James Worrall 4 Posted February 27, 2015 Report Share Posted February 27, 2015 I have just bought my first air rifle and now need permission to shoot. What is the best way to go about getting permission from a land owner to shoot on their land? I dont mind paying a fee to do this. Or if anyone on here has a rabbit problem, I would be more than happy to help. I am in the lanarkshire area, Scotland. thanks 1 Quote Link to post
mark williams 7,558 Posted February 28, 2015 Report Share Posted February 28, 2015 Hi James and "welcome", James go to the top of this page and you will see "search" in the top right area. Simply type "permission papers" in the search box and then click on the green box magnifying glass (thing). Good luck mate, atb (all the best) 1 Quote Link to post
Deker 3,478 Posted February 28, 2015 Report Share Posted February 28, 2015 I cannot stress how strongly I feel about people paying landowners for permission to help them with their pest control. First off I am a professional Pest Controller and this always makes life harder, secondly it is a slippery slope, if it becomes the norm prices will go up and up and then only those with deep pockets will be able to find any shooting anywere. You pay the landowner £X today and another shooter comes along tomorrow and offers £Y, and so on, you are history or broke! Don't do it ever, landowners should offer you the opportunity to help them FOC or in truth pay you! 8 Quote Link to post
moxy 617 Posted February 28, 2015 Report Share Posted February 28, 2015 I cannot stress how strongly I feel about people paying landowners for permission to help them with their pest control. First off I am a professional Pest Controller and this always makes life harder, secondly it is a slippery slope, if it becomes the norm prices will go up and up and then only those with deep pockets will be able to find any shooting anywere. You pay the landowner £X today and another shooter comes along tomorrow and offers £Y, and so on, you are history or broke! Don't do it ever, landowners should offer you the opportunity to help them FOC or in truth pay you! Quote Link to post
Plummerterrier 291 Posted February 28, 2015 Report Share Posted February 28, 2015 I wouldntb offer to pay landowners if you get on sling them the odd bottle of drink etc 1 Quote Link to post
walshie 2,804 Posted February 28, 2015 Report Share Posted February 28, 2015 As above. Getting the landowner a bottle of Scotch at Christmas is fine, but paying him to do something he would have to pay someone else to do is a no-no. Quote Link to post
bigmac 97kt 13,806 Posted February 28, 2015 Report Share Posted February 28, 2015 Simple knock on doors :thumbs: atvbmac :thumbs: 2 Quote Link to post
James Worrall 4 Posted March 1, 2015 Author Report Share Posted March 1, 2015 ok thanks for the heads up. I am relativley new to all this so any advice is greatly appreciated. Thanks guys Quote Link to post
bunny tickler 876 Posted March 1, 2015 Report Share Posted March 1, 2015 in 45 years of hunting /shooting .ive never recieved a penny in return off any farmer , allways travelling hours at my own expense to clear rabbits /pigeons etc , tight beggars the lot of em 1 Quote Link to post
The one 8,493 Posted March 1, 2015 Report Share Posted March 1, 2015 As said get out and chap on doors . it would help if you didnt offer to pay a farmer for the shooting as you may find theres twenty or thirty guys paying for the shooting on a bare ground and the only one gaining anything was the farmer . Been there saw that done to guys i personally thought it was funny as feck . The other side of the coin is getting called into to sort out a problem after a paying gun couldnt if your pockets are deep its your choice but by knocking on doors doing all your asked to and more on your first permission you will soon acquire more Quote Link to post
James Worrall 4 Posted March 1, 2015 Author Report Share Posted March 1, 2015 Chapping doors it is then. thanks again for the advice always apreciated. Quote Link to post
4sight 31 Posted March 2, 2015 Report Share Posted March 2, 2015 Welcome to the site. If you havn't shot before then you might be putting the cart in front of the horse. I spent quite a bit of time at a local club learning how to shoot accurately before going out to kill gods critters. If you are a confident shooter then good luck with getting your first permission. If you are a newcomer the only advice I can offer is to make sure you can hit a 1" target consistently at your hunting ranges. Either way,, the guys on here are very experienced and you will always get good advice from the site. 1 Quote Link to post
RodN 41 Posted March 2, 2015 Report Share Posted March 2, 2015 In my experience obtaining permission to shoot is mainly a matter of "networking".... getting to know farmers in your area. Once you have one, then the others follow because you can get other contacts through him. To get that first one, look on google maps first, and then have a drive around your area. Slowly, and stopping often... so that you can see for yourself if there is an abundance of rabbits, pigeon, or crows. Take note of the places that have lots of poultry.... or pig farms, as those in particular will have lots of rats. Having said that, for best success with rats you need some night vision equipment. People who keep horses on their land hate rabbits which dig holes to trap a horse's hoof. Don't be afraid of stopping at a farm and just knocking at the door and asking politely if you can shoot pest species on the farm using an air rifle. By being specific you are letting him know that you are not going to make loud bangs to upset his stock animals or shoot holes through the roof of his barns. Wear decent casual clothes. Not too smart, and not scruffy or in camo gear. Give an impression of respectability and responsibility. The worst thing that can happen is that the farmer will say no. There is therefore nothing to lose! If you get the "no" answer, then just be polite, apologise for disturbing him, and thank him for his time. If the answer is anywhere near a "yes" or a "maybe" then make an appointment to visit at another time that will be convenient for him to show you around. If the answer is that he has someone come round regularly to poison his rats (many do have), then enter into discussion about how effective he feels that it has been. Ask him if he still sees rats around. (He will have!). If he answers that he has a shooter than comes round already to deal with the rabbits, pigeons or crows, simply enter into discussion about how often that person comes. It wouldn't be unusual for him to tell you that the last time the shooter came round was a month or two ago. Many farmers will have more than one person visiting to shoot pest species.... the extra person could be you. As far as he is concerned it doesn't matter if another person gives the pests some attention. Don't claim to be the answer to all his pest problems. You are not ever going to wipe them all out! He knows that! Be realistic, and joke that you will only be able to knock down a few to help keep the numbers down. Even if you only deal with two or three of his rats or one rabbit in an afternoon session he will actually still be happy! If you get more, then he will be even more happy, but that isn't essential. When you do have success..... let him know! (Take a photo to show him). A couple of days ago out at a farm permission I bumped into the farmer and his wife at the end of a lean afternoon's shooting. "Done any good?" he asked. "Just a pigeon, a magpie, and one little rat". "Oh good" he says. "Well done". His wife was more impressed that I had got the single rat. "Can you come and have a session at the rats that live under my hot tub in the garden?" You bet I will Rod Quote Link to post
RodN 41 Posted March 2, 2015 Report Share Posted March 2, 2015 Oh yes... a couple of things I forgot in my post above Join BASC as an airgun member. That gives you insurance! a) let the farmer know that you are fully insured display the BASC sticker in the windscreen of your car. On the second visit, go prepared with a permission form to shoot. (You will find suitable forms here on the forum or from BASC). On the back of the sheet have a Google satellite plan and ask him to mark on the boundaries. Leave a copy of the completed form with the farmer, and keep one for yourself. (Some farmers may prefer not to use a permissions form, but most will). Rod Quote Link to post
treecreeper 1,136 Posted March 2, 2015 Report Share Posted March 2, 2015 Sack basc off, go with sacs its far better value and better insurance, and if someone already has permission I'd leave them to it maybe its just me. Quote Link to post
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