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Dug to my old dog foot in hard clay . As we where digging down i was about a foot off and I felt the ground go and the Earth caved in on top of him . I heard him struggling for breath . I panicked and went like a mad man passing the boulders out to my mate . I could just see his back but he had stopped breathing and then I smelt the shit I ripped him out and me and my mate went to work on him . I said he's gone and put him to the side and my mate said he's just moved . I picked him up worked on him a bit more and he came round . So I ran him to the stream and jumped in and went to wash him down . Where I jumped in was about five foot deep I'm only five foot six . So nearly went under through the old dog . Back up the bank so I could climb out I climbed out and the dog was gone . I said to me make where he gone he said f**k knows thought he was with you . I put the keeper on and f**k me he had gone back to ground we dug him in another stop at three and half foot again in rock hard clay seemed like hours . Hated every minute of that dig earth kept feeling like it was going to go again mate said I was getting parroniod . We dug him stuck fast to his quarry . Once we had finished and had time to reflect I couldn't believe what had just happened . That one will always stay with me .

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Dug to my old dog foot in hard clay . As we where digging down i was about a foot off and I felt the ground go and the Earth caved in on top of him . I heard him struggling for breath . I panicked and

Maybe 25 years ago I was nearly killed in a dig .Stupidity and brazen hard headedness got me into it .We used to walk an old sand quarry by me that was riddled with holes ,some easy ,some not so.The l

never met the lads before that day...good frendships made that day...I will enjoy digging to the pup the lad gifted me from the bitch we saved that day...no names he knows who he is...Top Man and resp

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7.2 is a sore one

never met the lads before that day...good frendships made that day...I will enjoy digging to the pup the lad gifted me from the bitch we saved that day...no names he knows who he is...Top Man and respect to him.sometimes it pays to go out of your way for folk.happy digging enjoy what's left of the season,stay true to your dogs,good lads you enjoy the craic with,respect your quarry -that's all I'm saying on the matter lol had a few sherbets to many time for bed for Me sonny lol.atb dc
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Maybe 25 years ago I was nearly killed in a dig .Stupidity and brazen hard headedness got me into it .We used to walk an old sand quarry by me that was riddled with holes ,some easy ,some not so.The lurcher did the marking and we tipped in wherever she marked and got away with it for several years .I've put this up before so apologies for repeating it .Lurcher marked a single hole at the bottom of a bank of maybe 30 ft of sheer sand face riddled with sand marten holes near the top.We entered a bitch of mine without thought of what would happen if no bolt occurred which was just the case .An hour passed and something had to be done .The deben locator packed up and so we just tunnelled in .Made a sizeable hole and I crawled in ,could hear the dog but no baying just grunts as was her style if she got a mouthful .No torch so I dug cleared a bit in front of me and crawled on then woosh, dark cold heavy weight crushing the life out of me .My head buried totally and couldn't move my arms ,legs .Fear is often quoted by us humans but until you are in that sort of predicament the meaning is lost but fear it was .My mate was frantically digging like a man possessed I learned after and luckily found my legs ,pulled me out with sand everywhere,up my nose ,ears ,eyes cloths full of it .Was probably in there matter of seconds but seemed a lot longer .The bank above had collapsed and I had 2,3 ton of it on me.Sitting there on the cold sand I remember my mate calling the bitch that had tumbled out from above us and a very dead fox .The cold silence is what I remember and then being pulled backwards with some force .Had I been alone that would of been my grave .There's another time that I'll recount when I've more time but off out with dogs now .

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Maybe 25 years ago I was nearly killed in a dig .Stupidity and brazen hard headedness got me into it .We used to walk an old sand quarry by me that was riddled with holes ,some easy ,some not so.The lurcher did the marking and we tipped in wherever she marked and got away with it for several years .I've put this up before so apologies for repeating it .Lurcher marked a single hole at the bottom of a bank of maybe 30 ft of sheer sand face riddled with sand marten holes near the top.We entered a bitch of mine without thought of what would happen if no bolt occurred which was just the case .An hour passed and something had to be done .The deben locator packed up and so we just tunnelled in .Made a sizeable hole and I crawled in ,could hear the dog but no baying just grunts as was her style if she got a mouthful .No torch so I dug cleared a bit in front of me and crawled on then woosh, dark cold heavy weight crushing the life out of me .My head buried totally and couldn't move my arms ,legs .Fear is often quoted by us humans but until you are in that sort of predicament the meaning is lost but fear it was .My mate was frantically digging like a man possessed I learned after and luckily found my legs ,pulled me out with sand everywhere,up my nose ,ears ,eyes cloths full of it .Was probably in there matter of seconds but seemed a lot longer .The bank above had collapsed and I had 2,3 ton of it on me.Sitting there on the cold sand I remember my mate calling the bitch that had tumbled out from above us and a very dead fox .The cold silence is what I remember and then being pulled backwards with some force .Had I been alone that would of been my grave .There's another time that I'll recount when I've more time but off out with dogs now .

Your very lucky to survive that FD.

I worked for a good while in a sand quarry and had to collapse the sand face to stop the Martins nesting in the face.

A slight tap with the digger bucket and down it would come.

Very unpredictable stuff.

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I once had a terrier enter under a tin sheet that was covered with house bricks in a small wood. When I managed to move afew bricks to get sheet to move it dropped into a small cellar. I climbed in to find terrier working away in a old fire place. When I looked up to hole I'd climbed in there were just the old timbers all rotten holding all the bricks and mud on top. f**k knows how many tons were on top. Luckily I could reach back end of dog and pull it out and climbed back out. If that had caved in on me I'd be still there now buried with dog and quarry. Lol. It has all caved since then.

must of only been 4 foot then co chise as your only scratching 5 foot lol
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Only 2.4, shallowest ive had it, but the big rock was above the dog sticking out of the wall of the dig. Looked secure enough, my father got under the rock, up the tube and pull the dog out as she had pushed it a bit further back. Pulled the dog out and the moment he stepped out of the dig, I heard this mighty thud and the rock had rolled into the dig where my father was lying just seconds previous. Very lucky and I've never visited it since.

20141102_154528_zps1o8vaduy.jpg

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Around 8 year ago got asked by our hunting federation to go to an area about 45 minutes away to help control the badger poplulation.

So we obliged, met by the local hunt club and taken into a nice bit of chestnut coppice.

A 1 holer with almost pure soft sand as the kick out, there wasnt much kickout to be fair, so collar tested and in she goes. Could not hear anything at the hole and with the box thigs didnt seem to settle, time went on and after an hour of moving around the bitch seemed to be in the same area moving up and down in the one spot, I thought maybe she is digging on to a critter digging on and clearing as she goes, the bitch was a solid worker, relentless if theirs one to ground, no matter how well its dug on. Anyway a big wide hole was started as this sandy bank was very fraglie, was over 3 metre dig till we found a tube (handy their was 5 of us in our squad), I didnt break through onto the dog and no noise, but within the time I was head down and torch on she came to me, so she wasnt with the quarry I knew. Happy to get her yoked up as I was kicking myself for entering her into such a sandy spot. My mate collared his teckel x just to verify and as I kinda knew, nothing. So we got out and less than a minute after lifting the teckel x up the whole back just dropped in, probably over 3 m3 just dropped. Widened my eyes a bit..

A week or so later I was digging not far away and an old boy that used to dig came along, told him about the deep sand etc and he said they were invited to that village years ago and didnt even get a dog out of the van all the spots looked that bad.

Edited by Columbo
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Maybe 25 years ago I was nearly killed in a dig .Stupidity and brazen hard headedness got me into it .We used to walk an old sand quarry by me that was riddled with holes ,some easy ,some not so.The lurcher did the marking and we tipped in wherever she marked and got away with it for several years .I've put this up before so apologies for repeating it .Lurcher marked a single hole at the bottom of a bank of maybe 30 ft of sheer sand face riddled with sand marten holes near the top.We entered a bitch of mine without thought of what would happen if no bolt occurred which was just the case .An hour passed and something had to be done .The deben locator packed up and so we just tunnelled in .Made a sizeable hole and I crawled in ,could hear the dog but no baying just grunts as was her style if she got a mouthful .No torch so I dug cleared a bit in front of me and crawled on then woosh, dark cold heavy weight crushing the life out of me .My head buried totally and couldn't move my arms ,legs .Fear is often quoted by us humans but until you are in that sort of predicament the meaning is lost but fear it was .My mate was frantically digging like a man possessed I learned after and luckily found my legs ,pulled me out with sand everywhere,up my nose ,ears ,eyes cloths full of it .Was probably in there matter of seconds but seemed a lot longer .The bank above had collapsed and I had 2,3 ton of it on me.Sitting there on the cold sand I remember my mate calling the bitch that had tumbled out from above us and a very dead fox .The cold silence is what I remember and then being pulled backwards with some force .Had I been alone that would of been my grave .There's another time that I'll recount when I've more time but off out with dogs now .

Ffs that Gave me cold shiverS reading that's as I've been nearly as close but not quite buried in a couple of bad sandy areas.

It's amazing what we'll do for our terriers but it's lost on the anti's, RSPCA, packham, May and all the other Asreholes that live in LA LA LAND

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Mole,agreed mate it ain't a good memory for me 27 years on .

Another time we ran a fox into what is known locally as a swallow hole ,a hole at the bottom of a bank that drains the field in heavy rain .The field was slightly v shaped which would funnel all run off to this place .It was drizzling when we entered a dog and I was relieved to track her with the finder and level out back under the field .5 ft in heavy clay was hard sticky going then the heavens opened .We were plastered but only 18 inches to go or there abouts on the old deben .We noticing water trickling down into the dig from the clay soaked fields which gradually got worse to the point we were baling out water with the shovel which is never good or practical .We tried to create a dam but it seeped through and things were getting bad to the point I dreaded breaking through to what I might find .Water could be heard gushing further down the hole .we dug on ,shitty clay up to our ankles that was getting deeper .Panic set in a bit and we dug like idiots knowing we couldn't keep it up but we did and broke through to a dog and dead fox .Terrier got covered in slime but unharmed .We went from there broken men but just happy to get the dog back .Never backfilled that one I'll admit and the whole lot had caved in next time I saw it .Farmer dumped a load of topsoil on it which was washed away and totally gone next time it rained .God knows how deep the main drain went or where it went but its still there to this day .

 

Somewhere else that we now avoid is an old sewer works where there is a miriard of tunnels that the foxes loved .Wed worked this for years before the day in question .Nets on dog in and stand back .Baying was heard as the terrier travelled hot on the foxes heels but in an area previously unvisited ,ever .Silence and we wondered if Charlie had bolted unseen in the trash

.Box on but nothing and despite calls no terrier on top .We decide to dig the last spot we heard the dog and were soon down on top the clay pipe which I broke .Nothing so a shine either side with the torch and faint splashing could be heard and whining from the direction the terrier went in .Found and broke the pipe again before another panic session set in as reality dawned on us .The terrier was in a concrete tank full of water .Dug the top off and luckily it was only covered by tin sheets which were quickly thrown aside .Terrier was about 3 ft lower and fully submerged save his mouth and nose totally knackered ,paddling very slowly .Got him out and dried him off and luckily no harm but we never went there again .

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here's one of an old tin mine by me-ran a fox in and 2 bull x lurchers a spaniel and 2 terriers trenched out the entrance and dissappeared a good 70/80 metres inside it-some go on a fair distance and plenty of dogs been seen entering and never seen again when on a scent.atb dc

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