The neighbours ram?
Lambs stinking of fox
- Thread starter Brittany boy
- Start date
The neighbours ram?
BenBhoy
Well-Known Member
Ha rude!!
Having worked on hill estates and lowland (Cotswolds and Warwks) I have seen plenty of lamb predation. Ravens and Lesser blackbacks are murder on lambs in both cases, eyes, tongues, navels, you name it.
Hill ground, blackface sheep not quite so bad lambing out on the hill, losses to foxes not so bad.But I did run over a hundred snares on the boundary and still shot the odd lamb killers (usually a pair). Twin scanned ewes were normally bought to in bye fields and trouble there increased with low ground foxes making consecutive efforts and causing me sleepless nights.
On lowland estates it was more badgers or determined foxes when ewes were down lambing a second, again usually a pair working together. Badgers creating havoc as per the photo shown on here, faces bitten off.
Yes there are many other causes of lamb loss. But Tim both foxes and badgers together with the Avians mentioned are responsible for many deaths, even with the best shepherding and keepers watching their flocks by night.
Hill ground, blackface sheep not quite so bad lambing out on the hill, losses to foxes not so bad.But I did run over a hundred snares on the boundary and still shot the odd lamb killers (usually a pair). Twin scanned ewes were normally bought to in bye fields and trouble there increased with low ground foxes making consecutive efforts and causing me sleepless nights.
On lowland estates it was more badgers or determined foxes when ewes were down lambing a second, again usually a pair working together. Badgers creating havoc as per the photo shown on here, faces bitten off.
Yes there are many other causes of lamb loss. But Tim both foxes and badgers together with the Avians mentioned are responsible for many deaths, even with the best shepherding and keepers watching their flocks by night.
Quite interesting reading and everybody does fox control different , my first question is to the farmer is how many have you lost - had 1 women say to me last week 1 
then it’s are you sure the lamb hasnt just died and the fox has picked it up - she was sure it was strong and healthy and had smelt a dog next to the gully below the field . I went straight up that night before dark and watched the gully and sure as -here comes the dog through the open gate .. pishes twice - walks past all the lambs with his head in the air as if he’s not interested so I held back from killing him - he trotted onto the hill and I watched him for 1/2 mile on a mission to somewhere else . I watched him last night come of the hill through the lambs and disappear into the gully and nothing in his chops so again I let him go . This might not be everybody’s way but if he ain’t killing I ain’t shooting him just yet as I had a learning curve years ago when I shot the dog and the couldn’t get the vixen because of the cover and she went on to create havoc with the young lambs . The women is trusting me but it’s on my head 
. It could be a fox from further afield taking a chance . Any real killers and I’ve shot hundreds usually come straight in circling every ewe to look for a weak one or a sleeper and your instinct kicks in and it gets the bullet . 
The women only has another 20 to lamb out of hundreds so losing just 1 ain’t bad . Last year in the same field I shot 6 coming straight in and hounding the ewes . This one this year might be killing somewhere else and not bothering on his turf 
so he’s wise . And on a lighter happy note my pup is carrying all dead foxes out of the fields for me without begging him and I think would eat them if he could .. he’s stinking at the moment
then it’s are you sure the lamb hasnt just died and the fox has picked it up - she was sure it was strong and healthy and had smelt a dog next to the gully below the field . I went straight up that night before dark and watched the gully and sure as -here comes the dog through the open gate .. pishes twice - walks past all the lambs with his head in the air as if he’s not interested so I held back from killing him - he trotted onto the hill and I watched him for 1/2 mile on a mission to somewhere else . I watched him last night come of the hill through the lambs and disappear into the gully and nothing in his chops so again I let him go . This might not be everybody’s way but if he ain’t killing I ain’t shooting him just yet as I had a learning curve years ago when I shot the dog and the couldn’t get the vixen because of the cover and she went on to create havoc with the young lambs . The women is trusting me but it’s on my head . It could be a fox from further afield taking a chance . Any real killers and I’ve shot hundreds usually come straight in circling every ewe to look for a weak one or a sleeper and your instinct kicks in and it gets the bullet . The women only has another 20 to lamb out of hundreds so losing just 1 ain’t bad . Last year in the same field I shot 6 coming straight in and hounding the ewes . This one this year might be killing somewhere else and not bothering on his turf so he’s wise . And on a lighter happy note my pup is carrying all dead foxes out of the fields for me without begging him and I think would eat them if he could .. he’s stinking at the momentAttachments
Blue texel cross lamb out of a Welsh ewe, perhaps?
I should have spotted that from the ears
Must be feeling a bit dull right now. Just finished shearing the tups, so I reckon I'm entitled to feel dull!How's that late lambing group getting on? Presumably all lambing outdoors?
My late group are doing OK outdoors. I'm lambing them in the most fox infested field on the farm.
(Not that I'm trying to prove a point or anything, you understand....
).Yes, I suppose I should, otherwise there's a very real chance I'll end up sounding like that chap who's always banging on about the perceived risks of lead ammoPut the bloody bone down Tim FFS...
(Not easy, is it?)
Anyway, lambing going along nicely. No casualties.
Smellydog
Well-Known Member
Very true, guess we all have a favourite bone...Yes, I suppose I should, otherwise there's a very real chance I'll end up sounding like that chap who's always banging on about the perceived risks of lead ammo
(Not easy, is it?)
Anyway, lambing going along nicely. No casualties.
I'm ok with the lead thing now. I'm resigned similarly to you buddy. You can't educate pork.
I'll just carry on carrying on and let them think and do as they like.
I posted a picture on here years ago of a fox shot with a lamb in its mouth, this was on a farm park in Hampshire, the lamb and ewe having just been put in the paddock less than a hour before, the lamb being over a day old, we would lose goat kids overnight in lambing pens, perfectly healthy kids, this was in a very urban area, lots of town foxes, when I was lambing in the new forest indoors , we never lost lambs to foxes, but badgers would come into the lambing sheds at night and try there luck.
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