HOW TO MAKE A RABBITSTICK

The rabbitstick was used for thousands of years by Native people who once occupied the lands. In most cases using the rabbitstick was part of a daily routine; the young boy would learn how to make one, and would throw it well into his adult years, and by the time he became of age, he was very accurate, and deadly with the rabbitstick. Although the rabbitstick was used for hunting larger game, such as deer and pronghorn, this was not always the case. Hunters predominantly used the rabbitstick for small game, such as jackrabbit; thus getting it’s name the rabbitstick. Typically two hunters would stand in front of each-other, leaving the rabbit in the middle. The hunter with the rabbitstick would throw it at the animal and the the stick would throw the game towards the other hunter; at this point the other hunter would club the animal and kill it. The hunters pay respect to the life that was taken, and they have now secured meat.

In the Summer of 2015 Primitive Lifeways made a detailed video series on how to make an authentic rabbitstick.

An introduction

Part one

Part two

Part three

The final chapter

Target practice