Foxes, Shooting Ethics & Shot Placement
One of the thing that I most enjoy about this blogging lark isn’t the desperate midnight incantations to the heavenly muse for the inspiration to come up with the next day’s content – it is in fact the comments that so many of you ladies & gentlemen have had cause to leave over what is now just short of five years. At the last count, there have been a total of 12,501 as I type this. They range from the amusing, through the knowledgeable, to at the other end of the spectrum, quite a few death threats ... which if left with an email address that works, receive a very personalised response. The best comments of all are the ones that develop into a short form of debate between people that actually know what they are talking about - & that is why I tend to stay out of such exchanges because in any battle of wits, I am the unarmed man. Yesterday’s post about fox shooting & shot placement is an excellent example of this & in the vainglorious attempt to fill the page this morning, I thought that we would pick up on a couple of issues that it raised.
First off, why do I do the whole dead fox thing? Well that dates back to the urbanite Nu Labours Hunting Ban & the original point that I sought to make was that that particular piece of pernicious legislation wouldn’t save a single fox which incidentally it hasn’t. In fact the immediate effect of the bill was that landowners asked us shooters to eradicate fox populations that had previously been tolerated. Happy days but not if you are a fox. Anyway it started there & as a topic has been running on a stop/start basis ever since. My only sadness is that these days work commitments mean that I simply don’t that the time to get out after the red dogs as often as I would like. Oh yes, I forgot to mention I also post pictures of dead foxes because it reduces the anti hunting brigade to a state of electronic incandescence – hence the source of a lot of the death threats that I receive
That aside, when I am after live quarry, there are only three sorts that I will shoot. Firstly & most importantly I will shot an animal that is in distress to alleviate further suffering. Earlier this year I shot a roe deer with only three legs. She was in a really bad way probably as a result of being hit by a car. Although we were out looking for a half decent buck, that was immediately forgotten & our imperative was to prevent the poor animal having to suffer further. In the real countryside there is no Rolf’s Animal Hospital.
Secondly, I shoot vermin to protect crops (i.e. a farmers livelihood) or in the case of say rats, for hygiene reasons. In this instance the ‘sporting bar’ is considerably lowered – you are there to do a job of work as quickly & efficiently as possible. When it comes to clearing vermin there are no bag limits. That doesn’t however mean that you are cavalier about what you are doing. It pains me to have to report that Boy is currently under a shooting suspension. The other weekend he wounded a rabbit in the top paddock & made no attempt to go after it to finish it off. As a result, his air rifle has been locked away & it will be some time before he sees it again. It doesn’t matter what you are shooting at, you wound an animal, you use your best endeavours to finish it off. No exceptions to that rule are tolerated at FM Towers.
Lastly, I shoot for the pot. It doesn’t have to be my pot, but whatever (game) is killed if it doesn’t go home with me has to go to the game dealer. Now I will qualify that a little further with this distressing tale that I was told this week. Three chaps that I know quite well went duck shooting recently. They were in fact shooting reared duck. Of the approximately 750 that had been reared on the lake, they shot several hundred over the course of the evening. As anyone who has shot reared duck knows, they often don’t present the most challenging shooting & accordingly, when I am shooting them, I might take, at most, maybe 3 or 4: enough for my table. If I want to blaze through hundreds of cartridges I go to the clay range. I have no desire to waste ammunition on unsporting fowl.
OK, so having rabbited on (forgive the pun) let us turn our attention to cunning old Charlie that classified a vermin or if you hark from the left hand side of the pond, a varmint. If a farmer has asked me to clear some land I usually lamp them at night. It is a job of work & it is by far the most efficient way to getting the task done. However, I much prefer what I believe to be a far more sporting bet.
Normally you will only see foxes in those last few fleeting moments of daylight. So the bet that I like to make is using my knowledge of where foxy loxy will be in say the last 15 minutes of shootable light & try to take it from a fixed position. If that means many fruitless outings, so be it – my fieldcraft needs to be better. However if my judgement turns out to be right, then I have a high velocity edge over the animal in question
The other advantage to taking foxes like this is because I have taken my time to set up my position, gauge ranges & get settled down, my chances of getting a fast clean kill are much better than an unprepared snatched shot & that brings me on to the final point that I would like to touch upon this morning & that is point of aim/shot placement & for this point we will stick with foxes.
Until this year, I have used my Remington 700 chambered in .308 for fox control. The only expanding ammunition that I use in it is Federal 150 grain Power Shoks. I use those for everything because not only does that rifle shoot sub-MOA with them, but having used them for 5 years or so, I am reasonable good at judging any hold over corrections that I need to make.
When it comes to point of aim on Charlie, I put the cross hairs right in the middle of the largest part of the animal that I can see – that sort of bullet weight hitting a fox sized animal has devastating effects. When it comes to shot placement I am minded to recall the old pilots’ adage which goes along the lines of a superior pilot uses his superior knowledge & judgement to avoid situations that might require use of his superior skill. I am actually probably a slightly better shot than I give myself credit for but I try to maximise my chances of getting a happy ending by always taking the easiest shot available. I am not a fan of head shots but only because they reduce my margin for error. What other do is entirely their own business & as long as it doesn’t result in a wounded animal frankly, I don’t care. It is my limitations as a rifleman that I am concerned about, not others superior skill.
Right, enough of all of that – if only the police would send me back my new firearms certificate, I am currently gripped with the urge to go & visit one of the many dealers I frequent & indulge my Compulsive Firearms Purchasing Disorder.
Comments
Nicely put sir nicely put!
Posted by: ajdshootist | September 18, 2009 8:37 AM
*Clap clap clap*
Posted by: pdwalker | September 18, 2009 10:11 AM
And that, dear readers, is how you silence any shortsighted critics!
Good job!
Posted by: Tikkietegek | September 18, 2009 11:35 AM
What would be humane sense would be to have a good dog to get any wounded fox to save the pain and suffering(are you reading ignorant asshole lefties??)
I love this site, as a reformed ex townie I say you are usually correct, how about the job of PM?? good campaign motto "FM for PM!!
Posted by: chris edwards | September 18, 2009 12:12 PM
It is nothing to do with me nor anybody else how you choose to pass your time and nobody is forced to come here and read...case closed.
Posted by: thud | September 18, 2009 6:39 PM
What an eloquently crafted statement - a compelling read, thank you.
Posted by: John | September 18, 2009 7:20 PM
If humanity ever becomes classed as vermin(yes several subspecies could classify already:-see posts passin!)I know I would rather have instantaneous suprise death than being chased by hounds for several miles and then torn to pieces.I've lived most of my life in the no-mans land on the edge of the town with urban sprawl on one side and the open countryside on the other.Despite this or maybe because of this,I understand "how" things are done "in the green"and why!. I'll lay odds that most of the complaints come from town dwelling bunny huggers or worst of all ,townys that have moved to the countryside "to be closer to mother nature".Some of these people see fit to try and force their point of view upon a way of life that has existed for hundreds if not thousands of years.I know that no matter what, there will always be some one to have a bitch about the "way things are done in the countryside"but some people need an education and thats what they can get from this wonderful blog!Good job Mr FM keep up that good work!.
Posted by: justin | September 18, 2009 8:26 PM
If humanity ever becomes classed as vermin(yes several subspecies could classify already:-see posts passin!)I know I would rather have instantaneous suprise death than being chased by hounds for several miles and then torn to pieces.I've lived most of my life in the no-mans land on the edge of the town with urban sprawl on one side and the open countryside on the other.Despite this or maybe because of this,I understand "how" things are done "in the green"and why!. I'll lay odds that most of the complaints come from town dwelling bunny huggers or worst of all ,townys that have moved to the countryside "to be closer to mother nature".Some of these people see fit to try and force their point of view upon a way of life that has existed for hundreds if not thousands of years.I know that no matter what, there will always be some one to have a bitch about the "way things are done in the countryside"but some people need an education and thats what they can get from this wonderful blog!Good job Mr FM keep up that good work!.
Posted by: justin | September 18, 2009 8:27 PM
Justin,
I would suggest that your preferences have no weight in this discussion. (In point of fact, if you had your "choice" of being hunted by a bunch of riders, or by Mr. FM and his trusty Rem 700, you'd have a better chance of survival at the hands of the riders. With Mr. FM in a settled shooting position, you'd never know what hit you.)
Simple fact is that foxes are pests (as are many other "cuddly" species like rabbits), and their depiction as cute by Walt Disney et al. has probably done them more harm than good. Unchecked, their population expands until death comes not quickly by hunting, but slowly and agonizingly by starvation.
The anti-hunting people are Puritans at heart -- a "Puritan" being one who despises bear-baiting not for the death of the bear, but for the pleasure derived by the spectators.
If the vermin are to be kept in check, what does it matter whether the execution thereof is simple butchery or by hunting? Death is death, and people like you need to grow up and learn to accept that simple fact.
Posted by: Kim du Toit | September 18, 2009 10:18 PM
But back to the main topic at hand: the worst non-lethal wounds I've ever come across were from attempted head shots. I've seen missing lower jaws, missing upper jaws, gaping holes in the neck, a broken neck (with the animal still walking around but unable to feed) and other such wounds which I'd rather not list as they upset me still.
I appreciate all the comments in this post and the one below about head shots being taken only in cases of direst need, but I have to tell you all: my days of taking head shots are OVER (on animals, anyway; humans are another thing altogether).
I'd rather not take a shot than risk a chancy, and painful, near miss at a small, moving target like a beastie's head.
My opinion only: others may vary, void where prohibited.
Posted by: Kim du Toit | September 18, 2009 10:29 PM
I blame Walt Disney, once you humanize vermin, the plot is lost,.
John.
Posted by: John | September 19, 2009 12:09 AM
You need to import some coyotes. They'd go for the easy pickings in the suburbs, cats, puppies, and toddlers. Thus the populace might get the idea of the need for predator control.
Posted by: toad | September 19, 2009 9:38 AM
Interesting point John. If you were to look up who translated "Bambi" from a full-blooded, warts&all German novel of woods life, into the mamby-pamby Bambi that's inspired generations to squat to pee, you'd find it was a world-famous communist agent. How about that.
Posted by: comatus | September 19, 2009 3:43 PM
Actually, as I recall in the original Austrian tale, Bambi kills his father to get "top stag" position. Not exactly yer Walt Disney ending...
Posted by: Kim du Toit | September 19, 2009 8:26 PM
Actually, as I recall in the original Austrian tale, Bambi kills his father to get "top stag" position. Not exactly yer Walt Disney ending...
Posted by: Kim du Toit | September 19, 2009 8:26 PM
Actually, Justin,
if I were a fox , and I HAD to die, I'd also prefer to be farting around deciding whose chickens I'd nibble on that evening and then have one of Mt FM's 180 grainers whistle though my grey matter than be chased to death and torn apart by dogs.
But that's only if I HAD to die ... ;-)
Posted by: msr7x57 | September 20, 2009 2:26 PM