Sqwelchy Posted January 16, 2010 Report Share Posted January 16, 2010 (edited) Another stupid question from me. What is rough shooting all about? Sorry for this question Edited January 16, 2010 by Sqwelchy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pinkfooty Posted January 16, 2010 Report Share Posted January 16, 2010 Rough shooting is non-driven game shooting, i.e. shooting grouse, pheasants, partridges, woodcock, snipe, etc by walking them up rather than having them driven towards standing Guns. It can vary from one or two friends renting the shooting rights on a farm or two and walking up field margins, hedges and ditches for wild game, through to syndicates of 6 - 8 Guns rearing and releasing game and organising semi-formal walking days. A lot of roughshooters would also see rabbits and woodpigeons as an important addition to their quarry list, rather than strictly sticking to game birds. In my opinion, roughshooting is the next best thing to wildfowling. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sqwelchy Posted January 16, 2010 Author Report Share Posted January 16, 2010 Cheers mate So i take it this is type of shooting is more for sport and not pest controlling,as you need a real reason to shoot woodpigeon. Still trying to get my head around eveything. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pinkfooty Posted January 16, 2010 Report Share Posted January 16, 2010 It's definitely for sport, rather than purely for pest control. That's why it can be fairly expensive if you have to "buy" it rather than having informal arrangements with local farmers. The woodpigeon bit is a bit tricky. Strictly speaking you are not allowed to "enjoy" the sport of shooting them as the General Licences under which they can be shot does specify that the reason is pest control. But you do not have to prove that they were about to do damage at the exact location or at the exact time that you shot them, so shooting them while you are roughshooting is perfectly legal. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
anser2 Posted January 16, 2010 Report Share Posted January 16, 2010 As Eric says rough shooting can be one of the most enjoyable of the shooting sports. One of its charms is you never quite know what is going to end up in the bag , pheasants , wildfowl , vermin , snipe , pigeons or rabbits. But it has one vital ingredent... a gundog. Without one you will not find half the quarry on the shoot and may have difficulty finding what you have shot. The shots are usually at going away birds , but its working your dog that makes rough shooting. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Catamong Posted January 16, 2010 Report Share Posted January 16, 2010 Cheers mate So i take it this is type of shooting is more for sport and not pest controlling,as you need a real reason to shoot woodpigeon. Still trying to get my head around eveything. Well, why don't you go down to your local library and get yourself a few books on shooting..?? Cat. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sqwelchy Posted January 17, 2010 Author Report Share Posted January 17, 2010 I dont like books. Anyway we have the interweb now Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pinkfooty Posted January 17, 2010 Report Share Posted January 17, 2010 (edited) I dont like books. Anyway we have the interweb now That is true to an extent. But it is less likely that someone will publish a shooting book without someone else checking his facts before it is printed. So you can be reasonably sure you are getting correct information, or at least a well-researched point of view. The problem with the internet is that there is no check upon what people write. You will get some great information and thoughtful opinion. You will also find a huge amount of incorrect information and prejudice. (Sorry - had to edit this sentence. The profanity filter substituted a row or asterisks for the word I wrote which had an s followed by an h followed by an i followed by a t and ending in an e.) Telling them apart is not always easy. Edited January 17, 2010 by Pinkfooty Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wymberley Posted January 18, 2010 Report Share Posted January 18, 2010 Sqwelchy, hi, I think you may have said before, but I can't remember. Where-abouts are you in Devon? Cheers Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Spaniel Posted January 18, 2010 Report Share Posted January 18, 2010 Cheers mate So i take it this is type of shooting is more for sport and not pest controlling,as you need a real reason to shoot woodpigeon. Still trying to get my head around eveything. In my opinion, if you placed some decoys out in those fields you have then you are decoying for pigeons and providing a pest control service for the farmer. If you walked along the hedges especially on those top fields which nearly killed me that day, you are going to move pigeons out of the trees and you may even disturb the odd bunny, which IMO is rough shooting, but you are still providing a pest control service for your farmer.......but yep vey enjoyable working a dog etc at the same time Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
groach1234 Posted January 18, 2010 Report Share Posted January 18, 2010 In my opinion, if you placed some decoys out in those fields you have then you are decoying for pigeons and providing a pest control service for the farmer. If you walked along the hedges especially on those top fields which nearly killed me that day, you are going to move pigeons out of the trees and you may even disturb the odd bunny, which IMO is rough shooting, but you are still providing a pest control service for your farmer.......but yep vey enjoyable working a dog etc at the same time Im with you its about hunting the hedgerows for rabbits, pigeons, crows and the like with of chance of game such as pheasant, partridge, duck and hare but the game need not be present. George Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sqwelchy Posted January 18, 2010 Author Report Share Posted January 18, 2010 In my opinion, if you placed some decoys out in those fields you have then you are decoying for pigeons and providing a pest control service for the farmer. If you walked along the hedges especially on those top fields which nearly killed me that day, you are going to move pigeons out of the trees and you may even disturb the odd bunny, which IMO is rough shooting, but you are still providing a pest control service for your farmer.......but yep vey enjoyable working a dog etc at the same time Fancy climbing those hills again in the future? Went out today to try rough shooting but without a dog. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Spaniel Posted January 18, 2010 Report Share Posted January 18, 2010 Yes but i will bring plenty to drink next time, maybe a small picnic half way up the hill Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sqwelchy Posted January 18, 2010 Author Report Share Posted January 18, 2010 Hahaha cool Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KFC Posted January 18, 2010 Report Share Posted January 18, 2010 Some rough shooters do employ beaters, to walk with the guns and beat the hedgerows and to carry the shot quarry. You may be able to get some beating on a rough shoot to find out what it is about. Sometimes you can find a shoot that is a combination of driven and rough. The guns and beaters walk-in the hedgerows to the covers (rough shooting) then the guns will line up at one end of the cover while the beaters drive the covers through, towards the guns, to give the guns driven birds. On the shoots that I used to shoot on with my Grandfather, who was the gamekeeper, once the game season was finished, we would go into the woods at about 3pm and wait for the Pigeons to come in to roost. We shot 'til it was too dark. We did this through Feb and March until the trees sprouted too much cover. Some days we would go into the wood a bit earlier and poke Squirrel dreys that my Grandad had marked out during the week. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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