If they opened up the seasons would you ………

[rem284]

I might be soft because I have stopped shooting rabbits atm because it's difficult to tell males from females unless you watch them for a while.

 

[Tim.243]

I don’t like shooting hinds with well developed calves in them. I really hate having to walk away for 15 minutes and wait or use the knife to kill it.
Not for me thanks.

 

[Grand Slam]

Did you open her up and gralloch straight away or wait if you don't mind me asking?

Assuming the fawn was moments away from being born???

 

[Tim.243]

I might be soft because I have stopped shooting rabbits atm because it's difficult to tell males from females unless you watch them for a while.

If you are ferreting in jan/feb/march you would not know what the jill/hob had killed down a stop end until you dug it back to find a nest of kits.

 

[Tim.243]

Did you open her up and gralloch straight away or wait if you don't mind me asking?

Assuming the fawn was moments away from being born???

Well I would have left her bleeding on pocket gambrel/branch walked back to the truck as I had 2 more to pick up grabbed them and done the 3 together.

 

[Dunwaters]

Thanks, but I’m not watching that. I’ve seen it before and done it before.
I won’t do it again unless I have to.

 

[Leec6.5]

Thanks, but I’m not watching that. I’ve seen it before and done it before.
I won’t do it again unless I have to.

Well if the numbers need vastly reducing, get used to it!

Because THATS what needs to be done!

365 open season on Does and Hinds, blanket ban on ALL male deer!

I recon 5 years of that should get us on a level playing field.

 

[Tikka 270]

If you have the right people on the ground, there is no need to shoot out of season. The need comes from landowners wanting payment for the stalking rights, leaving it to the wealthy / wealthier, many of whom have busy day jobs.

Make it illegal to accept payment for deer management, and make landowners liable to adhere to certain cull plans and report on them, and I think you’ll quickly find things changing.

I find out of season shooting unnecessary and highly distasteful, including the full male season in Scotland, they have it all wrong!

Nothing wrong without of season shooting and to claim that if the right people are on the ground there's no need to shoot out of season is laughable

 

[Chris Richardson]

I was under the impression that an unborn calf would expire within 1-2 minutes of the hind/doe being shot. Following best practice, you reload and wait an appropriate amount of time before approaching the downed animal, thus covering this wait period anyway.

The fetus only remains alive whilst the mother's heart is beating. A humane cull would surely stop this from happening?

Is there scientific evidence to back up this claim, as I am genuinely interested?

Unless, of course, you are literally pulling the trigger as the hind/doe is giving birth???

100 % correct

 

[Dunwaters]

Well if the numbers need vastly reducing, get used to it!

Because THATS what needs to be done!

365 open season on Does and Hinds, blanket ban on ALL male deer!

I recon 5 years of that should get us on a level playing field.

We’re already doing it here with section 42’s available for the asking. Theres also a move to have sika declared a foreign and invasive species with no close seasons.
If you want to shoot heavily pregnant hinds, knock yourself out, but I don’t want to do it and I won’t do it unless it’s absolutely necessary.

 

[shakey jake]

Why is it worse killing a hind than killing a hind with a fawn?
I like it killing heavily pregnant does, muntjac, roe and cwd because i get an extra meal for the dogs.
I dont see why it is so upsetting

 

[Leec6.5]

I’m going to run this until next weekend, see if we can slget some serious numbers down, for a forum of 25k members 40 votes it’s a bit like Creedmoor owners!

 

[Ratel]

At the moment I am seeing quite a few bunches of Fallow does which are obviously yearlings. It would help with numbers if we could knock a few of these over.
Quite happy to shoot Fallow does up until end of April if allowed but would not want to do the same with Roe, that's too close.

 

[HonestJohn]

Nothing wrong without of season shooting and to claim that if the right people are on the ground there's no need to shoot out of season is laughable

Really, because if deer are well managed, surely there’s no need to shoot them all year round? Why is it laughable? Seasons are there for a reason, globally. The fact that in the U.K. we are so desperate to reduce numbers we resort to unethical shooting practices in and out of season, day or night, IMHO means that the people doing the job are simply not up to the task or doing what they need to do when they need to do it! There are MANY local and very skilled stalkers who could do everything needed to adhere to daytime stalking and in season shooting, but they can’t afford it, so the chap 150 miles away gets the stalking and comes up once every couple of months - that’s, the issue.

There are so many stalkers locally to farms, looking for ground to do a good job on, but they never get a chance, and the outcome is…..open season day and night.

It’s like British politics, looking for ways to quick fix a problem without addressing the root cause and making changes that will create sustainable solutions.

 

[timbrayford]

Let’s cut the men from the boys, if the powers that be did away with the close season would you?

Like I said in a previous post, no one seem to care about the humble muntjac!

Yes or no?

Not for me I'm afraid. Most of my deer stalking these days is in environmentally sensitive areas, I much prefer to leave it until the winter and selectively cull young females instead.

 

[jonylandrover]

Personally I wouldn't say for example I fancy a stalk today let's go out and shoot a heavy pregnant female if I saw one. However if my land owner contacted me and said he was having this and that damage to crops in such a place etc I would then go and cull the animals causing the damage no matter what they are. So in that respect it being open season would be useful and I think stalkers should use common sense if the seasons were opend up.

 

[shakey jake]

Really, because if deer are well managed, surely there’s no need to shoot them all year round? Why is it laughable? Seasons are there for a reason, globally. The fact that in the U.K. we are so desperate to reduce numbers we resort to unethical shooting practices in and out of season, day or night, IMHO means that the people doing the job are simply not up to the task or doing what they need to do when they need to do it! There are MANY local and very skilled stalkers who could do everything needed to adhere to daytime stalking and in season shooting, but they can’t afford it, so the chap 150 miles away gets the stalking and comes up once every couple of months - that’s, the issue.

There are so many stalkers locally to farms, looking for ground to do a good job on, but they never get a chance, and the outcome is…..open season day and night.

It’s like British politics, looking for ways to quick fix a problem without addressing the root cause and making changes that will create sustainable solutions.

Whats unethical about shooting heavily pregant does or night shooting?

 

[HonestJohn]

Whats unethical about shooting heavily pregant does or night shooting?

You should think about that

 

[arron]

I'd much rather shoot a heavily pregnant doe/hind than shoot them to early in the doe/hind season , at least all are accounted for

 

[shakey jake]

You should think about that

I have, i dont get your point, muntjac we are encouraged to shoot whilst preg. Is that allways unethical?
Foxes we shoot at night is that unethical?
Rabbits not many care is that unethical?