Scully Posted August 29, 2015 Report Share Posted August 29, 2015 Rolled up this morning into a very overcast and damp Tritikale stubble on which the straw hadn't been collected due to yesterdays rain, to find pigeons and corvids in their hundreds on a very steep section of the field, and with last weekends success still creating smiley faces we set up under a hedgerow at the top of the field under the only flat cover available. With a strong wind coming from directly behind us as last week we set out a classic horseshoe pattern with shells, full bodied and a couple of bobbers on the flanks. Mate was using his auto with Cheddite 30grm 6's through 1/4 choke and me using the same cartridges in my O/U through 1/2 and 1/2. Within 20 mins we'd shot 9 pigeon and 1 jackdaw, set up a flapper, and within an hour everything just disappeared. The wind from behind was bitter at times and intermittent sunshine and showers saw us wet one moment and then steaming in the sun the next. We altered the pattern 3 or 4 times but nothing seemed to work. Some birds would decoy well into the pattern while others would commit then flair off while others would simply pass us by. We had some very challenging birds whipping by at distance which would plummet when hit, leaving a trail of white chaff in their wake, and others at very close range settling amongst the pattern which would take a second barrel to hit. A slow day, with birds simply not appearing as we expected them; a complete mystery as to where they had all gone; not even anyone else shooting in the distance. Then of course, as we started to pack up, in they came! They were dropping in as we picked up. Breasted 30 odd birds for pet food, piled the remainer on the verges to get ploughed in, and came way. Still a very enjoyable day of course, but somewhat puzzling, as they can be. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cocknee Posted August 29, 2015 Report Share Posted August 29, 2015 piled the remainer on the verges to get ploughed in Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Old Boggy Posted August 29, 2015 Report Share Posted August 29, 2015 piled the remainer on the verges to get ploughed in The remaining carcasses minus the breasts. Surely not the remainder of the bag of pigeons. Not what we wish to read. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dr D Posted August 29, 2015 Report Share Posted August 29, 2015 Pet food!?!? Let the reminder to be ploughed in!?!?! Hmmmmmmmmmmmmm. Prepare for the onslaught. Wouldn't be how I would treat them. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scully Posted August 29, 2015 Author Report Share Posted August 29, 2015 piled the remainer on the verges to get ploughed in Yep, 'fraid so. No one wants them ; not even game dealer. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cranfield Posted August 29, 2015 Report Share Posted August 29, 2015 Not a bad result in the circumstances, as the birds are a bit spoiled for choice at the moment. Perhaps nobody else shooting in the area and keeping them moving, means they went somewhere else settled in. I have also noticed quite a nip in the wind in the last week, almost Autumnal. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JDog Posted August 29, 2015 Report Share Posted August 29, 2015 Scully, just when I thought that we were getting on so well you tell us that you simply left dead birds in the field. That is not very good form. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Old Boggy Posted August 29, 2015 Report Share Posted August 29, 2015 My sentiments exactly Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scully Posted August 29, 2015 Author Report Share Posted August 29, 2015 Not a bad result in the circumstances, as the birds are a bit spoiled for choice at the moment. Perhaps nobody else shooting in the area and keeping them moving, means they went somewhere else settled in. I have also noticed quite a nip in the wind in the last week, almost Autumnal. Thanks. Yes, food in abundance at the moment. Up until a couple of weeks ago everywhere we looked was Winter barley or Tritikale, now all that remains as crop for birds to predate on this land is another 30 acres of Tritikale, and about 20 acres of Spring Barley, some of which still appears quite green in the stalk, so landowner may 'kill' it shortly. I have no doubt someones crop was taking a hammering somewhere; all those birds had to go somewhere. First thing in a morning is very Autumnal, and as the sun sets you can smell the hedgerows and the cold in the ground. Wonderful. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
marsh man Posted August 29, 2015 Report Share Posted August 29, 2015 Yep, 'fraid so. No one wants them ; not even game dealer. Our game dealer in Norfolk cant get enough pigeons if your stuck getting shot of them and in one of the other threads they were saying Peterborough Game come and collect , how far , I don't know , might be worth given them a ring Scully. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scully Posted August 29, 2015 Author Report Share Posted August 29, 2015 Scully, just when I thought that we were getting on so well you tell us that you simply left dead birds in the field. That is not very good form. Sorry to disappoint JD, but I aint taking them home I'm afraid. I'd rather leave carcasses to rot in the field than in my dustbin. It wasn't my intention to outrage the PW massif; I was merely relating how frustrating decoying can be, but if people are offended by leaving the carcasses of what is a pest species in the field then perhaps they should have a long hard look at themselves. Corvids and rats get the same treatment as do foxes. I can't take seriously being morally judged by those who are killing wildlife for their own pleasure. It's a waste of meat I must admit, but if no one else wants them then there's not a lot I can do about it. My biggest grievance is that they may feed the many buzzards, foxes and badgers in the vicinity before the landowner turns them over. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scully Posted August 29, 2015 Author Report Share Posted August 29, 2015 Our game dealer in Norfolk cant get enough pigeons if your stuck getting shot of them and in one of the other threads they were saying Peterborough Game come and collect , how far , I don't know , might be worth given them a ring Scully. Thankyou. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wisdom Posted August 29, 2015 Report Share Posted August 29, 2015 Would make great propaganda for the antis Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scully Posted August 29, 2015 Author Report Share Posted August 29, 2015 Would make great propaganda for the antis Are you serious? You're posting on a shooting forum, where people shoot living creatures because they enjoy the challenge. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wisdom Posted August 29, 2015 Report Share Posted August 29, 2015 was meaning leaving carcasses not the shooting of them Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cocknee Posted August 29, 2015 Report Share Posted August 29, 2015 Hopefully the pigeons will move away from land you can shoot to someones land who appreciates them more. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scully Posted August 29, 2015 Author Report Share Posted August 29, 2015 Hopefully the pigeons will move away from land you can shoot to someones land who appreciates them more. Well they certainly were elsewhere today, but they'll be back. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RossEM Posted August 30, 2015 Report Share Posted August 30, 2015 I very often breast-out pigeons in the hide and leave the remaining bits of the carcass - it was the farmer's idea. Haven't seen any increase in vermin due to doing it. But then, you can't process them for sale without a basic level food hygiene certificate, so if I was selling to a game dealer I'd be taking them back whole. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dr D Posted August 30, 2015 Report Share Posted August 30, 2015 Well they certainly were elsewhere today, GOOD but they'll be back. HOPE NOT. That way your pest control exercise will be complete and you can get a well deserved pat on the back. Your job will be done. Maybe they will head onto land where someone has a freezer. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scully Posted August 30, 2015 Author Report Share Posted August 30, 2015 Well they certainly were elsewhere today, GOOD but they'll be back. HOPE NOT. That way your pest control exercise will be complete and you can get a well deserved pat on the back. Your job will be done. Maybe they will head onto land where someone has a freezer. We have two huge chest freezers; up on rough shoot; they contain rabbits and the remainder of last seasons oven ready birds. We don't carry out pest control for a 'pat on the back', we do it because we enjoy it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dr D Posted August 30, 2015 Report Share Posted August 30, 2015 We have two huge chest freezers; up on rough shoot; they contain rabbits and the remainder of last seasons oven ready birds. We don't carry out pest control for a 'pat on the back', we do it because we enjoy it. So its sport? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cranfield Posted August 30, 2015 Report Share Posted August 30, 2015 Its not unusual at harvest time for Game Dealers to refuse pigeons, as they can get overwhelmed with the numbers being shot. The two Game Dealers I use are taking birds from "regulars" only. The attitude of some shooters regarding the disposal of dead pigeons is quite strange, they don't expect crows, rooks, other corvids, rats, foxes, etc., to be passed into "the food chain", but treat pigeons as a strange exception. If you don't want to shoot pigeons because you can't guarantee they will be eaten, then thats fine, thats your prerogative. However, to suggest that anyone practicing real pest control and disposing of pigeons as they do uneatable vermin is "bad", is wrong. Ensuring that the quarry is despatched humanely and within the law, is the responsibility of all shooters, what happens to it afterwards is a matter of choice. We all enjoy shooting, or we wouldn't do it, does that make it "sport", once again thats up to the individual to define. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dr D Posted August 30, 2015 Report Share Posted August 30, 2015 What happens to it afterwards is a matter of ethics. I accept that everyones moral compass is set different and that is perfectly legal, but why tell us what you do with birds when the vision of piles of dead 'wildlife' does little to generate support for our activities, sport or pest control. It even generates adverse reaction among some pw members. It would certainly make for an interesting poll. The basc has a good practice guide I believe, I wonder what a good practice guide would look like if it was created by pw? I think I will start a new thread. The difference between the examples is pretty obvious. A crow, other than a young rook soaked in milk overnight is damned hard to stomach. Never tried a fox admittedly, but skinned fair few and the smell would put me off sticking one in the oven. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scully Posted August 30, 2015 Author Report Share Posted August 30, 2015 So its sport? No, it's pest control. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wymberley Posted August 30, 2015 Report Share Posted August 30, 2015 Well, it's sport for me but pest control for the farmer which to my mind makes it perfectly legal and beyond criticism. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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