the call any shooter dreads "sorry you cant come on any longer"

see it shoot it

Well-Known Member
just lost a cracking golf course I have looked after for a good few years now due to this http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/art...shot-dead-pest-control-hotel-golf-course.html
the manager called me this morning gutted hes had to pull the plug on me taking care of the rabbits,he dosnt know hows hes going to control them.
hes allowed to hawk and ferret but it not effective.
god only knows how the guy mistaken a dog for a rabbit,must of broken the first rule of lamping "don't shoot at eyes"
 
You are not the only one....

I have been shooting over a number of pieces of ground run by the same organization that have all been put on hold until I meet with the management team next week.
They specifically highlighted the fox control.
Am expecting an increased paper trail and risk assessments etc but hopefully it should be fine......

Interestingly I got word on the 5th, not sure when this dog shooting actually happened and if it is linked with the timing in any way.
 
Having read the article, and being the cynic I am, it did cross my mind that the bloke involved shot the dog thinking it was a fox and the hotel chain have decided it would raise less agro for them if they said he was rabbiting. I'm sure Joe public can just about grasp that rabbits may damage golf courses, but they will probably be up in arms about Fox control. Anyone else think the same?

Novice
 
Reading some of the comments on the web site for the Daily Mail I seriously doubt it. Apparently all guns are illegal in the UK, and I've also learned that shooting doesn't control them anyway.

ATB
 
Reading some of the comments on the web site for the Daily Mail I seriously doubt it. Apparently all guns are illegal in the UK, and I've also learned that shooting doesn't control them anyway.

ATB
shooting dosent control them :rofl: you should have seen the rabbits on my course before I got permission,its was busting,every visit was between 50 and 80 a night,that was a few years ago now we only get around 20 to 40 and that's getting harder and harder.
these antis have no bloody idea
 
This happened just down the road from me.

Irrespective of what anyone else says or thinks, quite simply, the guy behind the trigger deserves to be hung out to dry for this.

As responsible shooters we all know never to take a shot without a safe backstop and never to take a shot at something we cannot identify first.

The idiot that shot this dog broke both those basic safety rules and as a result of his actions others are now suffering the consequences.

As a shooting man I have three gundogs which get walked twice a day on a route that involves crossing my local golf course (not the same one) using a public bridleway, because of the hours I work this is done in the dark in the winter evenings.

Several years ago I was part way across the course when a red lamp was shone on me from a vehicle which then started its engine and accelerated towards me at speed; I had a torch in my pocket which I put on as I knew straight away what the red lamp was.

Shortly after a Landrover pulled up with no lights on and a chap driving it with a 22 stuck out of the drivers window, on top of the scope was... yes, you guessed, a red lamp!

Realising I was not 'quarry' he started trying to chat to me about whether I saw many rabbits about... my reply had not a lot to do with rabbits and used quite a few words you don't normally hear in polite company! I pointed out that not only was I 'rather cross' to find he'd shone the light on me and the dogs from the top of a rifle but also that I was on a public right of way and that through the thin belt of trees behind me, which would have been his 'backstop' had he engaged a legitimate target at that location, was a main road with houses the other side.

He was left in no uncertain terms as to how I felt about him and his only excuse was that he had only just 'taken on' this particular course and was 'getting to know it' - in other words he had not got any idea of the layout of the land, where it was safe to shoot and where it wasn't, that there were in fact two public rights of way crossing it, houses out of sight, etc.

The following morning I spoke to the secretary of the Club and also to the Police, the former assured me they would not be allowing that pest controller on the course again, the Plod took a statement and I heard nothing more from them.

Instead of a torch I now carry a Clulite with me and if there's any chance that someone's out with a gun (they stopped using a pest controller and now use staff but do allow several people with airguns to range about ad-hoc), they get the 'full beam' treatment right from the start and I don't give a monkey's if that spoils their nights sport.

The actions of this irresponsible individual will have consequences on all of us, thank god it was 'only' a dog he shot!
 
That is the problem with the lamps that are fixed to the rifle. The rifle always points in the direction of the light and it is on the quarry until identified I personally do not like them.
 
I totally agree that the guy who took the shot at the dog should get everything he deserves, lose his FAC and hopefully be prosecuted. Absolutely no excuse, dogs don't look like rabbits and if he wasn't sure he shouldn't have pulled the trigger.

It's muppets like this that make things harder for those of us who are safe and sensible.
 
just lost a cracking golf course I have looked after for a good few years now due to this http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/art...shot-dead-pest-control-hotel-golf-course.html
the manager called me this morning gutted hes had to pull the plug on me taking care of the rabbits,he dosnt know hows hes going to control them.
hes allowed to hawk and ferret but it not effective.
god only knows how the guy mistaken a dog for a rabbit,must of broken the first rule of lamping "don't shoot at eyes"
maybe it will change once the furore dies down and the rabbit population goes mad.personally I think he was foxing and shot at the eyes, but who knows ?
 
This happened just down the road from me. Irrespective of what anyone else says or thinks, quite simply, the guy behind the trigger deserves to be hung out to dry for this. As responsible shooters we all know never to take a shot without a safe backstop and never to take a shot at something we cannot identify first. The idiot that shot this dog broke both those basic safety rules and as a result of his actions others are now suffering the consequences. As a shooting man I have three gundogs which get walked twice a day on a route that involves crossing my local golf course (not the same one) using a public bridleway, because of the hours I work this is done in the dark in the winter evenings. Several years ago I was part way across the course when a red lamp was shone on me from a vehicle which then started its engine and accelerated towards me at speed; I had a torch in my pocket which I put on as I knew straight away what the red lamp was. Shortly after a Landrover pulled up with no lights on and a chap driving it with a 22 stuck out of the drivers window, on top of the scope was... yes, you guessed, a red lamp! Realising I was not 'quarry' he started trying to chat to me about whether I saw many rabbits about... my reply had not a lot to do with rabbits and used quite a few words you don't normally hear in polite company! I pointed out that not only was I 'rather cross' to find he'd shone the light on me and the dogs from the top of a rifle but also that I was on a public right of way and that through the thin belt of trees behind me, which would have been his 'backstop' had he engaged a legitimate target at that location, was a main road with houses the other side. He was left in no uncertain terms as to how I felt about him and his only excuse was that he had only just 'taken on' this particular course and was 'getting to know it' - in other words he had not got any idea of the layout of the land, where it was safe to shoot and where it wasn't, that there were in fact two public rights of way crossing it, houses out of sight, etc. The following morning I spoke to the secretary of the Club and also to the Police, the former assured me they would not be allowing that pest controller on the course again, the Plod took a statement and I heard nothing more from them. Instead of a torch I now carry a Clulite with me and if there's any chance that someone's out with a gun (they stopped using a pest controller and now use staff but do allow several people with airguns to range about ad-hoc), they get the 'full beam' treatment right from the start and I don't give a monkey's if that spoils their nights sport. The actions of this irresponsible individual will have consequences on all of us, thank god it was 'only' a dog he shot!

A very true and sensible reply
scary what idiots there are out there
golden rule never shoot at eyes too late once that triggers been pulled
​ regards pete
 
I shoot on a couple of golf courses, one with a public foot path across the 2nd fairway the other surrounded by houses.
Neither of the course managers want the foxes shooting....so I dont shoot them.
I'm not going to mention safe backstop and species confirmation as I would think that was instilled in all of us from the start.
 
I do agree with everyone on here, but the dog owner also has a responsibility to keep their dog secure, it is private land at the end of the day. One of our permissions is on a golf course and nothing more ****es me off when people walk their dogs OFF the bridle path (basically treat it as a free range park), lying down in dog crap is not a good day out! As for the the two clowns who killed the extra large rabbit, they should be made an example of to hammer home the importance of firearm safety.

Regards

​Carl.
 
Having read the article, and being the cynic I am, it did cross my mind that the bloke involved shot the dog thinking it was a fox and the hotel chain have decided it would raise less agro for them if they said he was rabbiting. I'm sure Joe public can just about grasp that rabbits may damage golf courses, but they will probably be up in arms about Fox control. Anyone else think the same?

Novice

absolutely!
given the recent badger debacle, I suspect that is exactly why I am on hold.

trouble is on one course the foxes do far more damage than any amount of rabbits



That is the problem with the lamps that are fixed to the rifle. The rifle always points in the direction of the light and it is on the quarry until identified I personally do not like them.

No, thats the problem with using the lamp on your rifle to IDENTIFY and not just to TARGET.
I only use scope mounted lamps as I am often on my own.
I don't identify anything with them
a) because I don't want to be waving a lamp around lighting up all the dogs walkers, doggers and flashers and drawing attention to myself
b) because using an NV monocular means I see what everyone else is doing before they even know I am there...i also get more shots
 
The guy who shot the dog is a numpty who made an inexcusable mistake and he should not be shooting! However, the excited hysteria that surrounds such an incident because it's a firearm is also out of proportion. Cars kill people every day in avoidable accidents where someone has got it wrong. The drivers get banned, get fined or imprisoned and we move on. No calls to crush all cars into cubes.
 
The guy who shot the dog is a numpty who made an inexcusable mistake and he should not be shooting! However, the excited hysteria that surrounds such an incident because it's a firearm is also out of proportion. Cars kill people every day in avoidable accidents where someone has got it wrong. The drivers get banned, get fined or imprisoned and we move on. No calls to crush all cars into cubes.
I quite agree, the man is a tool and deserves to lose his fac, but this kind of thing serves to whet the appetite of the anti gun lobby perfectly, no such hysteria or reporting in the tabloids occurs when somebody runs over a dog in their car as unfortunate as that may be.
 
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