Twymyn

PW seems to have become a club for the small minded so I’m off never to return. If you reply I won’t see it

My 9 year old lab started limping 2 years ago due to arthritis in his shoulder. I put him on Yumove but when I took him to the vet a year later to get afresh supply of loxicom the vet said yumove is not effective unless you start when the dog is young. She said she gives her spaniels omega 369 as available from Holland and Barrett etc. He’s been on it for 12 months and I’ve only had to give him loxicom once and he does a lot of energetic excercise most days. Your dog may have a different problem but worth a try I would have thought

Yes big numbers but the largely windless days mean they have been very high although I did get a daft one on Weds

I’ve been at Wigtown for a week there are no restrictions and the only barnies I’ve seen were very much alive

Looks like the same bag you can get from Nitehawk for £16.99 plus p&p but in plain green. i bought two - one for the marsh and one for pigeons. Excellent bag for the money

Whilst walking the dogs it occurred to me that I should make it clear that I’m no dog training saint and with regard to kindness and patience if the little sod chews the end of the rug again for the umpteenth time he’s going to get a wallop

You have a young dog thats only been on this earth a very short time - give him some slack - literally. He’s just a baby trying to understand the world. Try to avoid smacking and choke chains - kindness and patience is better. In a hallway/corridor hold a treat out behind you - as the pup takes it say heel - take a couple steps and repeat no more than a couple of times - space this out over a few days then take the excercise outside. Pick your time - don’t do it when you first go out - the pup,is excited and needs a pee. On a return from a walk with the pup on the lead say heel - let the pup see the treat and hold it behind you and as he takes it say heel again - and repeat. Don’t expect instant and miraculous results - it takes time. My 6 month old feisty lab has responded well to this method and is now walking to heel on and off the lead better than my 8 year old who thinks he knows it all. Any way good luck

This is a very interesting thread with some inspiring replies. If you’re no longer enjoying shooting then giving it up is the right thing to do. For wildfowlers its not just about us its also about our dogs and the age of our dogs. I’ve just turned 75 and four years ago I got what I thought was my last lab pup. Sadly we lost him to cancer at the beginning of May. We also have an eight year old lab who could be good for three or four years and at the end of his time I would have to give up wildfowling. However we now have a 14 week old lab pup - I thought long and hard about it but in the end I was convinced by my partner and my eldest daughter that the dog/s would be cared for within the family if anything happened to me/us. If you are still enjoying shooting don’t plan to give up at a certain age All the best for the coming season

I bought an Actifry last year from Amazon Germany because UK Amazon quoted ridiculous prices. Makes great chips and cooks other stuff like sausages really well. Bear in mind the tax situation will have changed now when buying from Germany

Sorry to hear about your dog - even with the limited info I would say you made right decision. To insure or not is an economic gamble

Ask yourself why you need the insurance - if you can put your hands on the money to pay an unexpected vets bill of say £1000 or £1500 and you only need the cover if the dog needs v expensive treatment and perhaps ongoing treatment then consider asking for quotes with a large excess which will keep the costs down. Also consider permanent health cover because if you make a claim for a condition thats going to recur the insurer will exclude it from the next renewal and put the premium up into the bargain. Having said all that I stopped insuring my dogs a few years ago. I get the odd vets bill but I’ve saved a fortune. Put the equivalent of the premium into a savings account and you will soon build up an useful vets bill fund

I bought a slab of BIO 32g 3’s last Sept. I pattern tested a couple and kept cases which I put into tumblers of water one of which I added salt to. They are still there. Have come to the conclusion the case is plastic. The “brass” will be gone first. I think there was an article in the ST back in the summer which said or suggested the cases were biodegradable like the wad. The pattern test through half choke at 40 yds looked like it would be good load for duck but due to a bout of illness and Covid I have not bagged anything with them

Sorted. I had assumed that with the trigger assembly removed the trigger would be in the fired position. After grumbling about it to myself for a couple days I had another go and with the spring and pin removed I pulled the trigger and the safety fell out and I was able to reverse it. Just need lockdown to end so that I can try the gun 💥🦆💥🦆💥🐦💥🐦

Picked up a new SX4 a couple of days ago and set about reversing the safety having watched a couple of You tube vids - the one on the Browning A5 is the clearest. I got as far as removing the key hole spring and the safety retaining pin dropped into the available space at which point the safety should come out but it refused even with moderate force. Has anyone else reversed a safety on an SX4, did you have any problems?

Fair point

I bought a LH eject Benelli sbe2 12/15 years ago which came with shims

More expensive come with shims to drop or raise comb or alter cast

From the reviews I understand it comes with a straight stock ie no cast? Cheers Graham

Thank for all your replies - going to sleep on it

I wear specs but they are not the same eye protection and given that my right eye sight is very poor I don’t think I’ll risk the sight the sight in my left eye. Appreciate the advice

Thank you for that 👍

I want to buy a gas semi and I’m looking at the Winchester SX4 which does not appear to come in a LH version however it has the option to transfer the safety from right to left. Are there any lefties out there that use an RH gun - if so do you experience any with blow back on ejection?

My eight year old lab started limping a bit at the start of the year. I’ve put him on Yumove and he’s much better. Also shares a tin of sardines with the younger one a regular basis

They will be used fowling so will probably last a couple of seasons although I might try a box on pigeons. I agree, too pricey at the moment for game shooting

Given that BASC have done promotional days for eco cartridges I messaged them to ask if they could help with Bio Ammo steel 32g 3s. After a few days I got a call from a Dave Bowden who had spoken to the importers and ascertained that Just Cartridges had received a delivery so I’m pleased to say I have a slab on the way. Thank you BASC