Pest Control Diary: You Can’t Win Them All!

The time has come to take my (some people say out dated) Maxi Kite N.V. out of mothballs and put it back on my Tikka 243. I don’t think they’re out dated; yes there are a lot of N.V. scopes out there now, some good, some not so much and the Maxi Kite is a bit of a lump to carry round clamped to a rifle! But like anything else it has its pros and cons and all I can say is anything you can see during the day light hours, you can see at the dead of night with the Maxi Kite with no IR, unless it’s in heavy foliage.

PROS & CONS

However and unlike some N.V. that eat batteries and each time you switch them on you have to wait for them to warm up before you can see any kind of a picture; the Maxi Kite’s two AA batteries last forever! As soon as I switch it on I can see instantly; so no missed chances. Which is great when I use a Cluson Clu-brite lamp with a lanyard attached to first pick up eye shine, before dropping the lamp to switch over to the Maxi Kite, watching the fox’s every move, bringing it in closer by calling. The only problem is it means the rifle is for foxing-only, leaving me one rifle short as a good all rounder.

It didn’t matter when I had my Tikka 223 but I needed the cash at the time, so sold it on and I’ve kicked myself ever since; now I am looking for a replacement. The reason I’ve switched from lamp to N.V. is one of the local farms has a problem fox, which has run the gauntlet and survived and is very cautious. So much so it won’t even come to an area that’s been baited up, given they are opportunist feeders this means it’s a serious problem!

LITTLE SEEN

The only sightings have been glimpses of it in the car headlights or a shadow as it enters or leaves the farm yard, as it keeps close to the buildings. A few people have tried to bring it to book by changing the times of their patrols, only for the fox to do the same. Also, snares can’t be used due to the livestock and the ground being so open, it’s down to me to sort it out; hence the Maxi kite coming out of moth balls.

Along with my N.V. rifle I have a portable hide to shield me from eyes and the weather, the only thing is I can’t do anything about is the wind. If it’s blowing the wrong way, my quarry will pick up my scent and won’t put in an appearance, how long and how many nights I will have to put in is any body’s guess and even the comfiest of chairs will start to get uncomfortable after a while!

I hate waiting, but the rewards are well worth it, I keep telling myself, as I think I’ll just wait another hour. When I think of the hours I’ve put in doing just that, only for the wind to shift direction, causing me to pack up just as I felt something was about to show is untrue. But this is what it’s all about, using your knowledge, skill and some luck, did I say luck?

CRAFTY AS A FOX

Up to the time this article went to print this fox is proving to be so hard to bring to book I can only compare it with one I stumbled on late one afternoon. Every man and his dog, rifle, shotgun and snare had tried but failed. Every Christmas for three years this particular fox had killed practically all the turkeys on a small farm. I almost making the owner bankrupt. Apart from feeding and keeping them warm, if you disappoint your customers, they won’t be coming back next year, that’s for certain.

Situations like this make it a little more personal and more frustrating when things don’t go to plan, that’s where that little bit of luck comes in, something that I am lacking at the moment. To give you an idea of what I’ve gone through up to now, on my first and second night I saw nothing but they were very quiet and still, with barely a breath of wind. Later that week I changed position and still nothing, a thought started going through my mind, if this fox is that spooky, had it noticed my hide? With it being something different, was it giving it a wide birth, as it was with any bait that was put out?

GETTING FAMILIAR

When using a cage trap, I would sometimes have to put it out and leave it for a few weeks un-baited, to allow the fox to pluck up the courage to get closer and have a good sniff round and inspect it. Leaving the trap’s door propped open, it can enter and leave if it wants; if the ground is hard, putting down some sand near it, it makes it easy to tell what’s been near and even the direction its been travelling. Ordinary building sand will do, as it’s quite dense, so it’s easy to tell what’s left any tracks left in it.

All this prior to baiting the trap, just to build their confidence up, so if it works with the trap I have nothing to lose by leaving my hide set up, as long as it’s pegged down tight against the wind. The last thing I wanted to do was to go anywhere near the hide for at least a week, remember the idea is to show the fox it has nothing to fear. So if it were to pick up my scent anywhere near the hide, then the whole exercise would be a waste of time.

PROPER PREP

Preparation is everything and can make the difference of sitting waiting for night after night, to being successful on the first night. While the fox is hopefully getting used to the hide I can be doing something else (all makes sense to me) pity I never thought of doing it sooner, as I’ve already spent hours over the past four weeks. But its luck can’t last forever (or can it?) it’s possible it could slip by in between me looking through the scope every few minutes and I wouldn’t even know it.

There is another thing I could try and that is while I leave my hide there for the crafty old fox to get used to, I could try and ambush it on a neighbouring farm. This would call for a different tactic, as I daren’t use a lamp. I could walk the ground with the rifle unloaded, stop and rest the rifle on the sticks while I use the N.V. to spot him, before chambering a round, that way I won’t be swinging a loaded rifle round wily nily. I’ll let you know how I get on…