Hunting Season

Thu 5 Jan 2006, 21:02

My apologies Richard. It was just a bit of - ya know, fun!

Thu 5 Jan 2006, 17:48

Brief diversion: could I remind Alex ('Axel'), and everyone, that you're expressly asked to post using your real name on this forum. People who post using pseudonyms will either have them changed to their real name, as here, or have the account deleted entirely. Cheers.

Thu 5 Jan 2006, 00:17

Hunting for food is understandable. Hunting for the hell of it I can't get into. Perhaps the hunters who get dressed up and hunt for sport that should try being the prey? If the fox is a menace, shoot it, but don't make a day of it!

Mon 12 Dec 2005, 11:29

On my regular bicycle excursions places in and around Charlbury, I've noticed the sound of gun fire pops in the distance. At first I thought it might be shooting at me, as forcing cyclists off the road with an SUV bearing a Greenpeace window stickers may have begun to get a little boring for some.

But when I realised that the gun fire may be in the pursuit of local birds, I wanted to offer some advice taken from my own experience that might assist these seasonal hunters in their pursuits.

Forget all the firearms, bullets, funny outfits and permits: I was able to secure my festive fowl with nothing more complicated or dangerous than my front window pane.

Last week a kamikazi Pheasent flew into the front window of my house, perhaps as some desperate protest at something or another.

All attempts at resuscitation failed (I won't go into the unpleasent details of Pheasant breath) and I wrapped the carcass in a bin liner and threw it away.

It wasn't until the next day when I was picking up a chicken at John Brain's and recounted the incident, that the wastefulness of my actions became evident. Fortunately I was able to retrieve the Pheasant carcass from my bin and Leigh, John's son was able to clean and prepare the bird in time for the weekend meal

My wife cooked the fowl in a Calvados, Cider and cream sauce that was splendidly decadent.

But my advice to local hunters is not to bother with all the firearms:
merely set up large plate glass windows in the middle of fields and the Pheasants will do the rest.

Who knows, it could become a new NW Oxfordshire sport?

Pheasant ON the Glass, so to speak.