Taste of Game

[The Heron]

On a recent shoot the shoot captain asked if anyone would like a brace or two at the end of the day, if you take out the two American visitors out of the eight remaining guns I was the only person who took some home which I think was pretty poor. 

[London Best]

Conversely, my group of ten friends shot last week for the first time this season and every one of us took at least three brace.

[Scully]

Not everyone likes eating game, and many many more can’t be bothered to do the prep’ work, or don’t know how.

I have a mate who is like that. 

[London Best]

I know I’m knocking on a bit, but when I started shooting eating the game you shot was very much a part of it.

[Jim Neal]

When you shoot regularly with the same people, as with the syndicate I'm in, you quickly realise who the usual shirkers are when it comes to dividing up the bag after a shoot.  It really grinds my gears!  Game shooting can currently justify itself because it is the act of harvesting wild food, so to shoot it and not want to even make an attempt to put it into use as food is a bit of a mickey-take. It puts the whole sport in jeopardy and is a real insult to the others who try to do the right thing.

I'm one of the few who end up taking what's left after everyone else has skedaddled leaving loads of brace hanging on the fence.

Last year, late summer, we were made an extremely tempting offer of a large amount of extra birds at a stupidly cheap price - and that was added to an already increased number compared to what we usually stock.  Naturally we shot some huge bags (for us).  In the first half of the season if you averaged it out each person in attendance - not just guns but beaters, pickers up and everyone who tags along -  could take 2 or 3 brace EACH to share the bag out equally.  Of course not.  My record was 13 brace one time, and I never took less than 6 brace each day.

My family ate a lot of pheasant last winter, and so did my dogs!

I even started making food from the birds to bring on the next shoot day and share around, trying to encourage people to take the birds home and put them to use.  I did pheasant sausage rolls, crispy pheasant dippers, some little pies... everyone loved them but nobody else could be bothered to do the same.  It just all boils down to laziness.

 

[ehb102]

I have a plan. I start folks off easy with pheasant breast. Then I'll show them how to breast a pheasant or even dress it completely (Not that I know much more than the BASC video showed me). Then we're up to texts on the day: "I left you a couple of brace on the fence." 

It's sad that I can't rest assured the game I shoot goes to a dealer for strangers to eat, but I'm starting to see this distribution as part of the ethical cost of my shooting. 

[TIGHTCHOKE]

8 minutes ago, ehb102 said:

I have a plan. I start folks off easy with pheasant breast. Then I'll show them how to breast a pheasant or even dress it completely (Not that I know much more than the BASC video showed me). Then we're up to texts on the day: "I left you a couple of brace on the fence." 

It's sad that I can't rest assured the game I shoot goes to a dealer for strangers to eat, but I'm starting to see this distribution as part of the ethical cost of my shooting. 

A friend of mine who you know, goes about things a little differently!

Lots of game served up from a BBQ and wait until either someone asks what the lovely meat was or tell them all when finished.

His partridge is superb!

[southeastpete]

Im of the opinion you shouldn’t shot it unless you’re going to eat it. (Except foxes, rats, crows and the like)

I agree with an above post that’s it’s just laziness too. May as well shoot clays if you don’t want to eat it.

[London Best]

2 minutes ago, southeastpete said:

Im of the opinion you shouldn’t shot it unless you’re going to eat it. (Except foxes, rats, crows and the like)

I agree with an above post that’s it’s just laziness too. May as well shoot clays if you don’t want to eat it.

I suspect much of the problem is that many of today’s game shooters started in the sport through clay shooting and thus maybe don’t have a country/eating game upbringing.

[clangerman]

if you eat it or not if you don’t know for a fact where the birds end up you have no business shooting them this is just ammunition for the antis

[ehb102]

16 minutes ago, clangerman said:

if you eat it or not if you don’t know for a fact where the birds end up you have no business shooting them this is just ammunition for the antis

Never had any shoot say they go anywhere other than the game dealer or gifted. There is a reasonable assumption that game is shot for consumption. It's sad that we should start feeling that we have to check up on the behaviour of shoots.

Edited October 19, 2020 by ehb102

[Scully]

As long as it all gets eaten I don’t see why it matters whether some take a brace or two or not. Each to their own. 

[Walker570]

I almost always take at least one brace but one of our local shoots at Catton started preparing the birds themselves and I always order 20 packs in January, mostly partridge and they keep us going through the year.  It is getting more common on a shoot day,certainly a paid day, where the guns don't even see the bag at the days end AND the keeper doesn't appear with a suitable amount slected for the guns as he collects his tip. It used to be where the keeper handed a brace over just as a suitable thankyou was slipped into his other palm.  I like the way the Continentals lay out their game shot in order, often with a small fire on each corner and have horn players play a lament to the fallen game, whilst guns and beaters take off their caps..  We seem to have lost a lot of tradition in the last 25yrs which is a great shame.

Edited October 19, 2020 by Walker570

[greylag]

I never refuse a brace or two and am quite pleased when guns refuse their brace.,as long as someone is using this excellent resource it didn't matter.

This year will be very different ,with the Welsh lockdown as there will not be the shooting,beating ,or picking up which is my usual source of game.

[southeastpete]

If anyone knows of a shoot near st clears in Wales that needs a hand getting rid of shot game please let me know!

[Big Al]

On 18/10/2020 at 11:28, The Heron said:

On a recent shoot the shoot captain asked if anyone would like a brace or two at the end of the day, if you take out the two American visitors out of the eight remaining guns I was the only person who took some home which I think was pretty poor. 

I wonder how those guns justify the taking of live birds. I too, feel this is very bad form. If you just want to pull the trigger, go to a clay range.

It smacks of denial of what they do.

[London Best]

10 hours ago, Big Al said:

I wonder how those guns justify the taking of live birds. I too, feel this is very bad form. If you just want to pull the trigger, go to a clay range.

It smacks of denial of what they do.

Good post, Sir. I couldn’t agree more.

[JDog]

10 hours ago, Big Al said:

I wonder how those guns justify the taking of live birds. I too, feel this is very bad form. If you just want to pull the trigger, go to a clay range.

It smacks of denial of what they do.

Bad form yes, but denial no. It’s pure laziness.

[ditchman]

the places i shot in norfolk...at the end of the day...the previous shoots bag was plucked and gutted and put on trays and wrapped in cling film and was offered to us.....EVERYONE ...got stuck in   i used to have 3 leashes of partridge and half a dozen hens............

[button]

22 hours ago, London Best said:

I suspect much of the problem is that many of today’s game shooters started in the sport through clay shooting and thus maybe don’t have a country/eating game upbringing.

Not everybody had the privilege of a country upbringing or heir to a sprawling country estate, so would hardly call it a problem it is what it is. The fact of the matter is these that are part of the "problem" still spend vast amounts of money which is spent in rural communities and if they choose not to take a brace that is their choice, I'm sure somebody else will make use of them 

Know it might sound outrageous but they genuinely might not like game, better than taking them to keep you traditionalists happy to dump them when out of sight

[Jim Neal]

On 19/10/2020 at 20:38, Scully said:

As long as it all gets eaten I don’t see why it matters whether some take a brace or two or not. Each to their own. 

Mate, although I think we are very similar kind of blokes and I agree with almost all of your posts I've read on this forum... sadly that's not the case in this instance.  The fact that "it all gets eaten" is because there are a minority of people who care too much to let shot game go to waste.  It is they who are shouldering the burden created by apathetic people who leave the hard work for the few to take care of!  It is the DUTY of everyone who goes shooting to make sure their quarry ends up in the right place.

On 20/10/2020 at 09:44, button said:

Not everybody had the privilege of a country upbringing or heir to a sprawling country estate, so would hardly call it a problem it is what it is. The fact of the matter is these that are part of the "problem" still spend vast amounts of money which is spent in rural communities and if they choose not to take a brace that is their choice, I'm sure somebody else will make use of them 

Know it might sound outrageous but they genuinely might not like game, better than taking them to keep you traditionalists happy to dump them when out of sight

Not a valid argument, sorry.  Everyone who participates in game shooting, be they a Lord or a plumber, is obliged to do the right thing for the good of the sport.  It doesn't matter whether you eat pheasant for breakfast or can't stand the taste of it, the right thing is to make sure the shot game ends up in the right place.  If that means seeking out people you know who would appreciate the offer of free wild meat then that's the effort you need to make.

I take the label of "you traditionalists" to infer that somehow you think there is a valid, justified alternative mindset to dealing with shot game ethically... which there is not.  If you shoot it, you are responsible for dealing with it, end of story.

 

[southeastpete]

On 20/10/2020 at 09:44, button said:

Not everybody had the privilege of a country upbringing or heir to a sprawling country estate, so would hardly call it a problem it is what it is. The fact of the matter is these that are part of the "problem" still spend vast amounts of money which is spent in rural communities and if they choose not to take a brace that is their choice, I'm sure somebody else will make use of them 

Know it might sound outrageous but they genuinely might not like game, better than taking them to keep you traditionalists happy to dump them when out of sight

If you don’t like it, don’t shoot it, stick to the clays..?

i don’t like eating much fish, so I don’t go fishing...

 

5 hours ago, Jim Neal said:

Mate, although I think we are very similar kind of blokes and I agree with almost all of your posts I've read on this forum... sadly that's not the case in this instance.  The fact that "it all gets eaten" is because there are a minority of people who care too much to let shot game go to waste.  It is they who are shouldering the burden created by apathetic people who leave the hard work for the few to take care of!  It is the DUTY of everyone who goes shooting to make sure their quarry ends up in the right place.

Not a valid argument, sorry.  Everyone who participates in game shooting, be they a Lord or a plumber, is obliged to do the right thing for the good of the sport.  It doesn't matter whether you eat pheasant for breakfast or can't stand the taste of it, the right thing is to make sure the shot game ends up in the right place.  If that means seeking out people you know who would appreciate the offer of free wild meat then that's the effort you need to make.

I take the label of "you traditionalists" to infer that somehow you think there is a valid, justified alternative mindset to dealing with shot game ethically... which there is not.  If you shoot it, you are responsible for dealing with it, end of story.

 

What is this ‘shouldering the burden’ talk, as if getting pheasant/partridge etc to take home to eat us a burden? It’s a pleasure, and i think that if you don’t value the meat then you shouldn’t be killing the animal. (Except problem foxes/corvids, rats etc)

I always said of pigeon shooting vs clays, why would I pay to shoot something I can’t eat, when I can shoot something I can eat for free. 

If not, at least have the integrity to admit that you are just a bloodthirsty killing enthusiast that doesn’t are what you shoot or why, you just want to kill something for the thrill of it. Or you are just lying to yourself and the world.

[London Best]

I’ll say it again.

The problem, and it has become a problem, is through people coming into game shooting through starting as clay shooters. The problem simply did not exist before clay shooting became popular. 
I do appreciate that, for many, there is no other way to begin shooting.

[button]

10 hours ago, Jim Neal said:

Mate, although I think we are very similar kind of blokes and I agree with almost all of your posts I've read on this forum... sadly that's not the case in this instance.  The fact that "it all gets eaten" is because there are a minority of people who care too much to let shot game go to waste.  It is they who are shouldering the burden created by apathetic people who leave the hard work for the few to take care of!  It is the DUTY of everyone who goes shooting to make sure their quarry ends up in the right place.

Not a valid argument, sorry.  Everyone who participates in game shooting, be they a Lord or a plumber, is obliged to do the right thing for the good of the sport.  It doesn't matter whether you eat pheasant for breakfast or can't stand the taste of it, the right thing is to make sure the shot game ends up in the right place.  If that means seeking out people you know who would appreciate the offer of free wild meat then that's the effort you need to make.

I take the label of "you traditionalists" to infer that somehow you think there is a valid, justified alternative mindset to dealing with shot game ethically... which there is not.  If you shoot it, you are responsible for dealing with it, end of story.

 

May be I have not posted what I meant very well, I dont disagree with what you say but I was trying to highlight we have to accept there are different routes in to the sport, but I would agree with Scully each to their own as long as it gets eaten

 

[Scully]

On 23/10/2020 at 23:00, Jim Neal said:

Mate, although I think we are very similar kind of blokes and I agree with almost all of your posts I've read on this forum... sadly that's not the case in this instance.  The fact that "it all gets eaten" is because there are a minority of people who care too much to let shot game go to waste.  It is they who are shouldering the burden created by apathetic people who leave the hard work for the few to take care of!  It is the DUTY of everyone who goes shooting to make sure their quarry ends up in the right place.

Not a valid argument, sorry.  Everyone who participates in game shooting, be they a Lord or a plumber, is obliged to do the right thing for the good of the sport.  It doesn't matter whether you eat pheasant for breakfast or can't stand the taste of it, the right thing is to make sure the shot game ends up in the right place.  If that means seeking out people you know who would appreciate the offer of free wild meat then that's the effort you need to make.

I take the label of "you traditionalists" to infer that somehow you think there is a valid, justified alternative mindset to dealing with shot game ethically... which there is not.  If you shoot it, you are responsible for dealing with it, end of story.

 

No worries. Like I said, as long as it’s all used I don’t care whether people take a brace or not.