Gun for Foxes??

Stinicker

Was with my father down on the farm tonight and had to round up all the sheep and put them in pens as foxes have killed a lot of lambs in the last two days. I have all the missuses solar lights from the gardens positioned around the fields and a few radios switched on in the hope of keeping them away. My father only has a shotgun which is useless for a fox unless at close range.

The decision was made tonight to buy a rifle to kill foxes as over €1000 in losses has been incurred from lost lamb sales.

Can anyone recommend a good gun that will kill foxes easily, Ideally it must have a good range and be accurate. We would also need a good set of scope sights to be able to pick off the fox from a good distance.

Something like this looks good but I think a stronger calibre may be needed. We would also need the lamp that fits onto the gun for shooting by night.

I am not really into hunting or shooting and have only shot the fathers shotgun at rabbits on the homefarm and at tin cans. It is more a case of vermin control than hunting I think but I'll be damned if I see the efforts of a hard winters feeding sheep with the father be destroyed by a few foxes.

What else is needed like gunsafes and alarms etc and licensing?

jwshooter

where are u from . it will take untill next lambing season to get one .

FISMA

Here's the rifle
http://www.remington.com/products/firearms/centerfire/model-700/model-700-sps.aspx

and here's the scope
http://burrisoptics.com/fullfield1.html#65x20x

dCorbus

Some of the lads on here may be more than willing to help you out.
As jwshooter said, you'd probably lose the flock before your own purchase and licence came through. And then you'd still have to practice using the rifle to make sure you could do the job right.

Maybe, some lads might volunteer their vermin culling services to you.

Best of luck with whatever approach you take - You have my sympathy, no-one likes to see hard work and effort going down the tubes.

Tackleberrywho

Stinicker wrote: »

Was with my father down on the farm tonight and had to round up all the sheep and put them in pens as foxes have killed a lot of lambs in the last two days. I have all the missuses solar lights from the gardens positioned around the fields and a few radios switched on in the hope of keeping them away. My father only has a shotgun which is useless for a fox unless at close range.

The decision was made tonight to buy a rifle to kill foxes as over €1000 in losses has been incurred from lost lamb sales.

Can anyone recommend a good gun that will kill foxes easily, Ideally it must have a good range and be accurate. We would also need a good set of scope sights to be able to pick off the fox from a good distance.

Something like this looks good but I think a stronger calibre may be needed. We would also need the lamp that fits onto the gun for shooting by night.

I am not really into hunting or shooting and have only shot the fathers shotgun at rabbits on the homefarm and at tin cans. It is more a case of vermin control than hunting I think but I'll be damned if I see the efforts of a hard winters feeding sheep with the father be destroyed by a few foxes.

What else is needed like gunsafes and alarms etc and licensing?

Any of the .17 brigade ~150 yard mark +/-
Or .204 .222 .223 up to 300 yards
.22Mag .22 Hornet. somewhere in between.

The Remington is My personal fav for the money.
Scope. 5.5-20 or so mag will do low light and long range during the day.

And good caller. A piece of aeroboard spat on and rubbed on glass sounds like a rabbit being eaten!

Tackleberrywho

dCorbus wrote: »

Some of the lads on here may be more than willing to help you out.
As jwshooter said, you'd probably lose the flock before your own purchase and licence came through. And then you'd still have to practice using the rifle to make sure you could do the job right.

Maybe, some lads might volunteer their vermin culling services to you.

Best of luck with whatever approach you take - You have my sympathy, no-one likes to see hard work and effort going down the tubes.

Give a rough area of where you live and guys might Volunteer to do some vermin control

Stinicker

Tackleberrywho wrote: »

Give a rough area of where you live and guys might Volunteer to do some vermin control

Thanks for the offers of volunteering We're down in the assend of Kerry and have a neighbour coming tomorrow night who has some kind of rifle according to my father, but being able to deal with the nuisance ourselves would be best.

The shot gun licence is up soon before moving to the new system and is it a case of having a licence for each firearm or do you have a gun licence for different categories (a bit like the driving licence) under the new system?

kowloon

Tackleberrywho wrote: »

And good caller. A piece of aeroboard spat on and rubbed on glass sounds like a rabbit being eaten!

Never worked for me, there must be a knack to it.

Tackleberrywho

Stinicker wrote: »

Thanks for the offers of volunteering We're down in the assend of Kerry and have a neighbour coming tomorrow night who has some kind of rifle according to my father, but being able to deal with the nuisance ourselves would be best.

The shot gun licence is up soon before moving to the new system and is it a case of having a licence for each firearm or do you have a gun licence for different categories (a bit like the driving licence) under the new system?

Tick all boxes, if you are a member of a gunclub and wish to shoot clays.
BB is best in the shotgun for foxes
The ass end of Kerry Eh, ask CJHaughey he is from Cork he might know a few guys near you.
But if you want a good fox rifle a .223 IMHO will suit you best as it has extreme accuracy and range in the right hands fox no problem @300yards

Some prefer .17 Hornady look at remington or hornady websites all info on ammo ballistics is there.

dCorbus

hey stinicker, here's a whole previous thread about what's handy for foxes: http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=2055872374

May be of some help to you.

Tackleberrywho

dCorbus wrote: »

hey stinicker, here's a whole previous thread about what's handy for foxes: http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=2055872374

May be of some help to you.

Get a good scope!

How much money have you to spend?

Stinicker

Tackleberrywho wrote: »

Get a good scope!

How much money have you to spend?

Ideally a grand but can stretch if necessary, if it was case of just walk into a store a buy a gun with the groceries it would actually save money if these foxes keep killing so we are looking at it as just another farm expense like the quad or tractor and will be prepared for next year.

Tackleberrywho

Stinicker wrote: »

Ideally a grand but can stretch if necessary, if it was case of just walk into a store a buy a gun with the groceries it would actually save money if these foxes keep killing so we are looking at it as just another farm expense like the quad or tractor and will be prepared for next year.

Remington 700 .223 sps(synthetic is tough for farmers) 750 new + 500 for a good second hand scope, a bipod is a must IMO 130~ new

€1400 would see you well prepared,
a mate of mine has a sabatti .223 6 months old for sale €500 Timber stock and light rifle for carrying

CJhaughey

Stinicker wrote: »

Thanks for the offers of volunteering We're down in the assend of Kerry and have a neighbour coming tomorrow night who has some kind of rifle according to my father, but being able to deal with the nuisance ourselves would be best.

Has your neighbour with the rifle any experience lamping foxes?
Because if you lamp foxes and don't kill them you won't find it very easy to lamp them again.They become lamp shy and very hard to shoot.

Dvs

kowloon wrote: »

Never worked for me, there must be a knack to it.

If you mean getting it to squeak,
then it's about the pressure you apply with the aeroboard to the glass.

If you mean the effect on foxes, it is about varying the length of squeak to make it sound like a rabbit in distress.

The same as using any caller, varying it makes it something of interest to the fox, injured rabbit = easy meal

Dvs.

Vegeta

I know this is a shooting website but don't neglect trapping them too

You can buy a live catch fox trap any time and it will work 24/7 as long as it is baited. Lamping only works while you are out lamping

Your rifle application could take up to three months

deeksofdoom

Vegeta wrote: »

I know this is a shooting website but don't neglect trapping them too

This is the hunting section and trapping is a perfectly acceptable form of hunting!

Vegeta wrote: »

You can buy a live catch fox trap any time and it will work 24/7 as long as it is baited. Lamping only works while you are out lamping

Your rifle application could take up to three months

A fox trap takes a little bit of time to get it working properly, first off you have to let the smell of human go off it. Then you have to feed the foxes in the trap until they get used to going in and out of it and then you set it.

They work well in urban areas where foxes are taking rubbish from bins etc. They also work well on fox cubs.

I would suggest trying snares, same thing again you need to get the smell of human off them putrified fish works well, find out where the foxes are coming in and out through the ditches and set them up. The only thing is you'ld want to check them every morning to make sure some dumb sheep hasn't got caught on them.

Or you could make a stink pit where you make a cage and stick a few dead sheep in it the foxes will get used to feeding inside in it and then set snares at the entrances.

All those options are way cheaper than a rifle.

doyle61

ild go for the .223 but would the swift not be a good option aswell. expensive to fire but good deals in gun shops at the moment.
ild go for remington or cz
scope wise; im an IOR fan. second hand S&B can be got for good money aswell

chickenfarmer

was down with Paul O Halloran yesterday and he has some nice rifles there. Bought a lovely 2nd hand Leupold VX-III off him. The deals are out there at the moment. He has a few 2nd hand S&B, scopes in stock.

poulo6.5

Stinicker wrote: »

Was with my father down on the farm tonight and had to round up all the sheep and put them in pens as foxes have killed a lot of lambs in the last two days. I have all the missuses solar lights from the gardens positioned around the fields and a few radios switched on in the hope of keeping them away. My father only has a shotgun which is useless for a fox unless at close range.

The decision was made tonight to buy a rifle to kill foxes as over €1000 in losses has been incurred from lost lamb sales.

Can anyone recommend a good gun that will kill foxes easily, Ideally it must have a good range and be accurate. We would also need a good set of scope sights to be able to pick off the fox from a good distance.

Something like this looks good but I think a stronger calibre may be needed. We would also need the lamp that fits onto the gun for shooting by night.

I am not really into hunting or shooting and have only shot the fathers shotgun at rabbits on the homefarm and at tin cans. It is more a case of vermin control than hunting I think but I'll be damned if I see the efforts of a hard winters feeding sheep with the father be destroyed by a few foxes.

What else is needed like gunsafes and alarms etc and licensing?

what you need is a .223 you should be able to pick up a handy one. but as some of the lads said it will be to late for this year if you apply now.
in the mean time if you need some one to shoot some fox for you then i am offering my services, i shoot vermin for a couple of farmers with sheep down my way.
good luck with what ever you decide.

Stinicker

poulo6.5 wrote: »

what you need is a .223 you should be able to pick up a handy one. but as some of the lads said it will be to late for this year if you apply now.
in the mean time if you need some one to shoot some fox for you then i am offering my services, i shoot vermin for a couple of farmers with sheep down my way.
good luck with what ever you decide.

We are giving it a shot tonight with the neighbour and his gun, something took three lambs last night from the mountainside and we have our neighbour coming tonight who is a crack shot and tomorrow we are putting a team of terriers and beagles into the comher where the dens are, this comher is like a ravine and is where a stream has dug down about twenty feet beneath the ground in a furze forest.

Last year with beagles we flushed out a dog fox which crossed a fellows path and we blew him away with the shotgun and the terriers killed 5 cubs in two dens but something we think attacked another terrier (a badger we think) and he got trapped inside and we spent two days digging with pickaxes and shovels to get him out.

91hilux

pm me
i do a lot of vermon controle all over s.kerry be glad to help

poulo6.5

Stinicker wrote: »

We are giving it a shot tonight with the neighbour and his gun, something took three lambs last night from the mountainside and we have our neighbour coming tonight who is a crack shot and tomorrow we are putting a team of terriers and beagles into the comher where the dens are, this comher is like a ravine and is where a stream has dug down about twenty feet beneath the ground in a furze forest.

Last year with beagles we flushed out a dog fox which crossed a fellows path and we blew him away with the shotgun and the terriers killed 5 cubs in two dens but something we think attacked another terrier (a badger we think) and he got trapped inside and we spent two days digging with pickaxes and shovels to get him out.

sounds like you have it covered so, but there is help here if you need it. i see hilux91 has offered aswell so no shortage of good lads.

a friend of mine uses a paterdale terrier. its a serious animal for the fox's.

terminator2

a couple of these http://protrapper.co.uk/collarum-video.php would do the trick ,check it out, hope it helps, and you can also ask a few lads from your local gun club to come in and do a bit of vermin control..........hope this helps,

johngalway

Vegeta wrote: »

I know this is a shooting website but don't neglect trapping them too

You can buy a live catch fox trap any time and it will work 24/7 as long as it is baited. Lamping only works while you are out lamping

Your rifle application could take up to three months

Going to disagree with the fox trap idea here, had one, tried everything I could think of, asked most trappers I knew, caught 2 lambs and a mess of badgers (released).

If used properly, by someone who knows what they're doing, then a snare or three is the job for foxes.

terminator2

the collarum is a snare.......DAH

johngalway

DAH?

Correction, the Collarum is a spring loaded snare with a baited trigger. There's a hell of a difference.

Go and ask the company selling them how many badgers have been caught in their trials.

Original snare, used by someone who knows how is still best.

deeksofdoom

johngalway wrote: »

then a snare or three is the job for foxes.

Snares... yeah, that's what I said!:P

terminator2

if you look at the video ,the chap says in tests other animals have triggered the snare ,but they only caught foxes,dogs, and coyotes...........snare ,spring loaded snare........all do the same job ...fox eradication

johngalway

terminator2 wrote: »

if you look at the video ,the chap says in tests other animals have triggered the snare ,but they only caught foxes,dogs, and coyotes...........snare ,spring loaded snare........all do the same job ...fox eradication

Ask the UK company selling them my question in my last post. In the USA, in many if not all parts there's no law against killing badgers. Here and in the UK it's different seeing as they're protected. Do you honestly think that a trigger baited with something to attract a fox won't interest a badger?

I had a lot of interest in Collarums and did my research on them. They may well have merit for fox in areas a badger can't get at, but otherwise...

johngalway

deeksofdoom wrote: »

Then you have to feed the foxes in the trap until they get used to going in and out of it and then you set it.

The only thing is you'ld want to check them every morning to make sure some dumb sheep hasn't got caught on them.

Or you could make a stink pit where you make a cage and stick a few dead sheep in it the foxes will get used to feeding inside in it and then set snares at the entrances.

All those options are way cheaper than a rifle.

"How to win friends and influence people, part 2"

Never saw the point in getting an animal "used" to a trap, once it's in it's in, so why leave him free to get out again.

Setting snares in an area livestock, especially sheep, can get at isn't the best idea. There'll be hung lambs or ewes, kinda defeats the purpose of setting it in the first place.

Such a "stink pit" would be illegal, fallen farm animals and all that craic.

I'll get me coat now.

johngalway

Reckon myself that the OP is going about it the right way. Getting in someone with a rifle, getting the terriers out. Existing solutions with little waiting time. The weather for shotgun lamping hasn't been good, way too calm. Otherwise I'd be saying give that a crack.

terminator2

has anyone on this forum ever used one of these collarum traps and if so what did they think of them