Back up at the shoot

[Stavross 13,711]

After giving it another hour ( because I seen another one) I called it a night, I rang my mate to tell him that I’d shot another dog, he asked if I had time to have a go at the crows ( jackdaws) I said if his brother stops working me so hard I’ll see what I can do ( I’ll have to find someone to take with me who is much better with a shotgun than me, so I can take all the glory ) I also got an invite to the farm walked up day around Christmas, they have some very nice game cover along the hedge backs and it’s always nice to get invited to a family shoot day

[FOXHUNTER 5,020]

Well done Stav , I have also been on fox patrol at a sheep farm. No calling just spotted this dog fox in some rushes and lip squeaked him in nicely to around eighty yds

Edited September 5, 2020 by FOXHUNTER

[Stavross 13,711]

That looks in tip top condition ( apart from been dead ) nice work

Edited September 5, 2020 by Stavross

[Sausagedog 7,381]

4 hours ago, FOXHUNTER said:

Well done Stav , I have also been on fox patrol at a sheep farm. No calling just spotted this dog fox in some rushes and lip squeaked him in nicely to around eighty yds

For you my friend ze cold winter is over....

[shovel leaner 7,648]

20 hours ago, si brown said:

I was thinning out a few big-ears on a silage field the other week as the poachers are on to them, I’d knocked a fair few off and was on for another when one comes flying past me closely followed by a lurcher... I had me 12 shouldered and was seriously considering it when I hear a woman screaming

it was an old couples dog that had just bolted, they must of been off a campsite down the rd... they looked horrified so I pointed out lurchers chase hares and your in the middle of the countryside!

keep it on the lead

I was talking to the farmer who sprays our cover crops . He keeps a few hundred sheep . 
        I asked him how  his lambing had gone . He told me of the devastation he had suffered because of dogs off leads , miss carriages , twisted up births , because of pregnant ewes being chased . All to do with the increased footfall because of COVID 19 . Not to mention actual attacks on sheep . He was down 30% . That’s the difference between profit and loss . People don’t seem to realise that the countryside isn’t some park that is there for their enjoyment. It’s a place of work . I wonder how those same irresponsible dog owners would react if someone walked through their back garden and their dog killed and chased their kids pet rabbit ? 

[si brown 8,486]

25 minutes ago, shovel leaner said:

I was talking to the farmer who sprays our cover crops . He keeps a few hundred sheep . 
        I asked him how  his lambing had gone . He told me of the devastation he had suffered because of dogs off leads , miss carriages , twisted up births , because of pregnant ewes being chased . All to do with the increased footfall because of COVID 19 . Not to mention actual attacks on sheep . He was down 30% . That’s the difference between profit and loss . People don’t seem to realise that the countryside isn’t some park that is there for their enjoyment. It’s a place of work . I wonder how those same irresponsible dog owners would react if someone walked through their back garden and their dog killed and chased their kids pet rabbit ? 

Lambing goes well for this farmer as they have an open barn and a well secure grazing field next to the farm..but when there moved up the lane there subject to all sorts, I find gates left open and some tosser nicked 4 not so long back:(

Once there out in the open that’s when he starts losing them, 

[Stavross 13,711]

4 hours ago, si brown said:

Lambing goes well for this farmer as they have an open barn and a well secure grazing field next to the farm..but when there moved up the lane there subject to all sorts, I find gates left open and some tosser nicked 4 not so long back:(

Once there out in the open that’s when he starts losing them, 

A friend of the lad who owns the sheep farm I shoot on had 120 lambs stolen two years ago in one night, it was all over the local news because they had been medicated and were not fit for human consumption, they left the ewes so the obviously had experience handling sheep, they never found them or who took them 

[Stavross 13,711]

Back up at the shoot early this morning to move feeders further out from the pens as the birds have grown in confidence and are moving further out during the day but still heading back later afternoon, I don’t want to jinx it but they do look well and have really come on well despite the weather, they will have been in 4 weeks on Tuesday 

[dytkos 17,528]

The shoot local to me have released theirs, I am seeing plenty of them on this side of the river, about half a mile away from the pens.

Cheers, D.

[FOXHUNTER 5,020]

Just been up the shoot myself and the birds are ranging well now but still coming back to the pen , lifted a nice covey of 10 greys next to the pen too so looks like a good year for the partridges. I sat out up the valley watching the barn owls and red kite just in case a fox showed but instead this little guy popped out , very skinny , a good cull beast.

[Stavross 13,711]

3 hours ago, dytkos said:

The shoot local to me have released theirs, I am seeing plenty of them on this side of the river, about half a mile away from the pens.

Cheers, D.

That’s always the worry when we first let ours off, that they wander a bit to far in the first week or so, once they know where they live they never tend to go to far, one year one of the members ( who will remain nameless) took over the running of the shoot and left them after a week with no water so most of them went on the wander and never came back, next door must of had a hell of a year, we put 800 down and the return was under 100 for the season, people still bring it up now, just to slap him down when he’s getting a bit above his station 

[dytkos 17,528]

1 minute ago, Stavross said:

That’s always the worry when we first let ours off, that they wander a bit to far in the first week or so, once they know where they live they never tend to go to far, one year one of the members ( who will remain nameless) took over the running of the shoot and left them after a week with no water so most of them went on the wander and never came back, next door must of had a hell of a year, we put 800 down and the return was under 100 for the season, people still bring it up now, just to slap him down when he’s getting a bit above his station 

Tbf there are pegs over this side as well but only a few.

Cheers, D.

[FOXHUNTER 5,020]

Picked up a new permission for rabbits about 6 weeks ago but unable to contact farmer so headed out to see another farmer to contact him for me which he did. Spoke to him and said should be ok to go in a couple of weeks So I headed out with my .22 in search of bunnies not expecting much as I've hit this farm quite hard. The dreaded myxy has reared its ugly head , put this poor soul out of its misery , what a wretched disease..

Did a couple of hours before dark and a couple after ending on 28 so not too bad.

[shovel leaner 7,648]

At long last , they have cut the wheat . They aren’t hanging around this year , they’re  bailing it , followed by the muck spreading and discing . 

    I’ve been chomping at the bit to get out on these fields as they always produce foxes . It’s funny how foxes behave but t try hey always seem to appear or approach from the same places year on year . When you know a ground well it certainly gives you an advantage . I got on the first few fields at dusk and tucked myself away for a bit and thought I’d see if the fox that gave me the slip on the barley field would turn up , but nothing showed and to be honest I was itching to get on to the “good” fields . 
                Literally as soon as I got through the gate there was a fox in the hedge to my left , I swung the mule around to face it and got the rifle ready, I watched him in the hedge through the thermal and then he trotted into view and gave me a perfect view of himself at no about 60meters , one down , a vixen . I carried on and did a lap of the fields which are in total about 70 acres of varying sized fields separated by hedges with gaps in that allow access for vehicles but thankfully no gates to bother about. Nothing showed so I set up my caller on a bale and got out of the mule to shoot off another bale . The rabbit distress worked its magic and just where I thought a fox would show ( because they always do) Charlie appeared , two down a massive dog that had probably just eaten something big , because his stomach was huge.  I thought I’d give these fields a rest and go to the other side of the estate and check the first fields as I wax driving back I saw two people sat on one of the bales . I approached them and the smell of Hash/ dope filled the air . I told them they were bloody lucky not to get shot , the kid said I only live in that house there and this is a public footpath . I said a footpath it to get from A to B it doesn’t give you the right to sit around on bales smoking weed . Then I realised who the lad was , he is the son of the biggest most sanctimonious prick I’ve ever come across, who has waged a war on the estate to have footpaths on ancient maps opened up . Who happens to be a local councillor and GP . I said does your father know you are out here smoking weed , the kid flushed with embarrassment and his girlfriend ushered him away . He soon will do , everyone in the village is going to hear about this one .

       Anyway back to shooting, I was was making my way to the gate and in the same field o shot the first fox another was on the far side . It was running over the cut straw which was in ridges , but stopped by the hedge to look at me . All I could see was it’s head so I had a shot and missed, I don’t know if I clipped some straw or just fluffed the shot , anyway I can’t write what I said . Another lap of the other fields and I saw nothing. So I came back to the “good “ fields  . I set up the caller and this time tried the field mouse , it didn’t take long and numerous three was in the back of the mule, another dog . I did another lap of the fields and by this time it was 12.30 . I took a photo of the three and disposed of them . I went back to the farm to lock up the mule , but something before I did I thought I’d check this orchard, I have been seeing a fox in there on the far side and thought it was worth a look . Sure enough there was the fox but he disappeared through the hedge into the fields where I just shot the three earlier. What the hell , got to have a look haven’t l ? So I drove around and through a gate at the other side from where I usually access the field and there to my left was the fox on top of a bale , it wasn’t a safe shot so I drove around until I had a safe back stop , he must of thought that being on the bale made him safe or invisible but he was none of those things . He was led down facing me so not a massive target but then I was only about 60 meters . I put the bullet right between his  eyes . So I ended the night with 4 , 3 dogs ancc dc a vixen. 

[si brown 8,486]

That's a good post sl, had me chuckling

these cocky weed freaks are something else

if it doesn’t rain today I’m off out tonight, you’ve motivated me... it’s been crap over here for the last week with wind and rain, looks like the sky’s are going or open up any moment though!