Justice for the lambs

[devon deer]

Farmer contacted me last week, he had lost 2 lambs to a fox, i couldn't go until this evening, since then he had been out every evening,even getting up at 04.00 to look for it, and lost 3 more lambs.
So this evening i set out, with my friend, both of us armed with Sako 75's in .243
The plan was to wait on opposite sides of the valley and wait until too dark to see if it comes out of the woods, then switch to the lamp.
I scanned across the valley and i couldn't believe my luck, i saw the fox bold as brass sitting in the grass looking at the lambs, i rang my buddy and told him to stop walking as he would have spooked it.
I ranged it at 222 yards, no wind, boom, one dead dog fox, one really happy farmer who plied us with beer when we got back to his farm.
They are beautiful animals but ruthless killers of lambs and young deer.







(Sawtooth, the .243 is spot on for your trip!)
Cheers

Richard

 

[JohnCushman]

Way to go!!

 

[LandDiver]

Awesome!

 

[Dave N]

Very nice! One less critter to worry about.

Spot on is putting it mildly! I believe in getting lucky now and then, but that bullet went right where I had it intended for. With our being slightly rushed, and a deer that was not wanting to stay in one spot more than 2 seconds, I sure was glad I had a nice shooting rifle like that! Sawtooth, you have to keep the string going!

 

[BigGameDIY]

Great job!

 

[1_pointer]

Very nice. We used to have more foxes around here and they were fun to watch them mouse.

 

[Sawtooth]

(Sawtooth, the .243 is spot on.) Quote from Devon Deer

(Spot on is putting it mildly! I believe in getting lucky now and then, but that bullet went right where I had it intended for. With our being slightly rushed, and a deer that was not wanting to stay in one spot more than 2 seconds, I sure was glad I had a nice shooting rifle like that! Sawtooth, you have to keep the string going!) Quote from Dave N.

So lets see if I am getting this right. Rifle is a tack driver, roe deer are skittish little critters that can't stay still for more than 2 seconds, grass and crops are too tall to shoot from my preferred shooting stances of sitting or prone while using my backpack as a rest, British Stalkers preferred method of stabilizing the rifle while shooting over these tall crops is a contraption of shooting sticks strapped together with one set for the forearm and one for the butt of the stock, which you use while in the standing position? And now I find out that there is a "String of Success" that I am supposed to keep alive? Yea, no pressure here.

I went out twice after work this week to practice shooting from the standing position while using shooting sticks. I put the hurt on a couple of ground squirrel colonies with my .243 and 17 hmr. My shooting sticks only contact the forearm portion of the stock, but I was able to shoot about 60% on those little buggers on shots out to 209 yards. It was quite windy around here yesterday, so my success rate should be better on a calm day. Those little 17 hmr bullets dance around in the wind out past 50 yards.

Congratulations on the fox Richard. Do you do anything with the pelt?

 

[devon deer]

I have a confession to make Sawtooth, i shot the fox prone off my bi-pod!

The pelts were worth something about 40 years ago, but not these days, as far as i am aware they have zero value.

No pressure at all, i could have shot a Roe Buck last night off the sticks, it was only 150 yards away lying down in the grass.
Glad to hear you are getting some practice in on the sticks, not that you will need any after reading your post.

Not long now

Cheers

Richard

 

[shoots-straight]

I see foxes daily this time of the year, their out and about collecting mice for the den and the little ones. Great shot Devon.

 

[Sawtooth]

Richard,

What load are you shooting in you .243 for roe deer? Do you change it up for the fox?

 

[devon deer]

I also like to watch foxes hunt mice and voles, i'm certain they have the same actions where you are as they do here, heads bent forward, twist side to side several times, then a spring in the air and an almost vertical head nose dive, finishing with a good old chomp on the rodent, great to see.

My .243 load is the exact same as it always has been, 100 grain Speer BTSP, 41.4 grains reloader 19, i never change it, drops the biggest red deer stag down to a fox, i just 'know' it so well, i don't have a fancy scope, just a fixed 6x42 Schmidt & Bender, works for me.

Cheers

Richard

 

[Mthuntinfool]

nicely done! I'm surprised that fox are hard on lambs over there, the coyotes are the real problem for us here in Montana. The fox will take a chicken, but that's about as big as they seem to go for around here.

 

[6mm Remington]

Nice job!

 

[devon deer]

nicely done! I'm surprised that fox are hard on lambs over there, the coyotes are the real problem for us here in Montana. The fox will take a chicken, but that's about as big as they seem to go for around here.

They are opportunists, this one had clearly found an easy food source, its been almost 2 weeks now and no more lambs lost.
They also take the baby Roe Deer (kids)
Coyote is on my bucket list.
Cheers
Richard