Bolting To The Lurchers Vid From The Other Day

[pointer 543]

I started with nets, then bolting to a lurcher before just going for a walk 3/4 times a week with some lamping in between. Lads have always travelled to the northern dales and fells to go hunting and I don't blame them as we have some nice countryside. I never understood them driving so far to watch rabbits hitting a net or even bringing ferrets with them as I found going for a walk watching a pair of lurchers hunting the hills to produce enough sport. It's the same with fox hunting the gunpacks kill loads but give me one good fox that can run for several hours with a chance of outwitting a pack any day.

[TOMO 25,781]

Great sport it is pointer just wandering with a dog hunting up,,,we've saved a bit up there for a crotchety old fecker that loves hunting them sedges,,

 

I must admit though watching a dog using its nose ,,spinning round and darting it's head in like a cobra,,sure is exciting to see

[Phil Lloyd 10,738]

Ya won't see many 'cobra -like ' strikes from my wee Cur....

Edited September 21, 2016 by Phil Lloyd

[pointer 543]

I must admit that I took the whole hunting up thing a bit far when I would get very annoyed if I thought my dog had rushed in and bumped the rabbit off the seat when it should have been taken where it sat. If she did that I wouldn't watch the resulting course and didn't care if she caught it or not. I was the same if she lost concentration and a rabbit bolted when it should have been snapped up without hitting the ground. Both usually occurred due to another dog being too close and I suppose my dog got impatient thinking the other lurcher might steal her rabbit. Looking back it was a pathetic attitude and I cringe thinking what my mates thought of it. Luckily I had a very forgiving lurcher.

[Trev70 5,185]

My catch rate is about 25% at the moment..so I recon if i catch 10 The dogs have probably run at least 40... lol.. ( like me the dogs are fat and unfit ).

 

I do the bits that are impossible and miraculous if you do catch the odd one or 2..Its all about the chase and the challenge for me these days chaps.

 

I got bored with numbers and nets a long while ago,But after getting to the point of almost perfection without the nets over the last couple of seasons...Its almost become a new challenge to catch the ones that present more sport.. Obviously it would be really easy to get them daft string things out and net up... But that's for the chaps still obsessed with numbers and scores to prove.

 

Last trip out I had a fantastic double bolt followed by another double bolt and then a single..all in the space of about 60 seconds...it was a moment of pure on your toes excitement when both dogs set off on a bunny each after the 1st bolt..then second 2 came out with no dogs following...and 3rd whilst the dogs were both returning after failing to catch anything... lol.. I laughed and told the dogs they were wankers etc etc... I was smiling to myself thinking " yeh go on bunnies,see you soon ".. and I had a chuckle to myself remembering when I 1st started ferreting with Tomo he would have given me a look that could kill and said " FFsake You wanker that's just cost me a tenner !! ". . he would have purse netted and long netted the whole warren...hehehee.

Lol, been there more than once with them bolts with the same result and you can here the shout of wankers for miles up there.

Edited September 20, 2016 by Trev70

[Guest vin]

I must admit that I took the whole hunting up thing a bit far when I would get very annoyed if I thought my dog had rushed in and bumped the rabbit off the seat when it should have been taken where it sat. If she did that I wouldn't watch the resulting course and didn't care if she caught it or not. I was the same if she lost concentration and a rabbit bolted when it should have been snapped up without hitting the ground. Both usually occurred due to another dog being too close and I suppose my dog got impatient thinking the other lurcher might steal her rabbit. Looking back it was a pathetic attitude and I cringe thinking what my mates thought of it. Luckily I had a very forgiving lurcher.

 

My 2 have got it down to a fine art these days...they really do compliment each other in the hunt and its a sight to see,when one points and waits for the other to come and flush or cover the perimeter..its like they have there own little signs and understandings. the problem I've got now is that they are constantly yearning and gravitating to the hunt and the call of the sedge grass.So much so that even when they mark a warren and i pop the ferret in..I can see them eyeing up the next plot they want to plunder..they start getting restless as soon as the spade is out and if i dont keep checking on them,they sneak off and go hunting up again...this time of year its the worst especially if the suns out and the bunnies want to catch a few rays like they often do this time of year..The sedge and long grass becomes rabbit heaven for the dogs.. I have been catching more with the dogs hunting up than i have with the ferrets on a few recent trips.. So that makes the dogs even less keen to stay on the warren when the action stops..lol.

[pointer 543]

I had the same thing happen and for the last few seasons with my old lurcher I never went ferreting. Me and a mate would go out 3/4 times a week with a lurcher each and come back with an average of I'd say 20-40 rabbits depending on the time of year and the rabbit population on a piece of land. We never went out for more than two hours and that was enough rabbits for us to carry around. For much of the season I was able to get back home and do something else like bushing with the rest of my dogs or ratting. (My old lurcher has taken at least twice as many rats as rabbits in her life).

 

The rabbit population crashed to almost extinction over most of our permissions around 2009 and although there are more rabbits now than there has been for a few years it's nowhere near like it was. It made no real difference to our lurchers as a good hunting dog of any kind just keeps hunting relentlessly and they can't catch what isn't there. I only fly a hawk now over my pointer and there are times when my dog has to cover a ridiculous amount of ground to find her a rabbit.

[Trev70 5,185]

 

 

Great vid as allways trev

 

Do you still have the cockers.

Yes mate 4, I'm out ever morning with them, I still have a hour with them before

I go ferreting.

Good to hear bud enjoyed the bushing vids you put up before.

 

Cheers mate, here's my cocker pup she's had a good few rabbits now and got her first tree rat this morning