Driven hare

[ratattack 111]

I have shot hares both mountain(blue) and brown on estates. The mountain hares are in stupidly high numbers on some upland estates in scotland, driving them to waiting guns is the only way to thin them out as all the dog men can't run a dog over the heather It's not sport This is purely population control and to reduce tick numbers which have a detrimental effect on young grouse chicks. I love to watch a running dog course a hare/rabbit/ fox but i prefer to shoot.

Edited September 21, 2009 by ratattack

[stag1 3]

iam more of a dog lad but as ppl say every one to there own . but if a dog gets a hare its dead but if you shoot in a rong place it will have a slow painful deth so its not more humain if you ask me .ayb stag

[para1 11]

hares should be respected like any other game/quary. IMO it is better to shoot them than sending a dog after them to chaise it and pump adrenalin through its body can you imagin the fear that it would be going through?, even if it gets away it will prob die of shock or a heart atack or somthing. Much better to be a one shot kill.. no pain, the quary is relaxed and would not even hear the bang. this is just my opinion.

 

Do you actually live in the real world? Shooting sure as hell dont garuantee a clean kill, anybody that shoots can confirm that. Theres always occasions when shots go tits up, dodgy bullet/pellet, poor pattern etc etc. Also to make the statement that the coursed hare must be terrified and probably die of stress after shows how little you really know! The hare is a natural quarry species, natural prey. It has evolved (at this point we will have to all beleive the theory of evolution unless you beleive 'god' made all the creatures of the earth in the form they are now! lol) to evaid predators by use of its natural athletic ability, speed, stamina and agility, not to mention knowledge of IT'S home terrain intimately. Now, how good a survivor would it be if everytime a predator gave it some agro it died from stress??? Its a scientifically proven fact prey go back to doing what ever it was they were doing before beeing hunted once it has escaped the predator, predators are part and parcel of a hare's (and all other prey for that matter) life. The arctic hares in north america are very used to beeing coursed in the wild............... Arctic wolves run the hare in a very similar way to the saluki.

 

However, over predation can and will cause stress which can cause a hare propulation to 'die off'. That is why a good coursing man (/hunter in general) will not only hunt his land but manage it, not over hunt it etc.

 

Sorry if i have been a bit blunt but what you said really got my blood up. It just struck me as the exact thing that a average 'joe public' would come out with.

 

I think you meant "anti" would come out with.

[events co-ordinator 353]

Typical lets all argue amongst our selves where were all the Scottish lurchermen and women when the consultation period for the Watson bill was taking place ?they're quick to write now

[Born Hunter 17,622]

hares should be respected like any other game/quary. IMO it is better to shoot them than sending a dog after them to chaise it and pump adrenalin through its body can you imagin the fear that it would be going through?, even if it gets away it will prob die of shock or a heart atack or somthing. Much better to be a one shot kill.. no pain, the quary is relaxed and would not even hear the bang. this is just my opinion.

 

Do you actually live in the real world? Shooting sure as hell dont garuantee a clean kill, anybody that shoots can confirm that. Theres always occasions when shots go tits up, dodgy bullet/pellet, poor pattern etc etc. Also to make the statement that the coursed hare must be terrified and probably die of stress after shows how little you really know! The hare is a natural quarry species, natural prey. It has evolved (at this point we will have to all beleive the theory of evolution unless you beleive 'god' made all the creatures of the earth in the form they are now! lol) to evaid predators by use of its natural athletic ability, speed, stamina and agility, not to mention knowledge of IT'S home terrain intimately. Now, how good a survivor would it be if everytime a predator gave it some agro it died from stress??? Its a scientifically proven fact prey go back to doing what ever it was they were doing before beeing hunted once it has escaped the predator, predators are part and parcel of a hare's (and all other prey for that matter) life. The arctic hares in north america are very used to beeing coursed in the wild............... Arctic wolves run the hare in a very similar way to the saluki.

 

However, over predation can and will cause stress which can cause a hare propulation to 'die off'. That is why a good coursing man (/hunter in general) will not only hunt his land but manage it, not over hunt it etc.

 

Sorry if i have been a bit blunt but what you said really got my blood up. It just struck me as the exact thing that a average 'joe public' would come out with.

 

I think you meant "anti" would come out with.

 

Yeh your right pal, lol. But i think that word is thrown around too much on this site.

[neil cooney 10,415]

JMHO but there's a big difference between argueing and debating. Debate is always healthy for any subject.

Just out of interest to those that have shot driven hares , are they a sporting shot? I'd imagine it wouldn't be hard to get a clean kill on a hare with a shotgun. Especially with a full choke and a heavy cartridge.

Another thing, there is no point in comparing the Irish Hare to the Brown Hare in Britain. I could say with confidence that there is NOWHERE in Ireland where you could see 100+ Hares in a day. Not a chance and they're rarely a pest. Those that come after them ,Yes, but the Hares? No.

[micky 3,325]

JMHO but there's a big difference between argueing and debating. Debate is always healthy for any subject.

Just out of interest to those that have shot driven hares , are they a sporting shot? I'd imagine it wouldn't be hard to get a clean kill on a hare with a shotgun. Especially with a full choke and a heavy cartridge.

Another thing, there is no point in comparing the Irish Hare to the Brown Hare in Britain. I could say with confidence that there is NOWHERE in Ireland where you could see 100+ Hares in a day. Not a chance and they're rarely a pest. Those that come after them ,Yes, but the Hares? No.

I went on a few driveswhen i was a kid,me and my grandpa,it was allways keepers ,farmworkers ,beaters ,a piss up and a good meal,the one i remember the most was in 1958 at Kimboulton in Cams,shire,over 200 hundred hares were shot in the morning ,but the big talking point at dinnertime was someone had shot a rabbit,everyone went and had a look ,all the hares were hanging with there heads bagged up ,and the rabbit had pride of place at the front of the game cart ,the keeper had even gutted it butchers style with a stick through the ribs ,lifting the liver up for inspection.i rememember that day well ,because my youngest sister was born on it .

[waidmann 105]

the hare is a sporting shot imo,i love to see a dog run/work and would prefer to course them.but its not allowed by law( neither in england or where i have done the most shooting in germany) and so we have always shot them on driven pheasant/walked up/rough shooting days. they need thinning out to maintain a healthy populus and make good sport.

rabbit and the odd fox,partridge,snipe,duck,woodcock,pigeon etc liven the bag up,making for good sport for the 40 odd standing guns and around 20 walking in the beating line( common practice in germany,they shoot game going to the sides and back through the line.is this done in the uk??)

hope the ban gets lifted soon and happy hunting all.

[stevoman 4]

JMHO but there's a big difference between argueing and debating. Debate is always healthy for any subject.

Just out of interest to those that have shot driven hares , are they a sporting shot? I'd imagine it wouldn't be hard to get a clean kill on a hare with a shotgun. Especially with a full choke and a heavy cartridge.

Another thing, there is no point in comparing the Irish Hare to the Brown Hare in Britain. I could say with confidence that there is NOWHERE in Ireland where you could see 100+ Hares in a day. Not a chance and they're rarely a pest. Those that come after them ,Yes, but the Hares? No.

 

 

i agree. the irish brown hare is scarce to say the least and not in the same population densitys that is described here. to be honest i was shocked to see people actually had driven hare shoots in the uk. i know nobody in ireland would even think of the prospect. in most cases the shooting of a hare in ireland in frowned upon. i have even been told that to shoot a hare is bad luck.

 

the irish brown hare though is a beautifil creature. i had the delight of seeing two on saturday and one on sunday morning. my setter on the other hand see much more delight than i when she chases them across the filed, but i dont chastise her for it as it is neither creatures fault.

 

i undertsand that the uk's wildlif and shooting is managed dramitically different to ireland so i wouldnt really feel i have an opinion on the subject. but from personal experience i have shot one hare and i would never shoot one again.

[GET THEM OUT (.)(.) 39]

was out on our 1st local shoot last sunday, see alot of hares at a rought geuss about 80ish ? was alot considering we only did a few fields for partridge, think we only shot 40 partridge, but there is already talk of the hare shoots when the pheasent season has finished, ,theres even more land to go at now, i bet we have at least 3 days of hare shoots, the biggest will be 300 hares in one day

[chimp 299]

that will be a good day

[kobidog 1]

iam more of a dog lad but as ppl say every one to there own . but if a dog gets a hare its dead but if you shoot in a rong place it will have a slow painful deth so its not more humain if you ask me .ayb stag

i agree but if Hare is shot with a shotgun by an experienced shot and killed humanely then it would be much more humane than if it was run by a dog because it would just be bolted and shot but if it was run by a dog it would go through a huge amount of fear and excaustion

[fensaluki 35]

Only my honest opinion but surely all threads like this do are put nails in all of our sports coffins.Personly Shooting hares doesn't do anything for me and I would rather see them run by a good dog but as several people have said in this thread I'm not going to call another mans sport wether it's coursing them,Shooting them or chasing naked after them round the field until they laugh themself to death.Anyway hares are quite a territorial animal and dont tend to travel very far so what difference dose it make to any of us what another man dose on his permmision ??

 

Surley if you control yours how you want to and I control mine how I want to we sould have no reason to dissagree.as long as we keep to our own permission we would make not a bit of differance to one another.... Unless of course were poaching and then I'm affraid we have no real justification to moan how the quarry is taken by others as thats just taking the peicccccce

 

In my opinion

 

[fensaluki 35]

iam more of a dog lad but as ppl say every one to there own . but if a dog gets a hare its dead but if you shoot in a rong place it will have a slow painful deth so its not more humain if you ask me .ayb stag

i agree but if Hare is shot with a shotgun by an experienced shot and killed humanely then it would be much more humane than if it was run by a dog because it would just be bolted and shot but if it was run by a dog it would go through a huge amount of fear and excaustion

 

As we are talking about hare SHOOTS whats the difference between a hare being put up three fields away by a beater and chased to a gun or being put up by a dog & handler given 100yrds grace and chased three fields to either its fate or escape. as for fear/humanity have you evr seen the look on a hares face when its ran three fields from the beaters line only to be faced with a line of guns??? It's hardly oh he looks a fair shot I'll go that way and make it quick is it??

Cant we find somthing a bit more productive to talk about

[kobidog 1]

iam more of a dog lad but as ppl say every one to there own . but if a dog gets a hare its dead but if you shoot in a rong place it will have a slow painful deth so its not more humain if you ask me .ayb stag

i agree but if Hare is shot with a shotgun by an experienced shot and killed humanely then it would be much more humane than if it was run by a dog because it would just be bolted and shot but if it was run by a dog it would go through a huge amount of fear and excaustion

 

As we are talking about hare SHOOTS whats the difference between a hare being put up three fields away by a beater and chased to a gun or being put up by a dog & handler given 100yrds grace and chased three fields to either its fate or escape. as for fear/humanity have you evr seen the look on a hares face when its ran three fields from the beaters line only to be faced with a line of guns??? It's hardly oh he looks a fair shot I'll go that way and make it quick is it??

Cant we find somthing a bit more productive to talk about

ok you win lol, but at the time of writing that i was thinking of just a hare being bolted and shot that second on a walked up shoot, i didnt think about driven shooting.