Several times a year I go to an area in New Mexico that is inhabited by mountain lions. Without having to buy another gun, is there anything that I can load into the .38 that would be effective against the critters in the event of a too close encounter to the hungry beasts?

Some of my snubs have .38 Cor-Bon DPX HPs in them.
Others have Speer "Short Barrel" 135 grain JHP .38 Specials loaded up.
Both penetrate well in ballistic gelatin and open up when shot from short barrels. Either should work better than a rock, a stick, or making myself look bigger by raising my arms!

If I was real concerned about critters who might try to fang me, I'd carry either my M28 with 180 grain flat point lead rounds, or one of the .41 Magnums that hang around here with Remington 210 grain JHPs.

Hi,

I live in NM and hike in puma country all the time. I have an acquaintance who's killed dozens of them. Cats don't take a lot of killing. Use any decent .38 round - a lot of guides use .22 Magnums. The "You Gotta Have A .44 Magnum For Mountain Lions!" crew tend not to live where mountain lions do, and tend not to have a lot of pelts to their names. It's as if they think that pumas are rhinos or something; they're not. What they are is fast and sneaky - and, like other shortcomings a big round is sometimes bought to compensate for ( and I'm NOT talking about my Yooper friend ACP230 here), a big magnum will not be able to assist you in overcoming these feline strengths.

On the contrary, actually. Overpowered magnums will result in unnecessary force delivered to (and through) the thin-skinned cat, and will cause you to have slower follow-up shots than you'd have with your totally adequate .38 Special. With an aggressive cat, you'll be lucky to see the thing, and I don't see how being unable to deliver a fast follow-up shot to a fast-moving predator is a benefit where that level of power is not at all needed to effect a kill.

I load my .38 Specials with my handloaded 158-gr LSWC bullets when hiking. Mine are pretty hot, but that's for the little black bears that we have, not the cats. Any 158-gr +P LSWCHP ("the FBI Load") from a major manufacturer should do you just fine, neighbor.

Feel free to email me if you want more info - I've got stuff I have to do right now, so I can't go into this in the detail that I'd like.

cheers, erich

If I was facing one of these cats with a .38 Special and he required shooting then he'd get thumped with a +P 158 grain lead SWC.

Hey, welcome to the Forum by the way!

I carry .38 Specials in a snub because it is the only revolver caliber that will not only bring down bipeds, but when a cat has me in his jaws by the back of my head, I can quickly bring the gun to bear on his head and fire, knowing with confidence I may not lose all of my hearing in the ear on that side. Also, a snub just naturally points better....

Erich said

quote:

With an aggressive cat, you'll be lucky to see the thing

Concur. Mountain lions are ambush animals. So are tigers, which is why east Indian woodcutters often wear masks on the backs of their heads to seem to be looking backwards.

On a more local basis (San Diego County, CA), a golfer on a course I often play happened to look behind him, and saw a mountain lion kitten (estimated age, four months) a yard behind him, checking him out. The cute li'l fella had to be shot (probably with what our deputies carry, .40 S&W Glocks). I still wonder where its mama was. Except for a wooded pond close by, this area was surrounded by houses.

Sooo, your best defense in mountain lion country is a halloween mask worn on the back of your head, with a snubby backup.

Cordially, Jack

Great quote, Jack - I may have to quote you in the future.

quote:

Sooo, your best defense in mountain lion country is a halloween mask worn on the back of your head, with a snubby backup.

This might work to prevent carjackings & muggings too

MOONDAWG

Dead deer walking:


Sooo, if the deer didn't hear the cat, would you? Thought not...

What a thought! That fills me with so much confidence.

I feel better now!

WOW!
Where'd you find that picture 38/44!!!!
GREAT shot!
Looks like an "in the wild" version of the S/E or W side of Chicago? Could never hear THEM coming either?

My niece in Idaho sent it to me. It's a trail cam shot from somewhere in Montana, according to the note accompanying the photo. Glad you like it!

To the OP; shoot whatever you always shoot. These are just over grown House Cats and are very thin skinned and thin skulled animals.

Cats are hard to hit but easy to kill. Also, unless they are VERY hungry, fairly easy to scare. Loud noises (bang bang) bother them. That is effective, IF you see them before they see you, or at least IF you see them at enough of a distance to discourage them.