Options instead of a DSC1?

FrenchieBoy

Well-Known Member
OK Guys, I am completely new to this Forum, to Stalking and Deer Shooting so please bare with me on this one!
I have just been told by my Firearms office that a variation/One for one for my .222 to get a .243 will be no problem at all. I have plenty of land that has deer on which I am authorised to shoot and it has been cleared by my FEO for up to .270 while I was on a closed ticket with my .222!
I am not currently over interested in shooting the deer on these permissions (Unless it is necessary due to land damage or injury) but I will be wanting to do some deer stalking and Deer Culling (With an experienced stalker and deer management expert) at a later date. With this in mind I fully understand that it is not something that should be entered into without any knowledge so I am more than happy to go for my DSC1 (Or similar) as and when.
My question relates to that last sentence - Is the DSC1 (Which I understand can be quite expensive) the only course available of are there any other courses/qualifications that can be done in place of the DSC1 please?
 
The DSC 1 is worth doing as any knowledge is always worth having and you get to meet up with like minded people for a few days so you make a few contacts and gain information and in the end I guess you get out what you put in. You could go along, learn the answers and walk away having gained very little or you can engage with the people involved, ask questions, and learn a lot.

However, as you say it is expensive and it is just an introduction and in the longer term you will learn a lot more from a few outtings with the experienced stalker you plan on going out with but that knowledge will take longer to gain and having the DSC 1 behind you would give you a good starting point. It is also the case that some landowners, and police forces, ask for DCS 1 and/or DSC 2 and the DSC has, for good or bad, pretty much become the standard qualification so it can smooth your passage a little bit. On the other hand I believe some police forces will accept a "mentor" situation where you stalk with an experienced stalker and gain knowledge in that way and that may suit some people better and in the long term I suspect has the potential to create a more rounded and experienced stalker.

I'm just a beginner at this myself and so my views are worth what you paid for them. However, I did the DSC 1 some years back and found it useful even though I do resent the cost and the implication that "it is the only show in town" as stalking is an individual, solo, occupation that doesn't need organisations and police and government introducing rules and regulations and exams and paperwork and... You get the idea :)

The other thing I will say is that the paperwork and official interferance is likely only to get greater in future rather than less so it might be good to get the "official" qualification under your belt as early as possible as i suspect we will soon get to a point where you will, for all practical purposes, need at least DSC 1 to go stalking. I don't imagine the exams will get easier, less complex or less costly with time.
 
Nothing. To be honest if you contact Paul at barony he runs the courses at the Barony College he'll give you a excellent full course or will give you the info require to complete a assessment, if you wish to choose the root on self learning, as you say you've not done any stalking,the course option is the better option .

If your looking for a experienced stalker to learn from give, John at Yorkshire stalking, a shout he'll sort your requirements out he has a excellent reputation for teaching people right from wrong. Don't just go out with any old Tom, Dick or Harry, as you have put up you looking for someone with experience they will come out of the wood work because you have your own ground .

Oh welcome to the site oh sorry asylum.
 
I did my DSC1 with the BDS at Bardwell. It does cost a bit, but it is money well spent in my view. It is no substitute for experience but you will learn a lot. Just watch out for people offereing the "course" but not the exams themselve. I'd opt for a BDS run course, you get the training and then the examinations.

There is no alternative unless you manage to join the St. Hubert Club and follow their training course. This is very comprehensive and practical, but takes several years to complete.
 
Pretty much agree with all of what has been said above. On the point of cost, I may be a bit out of date but I think the BDS DSC1 course works out about £100 or less a day inc the handbook, exam fees etc. You don't really get much for £100 a day these days, you will be lucky to get an AM/PM stalk for that, it certainly compares very favorably with other 'Industry' courses eg chainsaws etc. I think its good value. (I am talking about the proper courses, not the one or two day, 'coach you through the exam' type courses that are available) JC
 
Hello there frenchie, as said DSC1 is by no means cheap but it is very good. I did mine back in november as i too am knew to deerstalking and only just starting to get in to it properly. I got loads out of the course in the ways so far as knowledge is concerned and i also like spending 4 days with like minded people and at the end you also have the ability to sell venison that i assume other courses don't give. As for alternatives as has been said stalking with an experienced stalker and i would second John or i can send you the details of a sporting agent operating out of perth who does a similar course but with no proper qualification but he can offer you in the field experience when you go stalking but its only a 1 day course and i got far far more out of my DSC1.

George
 
Pretty much agree with all of what has been said above. On the point of cost, I may be a bit out of date but I think the BDS DSC1 course works out about £100 or less a day inc the handbook, exam fees etc. You don't really get much for £100 a day these days, you will be lucky to get an AM/PM stalk for that, it certainly compares very favorably with other 'Industry' courses eg chainsaws etc. I think its good value. (I am talking about the proper courses, not the one or two day, 'coach you through the exam' type courses that are available) JC

Just looked, BDS 4 day DSC1 is £295 2010 price
 
Isnt it the case though that you dont need to do the 4 day course, you can self teach yourself from the DSC1 manual and then just go for the one day exam ? That I think would be a lot cheaper?
 
Isnt it the case though that you dont need to do the 4 day course, you can self teach yourself from the DSC1 manual and then just go for the one day exam ? That I think would be a lot cheaper?

You could do that but (and IMHO it's a big but) I think you would lose a lot. The major benefit of a course like the DSC1 is not in learning things by rote, it's more about the shared experience with a group of like-minded people. I guess it comes down to your motivation for doing a course like DSC1 - is it simply to gain a qualificiation or is it to learn about deer and benefit from the experience of both the instructors and the attendees.

BTW, you would still need to do the shooting test.
 
FB

I agree with the comments above. I would add that you need to set yourself a time frame and budget for getting DSC I and DSC II. Also I would suggest that you budget for taking days out with folk at does or hinds so that you can see good practice being demonstrated. John is recommended above and there will be other folk in your area. DSC I & II are just the start, I make a point of getting out somewhere new each year. I have just spent two fascinating days with an FC Ranger at Lochgilphead. No two folk stalk in exactly the same way. There's something to learn from each stalker that you go out with and the learning should never stop.

Good luck. JCS
 
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