Open your wallet and pull out a bill of any denomination. Fold it in half. That's 3" and a fraction. Now you have a good idea just how big a 3" circle is. An 8 MOA dot will cover 3.2" at 40 yards. If you can't see enough head/neck to center the head/neck behind a 3.2" circle at 40 yards, then 1)the bird is way too small to shoot or 2) you misjudged the distance and he's more than 40 yards.
On a rifle, I'd prefer a smaller dot. On a shotgun, 8 moa is not too big.
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Thanks for the example gobblergls. I guess I will have to wait until next season to make my final decision. At least i know that if I end up not liking the 8 mil and decide to get the 3 mil dot then I won't have a very hard time selling the 8.