What Is Your Best Memory, Of Hunting

[swg dave 334]

Obviously most of us would say, when that young pup catches its first rabbit,

But im on about, the funny things, or the spooky things, or a memorable run,

(A narrow escape, within reason,,) the best bag, characters, anything that comes to mind..

That special dog, Heres a couple of mine.

 

We drove 50 miles one night to lamp a place that was heaving with rabbits

got out the car, dogs on slip, lamp on,, john slips speedy, twist turn,twist turn rabbit caught,

1st in the bag lovely, now its my run, slide the switch up on the old Q beam, spot the

rabbit, BANG the battery blows up in the orange metal box that they came in, with blue

flames flaring out of the cig lighter socket, the lamp and battery go up in the air, i go one

way, me old bitch bonny cowering as if ive just beat her, cor it did bang though,so that was

the shortest lamping trip ever, but as stated before, we laugh about it now..

 

Another time we were out walking with the catapults, squirreling, and just up the

footpath in front in some oaks you could hear that mad chattering of what turned out to

be two squirrels chasing each other all around this big oak. We were trying to get a shot

but they wouldnt stay still they were going nuts, and so were the two lurchers, my eldest dog

being well tuned in on squirrels, he loves em, all of a sudden the squirrels run to the highest point of the oak, and it looked like they were fighting, then the two of them fell from the oak

onto what must have been 6 foot of bramble, well i have seen my lurcher smash through

low bramble to catch them, but he run and dived straight on the top of it trying to get through it, at the squirrels, that was really spectacular to see, the squirrels made good there escape, but we had to trample the bramble down to get my dog out Lol,

A proper game old dog he is, and just one of many memory,s i hold dear and will

never forget, KEEP HUNTING.. Come on Lady,s and gents, lets get a good thread going.

[bird 9,898]

well for me , was when my dog I had Blaze back in the late 80s, ive wrote about him before on here and other sites he was big colliex grey had rabbits with, but never had a fox. I like knocking few rabbits over but always got more of a buzz on old charlie boy lol. I got him on to 3 foxes lamping but he loosed them and they got away, he got pecked on the muzzle few times, so thought he just don't like the teeth job and will have to stick with bloody rabbits .lol Well didn't both with any foxes for a while left it for a while prob about 5 weeks or so, when 1 night he got couple rabbits , and the last1 made bit of noise as he was bringing it in . never thought much as many time its happened and foxes have just watched you but never come close enough kept well away. Well took the rabbit of him, put the lamp back on and bloody hell a big dog fox was about 25 yds out in the field and prob the same from the edge. Blaze seen it went like a rocket at it, I thought here we go he will grab+loose, but he hit it that hard both went up in the air, then got it across its back and shook the shit out of it, fookin great , it was dead when I got them both. I don't think got any sleep that night when I got home+went to bed me mind was buzzing, me wife told to feckin go to sleep and shut up Well after that night Blaze killed fair few foxes always solo, them days were great pity you carnt turn the clock back .the dogs got today are better rabbit dogs than Blaze was he was ok , but he rather kill a fox or feral cat than any rabbit lol had some fun with him.

 

[baw 4,360]

Young lads at the time, all about 19, 5 of us crammed into a ford escort van going ferreting with the promise a greyhound guy was going to pay us £1 a live rabbit. One of the guys it was his first time hunting, he got so excited he turned the heater knob too hard and broke it. Heater stuck on full blast and we hadn't even left yet. Anyhow we were all good mates so he was forgiven. Off we set, ground we were going to was an easy 30 mile away, half way there we discovered we hadn't brought the nets!!! So 3 of us decided to walk as we were cramped in the back. Me, the mate who broke the heater and another mate who was a bit under the thumb with this new bird he had. So we are walking down the road, right good frosty morning having a laugh saying to the mate, howcome your allowed out the day? hesgiven it, im allowed to do what i want when i want, shes fine with me going hunting blah de blah. hes given it large and as hes doing so he puts his hand in his pocket and says wtf as he pulls out a soppy titwank letter turns out him and the bird had a big barny the night before cos she wasn't letting him go, he'd told her to f**k off and this was a lovy dovy apology ohhh the piss he took for that.

 

Anyhow, the lads catch up with us in the van and off we go. The land we were doing was red hot but we never got any trouble. The rabbits were hard to come by and the rain was more of a sleet but we persevered in the knowledge we were getting a £1 a rabbit. We had well over 40 rabbits in the back of the van by the time we were finished. What a journey, soaked to the skin 3 guys with 40 odd rabbits in the back of an escort van lol. Gets to the greyhound man and the mate who'd arranged it goes into see him. The drivers wanting a £5 for diesel, there'd was only 36 rabbits still alive so it was still £6 each, which wasn't too bad 20 odd year ago. Out comes the mate from the greyhound guy. We're all rubbing our hands, he shouts in the back, give us 2 rabbits over. We're like eh, 2? Aye, he only wants 2!!! Now that I'm older and a little wiser it's pretty obvious he wouldn't want 36, but when I think back to the disappointment we all had at the time, we had the night sorted with drink and weed and never made enough to cover the diesel

[gsdxg 10]

34 years ago i had a german shepherd x greyhound he was ten years old and on his last legs .my friend and i was out with his saluki x collie greyhound a greyhound xlabrador x whippett and a pure whippet .a hare got up and off they went thegsdxg was right at the back of the pack my friend said i canott belive that he was ever as fast as you claim .well i got very upset because in his prime he had very good top end speed and could really thrust up to a hare.well then a miracle happend the gsdxg for some reason decided to show how fast he had been in his prime he started to speed up drew up level with the lead dog and dropped down a gear he flew past and flipped the hare over his head .my friend could not belive how such a old worn out dog could show so much power and speed .and 34 years later i still cannot exsplain it

[swg dave 334]

Another time was when i was about 19 we use to have some permission on some horse fields

that ajoin to a football field,and the owner Nigel who ran the social club on the ground, said any time you want to lamp the fields, you can, dont bother knocking just go out there. Anyway this actual night we were just coming off the fields

when the old bill turned up,so we have got nothing to worry about we are on permission. what are you doing here they asked, and we explained that we had permission to keep the rabbits down with our dogs, who gave you permission the copper asked, and i pointed to the house in the carpark, Nigel i said he owns the fields, bearing in mind its about half 1

in the morning, and that copper said we shall see about that, i said dont go waking the man up his akip, C***S knocked

him up outta bed, i thought here we go, the police asked Nigel do you know these two lads, Me saying sorry about this

Nigel, and the b*****d said never seen them before in my life and shut the door, im now saying Nige its mee its mee

the door then opened with a Nigel standing there laughing his head off, saying no they have got permission they come here often keeping the rabbits down, but now me and john are laughing thinking you C*** Nigel..

And the times ive heard him telling others in the club laughing, you should have seen their faces, plus the old bill

were well gutted, good..

[Wales1234 5,513]

My best memory got to be the first fox I caught alone on the hill when I was 9 out behind my uncles yard !! I been hunting from the age of 6 ferreting and mooching but if my uncle was going digging my mother wouldnt let me go I wasnt allowed to see that stuff but she promised when i was 9 I was allowed to go for a wounder on the far behind my uncles with the 2 black lurchers rose and jet god nows what cross but I loved them and they listened to me my uncle told my mother dont worrie theres only rabbits up there he wont catch anything else blah blah so of I set ruck sack with water in and few sandwhiches was out about 3 hours dogs hunting away could see the picking there pace up tails started to spin and up he got a big dog fox I was running after then not very fast at that age I could hear the bitch howling !! I got to them didnt know what to do just stood and waited for them to finish picked it up and carried it all the way home and plonked it on my mothers kitchen table haha got a picture my old man took somewhere haha

[baw 4,360]

well for me , was when my dog I had Blaze back in the late 80s, ive wrote about him before on here and other sites he was big colliex grey had rabbits with, but never had a fox. I like knocking few rabbits over but always got more of a buzz on old charlie boy lol. I got him on to 3 foxes lamping but he loosed them and they got away, he got pecked on the muzzle few times, so thought he just don't like the teeth job and will have to stick with bloody rabbits .lol Well didn't both with any foxes for a while left it for a while prob about 5 weeks or so, when 1 night he got couple rabbits , and the last1 made bit of noise as he was bringing it in . never thought much as many time its happened and foxes have just watched you but never come close enough kept well away. Well took the rabbit of him, put the lamp back on and bloody hell a big dog fox was about 25 yds out in the field and prob the same from the edge. Blaze seen it went like a rocket at it, I thought here we go he will grab+loose, but he hit it that hard both went up in the air, then got it across its back and shook the shit out of it, fookin great , it was dead when I got them both. I don't think got any sleep that night when I got home+went to bed me mind was buzzing, me wife told to feckin go to sleep and shut up Well after that night Blaze killed fair few foxes always solo, them days were great pity you carnt turn the clock back .the dogs got today are better rabbit dogs than Blaze was he was ok , but he rather kill a fox or feral cat than any rabbit lol had some fun with him.

 

Top class condition that dog bird, looks a cracker.

[bird 9,898]

 

well for me , was when my dog I had Blaze back in the late 80s, ive wrote about him before on here and other sites he was big colliex grey had rabbits with, but never had a fox. I like knocking few rabbits over but always got more of a buzz on old charlie boy lol. I got him on to 3 foxes lamping but he loosed them and they got away, he got pecked on the muzzle few times, so thought he just don't like the teeth job and will have to stick with bloody rabbits .lol Well didn't both with any foxes for a while left it for a while prob about 5 weeks or so, when 1 night he got couple rabbits , and the last1 made bit of noise as he was bringing it in . never thought much as many time its happened and foxes have just watched you but never come close enough kept well away. Well took the rabbit of him, put the lamp back on and bloody hell a big dog fox was about 25 yds out in the field and prob the same from the edge. Blaze seen it went like a rocket at it, I thought here we go he will grab+loose, but he hit it that hard both went up in the air, then got it across its back and shook the shit out of it, fookin great , it was dead when I got them both. I don't think got any sleep that night when I got home+went to bed me mind was buzzing, me wife told to feckin go to sleep and shut up Well after that night Blaze killed fair few foxes always solo, them days were great pity you carnt turn the clock back .the dogs got today are better rabbit dogs than Blaze was he was ok , but he rather kill a fox or feral cat than any rabbit lol had some fun with him.

 

Top class condition that dog bird, looks a cracker.

 

 

 

thanks mate he was good dog , like your story as well lol , some good old memories there lads

[squab 2,875]

i remember an early morning walk years ago,i had a bull x at the time and was bringing on a little 20 tts rabbiting bitch she was 11 month old at the time,they were both off the slip just running in and out the hedgerow putting up a few rabbits and this particular hedge went right through the middle of the field and stopped half way,as you near the end and turn the corner you would get a few rabbits sitting out so i put the bull x on the slip in the hope the little bitch would get a run.

 

as i turned the corner of the hedge two roe stood there about 150m away one glance and they was off,the little bitch took off after them and as she cut across the corner of the field gaining on them they both split,one the other side of the hedge one my side and this is the one she singled out,remember thinking at the time when it reaches the corner it will be away and that would be that,it wasnt to be she had put in a couple hundred metres at this time and when it reached the bottom corner it turned and doubled back running straight back to me with the little bitch gaining rapidly,she put a turn into it and away from me again they went,then she turned it again back towards me now im getting drawn in urging the little bitch under my breathe to make a catch with that not got a chance voice you start getting,anyways half way back to me the roe went through a small gap in the hedge and was running away from me again but had to make the width of the field to escape half way across the bitch put in a strike and as they stumbled she was rolling over and off but in an instant she was up and within a few meters straight in for another strike,the back end of the roe collapsed and it looked like she was being dragged as the front end stayed upright trying to get up on its legs again,she then switched straight for a throat hold and held till i got there.

 

ok so if the field wasnt quartered by hedges giving her time to keep making up the ground on a panicking roe she may never have caught it but hey got have a bit of luck in this game

 

after all that she was only about 200m away as i stumbled across the field being dragged by the bull x to get to her,as i say she was 11month old,never seen a deer in her life,she went up and down the gears as she ran with wind iv never had in any other dog,she done me well for a few years until she broke her neck out on the lamp one night,great little bitch,great memory to have and like a lot of you iv got a few,some good some bad

[bird 9,898]

i remember an early morning walk years ago,i had a bull x at the time and was bringing on a little 20 tts rabbiting bitch she was 11 month old at the time,they were both off the slip just running in and out the hedgerow putting up a few rabbits and this particular hedge went right through the middle of the field and stopped half way,as you near the end and turn the corner you would get a few rabbits sitting out so i put the bull x on the slip in the hope the little bitch would get a run.

 

as i turned the corner of the hedge two roe stood there about 150m away one glance and they was off,the little bitch took off after them and as she cut across the corner of the field gaining on them they both split,one the other side of the hedge one my side and this is the one she singled out,remember thinking at the time when it reaches the corner it will be away and that would be that,it wasnt to be she had put in a couple hundred metres at this time and when it reached the bottom corner it turned and doubled back running straight back to me with the little bitch gaining rapidly,she put a turn into it and away from me again they went,then she turned it again back towards me now im getting drawn in urging the little bitch under my breathe to make a catch with that not got a chance voice you start getting,anyways half way back to me the roe went through a small gap in the hedge and was running away from me again but had to make the width of the field to escape half way across the bitch put in a strike and as they stumbled she was rolling over and off but in an instant she was up and within a few meters straight in for another strike,the back end of the roe collapsed and it looked like she was being dragged as the front end stayed upright trying to get up on its legs again,she then switched straight for a throat hold and held till i got there.

 

ok so if the field wasnt quartered by hedges giving her time to keep making up the ground on a panicking roe she may never have caught it but hey got have a bit of luck in this game

 

after all that she was only about 200m away as i stumbled across the field being dragged by the bull x to get to her,as i say she was 11month old,never seen a deer in her life,she went up and down the gears as she ran with wind iv never had in any other dog,she done me well for a few years until she broke her neck out on the lamp one night,great little bitch,great memory to have and like a lot of you iv got a few,some good some bad

good read that, pity she died ,but at least its what they love doing hunting, a lot of mine never made old bones, got a young dog now he is feckin mad in the lamp , just hope luck stays with him when he out at night because that's what they need sometimes.

[Bosun11 537]

My best memory of hunting was anything pre-ban!

[baw 4,360]

My best memory of hunting was anything pre-ban!

Same here mate. I just realized my story never involved a dog

[bird 9,898]

My best memory of hunting was anything pre-ban!

[Astanley 11,568]

I,v always been a one for the pot type fella , never got competitive or bigged up my dogs or myself , but I must admit I had a little smug feeling of satisfaction after this day .....I was out with a couple of well known ( locally ) hare coursers , must admit I felt a bit out of my depth in this company , and couldn,t help comparing their sleek well muscled hounds to my scruffy little dog, but I was young and just glad to be out in such esteemed company. We walked for hours and hours , not seeing a thing and it was agreed that if a hare got up on the way back to the car , all three dogs would be slipped so we all had a run .

The field before we got to the car ,a hare got up and the dogs gave chase , I wont bore you with the details , but it was epic , across fields through hedges , over dykes the lot , eventually we lost sight of dogs and hare .After a while one of their dogs appeared , tongue hanging out and rubbery legged , then the other one ,in the same condition , it was agreed they hadn't caught the hare and probably cos my dog kept getting in the way, Then from a different direction ,coming over the brow of a hill ,appeared my little scruffy heinze 57 , proudly carrying one hare ,tail wagging and ready to go again .

That was more than 30 yrs ago , and I,m still a bit embarrassed about how smug I felt .

[skycat 6,173]

That's a great account Astanley

 

I've got so many 'best' memories I couldn't choose between them, but they are all pre-ban, but a good memory involved a very large terrier indeed, which air scented two CWD from nearly 1/4 mile away on a fen, and worked the scent to where they were laid up in a dyke and put them out ... my old lurcher caught one and her two daughters got the other. Nothing special in catching them, but the nose work involved in pin pointing them was superb.