closed season

[castletyne]

Really need to read the 1st post "This is what prompted me to post in the 1st place"

 

 

I did read the post but i think its a bad idea every rabbit/pigeon is costing the farmer money and if they find out you are deliberatly not shooting them just so numbers can increase most would tell you to sling your hook

 

If a farmer has been good enough to allow you to shoot his land then you need to shoot pests at any time of year

 

Your sport can then be the game birds in the game season

[kdubya]

Pigeon my way ARE breeding feb to oct so can the OP give his considered reason for selecting March - -June or is that just a best guess based on an Alans book of birds eggs like we got in the fifties and sixties?

 

KW

[Actionpigeons]

Pigeon my way ARE breeding feb to oct so can the OP give his considered reason for selecting March - -June or is that just a best guess based on an Alans book of birds eggs like we got in the fifties and sixties?

 

KW

This is what prompted me to post in the 1st place.

I was driving home the other day and spotted a mate of mine walking off his shooting patch. I pulled over for a chat as you do. Any luck I said as I could see he was carrying his gun. He took one rabbit (A milky doe) from his bag and threw it in the back of his Landrove, that will do for the ferrets. Nothing about, not really worth the walk but I need to get the dog out he said.

If there is not much about why shoot your breeding stock

 

I was mainly on about Rabbits in my area, or the lack of them.

people are answering questions from half way threw the post?

#as always started as a mouse and ends as an elephant

Edited May 11, 2012 by Actionpigeons

[chrispti]

If there is not much about why shoot your breeding stock

 

Farmer wants them gone.

 

He told me to get rid of them, not set up a breeding program so Iv got some shooting all year round

 

 

 

If it was a bit of unused scrub/waste ground then I would control the population, rather then eradicate them

[Actionpigeons]

Farmer wants them gone.

 

He told me to get rid of them, not set up a breeding program so Iv got some shooting all year round

 

 

 

If it was a bit of unused scrub/waste ground then I would control the population, rather then eradicate them

 

I give up, either people don’t read and understand or don’t want to understand.

Not looking at setting up a breeding program just looking after my sport. I would rather put my gun away for a few months a year to make sure I have enough sport threw the winter. Because in this area we have very few Rabbits and it would not take much to near enough wipe them out. If on the other hand you have 100s of them well go get um, but we dont around here. Now is that plane enough

Edited May 11, 2012 by Actionpigeons

[poontang]

I give up, either people don’t read and understand or don’t want to understand.

Not looking at setting up a breeding program just looking after my sport. I would rather put my gun away for a few months a year to make sure I have enough sport threw the winter. Because in this area we have very few Rabbits and it would not take much to near enough wipe them out. If on the other hand you have 100s of them well go get um, but we dont around here. Now is that plane enough

 

I think it's you who doesn't understand.

 

Rabbits are a massive agricultural pest.

 

Farmers want them gone.

 

They're not interested in your 'sport'. As far as most farmers are concerned they wouldn't be too bothered if they never saw another rabbit on their land, or pigeon for that matter.

[chrispti]

I give up, either people don’t read and understand or don’t want to understand.

Not looking at setting up a breeding program just looking after my sport. I would rather put my gun away for a few months a year to make sure I have enough sport threw the winter. Because in this area we have very few Rabbits and it would not take much to near enough wipe them out. If on the other hand you have 100s of them well go get um, but we dont around here. Now is that plane enough

 

I was being sarcastic mate

 

Just for you then;

 

Farmer wants them gone.

 

He told me to get rid of them, dont save some so Iv got some shooting all year round, GET RID, every single one as they are eating his crops!

 

 

 

If it was a bit of unused scrub/waste ground then I would control the population, rather then eradicate them

 

 

 

Theres not many left on my ground, because I shot them all, just like the farmer asked.

 

If I just controlled the population, the farmers crops would still get eaten, then Id have no were to shoot as he would get someone else in to do the job properly.

[yickdaz]

pigeons get a natural break from shooting when they are not present on your land, which can be 6 months of the year not consecutive months but that many in total, through the 12 so when they are on the land they get hit hard and rightly so because thats the time the farmer wants you there shooting them, and when they are not there to be shot you still need to show your face, and let him know your still around and showing willing.

[Actionpigeons]

I think it's you who doesn't understand.

 

Rabbits are a massive agricultural pest.

 

Farmers want them gone.

 

They're not interested in your 'sport'. As far as most farmers are concerned they wouldn't be too bothered if they never saw another rabbit on their land, or pigeon for that matter.

Rabbits are a massive agricultural pest, well chance would be a fine thing around here. we have no rabbit, the rabbits have gone AWall, they have changed post code, the gone on there holls. they ant here, they have moved south, they are lost in the wilderness, now are you starting to understand we have no bunnies. Thats why we give them a rest. if we are lucky we see two or three and thats working a springer. so I dont shoot the odd ones we see in the name of pest control threw the summer.

if on the other hand we had 100s I to would shoot all year round.

Edited May 11, 2012 by Actionpigeons

[karpman]

but we dont around here. we have no rabbit, the rabbits have gone

AWall. they have changed post code, the gone on there holls. they ant here. they are lost in the wilderness. thats why I give them a rest. if we are lucky we see two or three

if on the other hand we had 100s I to would shoot all year round. The mind boggels

So why a close season, which to me suggest a national ban on hunting rabbits in your given months..

 

Your right I don't understand. At one time of day it was a legal obligation for farmers to keep rabbits in check bordering neighbouring lands I believe. I don't want a close season nor do I understand a need for one, if you choose and are allowed to hang your gun up fair play to you, you won't convince me to do the same.

 

Do you feel the same about rats and other pests or would you happily kill the very last one, I know what I would do...

 

There's no place for a close season for rabbits or pigeons, but on your patch you could farm em for all I care.

 

Karpman

[poontang]

Rabbits are a massive agricultural pest, well chance would be a fine thing around here. we have no rabbit, the rabbits have gone AWall, they have changed post code, the gone on there holls. they ant here, they have moved south, they are lost in the wilderness. thats why I give them a rest. if we are lucky we see two or three and thats working a springer. so I dont shoot the odd ones we see in the name of pest control threw the summer.

if on the other hand we had 100s I to would shoot all year round.

 

Sounds to me like someone has done a good job of getting rid of them in the past.

 

I bet the farmer's happy.

[Actionpigeons]

So why a close season, which to me suggest a national ban on hunting rabbits in your given months..

 

Your right I don't understand. At one time of day it was a legal obligation for farmers to keep rabbits in check bordering neighbouring lands I believe. I don't want a close season nor do I understand a need for one, if you choose and are allowed to hang your gun up fair play to you, you won't convince me to do the same.

 

Do you feel the same about rats and other pests or would you happily kill the very last one, I know what I would do...

 

There's no place for a close season for rabbits or pigeons, but on your patch you could farm em for all I care.

 

Karpman

Bloody hell mate this is hard work. No one is saying give them a closed season. I’m saying I don’t shoot on my patch threw the summer cos there are so few rabbits. Read the 1st post please.

[yickdaz]

Bloody hell mate this is hard work. No one is saying give them a closed season. I’m saying I don’t shoot on my patch threw the summer cos there are so few rabbits. Read the 1st post please.

#1

Actionpigeons

 

Posted Today, 07:51 AM

 

 

Excellent Pigeon Shooter

 

 

 

 

Group:Members

Posts:110

Joined:17-September 11

Member:47459

Gender:Male

Location:Midlands

 

 

Here is a good shooting tip.

If the pigeon and rabbits are not causing a problem on your patch leave them alone from the end of March until the end of June. Every thing needs a rest and time to breed. So many people shoot right threw the year and wonder why they don’t get much sport threw the true season.

We seem to have lost the closed season, and yes I can hear lots of you saying now there is no closed season on Rabbits and Pigeon, crows etc, and yes your right, but there used to be. Remember the saying “don’t eat a rabbit unless there is an R in the month”

The same was said of the pigeon.

[karpman]

Think its a bad tip myself to stop shooting between them months

 

On the other hand there would be plenty of permissions available if we did

Agree.

[motty]

Why would anyone impose a ban on themselves to shoot pigeons between April and july? These are often some of the best months to shoot pigeons.I've just checked my diaries and over the last 3 years i've averaged 903 pigeons from April 1st to June 31st.

There are plenty to shoot, so i get killing them when i can.

[Actionpigeons]

#1

Actionpigeons

 

Posted Today, 07:51 AM

 

 

Excellent Pigeon Shooter

 

 

 

 

Group:Members

Posts:110

Joined:17-September 11

Member:47459

Gender:Male

Location:Midlands

 

 

Here is a good shooting tip.

If the pigeon and rabbits are not causing a problem on your patch leave them alone from the end of March until the end of June. Every thing needs a rest and time to breed. So many people shoot right threw the year and wonder why they don’t get much sport threw the true season.

We seem to have lost the closed season, and yes I can hear lots of you saying now there is no closed season on Rabbits and Pigeon, crows etc, and yes your right, but there used to be. Remember the saying “don’t eat a rabbit unless there is an R in the month”

The same was said of the pigeon.

you missed half the post

 

This is what prompted me to post in the 1st place.

I was driving home the other day and spotted a mate of mine walking off his shooting patch. I pulled over for a chat as you do. Any luck I said as I could see he was carrying his gun. He took one rabbit (A milky doe) from his bag and threw it in the back of his Landrove, that will do for the ferrets. Nothing about, not really worth the walk but I need to get the dog out he said.

If there is not much about why shoot your breeding stock

 

 

So when my mate said nothing about he is saying there are NO RABBITS.

All I am saying is if you are short of RABBITS on your land why not give them a rest.

WE give them a rest as we are very short of RABBITS around here. So because I give the RABBITS a rest WE don’t shoot at all from the end of March threw until the end of June and we find we have more sport threw the winter.

I am not suggesting a ban I am saying if you are short of RABBITS why not give them a short rest and see if your sport improves threw the true shooting season.I DON’T SHOOT FROM THE END OF MARCH THREW TILL THE END OF JUNE AS WE ARE VERY SHORT OF RABBITS AROUND HERE. Because of this the other game seems to move in, as WE are not shooting on OUR patch.

we then get more sport threw the winter months.

 

Now even me with my bad schooling and grammar can understand that. so if you dont understand that you never will

Edited May 12, 2012 by Actionpigeons

[Blunderbuss]

No one is saying give them a closed season

 

Huh? Remind me again what the title of this thread is?

[Greenhunter]

This 'not until there's an R in the month' comes from the days when meat went off in warmer weather so May till July certain types of meat were off the menu. Probably fish in some areas but it was pork where I was.

My Grandfather was a keen rabbiter, ferrets, long netting and shotgun, he'd get them one way or another. But not when there was no R in the month! He killed rabbits to put food on his table but also enjoyed it and called it 'sport'.

Now,before someone jumps on me, I do realise times have changed and I've been around long enough to see a good number of them. We can now eat any meat all year round and, on this forum at least, crop protection and vermin control are the be all and end all for reasons to go out and shoot every rabbit, pigeon and crow they see. Some will say its not 'sport', if you enjoy it then it's sport so if you don't enjoy it why do it? Most people don't get paid to do it so that can't be a reason.

The OP has a viewpoint, one that I share to a point. I was a young lad when Myxie was introduced in my area. I'd just started shooting and had already got a love of the countryside and all things 'nature', so, when all the rabbits disappeared it seemed to me that the land itself had died. There seemed to be nothing about at all, the place seemed empty.

Obviously that just makes me soft and sentimental in some peoples eyes but what about respect for the creatures we hunt/shoot. Ok, in big numbers they are a problem and I guess I'm lucky in that none of my farmers want the rabbits wiped out. I don't think I'd do it anyway!

The OP was saying that, like me, he prefers to leave a few for next time and that there is some pleasure in seeing a couple of rabbits sitting by a hedgerow an a warm summers evening. If they are still there in October they'd be in the pot though!!

 

We are all different not right or wrong. I and the OP like to preserve a certain balance....

 

 

GH (flak jacket on)

[hedd-wyn]

Here is a good shooting tip.

If the pigeon and rabbits are not causing a problem on your patch leave them alone from the end of March until the end of June. Every thing needs a rest and time to breed. So many people shoot right threw the year and wonder why they don’t get much sport threw the true season.

We seem to have lost the closed season, and yes I can hear lots of you saying now there is no closed season on Rabbits and Pigeon, crows etc, and yes your right, but there used to be. Remember the saying “don’t eat a rabbit unless there is an R in the month”

The same was said of the pigeon.

 

This is what prompted me to post in the 1st place.

I was driving home the other day and spotted a mate of mine walking off his shooting patch. I pulled over for a chat as you do. Any luck I said as I could see he was carrying his gun. He took one rabbit (A milky doe) from his bag and threw it in the back of his Landrove, that will do for the ferrets. Nothing about, not really worth the walk but I need to get the dog out he said.

If there is not much about why shoot your breeding stock

 

Just my opinion, you can shoot me down now

 

I understand what you're saying mate.

On my permission there have always been rabbits, not in abundant but a 'fair few'. Having worked on the permission for most of my teenage life they have never been controlled because they don't cause any damage and the farmer 'isn't bothered' about them.

I shoot on the permission for fox and crows and the farmer is happy with that, however as a reward he's given me permission to lamp a few rabbits and collect firewood a a reward for my work there.

Having read this thread I have decided to wait a while before going after any rabbits, as I don't really fancy a pregnant or milky one.

This is my personal choice, not stating what is right or wrong

Edited May 12, 2012 by hedd-wyn

[Actionpigeons]

Huh? Remind me again what the title of this thread is?

Black beauty was about a horse not about a good looking black girl down the lane, there again you would need to read the book to know that not just look at the title

Edited May 12, 2012 by Actionpigeons

[Blunderbuss]

Black beauty was about a horse not about a good looking black girl down the lane, but you would need to read the book to know that not just look at the title

 

A very strange analogy. I've never read it but know fine well it's about a horse, same for most people I reckon? My point being if you are not not suggesting a legal closed season (which I accept you're not), then you could have chosen your thread title a little more carefully. If you think about it you can perhaps see why that title would be a red rag to members who live in different parts of the country and who are struggling to keep farmers happy due to serious pest damage? There is a communication issue here I think, I partly agree with you, but you're not explaining your case very well.

 

It's simple. If the land owner of your permission is plagued with pigeons and rabbits and wants them gone - you are duty bound to oblige with no let up, all year round or whenever the opportunity arises. If you live somewhere where they are in short supply AND if the landowner doesn't want them eradicated, then there is nothing wrong with shown a little restraint at certain times of the year.

 

Voluntary restraint at a local level, if numbers dictate it = good "Closed season" suggest national legally enforced restrictions = bad :(

 

I'm also suspicious of those altruistic souls on here who only ever do it because it's pest control, and derive no enjoyment from it whatsoever I personally don't think sport and pest control have to be mutually exclusive, but agree that with pest species the latter has to take precedence.

[swiss.tony]

my god iv just read all this **** on this thread and i thought there were some muppets on here and i was right any one who has land given to them for pest control bet they never said to the farmer or by the way ill only shoot rabbits with r in them or pigeon when they don't have young"ens what a load of bull.

 

iv read the 1st post and still cant believe some one leaves rabbits to breed more i shoot all year round i shoot big 1s and small baby 1s there all same to me dead is dead full of young"ens don't make 1 bit of difference.

 

when i 1st started there was over 4,000 rabbits on 5 farms it took nearly 3 years to get them down to numbers that are now easy to control you will never get them all but i do try my rabbits don't cause any problems now but will still shoot them i don't eat any thing i shoot its not sport its just killing pests cause i like it pure and simple

 

just like foxes shoot them any time of year cubs or not 100 per cent at them all time

[yickdaz]

Pigeon and rabbits are major agricultural pests.

 

If they're feeding/causing damage they need dealing with. You mention sport and a true 'season', but that doesn't come into the equation.

 

It is purely and simply pest control.

 

If however they are not causing a problem, as you mentioned in your post, then they won't be around to shoot anyway!!

again i agree with this post and what greenhunter said, i,m not one for wiping everything out but controling is a different ball game all together, and like i said in a previous post if the rabbits, pigeons,crows or whatever they maybe are present in big numbers, they need sorting out, but if the numbers are low there isn,t much point in going out after them in the first place,so they get a natural break from shooting, but if you get a call from the farmer do something about them you go regardless of numbers or someone else will do it for yer its that simple

[sitsinhedges]

I give the pigeons a breather pretty much from March until harvest time when they're largely doing little damage and concentrate on the exploding population of rabbits instead. Once the leaf is on the tree and the crops are growing up there's not much opportunity to ashoot them anyway so you might aswell give them a chance to produce a few fresh young birds for next year.

[Actionpigeons]

my god iv just read all this **** on this thread and i thought there were some muppets on here and i was right any one who has land given to them for pest control bet they never said to the farmer or by the way ill only shoot rabbits with r in them or pigeon when they don't have young"ens what a load of bull.

 

iv read the 1st post and still cant believe some one leaves rabbits to breed more i shoot all year round i shoot big 1s and small baby 1s there all same to me dead is dead full of young"ens don't make 1 bit of difference.

 

when i 1st started there was over 4,000 rabbits on 5 farms it took nearly 3 years to get them down to numbers that are now easy to control you will never get them all but i do try my rabbits don't cause any problems now but will still shoot them i don't eat any thing i shoot its not sport its just killing pests cause i like it pure and simple

 

just like foxes shoot them any time of year cubs or not 100 per cent at them all time

" i don't eat any thing i shoot its not sport its just killing pests cause i like it pure and simple"

 

the mind boggels

 

I for one shoot for sport because I enjoy doing so. I don’t get up in the morning and think to myself “oh I must go and shoot them rabbit and pigeons cos I will be saving Farmer Giles some money. I shoot for sport and I manage the land I have so as I get sport and a living from it. I don’t need 1,000s of acres as I look after what I have

I make a living from shooting pigeon and hunting Rabbits from the end of June untill the 28th Feb. so I must be doing something right in the way I manage the land I have.

I have lived and worked in the countryside all my life and have respect for my

Quarry and would not kill anything just for killing sake. I have taken people out who like killing for killing sake and to be truthfull I’m glad when the day is over.

Edited May 12, 2012 by Actionpigeons