Driven foxes - maximum range?

[kevtherev]

Evening folks,

Question for the more experienced - having never had the opportunity present before.

Estate has a strict no ground game policy. Foxes aren't classed as game, and so good shooters are expected to take a shot at them if the present a safe target. Underkeeper does a good job on the predator control though, so in 3 years of shooting on the estate, and 2 years of loading there, today was the first (live) fox I've seen on a drive.

Was out loading today. 4th drive, Basil Brush presented a very unsafe shot (skylining on a pseudo-ridge with heavy foliage in between as well), and so I declined to take the gun from my guest and shoot the bugger.

It did get me thinking though what range I would have felt comfortable that I would actually be killing Mr , and not just wounding him. We had 30g 5s, and the range would have been 25-30yds? I would like to think if I had shot a rabbit or a hare at that distance it would have connected with good result. Would the same be said if the fox had been shootable?

Cheers,
Chris

Foxes and pheasant or any other driven game days don’t mix.
Shot and loads generally aren’t heavy enough.
Never gone after foxes with anything other than BB or No3 shot and plenty of it.
3inch mag with heavy goose loads I’ve shot foxes out to a max of about 70 yards and killed them cleanly.

 

[Greenmist]

That is rubbish jall,at least here the mix is fine. Nearly every rural community has driven days for foxes just about every weekend without problems.

We used "twos" when doing dens with terriers for close shooting and they were very good on running foxes at forty yards too. Many here uses 'BB`s' but we found that they often rolled in the fur once the range was extended somewhat. One will shoot at a fox much further especially if there is a staghound soon to be blowing wind up its arse. One must remember that the string of shot when delivered will have some pellets enter behind the shoulder when the foreleg is forward opening up the softer skin behind,direct into the heart /lungs....crumple. Far easier are running kills than standing as the shoulder can absorb what behind the shoulder cannot. Foxes coming straight at the gun also due to their face shape can at times ski the pellets over their back. Note italics ffs.

Fox drives and driven game days are very different things

 

[kevtherev]

Best to have the fox broadside to you as well had them coming straight at you and taken two shots to do the job as opposed to one broadside.

 

[John Gryphon]

Fox drives and driven game days are very different things

yes,that was established many replies ago.

 

[Pedro]

Shooting at a fox with bird shot isn't something I'd be happy doing normally. I think it'd have to be pretty darned close to produce a humane shot and a fox wouldn't get that close normally. On another note one day my son, who was beating with his fox red lab had a narrow escape when the dog was, for a split second identified as a fox.

 

[bobo]

Fox drives and driven game days are very different things

It's lucky we don't know this, it's been practiced here for over 100 years.

Before 1994 when lead was allowed, the maximum shot size was 3 (3.5mm) for any kind of hunting. Since 1994 when we were forced to use steel shot, the maximum shot size is 1 (4mm).

No one here I've ever met uses 4mm steel shot for anything other than geese and eiders.
Both fox and roe deer fall perfectly dead for 3-3.5mm. Which is therefore used for all kinds of bird game on driven hunting when there are fox/roe deer in the area.

In February, traditional driven hunts with shotguns are held in many places, where foxes are the main target.
Shooters who have shot a fox are honored, and shooters who have missed a fox are mocked in front of all other hunting participants.

 

[jammygunner]

Would be quite happy to shoot foxes sideways on with the load mentioned and have done so. Might add mainly when unexpected encounters and sometimes with smaller shot at shorter distances. Organised fox drives a totally different thing and would be using heavier loads.

 

[dryan]

We have regular driven fox shoots outside the game season- 35yards with BB is about the standard. I’ve shot them at 20 and dropped nicely.

Prefer using a rifle though at night as our driven fox shoots last for about 5 hours on a Sunday, have other commitments on Sundays usually.