Don't get mad...

...get even. Some little scrote got a catapult for Christmas - and is now driving round the neighbourhood in the early hours of the morning firing stones through people's car windscreens.

Along with several of our neighbours, my wife's car had its rear screen shot through last night. Autoglass - the people who offer a 24/7 emergency service - can't possibly do anything about it until Tuesday. And Tesco insurance, who are never backwards in upping the premium, cheerfully inform us that there will be a £75 excess to pay - after half an hour hanging on the 0845 line being reminded how very important our call is to them.

The cops were more interested in any possible racial implications - what colour were we, did we think there might be a racial motive. Still, they filled in the forms very comprehensively with my wife's job title and date of birth. Cos that'll help. And our details will be passed to Victim Support. I expect they'll write her a nice letter. If only they put that much effort into patrolling the streets...

Anyhow, in the absence of any constructive help from the people funded by my taxes, I thought perhaps I could apply a bit of specialist shooting knowledge to the problem. After all, a couple of lowlifes in a hot hatch can't be so different from a marauding fox.

Don't panic, I'm not reaching for the .243, tempting though it might be. But I have set up the Deben ProStalk trail camera overlooking the front of the house.

And I'm wondering where best to wait up - in the bedroom overlooking the street (where it will be nice and warm), or in a vehicle down the road, where I'll get a better view of their numberplate.

Lovely day for it!

Lovely day for it!, originally uploaded by Nico.....

I love this pic by Nico Morgan (found on his Flickr pages) - it pretty much sums up this shooting season for me!

Cold weather: shooting ban in Scotland

Christmas Day, originally uploaded by nz_willowherb.

With continuing harsh weather, BASC is calling for all shooters in Scotland to exercise 'extra voluntary restraint' in their shooting of ducks, geese and waders including woodcock, snipe and reared mallard.

If the weather conditions persist until the New Year in Scotland then it is possible that a decision will be taken by the Government to impose a statutory suspension of waterfowl shooting which would last for up to 14 days.

All of which means that my planned wildfowling trip to NE Scotland in the new year is looking less and less likely to happen. Which will be bad news for the local pigeons and foxes.

UPDATE, Thurs 31 Dec: 

Today (31 Dec) was day 11 in the countdown to a severe weather suspension of the shooting of ducks, geese and waders in Scotland. The hard weather is expected to persist and if it does the Minister will sign the Order on Saturday 2 Jan, coming into effect on Monday the 4 Jan at 09.00.
The ban will affect the shooting of all ducks (including reared ducks), geese and waders (including snipe and woodcock) and will be signed for 14 days. However, there will be a review after 7 days and if mild weather has arrived it could then be lifted.

UPDATE, Sun 3 Jan: 

Today the environment minister Roseanna Cunningham signed the order, which brings a suspension into force on Tuesday 5 Januar. The suspension last up to two weeks, but is reviewed after seven days if conditions have improved.

This is the first cold weather suspension since January 1997, when the order covered the whole of Great Britain. The last time such a ban was enforced in Scotland alone was in 1993.

More details on the BASC website here »

Cute puppy photos

 

 

I've been making the most of the sunshine, and a couple of spare hours, to shoot some of the obligatory cute puppy photos. Bracken is 12 weeks now, and if I don't get on with it she'll be a big hulking brute and I'll have missed the chance! More photos in my collection on Flickr here...

Stolen cocker spaniel

I've been psychoanalysed by an anti

I woudn't normally suggest you go and read anything from the League Against Cruel Sports. But the latest confused ramblings from their chief fruitloop, Douglas Batchelor, are worth a look, if only for a glimpse into the sort of poisoned mind that can look at a day's shooting and see perversion and cruelty.

As an example of cod psychology, it's a classic. To summarise several hundred words, he says: i) I don't understand what people see in hunting and shooting, ii) Therefore they must be very sick, and so iii) They should be banned.

Along the way he denies the antis' favourite criticism that shooters and hunters are posh (has he told Animal Aid? They're still plugging that one). He tries to imply that we're perverts with an unhealthy interest in 'dominance' (dread to think how his mind arrived at that one). And he suggests that encouraging young people to take up our sport will turn them into mass murderers.

It's so obviously bonkers and irrelevant that I'm amazed anyone takes him seriously. Unfortunately for the BBC, they're supposed to show 'balance', which occasionally means finding someone to put the antis' case - and they're not exactly spoilt for choice.

Shooting ourselves in the foot

Two phone calls this afternoon have highlighted the fact that some shooters don't do themselves - or the rest of us - any favours.

The first was from a council employee in Leeds, who had shot from a nearby pheasant shoot rain down around him as he worked. He was the most reasonable bloke imaginable, but understandably concerned and wanted to know the legal position. I suggested the best bet was a quiet word with the shoot captain, but apparently local residents have complained before and got nowhere.

The second was from an RSPB worker in Northern Ireland. A while back I emailed him asking about the latest report of a poisoned red kite. Was he sure shooters were involved, I asked. After all, there are other people who might have cause to put down poison. But no, it seems he generally finds shooters and gamekeepers very helpful - but in this case the keeper is an oldfashioned sort who sees buzzards and kites as his enemies.

It only takes a few people like this to undo years of good work by the rest of us. The frustrating thing is, it's not our job to police them, we don't have the powers to do so - and yet we're the ones whose names get dragged through the dirt.