Muddy
Super member
A lamb was killed by a fox recently at what is usually a rabbit permission for me on a small farm. The owner had shot one but said there were several around and was concerned that he'd lose more lambs to them. Rabbiting is suspended for several weeks now so I offered to bring the 22-250 over as soon as I could, and we agreed on last night.
During the afternoon I prepared a FAC air rifle (Ghost .25) for rabbiting at another permission first and the 22-250 for foxes at the farm. My rabbiting kit is fairly standard, as is the activity, but for the foxing, I wanted to plan more carefully.
First, I looked at the weather forecast, wind direction, and moonset time and direction, bwfore spending time looking at an online OS map and satellite view of the area. This I consider essential because it is only a small farm with a few people living on it in various properties and I wanted to work out where, given what I had been told about fox sightings, I needed to position myself to be both effective and more importantly, safe. There is also an adjacent farm with large sheds, a lane that runs along one sid of the property, and residential areas no great distance away through some thick woods. Between the thick woods and the next farms shed site, there is an area of open heathland feom where the foxes had been spotted coming through the fencing. Keeping all tgis in mind, I worked out precisely where I wanted to set up for the night as well as how I would get there from my car - there would be a few electric fences to cross.
Next, I checked over the rifle and ammunition (V-Max 55gr), IR sight (Alpex 4k with 850nm IR illuminator), callers (a mouth caller and an ICOtec 300), thermal spotter, tripod, red light LED torch, and a small backpack into which I also put some sandwiches, water and coffee because I knew it would be a long night. I also packed the disposable gloves because I really do not like the smell of fox on my hands and knew I'd have to drag off any I managed to get to an agreed dumping area. And then I had a power-snooze before setting out to arrive at the rabbiting permission for 8.00pm.
After removing a few rabbits at the first permission, I arrived at the farm for 10.00pm, parked near the house (no other option) and started to kit up. The temperature had dropped in the past hour or so from 23 degrees to 17, so I put on a fleece under my smock and dug out my beanie. With rifle, backpack,
Moving as I quietly as I could, I walked off to the location I'd decided on earlier which was opposite the fence between the farm and the open heathland. Also, it was no great distance to the fence line, about 80m. From looking at the map and satellite view earlier, I knew what my safe arc was and the directions I would and would not be able to shoot.
Leaving the tripod and backpack where they were, I walked towards the fence line and placed the ICOtec speaker a few metres in front of it. I also scattered around a few dog biscuits - I'd read that foxes love them and it slows them down when they search around to find them in the grass. Back in position, the rifle went on the tripod and the waiting started. By now it was nearly 11.00pm
Nothing, other than rabbits - and the sound of life and death struggles in the surrounding area with muntjac calling, owls screeching and shooting and the occasional pitiful sound of something becoming something else's dinner. Oh, and a party with questionable music coming threoigh the woods from the residential area.
Following a routine of using the remote to play a burst of rabbity distress over the ICOtec at intervals of 10-15 minutes and scanning with the thermal, the first fox appeared; a small one. It was interesting to watch it trying to pounce on a few rabbits as it drew closer to the speaker. Equally interesting was the way the rabbits calmly evaded the attacks and continued nibbling down on the grass. Just as calmly, the fox completely ignored the fragrant doggie treats I'd diligently scattered about the area earlier. Teasing it in closer to the speaker with the remote, I took aim and with a disruptively loud report reverberaring across the area, dropped it at about midnight ... and had a sandwich before starting over.
The next fox could be seen coming in from the heathland. It was slightly larger than the first and, possibly because it was a bit more mature, more cautious. When it stopped in front of a stump on the fence line to assess the situation, I took a shot and down it went too.
It was now approaching 1.00am and I still had to pack up and collect the foxes before dragging them a few hundred metres to the agreed dump site, so I called it a night. With everything done and dusted, I headed home satisfied that although young and not yet a threat to the lambs, prevention had been better than cure: prophylaxis.
During the afternoon I prepared a FAC air rifle (Ghost .25) for rabbiting at another permission first and the 22-250 for foxes at the farm. My rabbiting kit is fairly standard, as is the activity, but for the foxing, I wanted to plan more carefully.
First, I looked at the weather forecast, wind direction, and moonset time and direction, bwfore spending time looking at an online OS map and satellite view of the area. This I consider essential because it is only a small farm with a few people living on it in various properties and I wanted to work out where, given what I had been told about fox sightings, I needed to position myself to be both effective and more importantly, safe. There is also an adjacent farm with large sheds, a lane that runs along one sid of the property, and residential areas no great distance away through some thick woods. Between the thick woods and the next farms shed site, there is an area of open heathland feom where the foxes had been spotted coming through the fencing. Keeping all tgis in mind, I worked out precisely where I wanted to set up for the night as well as how I would get there from my car - there would be a few electric fences to cross.
Next, I checked over the rifle and ammunition (V-Max 55gr), IR sight (Alpex 4k with 850nm IR illuminator), callers (a mouth caller and an ICOtec 300), thermal spotter, tripod, red light LED torch, and a small backpack into which I also put some sandwiches, water and coffee because I knew it would be a long night. I also packed the disposable gloves because I really do not like the smell of fox on my hands and knew I'd have to drag off any I managed to get to an agreed dumping area. And then I had a power-snooze before setting out to arrive at the rabbiting permission for 8.00pm.
After removing a few rabbits at the first permission, I arrived at the farm for 10.00pm, parked near the house (no other option) and started to kit up. The temperature had dropped in the past hour or so from 23 degrees to 17, so I put on a fleece under my smock and dug out my beanie. With rifle, backpack,
Moving as I quietly as I could, I walked off to the location I'd decided on earlier which was opposite the fence between the farm and the open heathland. Also, it was no great distance to the fence line, about 80m. From looking at the map and satellite view earlier, I knew what my safe arc was and the directions I would and would not be able to shoot.
Leaving the tripod and backpack where they were, I walked towards the fence line and placed the ICOtec speaker a few metres in front of it. I also scattered around a few dog biscuits - I'd read that foxes love them and it slows them down when they search around to find them in the grass. Back in position, the rifle went on the tripod and the waiting started. By now it was nearly 11.00pm
Nothing, other than rabbits - and the sound of life and death struggles in the surrounding area with muntjac calling, owls screeching and shooting and the occasional pitiful sound of something becoming something else's dinner. Oh, and a party with questionable music coming threoigh the woods from the residential area.
Following a routine of using the remote to play a burst of rabbity distress over the ICOtec at intervals of 10-15 minutes and scanning with the thermal, the first fox appeared; a small one. It was interesting to watch it trying to pounce on a few rabbits as it drew closer to the speaker. Equally interesting was the way the rabbits calmly evaded the attacks and continued nibbling down on the grass. Just as calmly, the fox completely ignored the fragrant doggie treats I'd diligently scattered about the area earlier. Teasing it in closer to the speaker with the remote, I took aim and with a disruptively loud report reverberaring across the area, dropped it at about midnight ... and had a sandwich before starting over.
The next fox could be seen coming in from the heathland. It was slightly larger than the first and, possibly because it was a bit more mature, more cautious. When it stopped in front of a stump on the fence line to assess the situation, I took a shot and down it went too.
It was now approaching 1.00am and I still had to pack up and collect the foxes before dragging them a few hundred metres to the agreed dump site, so I called it a night. With everything done and dusted, I headed home satisfied that although young and not yet a threat to the lambs, prevention had been better than cure: prophylaxis.
Last edited:
