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squirrel control


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On 24/01/2018 at 09:35, Robertt said:

Have done 28 on one feeder Mid to  November to last week in December.

Food is still going from the feeder and recently I have waisted too much time waiting for a none appearance. 

My take on it is that a squirrel, is coming from afar, filling it's boots then going back to it's own territory and not hanging about.

I think a trap for this blighter is the next move.

Let me know if you want to borrow a trap or two. I can get them to you no problem.

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Out this morning in a Red Squirrel Wood.

Topped up the feeder and a Red was on it within 10 Minutes.

Then a grey appeared and stopped to munch some Maize I had put on an old log.

A single shot from my Chiappa .22lr soon knocked it off at 40M.

Large female 610 Grams.

Back home for 9.00am. Beautiful morning.

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well I'm finally off the mark for the year in the woods, spent the morning getting wet, thinking I should have stayed in bed, head back to the visitors centre having seen nothing and there is a big fat squirrel on the bird table, I got the nod rifle out, door creaked and up into the pine it goes, just not very far looking straight at me, mistake. Big female that won't be breeding this year.

few rats about again so stayed for an hour seeing three and shooting two whilst watching the birds after having a brew. Slightly worrying when the rsts are nearly as big as the squirrels.

WP_20180129_11_15_29_Pro.jpg.b00aa464e598f725a4b10f4eb91127d9.jpg

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  • 4 weeks later...

Out today but another blank, didn't see a thing. Plenty of birds to watch coming and going, robin, blue tits, great tits, gold crest, bull finch, wren, tree creeper, tree sparrow plus the pigeons magpies rooks, no idea what was going on behind me in the lake but something was tunning up for spring. Not even a rat poked out its head, probably because it was damn cold, not helped by sitting still.

not to worry feeders topped up for the other lads and i had a nice bacon and egg barm when I got home.

 

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It has been very slow around here(east Leicestershire) for tree rats. I seem to have reduced the numbers considerably even back into my neighbours ground. That is good, so I have a 70 mile drive to a more ..hopefully...productive patch on Saturday with the shooting hut featured in the Crafts section to get positioned.  Hoping they are feeling spring approaching and on the move.  Still no takers on the one flip lid style feeder. Keep putting peanut butter under and around the lid and peanuts on the landing stage. The blue tits think it is theirs.

 

 

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4 late last week and 2 more this afternoon - met up with the guys filling the Hoppers who told me that every single Hopper is empty including the tiny copse 1/2 mile away. Good to  be back out and mopping a few more up but day was spoiled by my old Nemesis of concrete headed squizzer - about 25 yards a real twitchy one sat on top of the Hopper trying to work out if I was dangerous or not - could only see about an inch of his head (including his eye) due to a build up of branches but the AA Field hit home spot on and he dropped like a stone. After about 10 minutes his tail started flicking and, thru the scope, I could see his head raised and looking around - one more in the side of his head and he rolled over but I could see he was still breathing hard so I had to break cover and despatch him with another 2 to the top of his head. First shot was good hitting just behind his eye and looking at him it had gone clean thru but I could not see where no2 had struck although I'm 99% sure it was in the head - final 2 were obvious but I'm not happy about this happening again :no:.

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32 minutes ago, bruno22rf said:

4 late last week and 2 more this afternoon - met up with the guys filling the Hoppers who told me that every single Hopper is empty including the tiny copse 1/2 mile away. Good to  be back out and mopping a few more up but day was spoiled by my old Nemesis of concrete headed squizzer - about 25 yards a real twitchy one sat on top of the Hopper trying to work out if I was dangerous or not - could only see about an inch of his head (including his eye) due to a build up of branches but the AA Field hit home spot on and he dropped like a stone. After about 10 minutes his tail started flicking and, thru the scope, I could see his head raised and looking around - one more in the side of his head and he rolled over but I could see he was still breathing hard so I had to break cover and despatch him with another 2 to the top of his head. First shot was good hitting just behind his eye and looking at him it had gone clean thru but I could not see where no2 had struck although I'm 99% sure it was in the head - final 2 were obvious but I'm not happy about this happening again .

Every chance your first shot has taken a. Glancing blow and stunned the squirrel, it does happen, after that probably nerves? Nice to know your back out amongst them.

1 hour ago, Walker570 said:

Keep putting peanut butter under and around the lid and peanuts on the landing stage. The blue tits think it is theirs.

might be worth propping a lid open for a while? Are they still getting food from the pheasant feeders?

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Mice - been thru every conceivable explanation to attempt to solve this problem - this guy had been hit cleaner than a clean thing thru the head with the exit wound clearly visible on the opposite side, my only thought is that, as it was a side on shot, the pellet failed to actually hit it's brain square on and passed thru it's forehead - but hit one last week in the very same mark and it was lights out before it hit the ground. End of the day a dead'un is a dead'un but I wish that when they died they stayed died :rolleyes:.  

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5 hours ago, bruno22rf said:

Mice - been thru every conceivable explanation to attempt to solve this problem - this guy had been hit cleaner than a clean thing thru the head with the exit wound clearly visible on the opposite side, my only thought is that, as it was a side on shot, the pellet failed to actually hit it's brain square on and passed thru it's forehead - but hit one last week in the very same mark and it was lights out before it hit the ground. End of the day a dead'un is a dead'un but I wish that when they died they stayed died :rolleyes:.  

Maybe time to try a new pellet mate, go to some sort of hollow point, i always liked bisley superfields but don't think they loaded well out my mag.

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Been down the different pellet route Mice albeit with the .177 and used Barracuda Hunter Extremes till giving up and buying the .22. Only fly in the ointment is that both guns love AA Fields to a point where it makes little difference if they are distorted, loose or go in sideways they still fly true - just returned a tin of Exacts (supposed to be the same pellet) because every 4 or 5 shots one would decide he wanted to discover a different part of the target - frustrating or what. Not much of my squizzer season left on this big perm so I'm just going to be a bit more alert to their rising from the dead antics for now. Last few days has seen thousands of Pigeons mooching around my local perm so the shotgun (I have 13 :rolleyes:) will be dusted off and put into service till my new (hopefully) .17 variation comes thru then I'm looking forward to a summer of long range Crow and Pigeon sniping.

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21 minutes ago, bruno22rf said:

Been down the different pellet route Mice albeit with the .177 and used Barracuda Hunter Extremes till giving up and buying the .22. Only fly in the ointment is that both guns love AA Fields to a point where it makes little difference if they are distorted, loose or go in sideways they still fly true - just returned a tin of Exacts (supposed to be the same pellet) because every 4 or 5 shots one would decide he wanted to discover a different part of the target - frustrating or what. Not much of my squizzer season left on this big perm so I'm just going to be a bit more alert to their rising from the dead antics for now. Last few days has seen thousands of Pigeons mooching around my local perm so the shotgun (I have 13 :rolleyes:) will be dusted off and put into service till my new (hopefully) .17 variation comes thru then I'm looking forward to a summer of long range Crow and Pigeon sniping.

I wonder what the solution might be concerning the squirrels twitching? Having said that I don't have any such trouble with FAC .25 shooting them in the chest.

.17 Hornet??   

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Cannot go FAC Air Mice as rules are sub 12ft/lb only and nowhere to go power wise as both guns are ,er, close (:whistling:) with AA Fields anyway. From memory these incidents are far fewer than when I used the .177 and, at the end of the day, not one Squizzer has actually made off once hit so I may simply break cover from now on and ensure that the job's been done. .17 Hornet Whitebridges? - that would be nice but gonna start with the humble HMR as the Hornet is a little "lively" according to a friend of mine who swears that the hotter rounds occasionally vaporize after firing :unhappy:.

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FAILURE yesterday. Managed to get the new hut/hide erected almost, but of course forgot about that it was Saturday and the estate was going to be swamped with guns flighting pigeons in the afternoon, so no chance of a shot and left for home at 3pm......................... then about 10 miles down the road realised I had not taken pictures of the new hut/hide:no::rolleyes: growing old ain't for whimps, that's for sure.  SOOOOOHH!! y'alll will have to wait until Thursday when I intend going over hopefully brain in gear.  I did spread a bag of carrots down the ride just in case the munties were hungry and the keepers son said that the flip top feeder in the other wood was empty, so something has found it at long last, might be wood mice climbing through the grid on the bottom. I have some finer mesh which will stop their little game. 

So, apologies guys, I cannot add anything to the total at this stage.

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On ‎23‎/‎02‎/‎2018 at 20:21, bruno22rf said:

Cannot go FAC Air Mice as rules are sub 12ft/lb only and nowhere to go power wise as both guns are ,er, close () with AA Fields anyway. From memory these incidents are far fewer than when I used the .177 and, at the end of the day, not one Squizzer has actually made off once hit so I may simply break cover from now on and ensure that the job's been done. .17 Hornet Whitebridges? - that would be nice but gonna start with the humble HMR as the Hornet is a little "lively" according to a friend of mine who swears that the hotter rounds occasionally vaporize after firing .

Love my Hornet Bruno although if its not a head shot the bunnies can be a bit inedible. As a crow basher or any fox that needs sorting while out its very nice. Cheap as chips to reload as well tubs of power last forever.

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This is from yesterday 

Some go on about heavy pellets in .177 which i do use myself in one of my guns but these AA Express .177  7.9 gr  are lethal at all ranges , i have tried them from 15 to 75 yards  in my HW100k .

Probably the most accurate pellet i have used in .177 in all of my guns , just a shame the BSA magazines don't really like them  ,unless you make sure the pellets are inserted right in , which can be a bit of fiddle in the field .

they were shot at 37 yard which is my zero on this set up  of HW100k , Aimax scope  and AA express pellets  and once again off the knee 

IMG_1503.JPG

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Good shooting villaman.  Welcome aboard:good:

I have a pair of Cabela's overalls/bib and brace type which are VERY cosy. Added to that a coat also from Cabela's which weighs a ton but perfect for sitting up.  Cabela's sell clothing for the far north Alaska, Yukon etc., and they know their stuff.  Thursday promising -5 overnight in Lincolnshire and zero at mid day. Maybe a sprinkle of snow. Perfect.

1 hour ago, Mice! said:

Just be sure you wrap up warm walker, if what the papers are saying is true its going to be arctic conditions this week.

 

Edited by Walker570
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