I killed a 125 pound hog a few years back with a TC in 17HMR, horrible way to dispatch an animal and I hated to do it. I had trapped the hog and was with my young boy- I did not want him to watch. I was under a time restriction to get the hog back to camp, cleaned and processed before it got to hot and we had to leave for the weekend. I shot it 3 times, the first shot just ticked him off as he kept charging me through the trap, the second shot put him on his knees and literaly sprayed blood over my head in a large arch, the third shot laid him down until his brain stopped telling him to run and breath. Sad to kill an animal that way. I would certainly not hunt deer with it, nor risk allowing an animal a slow death when they run away with a broken jaw or blow out eye. As hunters- we appreciate our game, we help manage them and we use them as a resource of some sort. I mainly hunt predators because it is fun and I help manage my deer herd. I get accused of having yote sticks made verses buck sticks since I routinely head out with a varmint rig. But I have a shooter with me for deer (that young boy). A 17 HMR is undergunned for deer, as with so many other small calibers. Some states outlaw any form of a rim fire. JHG