mwp

I am sick of the pigeons sitting on my house/garage etc and sh1tting everywhere. So i've borrowed a mates air rifle and intend to pick them off one by one.

Can I get in trouble with anyone for doing this ?

Duck_Pond

Probably.

Why not get one of those fake owl things on the roof? They seem to fool the pigeons into avoiding the area.

mj

just watch where the stray pellets are going, also note where you will be shooting from in relation to the public highway - i.e, if the only clear shot you get get is by leaning on a set of bollards outside your house then forget it.


I don't think there are any rules to stop you shooting pigeons though ( classed as vermin I think )- just make sure they are not racing pigeons

TelBoy

I thought they were classified as a pest and you could shoot (assuming you have a licence) them whenever it could be proved they were being a nuisance??

As to who you'd upset - it's Mum and Dad i suppose!!

Luke

I think the law applies to the distance of the shooter to Public area..ie road path etc..

RichWalk

What you do in the safety of your own home is fine.. why not entice them into your living room and shot them from the comfort of your favourite armchair?

mj

good idea, use some chips as bait, and pop em' with a Black Widow - make it a bit more sporting

fatherpierre

You could borrow Vic & Bob's (now redundant) Dove From Above, as seen on Shooting Stars to add a little glamour to the blood bath.

A friendly looking bird may attract more prey.

Just a thought.

what would scooby do

Make sure you use a decent rifle..

Using a pistol takes about ten shots and you usually end up stamping the damned things to death.

Luke

Theres a "Bowie" knife in the "For sale forum".

mwp

i live in a big house with a reasonable amount of land and am not likely to hit anyone with a stray pellet.

if they don't die immediately i don't mind unloading a few extra at point blank

i will dispose of them at the local car boot

after a quick search on google it seems i'm not alone .. although they use more powerful weapons.

mj

scooby towers-

PSI ???

you mean ftlb's - 12 psi wouldnt even push the pellet down the barrel

If they are woodpigeons they are very tasty - the breast tastes like a cross between fillet steak&liver.

Leslie

A string of old cd's hung in a line might frighten them off. People use them successfully to keep the seagulls away from their boats.

Les

mwp

les,

i don't want it to look as if p*k*ys have moved in !!

Hammy Hamster

You'll never be able to shoot ALL of them, so you'll always have the messy problem recurring, unless you prevent them from perching there.

String some strong fishing line or thin wire along the places where they usually land, about 2-3 inches from the ground (not sure of the optimum height). They won't be able to perch on the wire as it'll be too thin.

Gridlock Mikey

Quality title for a thread, Made me LOL Only on scooby net

I had visions of you shooting pigeons in ya livingroom, place covered in blood and feathers and dashing to the window every now and again, mad look in ya eyes, shotgun in one hand, moving curtains to one side with the other, to make sure that the police were not coming up ya path

mikey

Tiggs

what a mad idea....its like getting rid of flies by swatting them....you need to stop them coming to you not kill the odd one that does.

T

Tiggs

also if some one has the choice to scare an animal away but would rather buy a gun and kill it you may want to consider your actions and what they say about you. do you swerve to hit hedgehogs on the road as well?

Andy Porter

The pidgeons outside my mums would stay away for 3-6 months after whitnessing a m8 getting it

Luke

Leave one 1/2 dead hanging outside the house...his pikey mates will get the message.

Luke

Leave one 1/2 dead hanging outside the house...his pikey mates will get the message.

IWatkins

Yep, you are perfectly within your rights to shoot them with an air rifle on your own property. Only thing is make sure you hit them cleanly, nothing worse than wounding them and them flying off for a slow and painful death. If in doubt of your ability to single shot kill, don't shoot. Pigeons have armour plating on their chest area in the form of their feathers/crop. Go for head shots only unless the rifle is FAC powered, but I'm guessing it is standard (less that 12 lbft) as you would know all this if you had a FAC.

Improve your chances be bringing them down to ground level by putting out some feed (grain, peas etc.). This way you will have a cleaner line and the pellet will be flying horizontally rather than shooting up at them, which could mean a pellet leaving your property.

Doesn't actually matter if you are near a road, that rule has been changed so that you can shoot right next to a road as long as you shoot away from the road and that you being there will not distact drivers (who will them think they saw someone with a gun, phone the cops, an ARV turns up etc.)

Also, use a flat head or hollowpoint pellet, you want to kill them outright rather than put a hole through them.

Cheers

Ian

Floyd

iTrader: (9)

ROTFLMAO

Ian, great that'll mean I can run after them with my rifle and a hand full of bird seed right up to the road.

I can just imagine all my neighbours faces when I shoot the birds and them finish them off with the rifle butt, oh what fun I'll have and all legal too! I think I'll invite the vicar to have a go too - he's a very good shot. All good family entertainment

F

289

I'd wait until they step out of their front door before clobbering them, otherwise they could probably do you for invasion of privacy or perhaps say you need a search warrant.

4lex L

A friend of mine reguarly shoots pigeons in his back garden which he then serves up for tea

He was driving round some country lanes looking for pigeons recently (air rifle next to him). He sees a couple so pulls up to take a shot only to look in the rear view to see a police car pull up behind him. The officer asks him what he's up to, to which he relpies "I'm just out catching me dinner"! The officer made a call on the radio to find out if he was doing anthing unlawful but apparantly so long as the gun's power is under 12lbft then its fine. He told my friend that it would be wise not to it again and drove off.

Many Humbug Returns

shoot em dead!

and magpies too for that matter.

Luke

A copper (Little village plod type)gets out of his car and walks up to a vehicle with the driver holding a gun !!!!!!

Only in the UK !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Luke

Simon C

you seem to have a good knowledge of the Law. I thought the distance thing still stood.

Remember a celebrity got done for trying to shoot at some press and once ther proof was noted that he was right up against his fence the Police nicked him!!

Simon C

Luke,

Apart from my pride and joy (my 97 classic sport) and diving, air rifles are my other hobby. I have about 5 acres of shooting permission and the amount of things I have to comply with for the law could fill the tech section on here!!!! if 1 group of people don't get you the others will. Unfortunatly its the world we live in.

Simon

mwp

good. looks like the consensus is that i'm ok to fire at will.

tiggs ... i was hoping that if i killed a few then their mates might f**k off cos pigeons gossip ... also it seems a fitting end for the little sh1tes for all their sh1tes ... and yes given the opportunity to tweek the wheel of my scoob slightly to the left to down a hedgehog, I would - equal vermin who eat thru my rubbish bags.