Fox Hunting !

whydave

First I'm not Anti-hunting !
Now should Foxs be put on a season ie: only shot during winter or can be shot 24/7 during pheasant season, etc.
Personnaly I'm for putting them on the same season as pheasants.
Just a question !
Your thoughts ?

dbrock

well wher i live there is a season for me, its called lambing season
i shoot them all year round keeps the father in law happy and local farmers hence i get more deer land

kildare.17hmr

Some lads do this as it is, all depends what area your in i suppose. Lads with bird pens, sheep, chickens ect in their area will shoot them all year round for vermin control other lads who think of it as their sport will shoot in the winter like you say.

Me im a bit of both tbh, i dont go lookin for them now but ill shoot one if i get the oppertunity or see it somewhere it shouldnt be but i hit them hard lampin in the winter

crackcrack30

I think there are enough 'silly' seasons.
most guys put the guns away for a few months anyway following the main hunting dates...me and my buds dont go looking for them in the early summer months but would have no problem sorting out a problem fox.

garv123

Not much point putting them on the same season as pheasants when all the young stupid released pheasants would be killed by foxes by the time the season comes around.

Most people only shoot foxes around winter anyway or only around areas with young birds or livestock.

landkeeper

you clearly have no concept of the damage a fox can do to an outdoor lambing flock , or to nesting gamebirds or for that matter a flock of free ranging hens
those of us who live and work in the countryside and derive our living from it shoot foxes 12 months of the year not just as sport or a pastime:(

whydave

I feel I have to reply :
My mother has 120 hens,90 duck all free range to which I have shot a number of foxs in the past few years.And I fully understand the hardship of earning your living for the land !No insult was offered and if you feel thus I can only quote the church of Rome 'Sorry' !
The question was just a hypothetical !

rabbit assassin

I used to have my own personal season which was basically the summer months. But in the past two years I have started shooting them all year round. There has just been an explosion in numbers !!
I rear 250-300 pheasant a year from eggs to full grown, last year I shot 209 foxes and still lost alot of released birds to them

No6

Foxes are vermin and have no season, if people want to let them breed so they can have more thats up to them, if people want to shoot them all year round thats also up to them. IMO they should be shot at all times, the reason more lamping occurs in the winter is simpy because it gets dark much earlier, in summer it dosnt get dark until after midnight at time so you have to be out very late which dosnt suit lads working the next day.

landkeeper

no reason to apologise no insult was taken , i'm sure the day will come when foxes get a close season or complete protection, they have seasons for them in other countries so i'm sure some eu beuracratprat will force it on us in the future.
after all who in their right mind would give grey crows /magpies one
i just get dismayed, when lads who shoot for sport who have a 9-5 job that no fox is going to impact on, start preaching to those of us who foxes actually do affect that we should leave them alone till the winter that shooting them in spring and summer affects THEIR sport

crackcrack30

Not everyone with a 9-5 job have your described perception you have of effecting their sport or fox numbers, if you are willing to put on your coat and wellies there are plenty of fox to be had during the winter months... my reason for not hunting them during the early summer months is to reduce suffering on dependant cubs, and that would be the same for me with any living species.....

All over the world animals have been wiped out because they don,t fit in with what man is doing in that particular area or country at that time, you can name them yourself, from dolphins to seals and back to eagles, wolves or bear, thankfully fox are not at any threatened stage here.

As i said in my previous post if there are problem or threatening fox i have no problem knocking them, but that is not the case for everyone all of the time and some regard should be given to suffering of the young IMHO.

landkeeper

of course not all lads with a 9-5 job who shoot foxes don't preach to those with lambs and fowl ,but there are those that do and i doubt you'll find a sheep farmer lambing outside or anyone with free ranging fowl or rearing gamebirds asking to leave them to the winter so that lads can have their sport .
if you went to a sheep/ poultry farmer and told him you'd shoot foxes for them but only in the winter, i'd be interested to hear the reply !!.
only last night i was asked to go shoot a fox that is gradually clearing a womans free ranging hens during the day, she is afraid to even let them out of the run now

Spunk84

Weren't wiped out during the tails for money I highly doubt they will be wiped out by hunting them during the summer !

johngalway

Season or no season I'd still shoot them.

.243

when you see them,they're "in season" !!!!

Longfellow

One man's vermin be another man's friend. No shooting of foxes around my place. They keep rabbits and hares under control and help protect the vegtable garden and young trees. The worst vermin of all to me are feral goats and those feckin hybrid deer/sika. I'd exterminate them from the whole country if I could:mad:

kildare.17hmr

Longfellow wrote: »

One man's vermin be another man's friend. No shooting of foxes around my place. They keep rabbits and hares under control and help protect the vegtable garden and young trees. The worst vermin of all to me are feral goats and those feckin hybrid deer/sika. I'd exterminate them from the whole country if I could:mad:

If ya want a hand to shoot some of them goats iv a few freezers with plenty of room in them!

Longfellow

kildare.17hmr wrote: »

If ya want a hand to shoot some of them goats iv a few freezers with plenty of room in them!

Feck all goats around the place now. We lamped the shíte outta the fúckers. Me on da lamp don't own no gun anymore. Two local lads have the permission on them deer, pity they can't hammer them 365 days a year. Thanks for the offer though.

kildare.17hmr

Offer stands if the numbers come up again!

German pointer

kildare.17hmr wrote: »

If ya want a hand to shoot some of them goats iv a few freezers with plenty of room in them!

You must have liked them:D

kildare.17hmr

Oh there was a bbq! And another will be had on sat!!

thelurcher

For 'Fox Hunting' we impose our own unofficial season - late August/early September to Paddy's Day.

Hunting is all about management - if you have to shoot all summer then that to me says you're not doing it right. No real sportsman likes to see cubs starve.
Between the harriers/foxhounds/gun club in my area controlling all winter I haven't heard one farmer complaining about a 'problem' fox so far this spring/summer.
The gun club finished up the week after Paddy's Day.

This is why I can't understand people that feel the need to start threads on public forums obviously proud of the fact that they shot a milky vixen.
To me - getting a call out this time of year is a failure on my part - not something that I want to show off to the World and worse still the antis.

Some idiots just don't get the message and haven't the cop-on to come to the same conclusion themselves.
Keep it up lads and we will end up with a season imposed upon us.

Spunk84

That's your opinion and like most opinions its neither right or wrong . Now here's my opinion , you haven't a clue ! So u run hounds/harriers and are in a GC WOW you are the man lol the lads who shoot all year round are either farmers or doing it on behalf of a farmer because his regular "hounds/harriers and GC" couldn't get it done during the "unofficial" season !

landkeeper

yes i'd agree with spunk there, you haven't a clue about fox territories or behaviour.!! if you think stopping fox control in march will prevent milky vixens getting shot/killed you are very wrong i have seen cubs above ground 2 weeks after paddys day and found plenty more over the years in the 1st 2 weeks of the month
calling lads who do legitimate vermin control pricks and idiots is a good way to start a row fella

Constab2

Strong opinion there to label everyone who shoots out of necessity for livestock protection as prick/idiot ,take a look at your own post on a public forum before preaching to everyone else from that lofty tower you are in.

Hunter21

Get your head out of the clouds!
You come on here and give out to lads for shooting a vixen, their not boasting their just saying that they went out and did a job.

Was on land lately with two lots of fox dens with 4 cubs in one and 5 in another, we seen a dog fox hunting so we chose to shoot it to control numbers.

There's plenty of foxes around, more then we imagine so keep your knickers on, the sport won't die anytime in our lifetime

thelurcher

looks like I was right to use the word 'idiot'.

Right - I can't help stirring it up here - but this is the important part -
Summer fox control is perfect fodder for the antis - so why post about it on a public forum.

Pretend at least that you're all responsible sporting country people - makes it easier for the NARGC and FACE etc. to defend us on the airwaves.

Spunk - I'm saying why don't the lads shooting on behalf of the farmer do it earlier in the year - they're mostly the same foxes
My parish and surrounding area is hunted by 3 different foxhound packs, 1 mounted and 2 foot harrier packs not to mention the maverick packs. The gun club also has some good lads running it and they put a lot of work in. We all know each other - we work and socialize together - so all have a good idea of what goes on - that said I'm not a member of any of them anymore - I moved on to greener pastures where hunting is concerned.
I've checked most of the burrows around me and places I'd normally expect to see a vixen rearing cubs this time of year are devoid of life. Not all mind you but there's always next season to think of

Spunk84

thelurcher wrote: »

looks like I was right to use the word 'idiot'.

Right - I can't help stirring it up here - but this is the important part -
Summer fox control is perfect fodder for the antis - so why post about it on a public forum.

Pretend at least that you're all responsible sporting country people - makes it easier for the NARGC and FACE etc. to defend us on the airwaves.

Spunk - I'm saying why don't the lads shooting on behalf of the farmer do it earlier in the year - they're mostly the same foxes
My parish and surrounding area is hunted by 3 different foxhound packs, 1 mounted and 2 foot harrier packs not to mention the maverick packs. The gun club also has some good lads running it and they put a lot of work in. We all know each other - we work and socialize together - so all have a good idea of what goes on - that said I'm not a member of any of them anymore - I moved on to greener pastures where hunting is concerned.
I've checked most of the burrows around me and places I'd normally expect to see a vixen rearing cubs this time of year are devoid of life. Not all mind you but there's always next season to think of

Let me say it this way, **** the Antis and **** The scare mongering!!!!!! Who cares about them ? Who on here has actual had an anti step out in front of them or get blood thrown over them ?

Again I will say **** the Antis and **** the scare mongering,if your gonna let some one dictate to you what you can and can't do then your a coward .

kildare.17hmr

Well said spunk couldnt agree more. Could not give a flying fook about any anti or what they think of what i do, if it pisses them off its their problem not mine. I wont hide what i do

landkeeper

if you shoot a territorial dog/vixen in the winter you break up a pair that would have defended that territory from other adult foxes, they may have tolerated a barren vixen but that would be about it , they want that area for themselves to raise a litter
what happens then is you have a vacuum that will draw in other pairs/individuals that are looking for a territory for the same reason or you may just extend the territory of other pairs that were adjacent .
in my experience over the years it makes very little difference to the numbers of foxes on the ground when you shoot them, as nature abhors a vacuum and another fox will all ways replace the one shot within a short space of time ,
i remember reading a study years ago that said that on average adult fox will travel approx 7 miles a night
so by shooting them heavily all winter then stopping in march, you really are achieving very little, as within a month of you stopping your area will have just as many foxes in as if you had not shot it , the only difference being that most of them will be unmated/barren animals pushed out from others territories that do have young

Constab2

One of the best posts I have read very informative from experience ,well said sir.