Two rabbits today.

Well done @Britsmoothy!

in my state, and in most NEW ENGLAND STATES, the EASTERN COTTON TAIL is protective, and on the ENDANGERED LIST, do to the influx of COYOTIES, the good news is that they are making a come back!

Toot no doubt the coyotes as well as foxes and house cats take a toll on rabbits, rabbits will run in cycles a few good years and then a drop in population for a year or two. As I do not or would not live in the NEW ENGLAND STATES I would take a keen eye as to the reasons for the placing game animals on protected lists.

The UK has plenty of rabbits that are generally classed has a pest they have made a good come back after the myxomatoses epidemic in most counties . A favoured quarry for the poacher and his lurcher before the hunting with dogs became law these dogs earned their keep and not only but meat on the table but the surplus got their owner many free pints of English ale
Feltwad

Bigdaddy61 said:

Hi all I am a right hander and i need to shoot with a L/H/ fifle because i don"t know why but i can't close my left eye when i am shooting.

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Feltwad said:

The UK has plenty of rabbits that are generally classed has a pest they have made a good come back after the myxomatoses epidemic in most counties . A favoured quarry for the poacher and his lurcher before the hunting with dogs became law these dogs earned their keep and not only but meat on the table but the surplus got their owner many free pints of English ale
Feltwad

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Hmmm, English ale......haven't thought about that in years. The last time I enjoyed room temperature English ale was in a British pub in Hong Kong. Also learned to never go drinking with British sailors.
Sorry - went off topic.

appalichian hunter said:

Toot no doubt the coyotes as well as foxes and house cats take a toll on rabbits, rabbits will run in cycles a few good years and then a drop in population for a year or two. As I do not or would not live in the NEW ENGLAND STATES I would take a keen eye as to the reasons for the placing game animals on protected lists.

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well this is where I was born and for better or worst I am after 76+execpt for a stint in the US ARMY , in 1960, I am going to die here. so we all don't have the luxury of choosing where we live? for many years it was a great area to live in. then the TREE HUGGERS came! I understand where you are coming from.

Have been up your way a few times beautiful country, the folks we ran into were polite actually enjoyed the time spent in your neck of the woods. As to the tree huggers they are everywhere it is the other issues that manifest themselves with lets say the so called leadership. Whishing you the best.

Excuse me. What is a “ lurcher” ?

I keep picturing Lurch from the Addams Family!

A lurcher is a dog, grey hound sort of chaseing dog I think. Never used any .
Rudyard

Somewhere in this foggy brain , I think a Lurcher is a beagle.......Maybe a fox hound.???............oldwood

Ok, got it! Read a lot about the breed. Wasn’t sure- thought it might have been some obscure poaching device!

Its Not a Beagle -Otter hound, Nor a Fox hound . I think its more a whooly greyhound or whipit . A smaller version of the grey hound .
I did used to hunt with a Beagle. Being a pack animal it takes a whole pack to get a brain between them. All nose down, brain dissengaged & two speeds .viz ' Stop & Full ahead' . But they have a heart as big as a mountain & good as an extra blanket on a cold night except that blankets don't chase pigs in their sleep ! Rudyard

The lurcher is a cross bred dog mostly greyhound or whippet cross for speed, some of the favoured cross were with Bedlington terrier another later cross was the Saluki and the greyhound. The beagle , fox and otter hound were all hounds that hunted in a pack the huntsmen followed either on foot or horse back this type of hunting was banned not long ago in favour of the antis
Feltwad

Thank you Felt wad . I was close just no cigar . Only dog I hunted with was the Beagle & he was a friends dog would bound off & spook the game , but I generally got as much with him as without him & he was very good at eating any spare food ,Seemed to like smoked eels .Not as big as tuppence but we covered many bush miles together .Still miss him.
Cheers Rudyard

Jess is a lurcher all be it a tiny one. Any cross with a greyhound, saluki, deerhound or whippet is classed as a whippet.
As for a poachers dog, nonsense. Many a lurcher is used legitimately and still used to catch rabbits. It is now illegal to course hares but not illegal to run rabbits. Many a pest job using ferrets and nets and lurchers are used to eradicate huge rabbit infestations to this day.

Britsmoothy said:

Jess is a lurcher all be it a tiny one. Any cross with a greyhound, saluki, deerhound or whippet is classed as a whippet.
As for a poachers dog, nonsense. Many a lurcher is used legitimately and still used to catch rabbits. It is now illegal to course hares but not illegal to run rabbits. Many a pest job using ferrets and nets and lurchers are used to eradicate huge rabbit infestations to this day.

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There is only one talking nonsense you know the law hunting with dogs is illegal and in my part of the country the favoured poachers dog is a greyhound cross
Feltwad

Well, didn’t mean to stir the pot! Thank you gentlemen for your answers . Hate to leave you in the LURCH, but I have to go!

Sam squanch said:

Well, didn’t mean to stir the pot! Thank you gentlemen for your answers . Hate to leave you in the LURCH, but I have to go!

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No problem for me

Very educational. Until now , my recollection of Lercher came from a misguided hunting poem w/ a picture of hunters riding horses w/ a pack of fox hounds , beagles , milling around the horses hoofs. Glad that's cleared up. ......oldwood