Need HOW-TO advise on butchering small game!

[Bob & Wife]

I'm new at hunting and would like to start with small game, squirrel, rabbit and turkey are real pluntiful around here too! So far I've only shoot at the ranges and I'm not sure if I need even a license (I do have a conceal carry permit,MA). I live in the north of Massachusetts bordering Vermont, lots of woods here. Can anyone point me in the right direction to get started??? I have a 22 rifle, two 22 pistols, a Glock 22 and a Glock 23, also a pocket pistol (S&W bodyguard 380). The rifle has a 4 power scope. Not willing to shoot anything that I"m not willing to eat. Thanks Bob

[versifier]

Hi Bob,
Frist off, if you're going to hunt anything, you need a license, even if it's just for the woodchuck and raccoons raiding your neighbor's garden. To get one, you first need to take and pass a Hunter Ed course. In some states, if you are a land owner, you can hunt on your own land without one, but not sure if MA is one. (I am a NH HE Instructor, and I do know that you can in NH & ME.) At HE, you will not only learn the applicable laws, you will also meet folks who can show you how to clean and prepare small game, and also the HE manual will also give you some basic information. Your next purchase should probably be a shotgun and again, you will get all the practical advice you need in selecting the right one for your intended uses from the folks who give the HE course. I suspect if you go looking on utube, there will be a bunch of how-to videos.