Best cheapo air rifle to dispatch backyard rabbits?

[The Duke]

There are 3-4 rabbits eating big holes in the grass of our back yard. The wife says 'you're a gun guy....shoot them!' So that's where I'm at. Perusing amazon for a cheap air rifle to take out a bunny.

I love spending money on a home defense weapon or a carry weapon, but am not too excited about getting into the air rifle scene. I'd like to have a good experience with whatever I buy and some reasonable accuracy. The farthest out I'd shoot would be about 25 yards. Can anyone out there give me my best options? I dont like the idea of having to buy CO2 and semi auto sounds more pleasant than reloading after every shot.

Thanks again to the calguns brain trust!

[therealnickb]

Daisy 880. But I'd trap and remove rabbits. UBU though.

[Snagglepuss]

Unless you live outside city limits, I wouldn't recommend shooting. Not even an air rifle. Just firing them in most neighborhoods is illegal.

Then there is the hunting rabbits with no license within city limits problem with your plan. CDFW can do whatever they want if they have reason to believe you are poaching.

[edgerly779]

First get hunter safety and a license then if in city limits you will only get the citation for discharging within city limits. Or shoot shut up and eat.

[The Duke]

Daisy 880. But I'd trap and remove rabbits. UBU though.

Heres the stupid law: legal to kill but illegal to trap and relocate. Apparently it's too 'stressful' on the animal to remove from its habitat.

2nd, legal to poison, which could also kill a wide variety of other species, but illegal to shoot, which is very targeted

[therealnickb]

Heres the stupid law: legal to kill but illegal to trap and relocate. Apparently it's too 'stressful' on the animal to remove from its habitat.

2nd, legal to poison, which could also kill a wide variety of other species, but illegal to shoot, which is very targeted

Wow. Well every place is different. Around San Diego everything becomes coyote or feral cat food in a hurry.

[Cuda440]

Get wire mesh and make sure they cant get in your yard, or at least fence off the grass and any other plants they eat. When they cant get to the food, they'll find a different neighbors yard. Or plant some catnip and let feral cats keep them away haha

[The Duke]

First get hunter safety and a license then if in city limits you will only get the citation for discharging within city limits. Or shoot shut up and eat.

'Discharging' an air rifle? Cant imagine it would make much of a noise? The kids shoot bb guns without issue.

[prob]

There are plenty of inexpensive airguns that will do what you require. Sorry, I cannot really recommend any of them because I don’t buy cheap guns and I’m unfamiliar with them. Regarding the legality of discharging airguns, this is Southern California, it’s damn near illegal everywhere in this hellhole to discharge anything - including airguns.

That said, who cares? As long as you’re not brandishing you’re rifle in your front yard, and you exercise the tiniest bit of caution, no one will know.

Shoot your rabbits and be done with it. Who knows, you might even get hooked into airguns as a result.

[ojisan]

No matter how quiet the air gun, the thwack of the pellet hitting can be surprising loud.

[Kokopelli]

+1 or the Daisy 880. I picked one up a couple of years ago at WalMart and it is very accurate. Find the pellets it likes best and have at it.

[garagemonkey]

I've killed plenty of rabbits with a super quiet Crosman 760. Rabbits are pretty frail critters.

[Cagunazrod]

I think 'Gammo' has some decent ones at reasonable prices. I dispatch squirrels in my backyard because they eat my fruit, pester my dog, and go after the hummingbird nest eggs we get every spring. I thought my neighbors would frown, until I caught him shooting one out of his tree too!

[TheFlash]

I recommend the Crosman Classic 2100.
Still have mine from when I was a teen and it continues to work today with no repairs and no breakages - ever.
Just mounted a rail on my good ol' 2100 and installed a Bushnell red dot. Brought the 2100 into the 21st century...

[donw]

You can get fully silenced air rifles in many places.

Rabbits are not armor plated so a super high powered air arm is not required.