Orkney Gun

Here at "The Atholl" and at "Balmoral" and at the residence at Caithness "Mey" The only place I know that the royals and my employer cant hardly hit a thing due to the wind off the sea being strong...The "Pentland Firth" is always blowing... Atholl well the hils take some beating here..... And yes I have been with my employer to windsor to shoot both inside and outside the park...As for being HRH royals...Errrr they miss too!! A.J.

Aye ! an some Raw SCOTS Highlanders too..Well I sometimes wear ma kilt laddie !!!

Why use wooden sides. .Just 2 stout branches pushed into the ground about 1ft deep 3ft high and 6ft apart and run small mesh chicken wire arond them leaving the bottom splaid outward join together their ends from the top down to about 18 ins from bottom and insert funnel in here ..peg down funnel inside and all around bottom.. and for the top run a hazel stick/pole through each top side of the wir mesh pull together and hold with twine/baler string..done it ! and then throw wheat/barley into it (and scater some around outside) ... it is better to leave the funnel OFF for a few days to get them used to going in/out. THEY are MORE RELAXED then .. WHEN CAUGHT FOR REAL.. Easy on cost and can be replaced if in an area of vandalism.... easy ask me another..ha ha... A.J.

Not exactly had it stolen ..but once phoned PC Plod as I forgot where I left it !! after a night out drinking woke up could not find it.Eventualy realised it was left in a small copse where I left it the afternnon before..local PC Plod not amused because it was the estates new Range Rover and cost HIS GRACE money then all hell broke loose ( I said that I found it at the back of a roadside hedge with No damage. We fitted a new senser/alarm/locks... Well he paid

webber on its way to your mailbox... A.J.

We all know there are times when you just say "what the.....for boss?" when the boss asks you to take a party of school children around the estate.That happend today with me. Meeting up with them at 10am outside the church,not knowing what to expect...Well 18 of the "little darlings" arrived with wellies and backpacks together with 2 teachers in tow,and we all set off to go around the estate.I kept them away from areas where I did not want them to see,showing and pointing out various plants,rabbit warrens,fungi,and other areas of interest,only to be met by the boss who after talking to the teacher in charge decided to show them one our our stocked up laying pens.I found though that rather than get too annoyed I was begining to enjoy the day,the young (miss) teacher was a real townie and said that in her student days at uni she had joined many protests regards foxhunting.The children enjoyed themselves all way through the ramble some ending up "dirty urchins" .I told the boss after, that the day was a pleasant change from the humdrum days that we get here, and he promised that he may well invite them back again in the summer months.It was great though to see their faces when pointing out plants insects and wildlife to them as some had never seen any of it before in detail. As for miss she said she had changed her mind regards to hunting/shooting and fishing after the visit was over...... One real cracker though she was..... wish I was young again... A.J.

mate to the watch hope you enjoy it

cardross estate im going with the boss

That would be hard, as we have if I can include our "South African Estate" thousands of animal bird reptile LIFE.But I am asuming that you mean on our Scots and English estates.. Well HERE TOO WE HAVE everything including some unusual charactures ... Eagle/wallaby escapees left to roam free /and the red kite/Buzard..All in their own self fantastic but need care.... A.J.

Remember your visit to see us here Bill.We all here on the estate "wish you get back to top health" and hope to see you soon mate.... A.J.

Sadly no! It is not an early nest.I have found already about 8 or 9 along the drain embankments here. The first one being Mar 2nd and it contained 4 eggs.Earliest nest found I could not say but I read in an old copy of "The Gamekeeper and Countryside" way back in the 80s that one(Mallard) had been recorded by a Suffolk keeper in EARLY JAN so all I can say is GOOD LUCK and hope there are many more around your estate.. A.J.

I KNOW that just making a point there.

Mine is from where I live not all the time but the majority. I could have said "Atholl Gun" or even "Harewood Gun" for that matter.Are you so obsessed with a mans non de plume? The man is the thing not his addy. "Pavman" look at your own ! you have a good reason to call yourself that ... BUT I dont think Id employ that one..HE sounds like an idle layabout plays games all day on his computer. (with his Brother pacman?? ) ............. A.J. And don`t please say that a " pacman" runs around all day,so he is energetic,hard working... Fine.... BUT we need order, peace ,here in the countryside,except on shoot day!! you would not with that name fit in at all.CV or no CV. A.J.

Aye ! it hurts us all it does. A.J.

Aye! lonely nights can be terrible here in the Highlands. No2 for me too! A.J.

Bet you dont say that to the "syndicate/owner/his lordship" when asked and he says "where are they all I paid for then" "foxslayer"Why should you hide the number from a poacher.. If hes about you CATCH him ..he will come anyway..no matter how many birds/deer/rabbit/salmon etc you have on the estate... Whats to be afraid of.... IF YOU ARE A KEEPER.... then KEEP. do your job. A.J.

The loire valley in the Vendee..Has a large Chateau there called "Chamborg" Told it is good hunting there many Boar,Pheasant,etc,. A laddie there once applied for a post here and said it was too "up market for him". Ah ! we have had every king/queen of England (and the Scots ) stay here (and shoot)" I replied. "Their only royalty" he said. Cheekie wee laddie I thought..... But on listening to him and checking his expirience .....I gave him the job 10yrs ago. And hes doing fine You would not believe he was a frenchman. So yes you see our profession is perhaps full of "Non British" and it works both ways others fancy the British way of country life (keepering). A.J.

Aye Highlander I order now from Solway. We have our homemade ones too.(in the areas where the public are liable to be) if these homemade,are damaged/stolen then it is of no great cost to replace.Ive just had an order delivered MK 6 Traps and other things including a deal many of the Kania 2000 trap (FOR THE TREE RAT).We have some in the many large plantations here of conifer/spruce.Good results so far with the last batch so looking for further gains. Company goods must be ok!.as I and we here have NO COMPLAINTS. A.J.

"OFF ROAD" Reminds me of when I was a young wet behind the ears laddie and we used to WALK instead of riding that was only for the likes of the boss in an old ex army landrover ( antiques now some of them)I and the other keepers would walk for miles over the glens and the lowland fields. Perhaps my fellow PW contributers to thses pages might recount there memories of past "OFF ROAD" expiriences they have had,and lets have a laugh in the bargain... God knows I need one.

Aye true Baldrick we have had the same here yes even in the Highlands... (Tourists)Best way NONE at ALL youre going to waste money...AND atract attention to what you have in there... Take it from us we know and now we have " learned the hard cash way".... A.J.

Aye Shoot "hoos" an tae all come a run laddie thas wen ta need ta protection fer tha sel

We thank Ye God fer yon Cairngorm yes ye nice raw wee nak weather up yon here te .... Aye! ... ye sees tha noo wanna come here laddie tae cold fer em. .......An Oh! aye.. wee ava ne corner shop.

After a days invite with proTom1(enjoyable). I was driving back home (A1) listening to the radio and caught a piece on there about a stalker who had the rights to some land and on it he says he has a "white Hart".He was offering the right to stalk this deer to the highest bidder (on e-bay).Now I have in my time (40yrs) as an underkeeper/keeper/Head seen about 5 or 6 these and they all have all been highly regarded and placed OFF LIMIT by the local shooters. I wonder what do you think ? Being unusual has this dear a right to live ?

Looks like ye down here are the ones who are "Tight in the sporran mon !" Or maybe its because that we dont have many birds up there,so we get a better price for them (£1 per bird).Local Restaurateur here uses em in the Haggis and serves a good breast pie he does.Pigeon might not be to the taste of the "English Folk"another reason why a low price given Anyway our local Restauranteur always..takes em when we get em.. As I said £1 bird

I use only the best offering "Her Grace the Duchess"........ Wow she`s ....FOUL