What Age You Started Hunting?

[jasper65 6]

Got my first Air Rifle at around 10 - 11 handed down to me from my brother which was a old Milbro .22 but was never allowed to use it with him or the old man about, I also had a Gatgun at this time too which they let me use and what a lethal peice of kit . obviousley back then in the 70's there was alot more places to shoot and alot less gun crime so as long as you had the land to go on you wasn't ever bothered, so I progressed to some better Hunting Air Rifle from the BSA Mercury's and Airsporters.

 

I was also well into the birds by then too <Feathered one's>, and had Jackdaws and all sorts before getting things like Kestrels and the like. The Jackdaw was my favourite back then and would follow me to school or anywhere flying backwards and forwards to my shoulder as I rode along on my bike, It was a good lads life being brought up back then with Guns, Birds and other Wildlife and learning Respect for any weapons and quarry alike, I certainly wouldn't swap my childhood for alot of what the kids get upto these days.

 

Out of Interest How did anyone else start? either with Dogs, Guns, Birds, Fishing or whatever!! did anyone take you under their wing and learn you your skills? I was lucky as at the age of around 14 there was a Man who I would bike and see around 6 miles away who kept Hawks <Mainly Goshawks>, I remember going round and seeing mt first Gos on the lawn teathered to a bow and just stood in Orrr of this great bird, I ended up Ferreting for the guy and helping him with all sorts of chores which all benefited me later, I still keep intouch with the guy now who is in his 70's. I was lucky and it was nice to have a Old School tutor and I'm still very much like that now.

 

Lifes flown past but I still like to hear stories from lads when they got started and some of the old things they got up to, I was speaking to a lad on the phone I was at school with and was remenicing about some of the daft things we did with Air Rifles , I'm sure there is some pretty good stories out there somewhere....

 

Cheers

 

Jasper

[Guest Leveller]

Been following hounds for as long as I can remember we used to live in a tied cottage at kennels and I spent my whole early years in with hounds, probably should've been mixing with other children really nevermind.

 

Used to ride with the terrierman in an old Austin A35 or A40 van or something like that.

 

Nearly always had my own mutts and ferrets though, now thirty years old got my own kennels full of sporting dogs and still keeping ferrets and still at it. Lamping, ferreting, terrierwork and hunting with hounds and will continue to do so until I can't anymore........

[Simoman 110]

Had air pisols, rifles and a gatgun around 10 and used to take them into local woods and quarries and never thought of being stopped, those were the days eh? I was bought a copy of Plummers Working Terrier a couple of years later and that got me interested in ferrets, terriers and lurchers. Also did a bit of fishing in my mid teens but don't fish much now because I'm rubbish at it Followed hounds, both fox and mink as I got older and did some ratting, lamping and ferreting but had a few years "out" training sport dogs, nowdays I follow the hounds when I can and still take the terrier ratting and also the odd (very odd) bit of lamping and rabbiting with my GSDs. I shoot with my air rifle and shotgun and am waiting for a lurcher pup next summer.

[senjo 2]

Hi mate, i started when i first visited my uncles house when i was about ten years old he had lurchers and terriers and ferrets . Since then i have always had ferrets and dogs.When i was sixteen i left school and worked as an underkeeper on a large pheasant shoot and went to hereford college for six week blocks.After my two years training i moved to a large partridge estate in east sussex where i stayed for two years and then moved back to cheshire i now help on the same estate where i worked when i left school.I am thirty four years old now and still enjoy all field sports i now have terriers,lurchers and gundogs and do 1-2-1 training in basic gundog training.Both my children come with me whenever i go hunting or ferreting i hope they are still as keen as me when there older. KEEP HUNTING !!!

[Ricky-N.p.p 0]

I remember seeing family members all going hunting and fishing whilst i was a todler and always wanted to go along but was never allowed my uncle,my papa and to some extent my dad, my mum and dad split when i was only a young nipper and my dad fell away from hunting !

 

i never got to meet my grandfather(dads dad) but i still hear tales to this day from folk who where lucky enough to have known him and seen his dogs run, apparently he supplied half the village with meat during those days and would alays be having run ins with land owners are game keppers

 

folk still say he was the best poacher that they ever knew and that kinda makes me proud

 

my papa(mums dad) ran lurchers all his life and i still remember his best dog old judy, a red couloured wippet collie cross he reckoned she was the best rabbit dog that ever walked this earth but dont they all

 

then came along jim my step dad who was into shooting(shotgun) and soon had me wildfowling and pigeon shooting,great way to grow up, he got me my first ferret a big polecat hob seemed massive to me at the time i always remember it "was the full lenth of my arm) looking back though i suposse my arm wasnt that long

 

sadley my step dad has fallen away from the shooting scene so i'v taken on the job of passing on the skills to my youngest brother who i must say is a quick learner and seem possitivly screwed down to the subject.

 

heres some pics of jamie and a few of his firsts

 

his first ferreting trip

first fish on the fly rod

first time out with the halk

 

and today i'm expecting to collect his first ferrets

 

hope you enjoy reading this as much as i'v enjoyed typing it

[jasper65 6]

Classics ! I love getting this stuff off my chest with lads I knocked about with over a few jars or whatever, it arouses so many memories it brings it back like it was yesterday. Its funny how we can all be at each other throats sometimes in Disagreement, yet when we read into the way most of us got started and some of the old stories that got us there we all have a common Bond "HUNTING" and wanting to hunt!! its in our blood....

 

Its just sad that generations today won't get the same freedoms we had as kids, alot of new laws has made life difficult for the new up and coming field sportsman........

[Guest whitser]

i started off about 12. me and my mates would head down the farmers fields to make bases and swings and put coins on the train tracks. we'd all have our pet dogs with us. i had duff a lab cross, looking back at pics there may have been some bull in there. the dogs would kill rats after a while we were on our way through the fields, i loved it. then i'd be down chasing rats and rabbits every chance i got. it took off from there, haven't looked backed.

[mad al 146]

Can't remember what age I was, about seven I'd say, stood in the dark with my Dad and some others at the edge of a cornfield, waiting while the badgers were driven out, never forget that and the smell of the powder/shot ...........what the young of today are being deprived of by the self righteous ............Al

[Guest Frank]

I was 10 or 11, started off ferreting, fishing. Got a air rifle, Mercury air sporter S .22, shot many a pigeon ect with it and missed plenty too, more than i hit .

 

Frank.

[Stabs 3]

can't remember what came first...the dogs or the fishing....but I was given a cork handled spinning rod when I was six (which I still have) and going to a place called Johnny Bess Beck and catching perch. I was taught about a plumb and bait and strike and I've never looked back.

 

I was given terriers when my great grandad died and they were borders but they threw the odd black which suggests they had a bit of other blood in there too. I have pictures from the 1940's of my family with dogs you'd call patterdales these days so I suppose they are in there somewhere. We ran racing whippets on partridge and rats too when we were kids and we watched many a dig back in the 1970's which made us swear we'd have great dogs ourselves when we were older. From all of the lads I knocked about with in the 70's and 's I am the only one who is still in the game. We all lived for it but the boys have fallen by the wayside......breaks my heart when I see them these days. We never had any good dogs but by f**k we were keen The diggin game sorted us out as that was an eye opener to us. I think the first time we tried to dig our russells was the day we realised things were bigger than we thought they were......You live and learn

[bill88 6]

My old man told me he started taking me out on his shoulders with "laddie" our colliexgreyhound,when i was about 3 or 4 years old,so i guess thats the start of it.There was an abandoned railway embankment,about half a mile from our house,and it was riddled with rabbits.The dog had also swam and caught a few ducks while my dad would push me on the swings in the local park.We also used to go ratting on the demolition site at the bottom of our street,but in all honesty,i remember the dogs,but not the hunting trips.When i was about 7 my elder sisters boyfriend would take me fishing,with my Winfield 6 foot spinning rod,and my Boyo reel.Sometimes he would take his air rifle and gat gun,and let me have a go,and if i went and got his fags from the shop,he would give me the gat gun and half a dozen pellets,and i'd be off down the railway embankment. Got my first ferrets at 10 and my first gun a webley hawk,when i was 12.I remember begging my dad to let me go out with the gun on my own,as it was the holidays and he was at work,he did and the first time out some women said she'd seen me shooting birds in the woods near our house,which was absolute rubbish,the police stopped me and brought me home,i begged them not to tell my dad and they said they wouldn't provided i kept away from the woods with the gun.Two weeks later they knocked the front door told my dad,and he beat the arse off me and smashed the gun. Have been shooting,fishing,ferreting and keeping terriers and lurchers for most of the time ever since.I'm now in my forties,and still learning

[Guest POT FILLER]

STARTED FERRETING WHEN I WAS 14 NOW IM 28 WAS,NT ALLOWED MY OWN DOG WHEN I WAS YOUNG,WAS TAKEN LAMPING EARLY 90S FIRST FOX I SEEN LURCHERS CATCH THAT WAS IT I WAS HOOKED THEN I BEGGED MY MAM CAN I HAVE A LURCHER PUP IN THE END SHE GAVE IN AND THATS THAT NOT LOOKED BACK SINCE IVE BEEN HUNTING NOW 16 YEARS

[THE POACHER 13]

i started ferreting and mooching around with my father at the age of 9 with the whippet jack russel and ferrets

[waz77 15]

I started when i was about 7,a mate of my dads had ferrets n lurchers n he used to take me out a bit,then i got my own ferts but i was'nt allowed a dog at that age,about a year after i met him my dads mate died of brain tumor n i did'nt know anyone else who was into it so i plodded along on my own n learnt from my own mistakes.When i was 12 i got my first terrier and when he was a year old had my first fox with him,been at it ever since,mainly terrierwork and hunting but do a bit of shooting, ferting, fishing etc as well,30 now and hope to still be at it when i peg out

[marko 30]

started when i was about twelve going to my cousins who was 20 yrs older than me he used to keep,lurchers/terriers ferrets,all sorts of hawks aswell as a managerie of animals including foxes,badgers,boa constrictors god i could go on and on but he decided to take the pain in the arse twelve yr old out with him what a great learning curve this was in all kinds of weather carrying a ferret box with six ferrets in for 8-9 hrs i must of complained but not much because he wouldnt take you out the nxt wk with him,then i progressed myself to a small lurcher plus a kestrel and a scandanavian airgun that i cant remember and an original 45 very deadly with this i was and the rest is history im now 41.