bill88 6 Posted October 21, 2007 Report Share Posted October 21, 2007 Just wondered if anyone knows the legalities concerning pest control by the owner of land.I'm pretty sure the landowner has a legal obligation to control numbers on his land (rabbits) I shoot,ferret and run the dogs on some farm land near me.It is bordered one side by a dual carraigeway which sits on a 15ft high embankment,and on the other by a railway cutting.Now i am aware that the railway cutting is private land,but surely the owners (railtrack?) have a legal obligation to control the rabbit numbers? as the sides of the cutting are crumbling due to the rabbits burrowing,and the damage they are doing to crops on the land i have permission on?.Would it be worth contacting railtrack and asking for permission to ferret and net? On the issue of the road embankment,the farmer has asked me to sort the rabbits out on the embankment,but the fence is at the base of the embankment and not at the top.Therefore i'm guessing the embankment is not actually the farmers property,but everytime i speak to him he asks me if i am sorting the embankment for him.I don't want to lose the permission,but i also want to stay the right side of the law. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
MikeTheDog 153 Posted October 21, 2007 Report Share Posted October 21, 2007 Mega insurance required for railway embankments for obvious reasons. If the farmer doesn't own the land then he can't give you permission to ferret there, you should contact the local council for advice. Good luck.. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
spade 224 Posted October 21, 2007 Report Share Posted October 21, 2007 I worked on the railway for 20 years until a couple of years ago and when I first started ferreters used to be issued with permits for rabbiting along railway lines. This was because the farmers would blame the railways for any rabbits getting onto their land. Nowadays it would be virtually impossible to gain permission. You would have to attend and pass various safety courses and even then you couldn't just turn up. You would have to set up worksites surrounded by blue net fencing and have people passed out to look for trains etc. For the sake of a few rabbits the costs could run into thousands of pounds. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
bill88 6 Posted October 21, 2007 Author Report Share Posted October 21, 2007 I worked on the railway for 20 years until a couple of years ago and when I first started ferreters used to be issued with permits for rabbiting along railway lines. This was because the farmers would blame the railways for any rabbits getting onto their land.Nowadays it would be virtually impossible to gain permission. You would have to attend and pass various safety courses and even then you couldn't just turn up. You would have to set up worksites surrounded by blue net fencing and have people passed out to look for trains etc. For the sake of a few rabbits the costs could run into thousands of pounds. I was thinking it might be awkward gaing permission,and your spot on,as the farmer is pissed off that the rabbits are coming off the railway in the night and helping themselves.The holes are all the railway side of the fence,so nothing i can do about it to help him. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
mackay 3,580 Posted October 21, 2007 Report Share Posted October 21, 2007 By law a landowner must take steps to control rabbits. That aside, you could take a chance and just ferret the ground but why not lamp the ground you have permission on and catch the rabbits when they're out at night feeding. I actually like it when my permission borders somewhere like this I leave it alone treating it like a living larder hopefully ensuring (disease aside) there's always sport to be had on my side of the fence. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
MR TEA POT 1,287 Posted October 21, 2007 Report Share Posted October 21, 2007 Hi mate couldn't you set snares on the fence line? Quote Link to post Share on other sites
bill88 6 Posted October 21, 2007 Author Report Share Posted October 21, 2007 By law a landowner must take steps to control rabbits.That aside, you could take a chance and just ferret the ground but why not lamp the ground you have permission on and catch the rabbits when they're out at night feeding. I actually like it when my permission borders somewhere like this I leave it alone treating it like a living larder hopefully ensuring (disease aside) there's always sport to be had on my side of the fence. I've tried mate,but nearly ended in disaster when one of the dogs went through the fence and down onto the track,its just a three wire fence. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Neal 1,929 Posted October 23, 2007 Report Share Posted October 23, 2007 Maybe you could just move the fences! Quote Link to post Share on other sites
rogern 0 Posted October 23, 2007 Report Share Posted October 23, 2007 An Order was made under Section One of the Pests Act 1954 by which England and Wales (except for the City of London, the Isles of Scilly and Skokholm Island) were declared a Rabbit Clearance Area. In this area, every occupier of land is responsible for destroying wild rabbits on his/her land or for taking steps to prevent them causing damage. This is a continuing obligation. Your farmer should make a complaint in writing to Railtrack as THEY are responsible, if they do not act he should sue for the damage. If you get caught on land over which you do not have permission you could be prosecuted for trespass & poaching, and dont even think about taking a firearm, that would be armed trespass. A few bunnies are not worth the grief. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
wag 13 Posted October 23, 2007 Report Share Posted October 23, 2007 when i worked on the E A, we had to gas all the rabbits holes on the river banks .we had farmers writing letters all the time, phoning up about the rabbits coming on to their land doing crop damage ,it was a nightmare. they even had me making one way gates and putting them out for 15 months for moving the badgers on because the farmers did not want them there . its a legal requirement of the land owner or who ever is the tennant to control them, even the local councils have to gas them. so try and get in touch with whoever it belongs to bill .i know this is not what you want mate but if your known to be trying to help out it will put a feather in your cap with the farmer .dont worry mate they will never gas them all . regards wag Quote Link to post Share on other sites
bill88 6 Posted October 23, 2007 Author Report Share Posted October 23, 2007 (edited) when i worked on the E A, we had to gas all the rabbits holes on the river banks .we had farmers writing letters all the time, phoning up about the rabbits coming on to their land doing crop damage ,it was a nightmare. they even had me making one way gates and putting them out for 15 months for moving the badgers on because the farmers did not want them there . its a legal requirement of the land owner or who ever is the tennant to control them, even the local councils have to gas them. so try and get in touch with whoever it belongs to bill .i know this is not what you want mate but if your known to be trying to help out it will put a feather in your cap with the farmer .dont worry mate they will never gas them all . regards wag Your right Wag,i could score some serious brownie points with the farmer if i sorted this,but its just red tape red tape red tape.I'll try and post some pic's,the railway cutting is riddled,and i don't think they'd want it collapsing onto the track.When we were kids,we always ferreted and shot on the railway cutting but i don't fancy the grief now. Edited October 23, 2007 by bill88 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Guest Bigbob Posted October 23, 2007 Report Share Posted October 23, 2007 Same problem here but i just snared it got a pile of rabbits ,Who's dog went threw the fence ?? i dont get that part Quote Link to post Share on other sites
bill88 6 Posted October 23, 2007 Author Report Share Posted October 23, 2007 Same problem here but i just snared it got a pile of rabbits ,Who's dog went threw the fence ?? i dont get that part My colliexgrey was the dog that went through the fence,its just 3 starnds of galv wire 12 inches apart and about 4 ft high.We lamped the rabbit about 30 yards from the fence,but they all go back through the fence and onto the cutting,the dog just followed,but because it was so close the rabbit didn't go to ground,it just kept going across the tracks and up the other side. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
essexrob 0 Posted October 23, 2007 Report Share Posted October 23, 2007 hi there i work on the railway at the moment and it would definatly be impossible to get permission on the railway line!i see rabbits everyday hundreds of them !my advice to you is to do it but dont get caught!!!!HAPPY HUNTING!!! Quote Link to post Share on other sites
stubby 175 Posted October 23, 2007 Report Share Posted October 23, 2007 technically you dont need any passes as long as you stay on the area of land before the cable run(3ft high running length of track) as this is classed as a physical barrier, you probably would however need a SPC (site person in charge) (me) but would prob need insurance too, depends who the track is owned by, tubelines, metronet,network rail etc, if its metronet, they aint got a pot to pi$$ in at mo, although all of these have to have a pest control firm on their books by law, so you may go to all the trouble of reporting it, for a firm to come in and do it instead the firm i work for already do, metronet bcv & ssl, plus tubelines, so that only leaves network rail... have already done rabbit control for them, they prefer live catch traps to ferreting Quote Link to post Share on other sites
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