humane dispatch

novice

Well-Known Member
2 quick questions for those of you who have a pistol for humane dispatch:

Is there a requirement to use expanding ammo and if so, how hard is it to get factory loads?

If you are faced with a beast that has enough spark remaining to stop you getting right in on top of it, is a heart lung shot appropriate or is it always a case of going for the head or neck?

Cheers

Novice
 
2 quick questions for those of you who have a pistol for humane dispatch:

Is there a requirement to use expanding ammo and if so, how hard is it to get factory loads?

If you are faced with a beast that has enough spark remaining to stop you getting right in on top of it, is a heart lung shot appropriate or is it always a case of going for the head or neck?

Cheers

Novice

I'm not sure of a requirement but I use standard factory wadcutters, no problem in getting them from shops at all. If I get a callout and it's still got enough about it to be out of range there is always the .22 or a centrefire in the truck.
 
Technically pistol calibres such as 32/38/357 are not deer legal their use is only covered for humane dispatch under the Sect. 6 of the Deer Act,and as they are not covered as approved calibres for normal deer culling there is no legal definition relevant to bullet type,however expanding ammo is desirable,and never use wadcutters! The BDS tried to argue this definition as a reason for banning handguns for deerstalkers, which they deemed were not necessary.The recent re-definition of what can be used to cull an injured deer gives more flexibility on what can be used, ie shotgun/.22/knives(be careful as some people see this as cruel and the RSPCA have attempted to seek prosecutions where suffering was alleged),definitely not crossbows/baseball bats or similar/...lethal injection and in some cases captive bolts are employed by those licensed for IMMOBILON or trained in the use of captive bolts eg RSPCA INSPECTORS/VETS/SLAUGHTERMEN. There is no doubt if you attempted to unravel some aspects of the Deer Act and Firearms Statutes you would see a minefield of potential offences crossing over within those Acts, eg, what Statute exempts a person performing a humane dispatch on the Highway from discharging within the 50ft limit on that highway? Answer/ None...an offence! Just an example of the potential to lose your FAC whilst performing a service, maybe fo the Police,ignorance is no defence! And contrary to popular opinion a police officer cannot give his/her exemption to these Acts as they are primarily legislation which can only be revised by Parliament!! Double Whammy..ATB and Happy Dispatching:thumb:Anton
 
Technically pistol calibres such as 32/38/357 are not deer legal

.32 is bigger calibre than .243, it's even bigger than .308 or 30-06 but there's not the muzzle energy - I appreciate that. That said we are not suggesting hunting with one, merely using one for humane dispatch at close quarters.

what Statute exempts a person performing a humane dispatch on the Highway from discharging within the 50ft limit on that highway? Answer/ None...an offence!

That's not an offence. Section 161 of the Highways Act 1980 (England & Wales) makes it an offence to discharge a firearm within 50 ft of the centre of a highway having vehicular rights without lawful authority or excuse, if as a result a user of the highway is injured, interrupted or endangered.
 
.22RF/-410s are recommended for these jobs most wildlife trusts/RSPB/ etc have rangers controlling squirrels or mink A.22 air rifle may be sufficient,but may be underpowered at 12ft/lbs, an FAC version would be better I imagine a gamekeeper/farmer or someone in a similar role would have good reason to possess a firearm for vermin control without much of a problem,Anton.
 
Apache, That is perfectly true, but the Highways Act does not have primacy over The Firearms Act and negligence with a firearm on the Highway,is achieved by regard to the lawful authority/excuse being present and is nullified by those resulting injuries/interruption/endangerment, as an example a person in the employ of a police force for humane dispatch is liable to ensure the avoidance of the above occurrences...this is one of the reasons that in my County a Police Officer is sent to RTCs involving deer to assist in the provision of safety to the public and the dispatcher on the Highway.The possible offence occurs not by the discharge of the firearm but by not having the preventative measures in place prior to that discharge,therefore if negligence was the basis of the complaint,the 50ft rule could be used as a defence of having lawful authority or excuse,however the use of the firearm without reasonable safety measures resulting in any of the above would void that defence..my original post was referring to a situation where a person stops on the highway and performs a humane dispatch without the pre/mentioned safeguards in place ie does it of their own volution and is the subject to a complaint made to the Police . It is a difficult one, but I can assure you that it is not an impossible scenario ..acooleague of mine was carrying out a dispatch albeit with a knife and was reported by a motorway safety officer for cruelty..that one definitely came as an unexpected worry!Anton
 
Am i right in thinking then that i dont need to use a deer legal calibre (ie.243 and above) for dispatching deer?

Id much rather use a .22-250 for short range (or a shotgun) but wasnt sure that would be legal, when i spoke to the police the lady in the call centre thought it was ok to use discretion but wasnt 100%
 
You do not need to use a deer legal calibre.I have used .32 pistol/12g/410/ .243 ...the Humane Slaughter Association publications give some very useful guidelines.On free bullet or captive bolt usage, hope that helps, ATB Anton
 
You are exempted from using deer legal calibres while dispatching wounded deer so long as you reasonably believe that the firearm (or other implement) you are using will cause rapid unconsciousness and death.

From the Deer Act (taken from Deer: Law and Liabilities)

Humane Dispatch
 
This is a very interesting thread. I agree with csl 100% and I use a 32 for humane dispatch. You have to do whats right at the time for the animal involved and while in theory you should not do this and that you do what you have to and then providing that you are satified with what you did was profesional and compasionate then the law should stand by you.

As for the question about range. I try to get as close as possible I do not have a vented barrel and can keep a little back if I need to but I would say that you should only ever take head or very high neck shots and if in doubt use something bigger. In the case of an animal stuck under a car in a lot of cases the Atlas joint is a safe bet as you dont want to be putting any bullet straight under a car and risk ricochet off the road or underside of the car.

I practice the atlas joint tecnique on any deer I have in the larder as it is difficult to do. That said once perfected it is clean ,safe and is not distressing to the public who will have no doubt gathered around.

As with all tools of the trade they will vary due to conditions and this has to be born in mind.

Mark
 
I have in most instances taken the neck shot or head shot on wounded deer. There have been a couple of exceptions with Sika Stags in Scotland, one memorable one was a stag that had been hit a little far back with a 30.06 which showed no shot reaction and then ran up a steep bank into 800 acres of Caledonian forest.

My BMH brought the beast to bay in a hollow about 150yds from where the stag was shot. The stag was trying to gain its feet and was against a huge boulder the size of a large car, whilst my dog was running around the stricken deer and barking at the sametime, preventing the deer from moving further. I shot this beast in the heart as it turned with a 357 magnum and killed it instantly, as a head or neck shot could have bounced off the boulder.

I have also had a Sika Stag charge me as well, although this is exceptional behaviour I think, and it has been the only time in many years of stalking.
 
I am part of our countrys h a d team and have been so since it started, i have just been granted a 4 10 pistol for vermin control in tunnels under our dryer, i am not aloud to use it for rta's, all my call outs so far have only need a shot gun or a knife, if they are walking wounded they Dont get stuck on the road or roadside, never needed the rifle yet but always take it in case.


Anthony
 
Thanks for the informative posts gents.

I've a mate who has recently obtained a .32 for humane dispatch and we were talking through a few things regarding it, hence the queries.

He has both wadcutter and what I would believe to be solid 'pointed' rounds, both 98g (Magtech I think). He seemed to favour the pointed rounds on the basis that they tend to exit the animal and seem to have more energy. I'd have thought the wadcutters would be preferable in this respect as they are obviously going to have enough clout to incapacitate the deer if shot the neck/head and with the round being retained in the beast you will have less worry re ricochet.

The earlier post warning against wadcutters was interesting and I was wondering whether someone could expand on why they aren't preferable. I understand they are a paper punching round, but they seem to fit the bill for this job as well?

Novice
 
Hi Novice,the wadcutters as paper punchers are given a weaker powder load,many grains less than the round nose/expanding....and their penetration is not guaranteed if they meet bone and strong muscle..hope that helps, Anton
 
Wadcutter or semi-wadcutter, there is quite a difference?
I wouldn't have thought that you would see much wadcutter ammunition in this country since the pistol ban.

There are several types of full wadcutter bullet that you can get; HBWC (hollow based wadcutter) or DEWC (double ended wadcutter)for instance. One thing that they all have in common is that they are all intended for cutting clean holes in paper targets. I won't go into the trick of inverting HBWC bullets to create a super hollow point.

Semi wadcutter bullets are a mix between a wad cutter and a round nosed bullet and are a general purpose bullet, they are my favourite design for a pistol bullet.
 
He seemed to favour the pointed rounds on the basis that they tend to exit the animal and seem to have more energy. I'd have thought the wadcutters would be preferable in this respect as they are obviously going to have enough clout to incapacitate the deer if shot the neck/head and with the round being retained in the beast you will have less worry re ricochet.

With humane dispatch I have never had a situation where a head shot wasn't possible with either the .32 or the shotgun. You shoot in line with the animals neck so the bullet travels down the line of the spine, it should never exit. Your technique or bullet choice is wrong is that is the case.

We use lead round nosed bullets loaded especially for humane killers. _ look under 'none hunting'
 
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