vision, and hearing

Certain species of dogs seem to be best suited for squirrel hunting, such as:

Occasionally, you may see other breeds because any dog could technically be trained to hunt squirrels. However, the breeds mentioned above are more common as they have some natural instinct to hunt.

I was once invited on a squirrel hunt and the property owner had trained an English Setter to hunt squirrels based on scent.

I’ve been fortunate enough to have hunted over scent-only dogs and dogs who hunt off other senses, and there seems to be a noticeable difference in hunting styles between those two approaches.

When hunting over scent-only dogs, they methodically move from tree to tree, checking for squirrel scent. Once a recent or hot scent is detected, they trail it to a specific tree. Then, the hunter has to search the primary tree and nearby trees to locate the squirrel.

Dog species that use several of their senses when hunting operate a bit differently than scent-only squirrel dogs. I’ve hunted over several different Fiest squirrel dogs, and they work an area checking for scent first, then will stop and listen or stop and look up. The smell is likely their primary locator, but I’ve also observed Fiests move towards a sound on the ground or in a tree and successfully locate squirrels using that approach.

Using a squirrel dog can be done with a solo hunter or in a group. Group hunts are fun, especially if there is more than one dog hunting.

Hunting over a squirrel dog can be done with a rimfire rifle or a shotgun. Sometimes, a shotgun can be very handy if a treed squirrel panics and decides to flee through the treetops.

Combination of Techniques

Since squirrel hunting techniques aren’t etched in stone, some hunters may also use a combination or variations of the methods above.

For example, I’ve been in situations where I’ve been stand hunting and spotted squirrels off in the distance. In some of those situations, I’ll switch to more of a stalking approach to get within shooting range.

In other situations, I’ve been hunting on the move and encountered multiple squirrels feeding in one area. In that situation, I’ll transition from hunting on the move to finding a spot to sit.

Final Thoughts

The three squirrel hunting techniques discussed above are the ones I’m most familiar with, although there may be some other techniques I missed or haven’t encountered yet.

Which one of them is the best? I’ve always said it’s the squirrel hunting approach that you enjoy the most.