Grumpy Farmer

well the wife came home early today so i thought id take the opportunity to take a quick trip to a few local farms and enquire about the possibility of obtaining a bit of rabbit shooting.
the first 2 farmers where really nice friendly old timers, the first fella has someone already shooting his land but he would give him a call and see what he says about sharing, told him not to worry it's ok (don't like standing on peoples toes), so he pointed me in the direction of the neighbouring farm and told me to tell him that he had sent me. Again hell of a nice fella invited me in and offered me a cup of Tea, started talking and he said he has someone shooting also but the guy was due to go abroad for a while in the summer, So he took my number and said he would give me a phone when it becomes available. So happy as a pig in P##h i headed off.

On my route home i noticed a farm a bit further back from the road surrounded by fields of livestock cows, sheep usual, so i thought id give it a shot, i mean what's the worst that could happen right? he could say no, fair enough. Well holy s##t balls, did he no just rant about how he's fed up with us southern boys coming up here for free shooting and taking work away from locals (just to clarify i do have a slight southern accent) he then started ranting about the referendum and how peace will be returned. at this point i just interrupted him and said "that will be a no then, look really sorry to have bothered you, have a good day". i started walking to my van i could still hear him ranting. so i jumped in and drove away.
just goes to show how different some people can be from the nicest 2 fellas you could ever meet to well whatever that was. kind of put a dampener on the 2 previous farms but hey ho..

chris
 
Bet the old bast&art votes conservative.
should have asked him, as you was leaving, just how many pounds (£) you have contributed to his grants......
parisitic bast4 ard
 
Dont set me off on farmers, just left a shooting mate who went to school with the farmers son,who now runs the whole farm,etc.
Andy, my mate happened to drop out that the farmer had been moaning to him about those bloody deer,eating all his profits.
So I get him to phone,it went something like.Hi [m...] I have a guy here has all the certs very trustworthy,not going to shoot everything in sight,will only come when,suits large amount of money available.
Reply,oh there are loads,saw 50/60 out this mornin, but I do like to see them about,so no,thanks.:doh:
 
Bet the old bast&art votes conservative.
should have asked him, as you was leaving, just how many pounds (£) you have contributed to his grants......
parisitic bast4 ard
WTF! Grumpy equals votes conservative?? Please explain? Cos when I think of Scottish and labour in the same sentence I automatically see visions of that great life and soul of the party Gordon Brown.

I'm obviously very confused.
 
That’s life no matter if Scottish, English or welsh there’s always a grumpy old fart and people that will give you the time of day.
Not sure which bracket i come under but if the gates shut don’t come knocking :-|
 
I always remember a couple of years a go, I went asked a farmer for some permission to take ferrets and terriers , I started to ask him politely and before I had even finished speaking he slammed the door in my face, nice chap eh:doh: lets just say never went back and fingers crossed the little bunnies ate all his prize carrots:)
 
Reports in the media confirm farming is on the way up, no need to be Grumpy cheer up

Farmers enjoyed inflation-busting pay rises of more than 13 per cent last year, as most workers saw wages outstripped by rising living costs.
While IT workers, hoteliers and miners saw pay fall in 2013, life was good down on the farm.

The dramatic increase in earnings from agriculture might go some way to explaining why farmers report higher levels of job satisfaction than higher-paid teachers, estate agents and architects

New figures show that total income from farming hit £5.464billion last year, up 13 per cent on 2012.

It means overall earnings from producing food for the nation has doubled since 2000, fuelled by increased demand at home and abroad.

A separate breakdown of average weekly wages also shows farmers earned 13 per cent more in at the end of 2013 than in January.
 
First farmer I have heard of going to vote for Scottish independence.
Most of them are threatening to leave the country.
Still shouldn't be a problem with current opinion poles running at 65% No and 25% Yes.
 
First farmer I have heard of going to vote for Scottish independence.
Most of them are threatening to leave the country.
Still shouldn't be a problem with current opinion poles running at 65% No and 25% Yes.

I thought the majority of Scotland was owned by Arabs, Dutch and Donald Trump.... I hear Alex Samonds swing is rather good. :D
 
Reports in the media confirm farming is on the way up, no need to be Grumpy cheer up

Farmers enjoyed inflation-busting pay rises of more than 13 per cent last year, as most workers saw wages outstripped by rising living costs.
While IT workers, hoteliers and miners saw pay fall in 2013, life was good down on the farm.

The dramatic increase in earnings from agriculture might go some way to explaining why farmers report higher levels of job satisfaction than higher-paid teachers, estate agents and architects

New figures show that total income from farming hit £5.464billion last year, up 13 per cent on 2012.

It means overall earnings from producing food for the nation has doubled since 2000, fuelled by increased demand at home and abroad.

A separate breakdown of average weekly wages also shows farmers earned 13 per cent more in at the end of 2013 than in January.


Where was that report in the media because it doesn't make much sense. Total value of outputs may be up but so are costs and our 2013 harvest was the worst since we moved here in 1995. Looks like very bad junk reporting to me.
 
Where was that report in the media because it doesn't make much sense. Total value of outputs may be up but so are costs and our 2013 harvest was the worst since we moved here in 1995. Looks like very bad junk reporting to me.

Totally agree ! 2012 was even worse for most farmers and growers following the terribly wet summer. Also what are " farmers " ? Do they mean land owners, managers or workers ? The majority of farm businesses that are actually growing crops to make a living have been having a hard time of things over the last few years in my opinion. Many owners have seen their income declining in recent years and farm employees have received below inflation increases. The farming business that employ me paid 1.7 % increase to their staff in 2013 and froze the overtime rate at 2012 levels so where this reported figure of 13 % came from beats me.
 
Totally agree ! 2012 was even worse for most farmers and growers following the terribly wet summer. Also what are " farmers " ? Do they mean land owners, managers or workers ? The majority of farm businesses that are actually growing crops to make a living have been having a hard time of things over the last few years in my opinion. Many owners have seen their income declining in recent years and farm employees have received below inflation increases. The farming business that employ me paid 1.7 % increase to their staff in 2013 and froze the overtime rate at 2012 levels so where this reported figure of 13 % came from beats me.

The rises in wages I have heard of have been around the 2% mark too.
Some very creative reporting going on there in the press for sure
 
i appreciate thing are hard as a farmer/land owner/worker but surely the offer of someone putting in their own personnel free time and ammo at no cost to the farmer/landowner to help remove vermin (in this case rabbits) from there land would be something they would jump at?

to be fair he must be doing ok because he had a 2014 and a 2013 Rangerover sports with private plates sitting in his drive.

ATB

Chris
 
Pretty much every farmer I've known has been to a greater or lesser degree a moaner. Money and the state of farming is a favourite, but neighbours, poachers, the government, DEFRA, the hoops you have to go through for grants (bless), the weather (a banker that one), the price of feed, cattle, sheep, silage, wheat, other cereal crops, even wellies and dogs. They're all there to be subjects to moan about.

The trick is to agree with the farmers. Moan with them and indeed introduce one of the above other topics for a moan. They love it. Let them unburden themselves of all their worries and moans on you. They'll think you're great. Don't make the mistake of thinking that they don't like you because they always moan at you. Quite the opposite. Be a moan sponge for them and you'll have them eating out of your hand and soon enough you'll be able to moan that you have far too much land to shoot over to be able to cope. :)
 
World record price for sheepdog, land prices up year on year whats that all about
Red fuel
Children can work on tractors
You cant make money ??
All the support you give to the rest of british industry ?
The money farming gives to charity every year.
I will help you and pay 300 pounds for all your 12month old bullocks and give you 2000 pounds an acre for your land, that way you can get off the terrible tredmill you are on.
 
World record price for sheepdog, land prices up year on year whats that all about
Red fuel
Children can work on tractors
You cant make money ??
All the support you give to the rest of british industry ?
The money farming gives to charity every year.
I will help you and pay 300 pounds for all your 12month old bullocks and give you 2000 pounds an acre for your land, that way you can get off the terrible tredmill you are on.

You get me wrong. I am not moaning about my lot just about the quality of the reporting. It looks to me as if a reporter has come across one fact and tried to create a farmer slagging story out of it.
2012 was a good year for us. 2013 a bad one. We just have to roll with it and hope for a better 2014.
For the record I'm a tenant farmer so I don't have an acre to sell you and no one it their right mind would pay anything for my "sheepdog"/ pet collie.
 
well the wife came home early today so i thought id take the opportunity to take a quick trip to a few local farms and enquire about the possibility of obtaining a bit of rabbit shooting.
the first 2 farmers where really nice friendly old timers, the first fella has someone already shooting his land but he would give him a call and see what he says about sharing, told him not to worry it's ok (don't like standing on peoples toes), so he pointed me in the direction of the neighbouring farm and told me to tell him that he had sent me. Again hell of a nice fella invited me in and offered me a cup of Tea, started talking and he said he has someone shooting also but the guy was due to go abroad for a while in the summer, So he took my number and said he would give me a phone when it becomes available. So happy as a pig in P##h i headed off.

On my route home i noticed a farm a bit further back from the road surrounded by fields of livestock cows, sheep usual, so i thought id give it a shot, i mean what's the worst that could happen right? he could say no, fair enough. Well holy s##t balls, did he no just rant about how he's fed up with us southern boys coming up here for free shooting and taking work away from locals (just to clarify i do have a slight southern accent) he then started ranting about the referendum and how peace will be returned. at this point i just interrupted him and said "that will be a no then, look really sorry to have bothered you, have a good day". i started walking to my van i could still hear him ranting. so i jumped in and drove away.
just goes to show how different some people can be from the nicest 2 fellas you could ever meet to well whatever that was. kind of put a dampener on the 2 previous farms but hey ho..

chris

Just to get back to the original post. Over the early years I knocked many doors looking for shooting. From experience I would rather have stuck with the rant from farmer 3 and talked him round. Once "in" with these types of characters (and that is all they are, characters) you are in for life and if you do a good job they will never give the shooting to anybody else. Farmers one and two gave you permission easily even although there were already guys shooting the ground. You will probably find they give permission to every Tom Dick and Harry that knocks the door.
 


Don't Know Why farmers are grumpy they should take a leaf out of this old boys book :rofl:
 
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