jimmy-big_shoes

I find the ferretvite smeared on the belly is the best way. Sit down on a step and sit the ferret in your lap whilst you cut its claws. Because its sitting in your lap he doesn't slide or move. you can get all claws on every foot done within about 2 minutes. Jim

Perth here, Looking for a decent gun but need a long stock on it, have a browning medallist 12g 28' M/C which is too short for me (I have arms like a gorilla) - what like is the stock on yours? JBS

I agree about the meat. Mine get any meat I can find, although they always have a bowl of dry food should they want it. I was shooting pigeons the other day and I put some of the ferral stock doves that I'd shot into the cage instead of the usual rabbit. My 2 new kits (both about 12 weeks old) ate everything except the wings, all I did was pull off some of the breast feathers and cut one slice down each breast. Nature does the rest, they sure know how to eat!! I also happen to think that feeding meat stops the nipping - anyone got any idea why? Cheers JBS

http://s673.photobucket.com/albums/vv97/ji...mview=slideshow I think that should let you see the pics. Jim

Hi folks, Not sure where to put this, so I thought I'd try the professionals first. I was shooting rabbits this morning and when I got home and gutted them I found one had an unusual growth inside it. It was a sac about the size of a tennis ball which has quite resilliant skin (like an orange segment) and inside that were a number of smaller fluid filled sacs, some the size of marbles, others the size of golf balls. The growth was attached to the liver, kidneys and stomach. I also noticed that the liver had some real nasty looking black lesions on the back of it and it had a rough text

You are not obliged to tell the Police, but if you think you are going to get NIMBY neighbours phoning about you or you are going to shoot in a reasonably populated area its not a bad idea to just let them know that you are going. You dont need to go in person, just get the number for your local control room, phone them and advise them that you will be carrying out pest control activities on a piece of land between certain times. If you have a written permission, always carry it with you. If not, make sure you have the name and telephone number of the landowner handy - just in case your messag

I have to admit, I gave up worrying about this sort of thing when I got crap off folk at school. It actually convinced me I was right. My Gf doesnt eat meat and hates to think about animals suffering, but comes out ferreting with me sometimes as she understands that the animal is dispatched quickly and there is far more accountability on my part for what I eat, even if she doesnt want to eat it herself. I can respect that point of view. Interestingly enough she doesnt call herself vegetarian as that term seems to have negative associations too!! There was a similar letter about this i

Jim If you are allowing an already confident dog to run about chasing rabbits & pheasants and then praising it for doing so then you are in real danger of creating problems for yourself. As this dog is already hunting well & is so confident I suggest you stop free hunting straight away & get some obedience into it Otherwise you could spend hours chasing after it in the future ( i've been there........it's knackering!!) Point taken. It only happens when we're out walking and theres a bird that takes off unexpectedly from somewhere. As much as possible I use a

I have to admit Im surprised at this post. Yes its always possible that a ferret wont work, the same as a gun dog might not be trainable or a hawk could injure itself and be no good for hunting. I honestly dont think that justifies getting it put to sleep though. Its a risk you take when you get an animal. I completely agree that if he wont work then vasectimisation or even castration is the way to go to stop him knackering working strains, but after having read some of the other posts on here about how attached folks get to ferrets, I dont think a swift double tap is the answer. I

Jim You're asking a lot from such a young cocker. I have 3 cockers & wouldn't ever expect that much from any of them at that age How confident a dog is it ? Is is not to sure of it's self ? I was wondering if I was pushing things too far too fast. She is pretty confident and will go tearing off into bushes and after rabbits/pheasants if she gets the chance. I have never given her a bollocking for running after them as she is always using her nose to find them and I havent taught her not to chase it yet. She always gets praise when she returns too. Am I to take it

Hi folks, I have a 7-8 month old cocker, (my first gun dog) who is coming on grand, only problem is, she wont sit at a distance. She clearly understands whistle and hand signals, and has the recall pretty well nailed and when she's in at heel will sit perfectly. She understands the whistle blast means sit, and the hand signal the same, but when she's out at a distance she runs back in to heel before sitting. Theres no problem with creating a distance between us, as I can tell her to sit and stay and walk away from her , return, walk out again, throw balls etc and she will stay wh

I use old army Haversacks for everything. One for my sea fishing bag, one for my Shotgun Cartridges and another for my nets. A Decent sized one costs a fiver from an army surplus store, lasts forever and will fit in 25 large hemp nets, a flask, saw, a knife and other odds and sods. You can either leg the rabbits on to the shoulder strap of the bag, or use a stick as described in earlier posts. I also carry an old plastic tray from safeway - like you would get vegetables presented on in the shop. That sits in my car to put the game in at the end of the day. (Obviously if you catch more

Cheers Folks, They're gone. Jim

Hi folks, For a while I was trying to do some amateur taxidermy, but given I have no artistic talent whatsoever, I continually found I was making a balls up of it. My Circumstances have now changed and fortunately I've decided to stop putting myself through the frustration of creating dinosaur looking squirrels and the like. Unfortunately anyone who knows me has been picking up roadkill for me for the past couple of years and I now have a freezer full of dead stuff. If anyone on here is an amateur taxidermist and could use the specimens they are more than welcome to them. I live i

You could try joining the Scottish Gamekeepers Assosciation too - or the english equivalent (if there is one). I am a member of that and I get Public Liability for all hunting shooting fishing, working dogs etc, and its cheaper than BASC.