The Unintended Keeper ( Diary of a keeping blagger )

[Squirrel_Basher 17,100]

Dig a flight pond bit quick .?

[Stavross 15,332]

So, I was back up at the sheep farm tonight as I’ve got a problem fox, I say problem but the problem is it’s seems more intelligent than me ( not hard) I’ve spent a lot of time up here in February and have accounted for 5 foxes ( which is a lot for up there) and some other stuff but there’s one that I just can’t get, it won’t come in to any call and is always around the buildings or in front of the sheep, so over the past 3 nights I’ve been baiting a paddock at the back of the farm, now it was on the bait last night but as I approached it slipped through into next doors field, so tonight I thought I’d take the HMR and sit on top of the bails overlooking the paddock, well 4 and a half hours I was there and it didn’t show, I did see a fox way over on the wheat but I don’t think this was the one I was there for, I was hoping to get it before the weather changes this week because we are forecast snow 

[Sausagedog 7,381]

5 hours ago, Stavross said:

So, I was back up at the sheep farm tonight as I’ve got a problem fox, I say problem but the problem is it’s seems more intelligent than me ( not hard) I’ve spent a lot of time up here in February and have accounted for 5 foxes ( which is a lot for up there) and some other stuff but there’s one that I just can’t get, it won’t come in to any call and is always around the buildings or in front of the sheep, so over the past 3 nights I’ve been baiting a paddock at the back of the farm, now it was on the bait last night but as I approached it slipped through into next doors field, so tonight I thought I’d take the HMR and sit on top of the bails overlooking the paddock, well 4 and a half hours I was there and it didn’t show, I did see a fox way over on the wheat but I don’t think this was the one I was there for, I was hoping to get it before the weather changes this week because we are forecast snow 

Yep been doing that my self lately with a cleverclogs. Does your freaking head in stav.

[Stavross 15,332]

3 hours ago, Sausagedog said:

Yep been doing that my self lately with a cleverclogs. Does your freaking head in stav.

It’s a strange one, it’s so weary, any sound from the caller and it gone, but it still hangs around the farm, if it had been out on the fields I would of said it’s been shot at, all I can think is ether the farmer or the old boy next door have scattered it from the yard 

[Stavross 15,332]

Today I’ve been taking to my mates dad, ( who I buy my feed wheat from ) he was asking me if we’d be putting our syndicate fees up for the coming season, I said I don’t think so ( depends on price of poults) he then told me that his fees have gone up almost £2000, ( it’s a private syndicate of farmers and business owners) now his syndicate is a million miles from mine, they have 10 guns ( members) they release 7000 birds and have a full time keeper, when I started working a few numbers out each day will cost somewhere around £750 a gun, as they shoot 13 days in the season, even if they get the poults for £6 each it’s £42000 just in birds, before they have fed them and paid the keeper, add it all up roughly it’s a little short of a £100,000 for the season, roughly £9750 per gun for the season, two of the members own all the land so they don’t pay rent and my mates dad puts all the cover in so there’s two big costs that they don’t have, it makes me appreciate what I’ve got, if we shoot 7 days in the season, a day works out at about £71.50 I think you would struggle to get that value anywhere in the country 

anyway, I’m now off to do my tea before I go up the farm hopefully for a mixed bag of pest control, with a bit of luck it will be better than the -6 I was out in last night

[Stavross 15,332]

3 hours ago, Stavross said:

, with a bit of luck it will be better than the -6 I was out in last night

Well it not -6 but it is bloody snowing 

[FOXHUNTER 5,021]

2 hours ago, Stavross said:

Well it not -6 but it is bloody snowing 

Forecast snow all night up here

[Stavross 15,332]

Thought I’d do a little write up as I haven’t bothered much lately, Well the snow stopped play, I just couldn’t see anything through the scope, the plan for the evening was to have a call for a fox and clear up a few more hares, anyway I headed towards the wood in the light snow, shooting 3 hares and a rabbit off the front field as requested by the farmer as he’s still getting bothered by people chucking dogs over the fence, I’m really enjoying the little.17 at the minute and it’s preformed admirably lately. Well, this is where it all ends, by the time I had gotten to my favourite fox calling stand the snow was too heavy to see anything through the scope, so I made the decision to head back to the car, only an hour out, but as the say, you can’t shoot anything sat on the sofa

[Fellman Mark 607]

It’s about time you got the Alpex scope mate I’ve had one a few months now there spot on

[BenBhoy 4,706]

Anyone know whats good to plant on edges of a big woodland pond? Ant recommended mixes? And what to avoid, don't want something taking over everywhere. Cheers.

[FOXHUNTER 5,021]

Nice to see the lamp being used Forecast is rain for next 2 weeks

Just popping out this afternoon for some fresh air before the rain arrives

[Stavross 15,332]

22 minutes ago, FOXHUNTER said:

Nice to see the lamp being used Forecast is rain for next 2 weeks

Just popping out this afternoon for some fresh air before the rain arrives

Yeah, if I’m just out for the fun of it I still don’t think you can beat the lamp

the weather looks crap from the next week, bloody typical when I’m off most of the week, well my rifles are plastic and I’m sure I won’t melt

[Stavross 15,332]

4 hours ago, Fellman Mark said:

It’s about time you got the Alpex scope mate I’ve had one a few months now there spot on

I want one to go on the.223, I’m due a good pay day in a few weeks so I think that will be my treat out of it

[Fellman Mark 607]

You won’t regret it I swap mine between my 22lr 17hmr and my243 never have a zero issue as long as I remember to swap the settings over 

 

[ianm 2,594]

On 12/03/2023 at 13:08, Stavross said:

I want one to go on the.223, I’m due a good pay day in a few weeks so I think that will be my treat out of it

Have a look at the pard DS 70, half the weight of the Alpert and a very good scope. The onboard illuminater isn’t bad either and it has a led.

Nipped out on Friday night for a look round the caravan site. There are quite a few rabbits building up on there as well so I thought I would take a few so that the owner isn’t moaning about them. Ages since I had Rabbit stew. 
 

I took the 204 with the A7 on it and the 17 ruger precision with a drone on for the rabbits. I set up in the usual spot at the side of a big building. This is a really good place for overlooking several fields and you can see for hundreds of yards. The foxpro was put out to the left around 50yds away and pheasant distress was chosen as the call. The sound carried a long way because the night was so still, it was also quite cold. About ten minutes in i saw a heat source through the hedge to my left making its way towards us. I quickly positioned the Tikka towards it and released the safety catch setting the trigger at the same time. A few seconds later the heat source was through the hedge and it was unmistakable as a fox. It came to about 30yds from the caller then turned to go down the field to our right. A quick shout stopped it in its tracks and the 204 put an end to proceedings. We carried on calling for another 30 minutes but nothing else showed up. I decided to shoot a rabbit from where we were and picked one on the hedge line of the next field. This was a long way for the little 17 ruger but I wanted to see how capable it is. I ranged the rabbit at 212yds and gave it a little hold over in the Drone. I saw the bullet strike the ground perfectly in line with the rabbit but a bit short. The next shot I allowed a bit more hold over and squeezed the trigger. I saw the rabbit fall over stone dead. 
We went to retrieve the rabbit and the fox at this point before moving position. The fox turned out to be a dog of 16lbs and had only been 90yds away. The rabbit had been shot cleanly in the head. After moving fields we called again for about 40 minutes before calling it a night on the foxes. From this position I shot a further 4 rabbits between 50 and 130 yards, all head shot as I want them to eat.