The Unintended Keeper ( Diary of a keeping blagger )

[ianm 2,594]

4 hours ago, FOXHUNTER said:

Partridge....was it English or French ?

 

 

 

French but we have some English as well.

[FOXHUNTER 5,021]

Glad your 1st day went well , takes the pressure off a bit plus the weather was kind

[Squirrel_Basher 17,100]

15 hours ago, Stavross said:

First day done

first drive was “tip drive” started of slow with half a dozen coming out before we reached the gutter (tip) lined out again for a few more birds before we turn the drive and push it down, this is where all the birds are and it wasn’t long before they were going in every direction, after that excitement was stopped for refreshments, bramble gin and Prosecco, home made sausage rolls, apple cake and lemon drizzle. Now the “oak wood” drive, with the weather the birds were in the rape, so with the guns being behind the beating line the birds that got up would go back over and by the time they reached the guns they were a hell of a hight, next was “Gordon’s pen” now we didn’t go mad here as there was a lot of birds in and around the pen, so letting a good number get into the cover away from the drive we started to push the thick cover through at the back of the pen, flushing in ones and twos some good birds came from here, most of them over my mate Mosh. Lunch time, after lunch we headed for the tree side of the piggeries, there was some good sporting birds came out of here and someone ( Hugo’s dad) shot my black hen next it was “roadside” not much in here but a couple downed, finished the day with “forestry pen” loads of birds but a few didn’t want to fly or came out low. All in all a cracking first day, 68 shot, so I’ll sleep a little better tonight

Out of likes so

[Squirrel_Basher 17,100]

11 hours ago, shovel leaner said:

Nice write up Stavross. Looks like you had a great day . Can I come up just for elevens’es ? 
            Shame about the dark hen bird . I had one like that , I called her Hazel. I will never forget seeing her lifeless form hanging , braced up on the game cart . I never allowed myself to single another bird out again . 
       I’ve been very busy loading. It’s going alright so far. It looks like we have bird flu here , so we will see what happens. 

 

 

Spreading like ,well flu mate .Same on estate near me .All birds incinerated cos nobody wants them .Foot dipping every drive and vehicles sprayed down on departure Im told .
Was going to shoot a few geese yesterday but I’ll pass on that I think .

Mate with Bop had letter from defa ,no flying birds so that’s his season fecked .

[Stavross 15,316]

15 hours ago, shovel leaner said:

 

Nice write up Stavross. Looks like you had a great day . Can I come up just for elevens’es ? 

 

It’s my favourite part of the day, we only started doing it when I got more involved with it and now we take turns with the nibbles and everyone tries to out do each other

[Stavross 15,316]

3 hours ago, foxdropper said:

Spreading like ,well flu mate .Same on estate near me .All birds incinerated cos nobody wants them .Foot dipping every drive and vehicles sprayed down on departure Im told .
Was going to shoot a few geese yesterday but I’ll pass on that I think .

Mate with Bop had letter from defa ,no flying birds so that’s his season fecked .

It’s not looking good this bird flu, at the minute I’d be surprised if we get a full season out of it, part of me still thinks that when we couldn’t get our full quota of birds we should of given it a year off and just had a Christmas wildie day

[shovel leaner 7,650]

DEFRA aren’t interested. They are more concerned with the white meat industry. Pigeons don’t seem to get it , but are probably vectors. Along with migratory wildfowl. There aren’t any restrictions selling or putting your birds into the food chain . So as long as you have birds ,do your best with bio security, foot dips wheel washes etc, and  keep shooting seems to be the best advice . 

[si brown 8,486]

11 hours ago, shovel leaner said:

DEFRA aren’t interested. They are more concerned with the white meat industry. Pigeons don’t seem to get it , but are probably vectors. Along with migratory wildfowl. There aren’t any restrictions selling or putting your birds into the food chain . So as long as you have birds ,do your best with bio security, foot dips wheel washes etc, and  keep shooting seems to be the best advice . 

Been clearing up stragglers at a chicken farm, it’s massive so keep finding ransoms… could of filled the freezer ten fold for the dog but I ain’t risking the manky fcukers!

the lad with a small shoot next door has lost over half of the birds he put down …and the big factory shoots are either sh1t at picking up this year or there being hit by it too as random birds dead all over the spot:( 

[shovel leaner 7,650]

5 hours ago, si brown said:

Been clearing up stragglers at a chicken farm, it’s massive so keep finding ransoms… could of filled the freezer ten fold for the dog but I ain’t risking the manky fcukers!

the lad with a small shoot next door has lost over half of the birds he put down …and the big factory shoots are either sh1t at picking up this year or there being hit by it too as random birds dead all over the spot:( 

DEFRA are only interested if you are picking up 1000 plus birds per day . Any less and if is deemed insignificant. 
              I don’t want to be the “ profit of doom”. But it’s not good news anywhere. I’m sure it will be the end of a lot of shoots . I think that where there is a high stocking density it spreads rapidly. As it spreads through shit . So the more birds picking up food on a feed ride covered in crap the faster it spreads . They also seem to be dying at roost . 
               

[Squirrel_Basher 17,100]

18 hours ago, shovel leaner said:

DEFRA aren’t interested. They are more concerned with the white meat industry. Pigeons don’t seem to get it , but are probably vectors. Along with migratory wildfowl. There aren’t any restrictions selling or putting your birds into the food chain . So as long as you have birds ,do your best with bio security, foot dips wheel washes etc, and  keep shooting seems to be the best advice . 

Defra interested enough to send out info to bop owners mate .

[shovel leaner 7,650]

4 minutes ago, foxdropper said:

Defra interested enough to send out info to bop owners mate .

That’s about typical . A whole email ? Probably took a whole department a week to come up with that .

[Squirrel_Basher 17,100]

Just now, shovel leaner said:

That’s about typical . A whole email ? Probably took a whole department a week to come up with that .

Agreed mate .Can’t see a bop doing much harm in the scheme of things .

[Stavross 15,316]

Very wet up there this morning, stirring them up on Saturday has done the trick, the birds are in all them main drives now and were waiting to be fed, after feeding I went to the farm to bag wheat up and the lad there said he’d been talking to someone who was there on Saturday who couldn’t believe how many birds were there and said they might be after a keeper next season for their syndicate, told him someone who might do it and he just laughed and said “ we pay you know “

[FOXHUNTER 5,021]

Glad I went out on Sunday as been nothing but rain and fog since

[BenBhoy 4,706]

2 hours ago, Stavross said:

Very wet up there this morning, stirring them up on Saturday has done the trick, the birds are in all them main drives now and were waiting to be fed, after feeding I went to the farm to bag wheat up and the lad there said he’d been talking to someone who was there on Saturday who couldn’t believe how many birds were there and said they might be after a keeper next season for their syndicate, told him someone who might do it and he just laughed and said “ we pay you know “

 

 

Separated at birth 

 

Stavross Dingle

Edited November 15, 2022 by BenBhoy