Trouble dispatching with captive bolt gun (graphic photos)

GBov":338vg2ak said:

Just like all of us, it is only the botched kills that remain in my mind, not the THOUSANDS of times I have gotten it right! :roll:

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so true :shock:

I'm so glad for these photos! I just received my bolt gun, and I really don't want to have too much trial-and-error with my first round of dispatch.

So glad I found this topic.

I just processed my first batch of rabbits with a neighbor, using the captive bolt gun (the larger spring-based one made in Germany). Total fail.

I made an X between ears and eyes, held the instrument perpendicular to the skull, and bang. We killed four rabbits this way, and only one of them worked right. Extremely distressing. I don't want to try that again until I am really sure I am doing this right.

So I saw above that the X should be drawn between the rear corners of the eyes and the backs of the ears. I'm guessing that is the center of the backs of the ears, and not the inside corners of the ears. But where should the bolt be aimed? Toward the mouth, the nose, flat against the skull?

The Rabbit Wringer/Hopper Popper/broomstick method has the advantage of being easy and fast, although it's not as fast as I'd like. I spent the money on the CBG because it is supposed to be more humane, but that was obviously not what happened.

So, can someone give better instructions? TIA!

I'm sorry to hear that you had so much trouble. It definitely takes practice. I had more success when I imagined the points of the X starting at the back edge of the base of the ear. The Bunny Rancher person I spoke to said: "The "X" envisioned on the head should use the back corner of the eyes as the distal ends and the back of the ears as the proximal ones." Also: "with the bolt pointing through the cranium towards the occipital bun or supraniac fossa." I had the bolt pointing too vertically when I first tried.

averydeadbird":38ta9zqv said:

I'm sorry to hear that you had so much trouble. It definitely takes practice. I had more success when I imagined the points of the X starting at the back edge of the base of the ear. The Bunny Rancher person I spoke to said: "The "X" envisioned on the head should use the back corner of the eyes as the distal ends and the back of the ears as the proximal ones." Also: "with the bolt pointing through the cranium towards the occipital bun or supraniac fossa." I had the bolt pointing too vertically when I first tried.

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Thank you so much for replying! I did see that quote earlier, but the only part that was clear was the back corner of the eyes. The only references I find for occipital bun or suprainiac fossa are on humans.

Excuse me for being dense, but when you say "the back edge of the base of the ear", do you mean (1) the inside corner of the base of the ear, (2) the outside corner of the base of the ear, or (3) the middle of the base of the ear, in back? I was using the middle of the eye and (3), but that was what did not work.

I went back to the Bunny Rancher site (where I bought it,) and the larger Arbalest version I bought did not have instructions, but there is a small PDF on the small version page. That has a drawing of lines between the back corners of the eyes and what might be the outside corners of the base of the ears. It also says the device has to be placed flat against the skull, which I did. It also says that it is necessary to apply firm downward pressure, and while I don't think it ever failed to penetrate, I wasn't applying much pressure, so it's possible that caused the problem. Yet it is the bigger version, and certainly blasted through the skull every time.

I should also mention that twitching or kicking legs was not the after-effect that was the concern. One out of the four was an instant kill, just as advertised. For the rest, no. They demonstrated breathing, heart beating, whimpering, gasping, standing up and screaming, and reacting to touching a paw. It was bad, which is why I want to be sure I get this right before trying it again.

The broomstick method (or Rabbit Wringer/Hopper Popper) at least renders the animal limp and unresponsive, even if it isn't as fast a kill. But I'd really like to use the CBG correctly, if it's as effective as people claim.

Again, thank you for responding!

DoozyWombat":28bk81n8 said:

Excuse me for being dense, but when you say "the back edge of the base of the ear", do you mean (1) the inside corner of the base of the ear, (2) the outside corner of the base of the ear, or (3) the middle of the base of the ear, in back? I was using the middle of the eye and (3), but that was what did not work.

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Honestly I'm not sure how to describe it in words so that we're definitely thinking of the same thing. Basically my own problem was that I was holding the gun slightly too forward (toward the eyes), and too vertical rather than toward the occipital bun (the lower back of the skull, basically). So I corrected by moving back (toward the ears) and angling more.

It would be nice if there were more demonstration videos.

Thanks very much for clarifying. I think I'll be trying it again this weekend (depends on the rabbit owner.) I'm pretty sure I was holding it flat against the skull, which is probably okay, but too far forward. Drawing the X between the back corners of the eyes and the back corners of the ears, pressing firmly down, and angling slightly forward (so the bolt goes more toward the back of the skull) sounds like the formula.

If we try it again, I'll post how it goes.

DoozyWombat":u7khubev said:

Thanks very much for clarifying. I think I'll be trying it again this weekend (depends on the rabbit owner.) I'm pretty sure I was holding it flat against the skull, which is probably okay, but too far forward. Drawing the X between the back corners of the eyes and the back corners of the ears, pressing firmly down, and angling slightly forward (so the bolt goes more toward the back of the skull) sounds like the formula.

If we try it again, I'll post how it goes.

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Also make sure you are leaning into the shot, if you don't, it tends to bounce off the skill and it won't give a proper kill by hitting and scrambling the brain stem. Be sure to stir the bolt after you lean and fire.

wildeden":36xs4855 said:

Be sure to stir the bolt after you lean and fire.

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This is another way of say what I said in my Sun Feb 17, 2019 response to this thread. The brain is soft and swishing/stirring the extended bolt around inside the skull will easily scramble the brain.

In the Bunny Rancher video Using The Arbalest Penetrating Bolt Gun on A Guinea Pig You can see how the man stirs the brain before extracting the captive bolt.

Ghost":3rnq1jkt said:

wildeden":3rnq1jkt said:

Be sure to stir the bolt after you lean and fire.

Click to expand...

This is another way of say what I said in my Sun Feb 17, 2019 response to this thread. The brain is soft and swishing/stirring the extended bolt around inside the skull will easily scramble the brain.

In the Bunny Rancher video Using The Arbalest Penetrating Bolt Gun on A Guinea Pig You can see how the man stirs the brain before extracting the captive bolt.

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I missed this the first time. I can see how that can potentially eliminate any near misses. Thanks!

I'll post a follow-up once we've tried it again. <br /><br /> __________ Mon Jan 11, 2021 12:21 pm __________ <br /><br /> Follow-up:

I've dispatched two rabbits since the last post on here. I plan to do several more in the next two weeks.

In short, the "stirring" motion with the bolt gun works perfectly and completely. It's much faster and more humane than the methods which just break the neck.

Thanks again to all who helped!

I'm glad to be of service. It makes me feel go to know that what I write can reduce suffering.