Number 40

[Jarvis 277]

I got fox number 40 last week at the shoot. That’s 40 shot since January on 500 acres. That should have gone a good way to helping the poults, now to just control Charlie numbers and to stop the Ba$#ard poults from wondering!! 

[Deker 3,478]

That's good numbers on that size of land in that period, but I suspect they will just keep coming, so constant vigilance required!

I have a Free Range Chicken, Geese and Duck farm of 135 acres, and take around 14 foxes a year from it, it just goes on!

[Stavross 15,511]

Nice work, that’s a lot of fox for 500 acres, keep at em

[Jarvis 277]

I wouldn’t want it to be the last one I enjoy foxing too much and I’ve spent too much money on kit to not see anymore!! 

[Deker 3,478]

7 minutes ago, Jarvis said:

I wouldn’t want it to be the last one I enjoy foxing too much and I’ve spent too much money on kit to not see anymore!! 

This is Pest Control not Sport, I rather suspect the owner would like them all removed, but the chances of that reading the OP seem slim.

Edited September 29, 2018 by Deker

[Underdog 2,337]

40! Are they being dropped on you?

Well done by the way.

 

U.

[Jarvis 277]

9 hours ago, Deker said:

This is Pest Control not Sport, I rather suspect the owner would like them all removed, but the chances of that reading the OP seem slim.

Yes but why do it if you don’t enjoy it...  foxing is a sport now a days just like decoying pigeons which is also pest control. When it becomes a chore it’s time to stop not when you remove all the foxes because that ain’t going to happen. Any land owner that thinks you can remove all foxes is a fool! It’s all about control and management.

[Jarvis 277]

7 hours ago, Underdog said:

40! Are they being dropped on you?

Well done by the way.

 

U.

Haha my mate said the same thing to me. It doesn’t help when the previous keeper before me used to shoot about 3-4 a year then wonder where all the birds were on shoot days! Plus neighbouring farmers do next to no fox control. 

[toxo 160]

13 hours ago, Jarvis said:

I got fox number 40 last week at the shoot. That’s 40 shot since January on 500 acres. That should have gone a good way to helping the poults, now to just control Charlie numbers and to stop the Ba$#ard poults from wondering!! 

Well done.

The fox rescue center round the corner must be right proud that none of em are coming back.:)

[Deker 3,478]

20 hours ago, Jarvis said:

Yes but why do it if you don’t enjoy it...  foxing is a sport now a days just like decoying pigeons which is also pest control. When it becomes a chore it’s time to stop not when you remove all the foxes because that ain’t going to happen. Any land owner that thinks you can remove all foxes is a fool! It’s all about control and management.

I think something has got lost in translation, I never said or suggested fox work couldn't be challenging and rewarding!

This particular work is Pest Control and the Land Owner would be more than happy for every fox to be gone, I took your comments as hoping they wouldn't all be gone!

Edited September 30, 2018 by Deker

[Jarvis 277]

51 minutes ago, Deker said:

I think something has got lost in translation, I never said or suggested fox work couldn't be challenging and rewarding!

This particular work is Pest Control and the Land Owner would be more than happy for every fox to be gone, I took your comments as hoping they wouldn't all be gone!

Oh apologies ,I thought you meant  you need to remove them all (which isn’t possible) and it shouldn’t be seen as sport. Love it or loath it I think with all the advancement in technology it has now became a sport in its own right obviously being pest control at the same time. 

Doing part time keeping on a shoot I take out every fox I see no exceptions, but I enjoy it far too much to never see another. On other permissions I have if they have a problem fox and I can identify the offending fox I will take it out and not hammer every one within a 5 mike radius. 

[Deker 3,478]

1 hour ago, Jarvis said:

Oh apologies ,I thought you meant  you need to remove them all (which isn’t possible) and it shouldn’t be seen as sport. Love it or loath it I think with all the advancement in technology it has now became a sport in its own right obviously being pest control at the same time. 

Doing part time keeping on a shoot I take out every fox I see no exceptions, but I enjoy it far too much to never see another. On other permissions I have if they have a problem fox and I can identify the offending fox I will take it out and not hammer every one within a 5 mike radius. 

[Alsone 789]

On 29/09/2018 at 11:43, Jarvis said:

I wouldn’t want it to be the last one I enjoy foxing too much and I’ve spent too much money on kit to not see anymore!! 

I think you have to balance Pest Control with conservation. For sure you're not going to extinct foxes as they'll just move in from other areas over time. However, personally I don't see the virtue in leaving an area barren from a species no matter what the landowner might want. Shooting is as much about re-balancing imbalances in the countryside cause by an excess of food for certain species, as it is about shooting a species and all species including foxes and rabbits have their part to play. As I see it, shooting is about achieving a balance of species similar to what would be there had man not interfered and grown crops etc, not about the total removal of a species from an area. 

Total extermination is just a landowner with his eyes on money and not the countryside in my opinion, and it's not something I will bow to. I will control species down to reasonable numbers, but I'll never shoot them out, no matter what the landowner wants.

[Deker 3,478]

17 hours ago, Alsone said:

I think you have to balance Pest Control with conservation. For sure you're not going to extinct foxes as they'll just move in from other areas over time. However, personally I don't see the virtue in leaving an area barren from a species no matter what the landowner might want. Shooting is as much about re-balancing imbalances in the countryside cause by an excess of food for certain species, as it is about shooting a species and all species including foxes and rabbits have their part to play. As I see it, shooting is about achieving a balance of species similar to what would be there had man not interfered and grown crops etc, not about the total removal of a species from an area. 

Total extermination is just a landowner with his eyes on money and not the countryside in my opinion, and it's not something I will bow to. I will control species down to reasonable numbers, but I'll never shoot them out, no matter what the landowner wants.

Oh Dear!!!!!

Seeing as you are NOT a Pest Controller and don't even have a FAC, you'll not need to bow to any landowner.

Pest Control in anything close to the commercial sector, can ALWAYS be traced back to money!  

How do you think it would go down when I tell all my clients I'll leave a few rats/mice/bedbugs/fleas/wasps/mink/squirrel/rabbit/fox/etc/etc because we need to maintain a balance.

Dear Mr Kebab shop, I've left a few rats to maintain the balance.    Dear Mr Supermarket, I've left a few pigeons flying around and shitting on your fresh meats/deli/etc counter to maintain a balance.    Dear Mr Greenkeeper I've left a few deer and rabbits destroying your Greens to maintain a balance.     Dear Mr Homeowner, I've left a few squirrel running around in your roof space to maintain a balance.    Dear Mr Stable owner, I've left a few rabbits for your horses to break their legs in their burrows and throw their riders to maintain a balance.    Dear Mr landowner, I've shot a few foxes but I've left a few to eat your Chicken/Poults to maintain a balance! 

Pest Control is not about leaving a few to continue the problem, the only time full removal is not achieved is when it's not possible.  That doesn't mean we make anything extinct, or the area is not repopulated, quite quickly at times.  That's why Pest Controllers have ongoing maintenance contracts, to keep on top of problems.

Edited October 1, 2018 by Deker

[shovel leaner 7,650]

Well done Jarvis, that’s good going on 500 acres. It also goes to show how when you create a vacuum, nature fills it .