Pheasant shooting US style...!!

[enfieldspares]

Seems to me this Chinese farmer could make a heap of Dollars selling shooting holidays to round eyed American devils if only he had the contacts:

 

[roaring_stag]

Wow…..

BYOB (Bring Your Own Bird??)

 

[landkeeper]

I can never understand why there's not been a legal requirement for a minimum lenth of release date before shooting on these islands only a best practise guideline wet tissue
That video to me is abhorrent but so too is a lot of other stuff posted on YouTube be it live baits hooked through the nose or multi gun barrages at decoyed geese

 

[Stalker-of-the-deer]

I've watched alot of American stuff and I don't think it's up to much tbh.

They have a go at us for "sky busting" birds at 30 yards yet have no dramas sitting in a hide with 200 decoys out and shooting them at 10 yards or when they are on the water with 3 1/2" cartridges Some of the videos look like a bomber over Berlin in ww2 there's that much steel in the sky!

However some of their propper hunting looks phenomenal, there is true sportsmen about but I have a feeling they probably aren't putting it out on YouTube for the views like alot of the "hunters" do.

 

[El Majorero]

There are plenty of good ethical hunters in the US who would be equally critical of such behaviour. And I must admit not being very comfortable with the idea of large breeding farms producing lots of phaesants that are then put into the woods to be driven over the guns.

Yes they are supposed to be free ranging weeks if not months before the season, but there are plenty of places where they keep back a few thousand for later in the season.

I have been fortunate enough to be invited on a few big shoots with double gun type days, and the shooting was superb. But I have also had the misfortune of going some where it was just obscene. Most of the difference was the attitude of the hosts and the guns.

Equally appreciate that just purely relying on wild stock is also difficult.

Personally I really like walked up style of shooting over dogs, seeing them get onto a scent and then flushing a bird. A good days exercise with friends and a few birds for the pot.

Equally though I would rather see well run game shoots flourishing and being a valuable use of woodlands etc. than the alternative of yet more prairie type farming, or even worse becoming housing.

You need bread n pulses

 

[countrryboy]

I think quite a few americain FT's are ran in a similar way, their logic is it is a relatively level playing field for each dog/handler as the exact same amount of birds in the same position.
So every dog has the same chance of flushing 10 birds, in a UK FT a lot of luck comes in wether u find much/any game on ur beat

Is it not also the same in spain on some shoots where u pay for a 40 bird day and get 40 birds released into the drives?

I'm not going to even attempt to argue any justification in putting out dizzied birds, but the actual target itself isnae all that different than a walked or pointed bird shot in the UK,
The amount of guns and how close together they are is not good and the birds should be left to get out a bit further, not even going to mention the whooping and hollering , but i have seen plenty of birds pillow cased in a walked up day, quite often spaniel trials can be the worst for wanting dolly droppers shot.

While the clip does leave a bad taste in my mouth i'd almost prefer poor shots to be shooting at them instead of real high birds they havnae a hope in hell of hitting

 

[StephenToast]

A bit hypocritical criticising this. The only difference between this and reared pheasant shooting over here is that the birds are released on the day of shooting. Actually, ecologically this would be an improvement, these birds have had no time to impact on native wildlife andtons and tons of feed hasn't been left out for them attracting vermin and increasing their number.

 

[El Majorero]

A bit hypocritical criticising this. The only difference between this and reared pheasant shooting over here is that the birds are released on the day of shooting. Actually, ecologically this would be an improvement, these birds have had no time to impact on native wildlife andtons and tons of feed hasn't been left out for them attracting vermin and increasing their number.

Well said.
M. E.

 

[Tim.243]

A bit hypocritical criticising this. The only difference between this and reared pheasant shooting over here is that the birds are released on the day of shooting. Actually, ecologically this would be an improvement, these birds have had no time to impact on native wildlife andtons and tons of feed hasn't been left out for them attracting vermin and increasing their number.

My pheasants like 99% of birds from poults came in and out of pop holes from day 1, granted we all dog them back in the first week until they were up in the trees each night. Lace the area with wires shoot the sh it out of the foxes then draw them slowly to the covers. Come shoot day blank them off tap through and you don't have a day like the video.

 

[countrryboy]

My pheasants like 99% of birds from poults came in and out of pop holes from day 1, granted we all dog them back in the first week until they were up in the trees each night. Lace the area with wires shoot the sh it out of the foxes then draw them slowly to the covers. Come shoot day blank them off tap through and you don't have a day like the video.

I think the point that steven is trying to make is exactly that, releasing non natives with additional food esp in big numbers does not always help the surrounding wildlife/ecosystems as they are present for 8 months of the year.
Yes it doesn't have to effect them if numbers are sensible and within the habitat, but releasing birds that way has zero impact on the wider ecosystem as very few will get away.
Not defending it the way it was shown on vid.

To be honest if birds were placed very scarce say only 6-10 birds over a days shooting with 1 or 2 decent hpr/pointers i bet many folk wouldn't actually know much difference in the sport

 

[landkeeper]

I think the point that steven is trying to make is exactly that, releasing non natives with additional food esp in big numbers does not always help the surrounding wildlife/ecosystems as they are present for 8 months of the year.
Yes it doesn't have to effect them if numbers are sensible and within the habitat, but releasing birds that way has zero impact on the wider ecosystem as very few will get away.
Not defending it the way it was shown on vid.

To be honest if birds were placed very scarce say only 6-10 birds over a days shooting with 1 or 2 decent hpr/pointers i bet many folk wouldn't actually know much difference in the sport

I feel for the ones that get missed ,they fly ,then think wtf am I ?????and where's my nice safe pen and constant supply of feed and water ,lol
Or do they fly off crowing 'freeeeeedom'

 

[Tim.243]

I think the point that steven is trying to make is exactly that, releasing non natives with additional food esp in big numbers does not always help the surrounding wildlife/ecosystems as they are present for 8 months of the year.
Yes it doesn't have to effect them if numbers are sensible and within the habitat, but releasing birds that way has zero impact on the wider ecosystem as very few will get away.
Not defending it the way it was shown on vid.

To be honest if birds were placed very scarce say only 6-10 birds over a days shooting with 1 or 2 decent hpr/pointers i bet many folk wouldn't actually know much difference in the sport

250 birds on 350 acres was not dense........I have shot 250 pigeons on that farm in a day so make as many points as you like..
Until people know the circumstances it might be better to ask..
Lots of thick hedges 30 acres of rough ground with food...

 

[landkeeper]

Don't think he was having a pop at you Tim rather the type of shoot that releases 20k prezzies on 2,000 acres and shoots several times a week all season long

 

[countrryboy]

250 birds on 350 acres was not dense........I have shot 250 pigeons on that farm in a day so make as many points as you like..
Until people know the circumstances it might be better to ask..
Lots of thick hedges 30 acres of rough ground with food...

I used to run a syndicate doing the exact same with similar ish numbers over1000 acres, but not everyone does that.

Plenty of shoots releasing a truely staggering volume of birds and plenty shoots now shooting over 100 days a season.
And many of thee larger shoots don't rally bother too much with vermin control or habitat creation

Just like in the clip the actual practice itself isnae terrible it when it becomes over commercialised, a lot of dog trainers have used that technique for decades althou usually with homing pigeons.
Althou landkeeper does make a very valid point about any that escape unlss plenty hoppers around the area and would depend how they were reared/kept until release.

 

[Cumbrian 1]

I've seen birds released on the morning of a shoot in the UK. It wasn't really much different to what you're seeing in that video, to be honest. Best get our own house in order before criticising the way things are done elsewhere.

What a load of BS name the shoot? As someone who worked as a keeper the logistics of such a scene simply doesn’t add up.

Firstly if they just been released then the chances are they will hardly fly, most will get pegged.

Secondly pheasants aren’t simply driven the direction you want them to go, they are released into home woods and then fed out into the outlying covers/woods. Once flushed towards home they will fly a fairly well defined route. The birds dumped out of crates are going to be so disoriented the odds of getting them over the guns is slight.

Thirdly getting poults to (or even chickens) to six weeks without getting disease problems is hard, keeping them six months is nigh on impossible, unless you heavily medicate.

I find it odd that if people were driving about with crates on in the middle of the season that word wouldn’t get out, disgruntled keepers wouldn’t spill the beans, staff would simply gossip etc, beaters would tell their mates, yet in 30 years of been involved in pheasant shooting I’ve never heard of releasing on the day.

It may of happened once but I think it is an old wife’s tale, but you VSS would like to paint the whole game industry as such, what a sad man.

 

[Cumbrian 1]

The other point that I forgot to mention is that birds released this way won’t hold so whatever you release is lost, so on a 300 bird day how many do you release? What happens if you don’t get any where near the bag on the first release of the day, do you tell the guns to have a long lunch whilst more crates are picked up? All this happening with beaters and picking up teams watching on, but no word is ever mentioned, with the advent of smart phones and social media no photos or videos are out there?

Sounds like BS to me.

 

[El Majorero]

What a load of BS name the shoot? As someone who worked as a keeper the logistics of such a scene simply doesn’t add up.

Firstly if they just been released then the chances are they will hardly fly, most will get pegged.

Secondly pheasants aren’t simply driven the direction you want them to go, they are released into home woods and then fed out into the outlying covers/woods. Once flushed towards home they will fly a fairly well defined route. The birds dumped out of crates are going to be so disoriented the odds of getting them over the guns is slight.

Thirdly getting poults to (or even chickens) to six weeks without getting disease problems is hard, keeping them six months is nigh on impossible, unless you heavily medicate.

I find it odd that if people were driving about with crates on in the middle of the season that word wouldn’t get out, disgruntled keepers wouldn’t spill the beans, staff would simply gossip etc, beaters would tell their mates, yet in 30 years of been involved in pheasant shooting I’ve never heard of releasing on the day.

It may of happened once but I think it is an old wife’s tale, but you VSS would like to paint the whole game industry as such, what a sad man.

Very well said Cumbrian1. There are so many scenarios which can be applied hereabouts, but they all apply themselves supporting your common sense answer. As indeed do I and all my staff it would be funny if not so foolish anyone would even contemplate the given senario.. Well done again.

 

[El Majorero]

The other point that I forgot to mention is that birds released this way won’t hold so whatever you release is lost, so on a 300 bird day how many do you release? What happens if you don’t get any where near the bag on the first release of the day, do you tell the guns to have a long lunch whilst more crates are picked up? All this happening with beaters and picking up teams watching on, but no word is ever mentioned, with the advent of smart phones and social media no photos or videos are out there?

Sounds like BS to me.

Same applies again its bull shite...

 

[VSS]

What a load of BS name the shoot? As someone who worked as a keeper the logistics of such a scene simply doesn’t add up.

Firstly if they just been released then the chances are they will hardly fly, most will get pegged.

Secondly pheasants aren’t simply driven the direction you want them to go, they are released into home woods and then fed out into the outlying covers/woods. Once flushed towards home they will fly a fairly well defined route. The birds dumped out of crates are going to be so disoriented the odds of getting them over the guns is slight.

Thirdly getting poults to (or even chickens) to six weeks without getting disease problems is hard, keeping them six months is nigh on impossible, unless you heavily medicate.

I find it odd that if people were driving about with crates on in the middle of the season that word wouldn’t get out, disgruntled keepers wouldn’t spill the beans, staff would simply gossip etc, beaters would tell their mates, yet in 30 years of been involved in pheasant shooting I’ve never heard of releasing on the day.

It may of happened once but I think it is an old wife’s tale, but you VSS would like to paint the whole game industry as such, what a sad man.

No, it's not BS. I could easily name the shoot, and post photos, but I'm not going to. It's history now. The situation has been resolved.
If you know, you know. (And there's a few on here who do).

 

[Cumbrian 1]

No, it's not BS. I could easily name the shoot, and post photos, but I'm not going to. It's history now. The situation has been resolved.
If you know, you know. (And there's a few on here who do).

That’s a long way of saying you can’t substantiate your claim, just one shoot? You make it sound as though it’s the norm and that game shooting has to “get its own house I order”, which is it a single shoot or widespread? Oh and n”any proof or just more BS?