Stan: I have shot doves with a .410 bore on several occasions. It's a lot of fun! Especially good if doves are coming to decoys or a mojo dove. I will say on occasion I had to shoot a dove twice to get it down. I believe a .410 under the right circumstance is adequate as a game gun and a lot of fun too. If one is a poor or even marginal shot, I think it would be far more frustrating than fun, however.