Shooting Times & Country Magazine
Gamekeeper
It’s worth visiting other estates to get little tips on the ground, the drives and even the strain of bird; we can all learn something new
OAlex Keeble
ne of the many perks of gamekeeping is being able to accompany your employer to other estates. I relish the opportunity to head out with the boss to see how other shoots run and meet the keepers on neighbouring ground. I use these days to try to build my knowledge of how drives are run on different estates and attempt to implement little changes on my own shoot from the information
I have gathered from the day. Though the topography and drives vary in each area, it is valuable to constantly enhance the understanding of gamekeeping methods.
Loading must be one of the most sought-after jobs within the trade. Generally, loaders are the keeper’s friends or colleagues who are trusted to keep the Gun safe and have a friendly attitude. Being able to load well or double-gun, if necessary, is vital whether you are loading over-and-under or side-by-side shotguns. Loading courses are run by the national Gamekeepers’ Organisation and various other bodies and they give you a better understanding of how loading is performed as well as covering the health and safety aspects. It is a huge responsibility as the safety of the Gun you are loading for and others around you are in your hands.
I recall an incident last year while I was loading for a Gun on a local shoot in the heat of a flush of pheasants. The first barrel went off OK, then the second went off with a duff sound. Before loading the gun again, I checked the barrels to see what the issue was and found the wad from the cartridge was stuck halfway down, having not discharged correctly. we stopped shooting for that drive and I unblocked the barrel with my cleaning rod afterwards, so we could carry on shooting.
Luckily, having been shooting shotguns since the age of nine, I knew that something wasn’t right and managed to rectify the problem with no issues. However, this could have been a serious incident if I had loaded the barrels again and thought nothing of it.
Pheasant thoughts
a question I always ask the keeper on any shoot is what strain of pheasant they put down and why. I am obsessed with different pheasant strains and, through the years, have tried a huge variety. Manchurian, French common, Japanese green,
Bazanty, melanistic, blackneck, Kansas and chinese-scandinavian cross are but a few and they all have their own attributes.
Some strains favour certain ground and flying ability can vary marginally for each strain. releasing a few thousand Kansas birds one year was a risky business due to them being renowned for flying well, but walking for miles. On that estate, they held better than the French commons. I like the melanistic birds but because they wander, you are bound to get your neighbours saying they have shot some at the end of the season and it becomes depressing.
Other things I ask about are how they feed the birds, what type of game cover they prefer and what deer species they have on the ground. all this information can help change the way you run your own shoot and, generally, keepers are happy to help out and have a chat.
we have shot three days here on the new estate now and have reached our
“It’s a huge responsibility as the safety of the Gun you are loading for and others around you are in your hands”
targets comfortably each day so far. The tweaks I made from the first day have been implemented and have made a huge difference in the birds’ performance and consistency of the drives. Having spoken to many neighbouring keepers, the consensus is that the birds have stopped eating the wheat provided and are busy making use of the wild foods available.
This is great for keeping the feed bill down, but worrying times for a gamekeeper who is used to the feed being eaten. Our imagination runs wild and this leaves us all with petrifying thoughts that the main reason the birds have stopped eating must be because they have, in fact, simply vanished.