got a call last week

[sussex 5,776]

Yep enjoyed that jig , some good eating there for sure ..

[Blackmag 5,870]

Above jig cracking write up it's funny how age soon creeps up on you especially the legs being  on rough ground and good luck with the litter 

[Deker 3,453]

New one on me, never shot a goat, where in the world are you?

Cheers

[foxdropper 17,092]

Ayrshire is full of them Deker and other parts of the highlands .Cracking write up Jigsaw .Are the goats exploited by others or have you had to reduce them for the farmer .Some in Ireland too I believe .

Some lovely landscape there and I bet that drag did warm your legs up lol .

[Bosun11 537]

Great write up Jigsaw, enjoyed the read

[Arry 18,590]

Really nice write up mate. 

Cheers Arry

[Born Hunter 17,638]

Fantastic! Jigsaw goat posts are back. 

Well done and I've probably said it before but what cracking wild country. 

I look forward to your posts in years to come with a sapling by your side.

[jigsaw 11,809]

Katchum,both bitches together

Edited March 14, 2019 by jigsaw

[Rebel 831]

14 hours ago, jigsaw said:

I was at work last week when a phone call cheered me up no end ,my farmer friend on the other end telling me there were a small mob of goats about causing havoc in his top paddock.....I told him I was tied up till Saturday and would take a wander to see if i could help him out and take one for the table..I was booked in to work but made my excuses to the gaffer and took the day off..So Saturday at 6 a.m . the alarm clock goes off  and in the darkness i get my ass out of bed and after a coffee and stash my gun and gear in the car away i go ..

I arrive at the farm at just passed 7 and off up the muddy path,towards the base of the hill,it was evident the mob were after  being about as foot prints and well worn paths could be seen heading into the hillside and up into the gorse,heather and rocks ..I climbed up the steep banks of the hill and reached the top of the first ridge ,I could see a long distance all round and nothing to excite me ,so on again and over a few more ridges and down towards the lower forestry line where i thought they might be at lower altitudes due to the freezing winds ,so i searched hard ,plenty of signs of them being about but no find ..i was walking close on two hours now and i decided i would swing upwards and try along the ridges that go a few miles out ..So up bit by bit i climbed ,..i suddenly noticed one thing.....no NOT  the goats ...but the fact ive become slow and laboured when im walking compared to a year or two ago ,lol...I climbed over 2 ridges and then dropping down i noticed fresh foot prints ,and a few paths ,so i started to refocus , i walked along a rock face and then reached another ridge and climbed up and there before me sat roughly 20 goats ,I counted 6 big billys ,8 she goats and a half dozen fair sized kids ..At last ,they were over 100 yards away and in an awkward position,my view of some of them being hindered by gorse bushes , so i crawled backwards and made my way down  towards them ,being hidden by the ridge top..so after 30 or 40 yards i crept up to pop my head over the top and the situation was perfect ,they were directly across from me ,so i got in position,set the gun in a steady comfortable position and studied the herd ,i decided to take a kid for the table ,and also would be easier to carry back ..I picked a grey and white youngster as it was standing broadside to me ,and took the safety off the gun,took a deep breath and pulled,,the boom erupted,and the mob lifted and stood and milled about ,not sure what had just happened ,or where the sound came from.

                                                                                                                    I kept still and surveyed their actions ,then another kid ran to the right and presented me with a perfect  shot again ,so I took it and decided thats my quota for the day,,and the thoughts of lugging of anything else was not appealing to me as i was a long way from the farm...Just as i was about to rise from my hidden spot ,there was a movement to my left and when i looked there was a fine sika stag making good its escape ,He ran behind a rock and disappeared ,I waited for another short while as I knew he never saw me , then as I watched I saw the top of his head appear on the skyline ,i still waited ,and he took another step and up popped around 6 inches of his neck ,and instinctively I rose the gun ,got the cross hairs on his head and brought it down slowly ,and pulled the trigger,in that split second I wasnt sure if i had scored or had pulled the shot and missed ,so i arose from my spot and walked over to the ridge and there he was ,a fine big stag ,AND THEN IT STRUCK ME .... how the firk was I going to haul 2 goats , a deer and the gun all the way back ...a bit late for rational thinking now JIGSAW baby... so down to work,cleaned all the animals ,and then started hauling ,the plan was to pull the deer first a few hundred yards ,then go back for the goats ,bring them to the deer ,then repeat several times ....AND I MEAN SEVERAL TIMES ... it took the best part of 2 hrs to get them down close enough to the fields ,and rang the farmer ,who duly came with the tractor and bucket and took them the final distance to the yard where my car was waiting ..I walked back along the path i had started from almost 6 hrs earlier with a contented/exhausted feeling ..my legs were like jelly,my arms ached but my smile was broad ,lol..after a chat i was invited in for a coffee and home made brown bread and i duly accepted ,a well appreciated payment for my efforts

The sad  side to this saga is the goats are all but gone ,what used to be a huge mob of animals is now reduced to the mere few i saw that day,im hoping to show my face there and observe the bunch that has brought me immense enjoyment and pleasure and not forgetting table meat and dog food for the last few years ..in the last few days i butchered and placed the taken in the freezer and a supply of venison and goat meat is secured for the coming weeks I hope they reestablish their numbers and I get to control and not over do the culling to an extreme ..,it was my first time in months i had the opportunity to hunt them again and its true to say i missed them,I hope it wont be long more before we meet again,but next time with a camera instead of the gun

Great write up Jigsaw.

Those hills would be easier if you left all your money at home instead of carrying it around with you all the time, some weight in it, haha

[Born Hunter 17,638]

Did you buy your rifle sling thing? How's it do for you?

[jigsaw 11,809]

1 hour ago, Born Hunter said:

Did you buy your rifle sling thing? How's it do for you?

I sent off for it last week so waiting for it to come,..bollix without it

[jigsaw 11,809]

1 hour ago, Rebel said:

Great write up Jigsaw.

Those hills would be easier if you left all your money at home instead of carrying it around with you all the time, some weight in it, haha

Your some man to talk,your thinking everyone else is like you,come back to Cork and see real poverty lol

[jigsaw 11,809]

Not bad , a few weeks of grub for the family

[jigsaw 11,809]

21 hours ago, W. Katchum said:

Believe me mate I’m a waiting patiently here, been offered a few pups an even went an saw a litter last week as I was over that way an a mate took me see em, was real tempted aswell haha but I know what I wanna try next an willing to wait

jeeze man ,if you find something that suits yer needs jump on them ,im hoping all goes well and i end up with a good litter ,but if for some reason it went wrong youd have left an opportunity slip through your fingers .i havent bred a litter in a few years ,ive a mate experienced in A.I. on standby if all is not well ,ive spoken to the vet ,so its down to the bitches now .