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Stocking the woods with game


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when everything is wild rather than farmed (stocked pheasents ect) there is no need for the, kill everything mentality associated with rearing and release pens, its all about balance and understanding, i like to see the odd fox,stoat.weasal, even rats,crows and squirrels have a place in the countryside :thumbs:

 

Sorry mate but you've got that the wrong way round. The sole reason people release game birds is because it is easier than producing that same number of real wild birds.

 

When it comes to wild birds, especially low ground birds such as pheasants and partridge, the main two factors that will effect your success are the weather and vermin/predation. Habitat and artificial feeding come second.

no mate the reason people release birds is for the numbers to make the shoot a viable venture, and with over population comes the problem with predation :thumbs:
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I have just gained permission on a 100+ acre site with a large wooded area.

 

I'm thinking of stocking the woods with pheasant etc, for private shoots with friends and family.

 

Never done anything like this before have shot and been on shoots and ferreted but the first time i would attempt anything like this?

 

The site must have been shot on before hence the pheasant hides that have rotted and corroded away, going to repair or replace them.

 

Anyone have any suggestions, hints or tips?

 

What do I need to do, who's the best person to talk to?

What could i stock it with?

What would the costs be?

 

Would it be worth it?

 

Regards

ATB

pm me the postcode :whistling:
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when everything is wild rather than farmed (stocked pheasents ect) there is no need for the, kill everything mentality associated with rearing and release pens, its all about balance and understanding, i like to see the odd fox,stoat.weasal, even rats,crows and squirrels have a place in the countryside :thumbs:

 

Sorry mate but you've got that the wrong way round. The sole reason people release game birds is because it is easier than producing that same number of real wild birds.

 

When it comes to wild birds, especially low ground birds such as pheasants and partridge, the main two factors that will effect your success are the weather and vermin/predation. Habitat and artificial feeding come second.

no mate the reason people release birds is for the numbers to make the shoot a viable venture, and with over population comes the problem with predation :thumbs:

 

exactly just as patterjack said its easier. you can produce a vast number of birds on a wild bird shoot. but its harder and more costly. Im not sure why you keep putting that smilie up to make it seem like you know what your going on about? you obviously know f**k all

where in my original post did i say i was running a shoot :laugh: im sure i said pritty much sole shooting rights :laugh:
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]no mate the reason people release birds is for the numbers to make the shoot a viable venture, and with over population comes the problem with predation :thumbs:

 

In that case, how come a good few keepers on estates that release birds can get away without killing foxes (i.e. they are left for the hunt). Not killing vermin on a shoot that releases its birds wont ruin your shooting season, it just means you will get lower returns. But those shoots can budget for their losses. Whereas on a wild bird shoot, if you didnt kill the vermin, every bird you loose counts because they cannot be replaced.

 

Are your opinions are based on fact and have you have worked on both wild bird shoots and released bird shoots? Or are your opinions just that, your own ill-informed opinions?

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]no mate the reason people release birds is for the numbers to make the shoot a viable venture, and with over population comes the problem with predation :thumbs:

 

In that case, how come a good few keepers on estates that release birds can get away without killing foxes (i.e. they are left for the hunt). Not killing vermin on a shoot that releases its birds wont ruin your shooting season, it just means you will get lower returns. But those shoots can budget for their losses. Whereas on a wild bird shoot, if you didnt kill the vermin, every bird you loose counts because they cannot be replaced.

 

Are your opinions are based on fact and have you have worked on both wild bird shoots and released bird shoots? Or are your opinions just that, your own ill-informed opinions?

foxs are territorial and a given area will only have a set number, as the birds are wild there not confined, so multiple losses at the same time do not happen. so loses are pritty much always the same year on year, as long as the wild popualion remains stable then things stay the same. even when an inbalance occurs eventually it will re ballance itself, the only exception to this is mans interference. have you ever seen that thing on that island where every 40 yrs the rat population increase 10 fold in anticipation of the palm fruits falling. when all the fruit is gone they eat everything else, when thats gone they eat each other untill the population is reduced to such a level that the island can once again sustain them untill the next cycle
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Wild bird shoot - Pray for good weather, and kill everything and anything that might take eggs, chicks, or birds. Do a bit of habitat management and a bit of feeding to make life easier for them.

 

Released bird shoot - Serious habitat management, Feeding like clock work, Dog in like a mad man, and kill the vermin when you have a chance or have a problem animal.

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I agree with most of what has been said. I think ducks would be your best bet for getting some shooting. dont go mad with the food. one bucket of corn will do EVERY night. its important to feed every night to keep them coming back. also leave at least 10 days more if you can between nights shooting to let them come back in. If you want a decent number of wild pheasant/partridge you must kill EVERYTHING that poses a threat to them. And even if you get rid of every predator on the place a bit of rain will wipe out young broods so you might struggle.

i have access to a fair amount of land and pritty much the sole shooting rights, there is a very large pupulation of wild pheasants,deer,pigeon,duck,rabbit,hare. the odd partridge as the ground is not ideal for them, when everything is wild rather than farmed (stocked pheasents ect) there is no need for the, kill everything mentality associated with rearing and release pens, its all about balance and understanding, i like to see the odd fox,stoat.weasal, even rats,crows and squirrels have a place in the countryside :thumbs:

i keep saying im not running a shoot :laugh: :laugh: :laugh:
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]no mate the reason people release birds is for the numbers to make the shoot a viable venture, and with over population comes the problem with predation :thumbs:

 

In that case, how come a good few keepers on estates that release birds can get away without killing foxes (i.e. they are left for the hunt). Not killing vermin on a shoot that releases its birds wont ruin your shooting season, it just means you will get lower returns. But those shoots can budget for their losses. Whereas on a wild bird shoot, if you didnt kill the vermin, every bird you loose counts because they cannot be replaced.

 

Are your opinions are based on fact and have you have worked on both wild bird shoots and released bird shoots? Or are your opinions just that, your own ill-informed opinions?

:laugh: .....of course they do. Bet they dont bother dealing with BOP's too cause they dont cause a problem. Dont believe everything you hear......... :thumbs:

I'd be very suprised if there was such a thing as a wild bird shoot where making money was invloved.... :hmm: Wild bird shoots are usually small farms or syndicates or there small estates next to large estate and like to call the birds that venture over "wild birds"..... :hmm:

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:laugh: .....of course they do. Bet they dont bother dealing with BOP's too cause they dont cause a problem. Dont believe everything you hear......... :thumbs:

I'd be very suprised if there was such a thing as a wild bird shoot where making money was invloved.... :hmm: Wild bird shoots are usually small farms or syndicates or there small estates next to large estate and like to call the birds that venture over "wild birds"..... :hmm:

 

So you dont know of or have never heard of a single shooting estate where the boss makes his keepers leave the foxes for the hunt? I know of a few, and its pretty simple really, they just have to release more birds to account for the extra losses due to their lack of predator control.

Admittedly, very few wild birds shoots will make money, but i never said they would, most are privately owned shoots, not commercial shoots.

Have you ever been down to Norfolk where there is alot of large wild bird shoots that are shooting alot of game?

Some people are more interested in shooting real wild game and therefore are willing to put in the extra effort/money to do so, instead of shooting artificially reared pheasants that resemble chickens more than their wild cousins.

 

 

foxs are territorial and a given area will only have a set number, as the birds are wild there not confined, so multiple losses at the same time do not happen. so loses are pritty much always the same year on year, as long as the wild popualion remains stable then things stay the same. even when an inbalance occurs eventually it will re ballance itself, the only exception to this is mans interference. have you ever seen that thing on that island where every 40 yrs the rat population increase 10 fold in anticipation of the palm fruits falling. when all the fruit is gone they eat everything else, when thats gone they eat each other untill the population is reduced to such a level that the island can once again sustain them untill the next cycle

 

Fair enough i will accept you have a point. You can leave a bit of ground completely wild and dont interfere in any way, but the shootable surplus of gamebirds would be so minimal it probably wouldnt be worth going. You didnt answer my question so ill ask again... Are your opinions based on fact and have you have worked on both wild bird shoots and released bird shoots? Or are your opinions just that, your own ill-informed opinions?

Edited by PatterJack
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:laugh: .....of course they do. Bet they dont bother dealing with BOP's too cause they dont cause a problem. Dont believe everything you hear......... :thumbs:

I'd be very suprised if there was such a thing as a wild bird shoot where making money was invloved.... :hmm: Wild bird shoots are usually small farms or syndicates or there small estates next to large estate and like to call the birds that venture over "wild birds"..... :hmm:

 

So you dont know of or have never heard of a single shooting estate where the boss makes his keepers leave the foxes for the hunt? I know of a few, and its pretty simple really, they just have to release more birds to account for the extra losses due to their lack of predator control.

Admittedly, very few wild birds shoots will make money, but i never said they would, most are privately owned shoots, not commercial shoots.

Have you ever been down to Norfolk where there is alot of large wild bird shoots that are shooting alot of game?

Some people are more interested in shooting real wild game and therefore are willing to put in the extra effort/money to do so, instead of shooting artificially reared pheasants that resemble chickens more than their wild cousins.

 

 

foxs are territorial and a given area will only have a set number, as the birds are wild there not confined, so multiple losses at the same time do not happen. so loses are pritty much always the same year on year, as long as the wild popualion remains stable then things stay the same. even when an inbalance occurs eventually it will re ballance itself, the only exception to this is mans interference. have you ever seen that thing on that island where every 40 yrs the rat population increase 10 fold in anticipation of the palm fruits falling. when all the fruit is gone they eat everything else, when thats gone they eat each other untill the population is reduced to such a level that the island can once again sustain them untill the next cycle

 

Fair enough i will accept you have a point. You can leave a bit of ground completely wild and dont interfere in any way, but the shootable surplus of gamebirds would be so minimal it probably wouldnt be worth going. You didnt answer my question so ill ask again... Are your opinions based on fact and have you have worked on both wild bird shoots and released bird shoots? Or are your opinions just that, your own ill-informed opinions?

i give up :D
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:laugh: .....of course they do. Bet they dont bother dealing with BOP's too cause they dont cause a problem. Dont believe everything you hear......... :thumbs:

I'd be very suprised if there was such a thing as a wild bird shoot where making money was invloved.... :hmm: Wild bird shoots are usually small farms or syndicates or there small estates next to large estate and like to call the birds that venture over "wild birds"..... :hmm:

 

So you dont know of or have never heard of a single shooting estate where the boss makes his keepers leave the foxes for the hunt? I know of a few, and its pretty simple really, they just have to release more birds to account for the extra losses due to their lack of predator control.

Admittedly, very few wild birds shoots will make money, but i never said they would, most are privately owned shoots, not commercial shoots.

Have you ever been down to Norfolk where there is alot of large wild bird shoots that are shooting alot of game?

Some people are more interested in shooting real wild game and therefore are willing to put in the extra effort/money to do so, instead of shooting artificially reared pheasants that resemble chickens more than their wild cousins.

 

 

foxs are territorial and a given area will only have a set number, as the birds are wild there not confined, so multiple losses at the same time do not happen. so loses are pritty much always the same year on year, as long as the wild popualion remains stable then things stay the same. even when an inbalance occurs eventually it will re ballance itself, the only exception to this is mans interference. have you ever seen that thing on that island where every 40 yrs the rat population increase 10 fold in anticipation of the palm fruits falling. when all the fruit is gone they eat everything else, when thats gone they eat each other untill the population is reduced to such a level that the island can once again sustain them untill the next cycle

 

Fair enough i will accept you have a point. You can leave a bit of ground completely wild and dont interfere in any way, but the shootable surplus of gamebirds would be so minimal it probably wouldnt be worth going. You didnt answer my question so ill ask again... Are your opinions based on fact and have you have worked on both wild bird shoots and released bird shoots? Or are your opinions just that, your own ill-informed opinions?

In a nutshell...................NO!!!. Do you honestly think any keeper worth his salt will let foxes walk about the place when they have a job to do? They might not broadcast it if the owner wants to leave foxes for the hunt but ffs dont kid yourself that it doesn't happen........ :thumbs:

Maybe you could get me the numbers of these shoots that release birds for foxes and BOP's to eat i'd love to get that order for the Game farm......."Eh can i have 10000 poults for this years shooting and could you throw in an extra thousand for the vermin"........... :laugh:

The only thing i must admit i have never heard of these shoots in Norfolk that dont release birds but are shooting large amounts of pheasants. What estates are they on mate?... :thumbs:

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In a nutshell...................NO!!!. Do you honestly think any keeper worth his salt will let foxes walk about the place when they have a job to do? They might not broadcast it if the owner wants to leave foxes for the hunt but ffs dont kid yourself that it doesn't happen........ :thumbs:

Maybe you could get me the numbers of these shoots that release birds for foxes and BOP's to eat i'd love to get that order for the Game farm......."Eh can i have 10000 poults for this years shooting and could you throw in an extra thousand for the vermin"........... :laugh:

The only thing i must admit i have never heard of these shoots in Norfolk that dont release birds but are shooting large amounts of pheasants. What estates are they on mate?... :thumbs:

 

And do you think any keeper that values his job would flatten the foxes to save his pheasants when his boss doesnt care if they get eaten or not? If the boss wants to shoot pheasants but also wants foxes on the ground for the hunt, and he is willing to pay for the losses, why would any keeper risk killing them all. Fair enough i admit those same keepers probably do shift or kill the odd litter on cubs here and there but of the two estates i know of, the keepers dont go out of their way to kill the foxes (i.e. no lamping, no snaring)

 

As for norfolk shoots, look in any of the old books about wild partridge shooting and im sure more than a fair share of them will be in norfolk. Two of the biggest names would be Holkham and Sandringham, both of which are still shooting alot of wild game. And believe it or not, the keepers spend their time killing the vermin. NOT artificially rearing chicken like pheasants and partridges to release. and NOT leaving everything to the natural balance like Paulus says.

 

 

i give up :D

 

I think i'll do the same. The point you made about natural balances had no relevance to wild gamebirds in britain. You have proved that you have little knowledge or experience of producing wild gamebirds too so i think its best if i carry on doing what i do and when your producing enough wild birds to shoot big driven days with your method of 'leave everything' then ill put my hands up and say you were wrong and i was right.

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I agree with most of what has been said. I think ducks would be your best bet for getting some shooting. dont go mad with the food. one bucket of corn will do EVERY night. its important to feed every night to keep them coming back. also leave at least 10 days more if you can between nights shooting to let them come back in. If you want a decent number of wild pheasant/partridge you must kill EVERYTHING that poses a threat to them. And even if you get rid of every predator on the place a bit of rain will wipe out young broods so you might struggle.

i have access to a fair amount of land and pritty much the sole shooting rights, there is a very large pupulation of wild pheasants,deer,pigeon,duck,rabbit,hare. the odd partridge as the ground is not ideal for them, when everything is wild rather than farmed (stocked pheasents ect) there is no need for the, kill everything mentality associated with rearing and release pens, its all about balance and understanding, i like to see the odd fox,stoat.weasal, even rats,crows and squirrels have a place in the countryside :thumbs:

i keep saying im not running a shoot :laugh: :laugh: :laugh:

 

your talking out your arse mate. I give up its been a long day rearing ;):thumbs:

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