Big Dog Posted October 27, 2005 Report Share Posted October 27, 2005 Hi guys. As I tune into this forum daily the big theme I see is not pigeons but rabbits; especially with the Guns and Cartridges forum (rifle guys). From what you guys accross the pond imply is that rabbits are plentiful [B]MY BIG QUESTION:[/b] 1. Is there no Maxi in England/Scotland or your region??? 2. How come so many of you are shooting so many rabbits and not really having any impact of the population??? 3. Has Maxi died out in you area??? MY story: I have 100reds of acres of land to shoot on (N. Ireland) and you could walk it all day and never see a rabbit. That is true of most places I have been shooting for years. The Maxi just cleaned us out years ago and every time you get a come back in an area, approx 6-12 months later maxi hits and its a wipe out. We do have smaller holding with chemical sprays and modern fencing etc but I am sure its the maxi that is the problem. You guys will be shooting larger fields than us I'm sure. This spring one farmer asked me to shoot rabbits on his farm. It was the only place I had seen bunnies in such number for years. It was my new bunny heaven. I shot a lot off it but wanted to exercise some consevation too; protect my favorite sport. Late spring, maxi hit it and it seemed to wipe it out. this week I spotted some fresh holes but you never see them during the day. I will go at night to get a feel of the population and their health. If it is good I may shoot some off at night. PS. As a matter of interest. If any of you do experience do you find that after an outbreak if rabbits return they are very daylight aware and only come out at night??? This has been my observation, not sure why, maybe less numbers more afraid??? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dunganick Posted October 27, 2005 Report Share Posted October 27, 2005 do u mean mixxy? or is this another disease you lot have over there mixxy at least has completely destroyed the population of our rabbits over here, only in the last 5 years or so are they starting to get back into any kind of numbers one farm i shoot on has mixxy badly, esspecially this time of the year, i will rarely shoot a rabbit without it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tenbears10 Posted October 27, 2005 Report Share Posted October 27, 2005 Whereas I have only seen a couple of Mixxy rabbits on the farm I shoot in the last year. Everyone I have shot has been fine (although we are not talking 100 rabbit bags here). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Axe Posted October 27, 2005 Report Share Posted October 27, 2005 (edited) Everyone I have shot has been fine Im glad to here it Joking apart, we havent seen too much Mixy in our neck of the woods, the odd one or two but nothing major. The only shoot that was troubled was a Golf Course that we now do regularly. We hadnt been on it for most of the season and got a call from the owner asking us to clear the rabbits due to the mixy. There is certainly no shortage of rabbits in our area, mixy or not. At least I feel comfortable that we are on top of the conservation and the poor little arent suffering with disease. Well, on our shoots anyway. Edited October 27, 2005 by Axe Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
blackthorn Posted October 27, 2005 Report Share Posted October 27, 2005 we had a golf course that was lay-den with rabbits we was regularly taking 20-30-40 rabbits then mixxy hit you was lucky if you seen 1-2 rabbits this was 4 years ago. i here now they are back in good numbers again up there. i haven't seen no sines of mixxy this year well not yet . the rabbits seem to be making a good comeback on some of the land we shoot Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave-G Posted October 27, 2005 Report Share Posted October 27, 2005 Touch wood - no mixxy on my permission Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Big Dog Posted October 27, 2005 Author Report Share Posted October 27, 2005 OK so it mixxy over there not maxi, poo wee We aren't as polite. As one N. Irish commedian say, "it the way I tell em". I know the farmer wouldn't want this but I wish MIXXY would die out and leave it to us guys to control rabbits I can't say I glad to hear you have it over there still too but at least it not just us, if you know what I mean. Thanks for that you MIXXY guys Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lurcherboy Posted October 27, 2005 Report Share Posted October 27, 2005 All rabbits in Upstreet nr. Canterbury are mixed to the hilt. No sport and no fun LB Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cranfield Posted October 27, 2005 Report Share Posted October 27, 2005 Mixy must have been around for at least 40 years. Any affected rabbits normally appear in the weeks after the harvest season. Because rabbits interbreed, it is thought that they gradually become immune to the disease, which has lead to rumours of stronger strains being introduced over the years. Most Winters I have netted rabbits with bald areas and scarring round their eyes and I am sure these were recovering from the disease. Because of "no-go areas", like railway embankments, factory sites, private woodlands, marshes, parks, etc. there have always been healthy rabbits that escape the disease, which then repopulate the areas cleared by mixy. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
blackthorn Posted October 27, 2005 Report Share Posted October 27, 2005 the way i herd it the disease mutates and comes back as another strain so it wont go away i could be wrong Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bigsam Posted October 27, 2005 Report Share Posted October 27, 2005 got some conneys on my shoot showing signs of it trying to thing them ones out before it spreads too much !! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
throdgrain Posted October 28, 2005 Report Share Posted October 28, 2005 Recently I noticed mixy in a big load of rabbits near where I walk my dog. No one shoots there by the way, its a council park. Anyway, I thought oh well thats the end of them till the spring, but only a few weeks later theres a lot more rabbits there, and they seem uneffected. I wonder if they arnt becomnig immune to it. I certainly hope so . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
henry d Posted October 30, 2005 Report Share Posted October 30, 2005 Had a small dab of it but most seem to be immune and we cut the numbers down and they have been at it all year since about mid february.Consequently there are loads about now and it looks like we weren`t too hard on the numbers,or someones been sending them over from Ireland Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dunkield Posted October 30, 2005 Report Share Posted October 30, 2005 There's still a fair bit of it around the Thames Valley and Hampshire, it comes and goes. My dog has only ever caught 2 wabbits and they both had mixy - so he did at least do a good job of reducing it. I doubt it will ever go away completely, we can only assume there were less rabbit shooters/hunters back in the 60's? :*) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Big Dog Posted November 1, 2005 Author Report Share Posted November 1, 2005 bigsam Im not sure culling will impact the mixxy. Cranfield yes I would agree35-40yrs. Now help me out with this, this is what I have been told about mixxy some 25-20 yrs ago:1. It was designed by an Australian to curb the plag of bunny there. 2. It was by "design" only meant to be a one off cull, put in the air to impact bunnies, never meant to keep repeating itself. 3. It is a type of In ferial disease that is contacted by fleas. 4. The fleas live on and around the mouth ot the warren and the rabbits that enter the warren get the fleas and pass them on too. 5. Basically they die from the clap. 6. I have also heard the the person who invented it committed suicide when he saw the recurring damage it was doing. PS. What I don't know is, if you eat meat from a mixxi bunny would it do you any harm??? I wouldn't eat one but what if you didn't know it had it?? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dunkield Posted November 1, 2005 Report Share Posted November 1, 2005 BG, That is about it, I am sure there are more facts to it that someone will add. The ones I have seen would have died through starvation or being run over as their eyes were completely swollen shut. I have also heard there is no harm eating meat from a mixy rabbit, but as there are enough of the good ones around so I would bin any mixy ones and eat those instead. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tenbears10 Posted November 1, 2005 Report Share Posted November 1, 2005 Everyone I have shot has been fine Im glad to here it Of course fine is relative they have all been dead which i suppose isn't fine for the rabbit. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BountyHunter Posted November 1, 2005 Report Share Posted November 1, 2005 Everyone I have shot has been fine Im glad to here it Of course fine is relative they have all been dead which i suppose isn't fine for the rabbit. LOL I don't know about rabbits with Mixi, but I once ran over one with my Maxi! I'll get my coat... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hawkeye Posted November 2, 2005 Report Share Posted November 2, 2005 Mixy must have been around for at least 40 years.Any affected rabbits normally appear in the weeks after the harvest season. Because rabbits interbreed, it is thought that they gradually become immune to the disease, which has lead to rumours of stronger strains being introduced over the years. Most Winters I have netted rabbits with bald areas and scarring round their eyes and I am sure these were recovering from the disease. Because of "no-go areas", like railway embankments, factory sites, private woodlands, marshes, parks, etc. there have always been healthy rabbits that escape the disease, which then repopulate the areas cleared by mixy. Quote cranfield Mixy must have been around for at least 40 years. Hi im 58 years old and can remember when i was about 5 / 6 years old going to school we used to see loads of Mixxy rabbits, when we walked to school on a morning so that would be 52 / 53 years ago. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ferret Master Posted November 2, 2005 Report Share Posted November 2, 2005 Hi, I haven't seen mixi in my part of Wiltshire now for 2 years now. FM Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rarms Posted November 2, 2005 Report Share Posted November 2, 2005 is it not myxi? Kyle Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cooky Posted November 3, 2005 Report Share Posted November 3, 2005 is it not myxi? Kyle myxomatosis to be exact Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Davrian Posted June 13, 2006 Report Share Posted June 13, 2006 I've never seen it! I'm not looking forward to seeing it, but guess I will at some point! It's only this year I've got right in to my shooting and filling my freezer. There are very few bunnies in my area (near Frome Somerset), my father tells me this has only been since mixy the ones I do see are perfectly healthy but as numbers are low I rarely shoot them here, I do have permission 30 miles away (near Langport Somerset) and this particular farm is over run so plenty for the, pot but they all look very healthy. Doesn't sound nice! poor beggars if I see any I'll put them out of their misery. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ferret Master Posted June 13, 2006 Report Share Posted June 13, 2006 Hi, I have started to see myxy again. FM Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mossy835 Posted June 13, 2006 Report Share Posted June 13, 2006 only sean 3 with mixy on my farms cant have got here yet. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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