World's Fattest Raccoon and Other Oddities

It's probably safe to say that Bandit the pet raccoon didn't climb to the tops of many trees, especially when his weight mushroomed to 75 pounds. Shown here in 1991 with owner Deborah Klitsch of Palmerton, Penn., Bandit weighed more than three times the average weight for a male coon. He passed away in May 2004, fat and sassy. Outdoor Life Online Editor

Basset hounds are famous for their long ears, but a German dog named Jack has taken it to extremes. The hound's ears measure more than a foot long; in fact, Jack has trouble keeping his front paws from treading on his ears as he waddles along. Otherwise, Jack is normal: low to the ground and wearing a perpetually weary look on his face. Outdoor Life Online Editor

Tracey Shirey of South Carolina paid $101,200 for an 1859 copper fishing lure called a Haskell Minnow, a record price for a fishing collectible at auction. Ohio gunsmith Riley Haskell made the 10-inch lure in the 1850s. Shirey has since traded the lure to another collector. Outdoor Life Online Editor

On November 13, 1955, in Angola, J.J. Fenykovi of Hungary shot the largest land animal ever taken by a big-game hunter: a 12-ton bull African elephant. The kill required 16 bullets from a .416 Rigby. The elephant's tusks were 7 feet long and weighed about 200 pounds each. The bull's height was 13 feet 2 inches. Twenty-three bearers could not lift the hide, which weighed more than two tons. The elephant was mounted for display in the rotunda of the U.S. National Museum of Natural History, where it remains today. Outdoor Life Online Editor

In August 2004, Texas deer breeders Don Wilson and Gene Gonzalez paid $450,000 for Dream Buck, the largest whitetail buck in Texas and one of the biggest non-typicals anywhere. As a 4-year-old, Dream Buck scored 3013â„8. The men sell the deer's semen to other breeders of trophy-size whitetails. Outdoor Life Online Editor

On December 23, 1956, viewers of NBC's Wide Wide World saw 300,000 mallards sitting on Arkansas's Claypool Reservoir. Suddenly, a rocket was fired over the ducks to flush them. Reservoir owner Wallace Claypool then called in ducks for 12-year-old hunter Lynn Parsons. Host Dave Garroway (also the first host of NBC's Today show, 1952""1961) observed, "Now if you'll brush the duck feathers off your sofa, we'll go on with the rest of the program." Outdoor Life Online Editor

When his favorite coon dog, Troop, died in 1937, Alabama hunter Key Underwood buried him under a homemade headstone. Before long, Underwood's friends wanted to bury their coonhounds beside Troop. Underwood's only stipulation was that they be respected coonhounds and properly interred with due circumstance. Today, more than 100 coonhounds are buried in the hallowed ground of Key Underwood's Coon Dog Memorial Park. Outdoor Life Online Editor

Pat Peacock is the only person to have won all five major titles at the Stuttgart, Ark., World's Championship Duck Calling Contest. The list includes a Junior World title in 1950 (at age 12), the first of five straight Women's World titles in 1951, the Arkansas Calling Championship and the first of two consecutive World's Championships in 1955 and the Champion of Champions crown in 1960. Outdoor Life Online Editor

A deer hunter ends up going toe-to-toe with a heavyweight champion buck. The deer kicks his butt. (Apparently the fella's wife is the one working the camera. We love how she refuses to get involved.) ||||| |—|—|—|—| |
Table of Contents Click on the "next" or "previous" links in the slides, or use the table of contents below to navigate. Enjoy! * Buck Attacks Hunter * Shark Attack * Two Bucks Boxing * Worst Shot Ever! * Squirrel Attacks Deer * Cat Fight * Stealing Salmon from Bears * Fish Jump Right in the Boat * Don't Feed the Tarpon * A Shark in Slow Motion* * *» See all Photo Galleries Outdoor Life Online Editor

World’s Fattest Raccoon and Other Oddities

Activists Are Defining Hunters by One Wyoming Man Who Tortured a Wolf. What Are Actual Hunters Doing About It? Activists Are Defining Hunters by One Wyoming Man Who Tortured a Wolf. What Are Actual Hunters Doing About It?

Deer Hunter Faces 12 Years in Prison for Accidentally Bringing Ammo on Vacation to Turks and Caicos Deer Hunter Faces 12 Years in Prison for Accidentally Bringing Ammo on Vacation to Turks and Caicos

10 Steps To A Man Eater 10 Steps To A Man Eater

Gun Dogs: The Force Fetch Gun Dogs: The Force Fetch

Hunting Heard Hunting Heard

Another In-Box Mystery Buck Another In-Box Mystery Buck

Deer Camp II Deer Camp II

Opening Day Opening Day

1970-1979 1970-1979

Battle of the Mascots Battle of the Mascots