72 SPORTING GUN M AY 2019 http://www.shootinguk.co.uk
RABBITS
Don’t run
if arisk
Oneofmylurcherswasinjuredwhile
rabbitingatnightbecauseheraninto
a pieceoffarmmachineryleftina
fi eld. Is there any way I can avoid this?
Edsays:It ’salwaysworthchecking
anareaindaylightbeforeyoulamp
ittoavoiddangerspots.Thatsaid,
accidentsdohappenandeventothe
mostcarefuloffolk.I’veseenafew
accidentsovertheyears,including
adogrunningarabbitoffacliff.
ThankfullythedogwasOK.Norabbit
isworthriskingadog for. If in doubt,
don’t run the dog.
VERMIN
Spring a surprise for crows
Arecrowsdecoyshyinspring?I find
itdifficulttogetthemtocommitthen
whenthereareonlyoldbirdsabout.
I havenoissueinthesummerand
wonder if I need to change tactics?
Tomsays:Itistruethatcrowscan
behardertodecoyinspring.Allthe
birdshavebeenaroundforatleasta
yearandcanbe‘streetwise’.I would
recommend that you look at your
set-up.Eveneducatedcrowsshould
stilldecoyifitiswelldone.Ensure
thatyouhavea goodhideandyouare
keepingmovementtoa minimum.
Crowsusuallyhavea longandsteady
approach,givingthemplentyoftime
tospotsomethingoutofplace;so
trytomakethingslookasnaturalas
possible.Itisoftenworthditching
magnetsandflappersthatsomebirds
may have encountered in the past.
NICK
RIDLEY,
STEVE
TAYLOR,
SYKES
MEDIA,
AL AMY
GUNDOGS
Pigeons are
not fancied
Ihavebeenroostshootingwithmyyoung
dogbutheisreluctanttopickupthe
freshlyshotpigeons. What can I do to
encourage him?
Grahamsays:Woodpigeonshavevery
softfeathersanda youngdogcanfindit
off-putting.If yourtraininghasbeensound,
plentyofencouragementwillnormally
ensurethatthedogmakesa cleanretrieve.
Itisalsoa goodideatoremoveasmany
feathersaspossiblefromthedog’smouth
once you have taken the bird from them.
Crowscanbeattuned
todangeriftheyhave
been around for a while
Pigeonsfeatherscanget
stuckinadog’smouth,so
it is best to remove them
Ifpossible,itisworth
doinga‘reccy ’ofwhere
you intend to lamp