November 23, 200916 yr YouTube - Tour de France 2007 - Burghardt hits a dog (both escaped serious injury...) Edited November 23, 200916 yr by Alex728
November 23, 200916 yr It is written (offthread) But just now I stumbled upon the quote "It is written." and so looked on Google to see where I had heard it before. Turns it's from the movie "Lawrence of Arabia". The popular use of "it is written" probably comes from the Bible, Luke chapter 4. Jesus was tempted three times by the Devil and three times the answer is based on the statement "it is written". The focus on authoratative writings (especially, but not solely the Jewish Law) during Old Testament times led the phrase "it is written" to become commonplace in referencing an answer (e.g. Joshua 10:13, Psalms 40:7). Chris Whoops!! - I just realised I was commenting on an ancient post .... oh well, done now! Edited November 23, 200916 yr by Heavenfire
November 23, 200916 yr f#&*%$#g dogs. I always slow to near walking pace when passing pedestrians on shared footpaths etc, with or without dogs, it's the only way to be safe since humans can be just as daft as dogs at times. .
November 23, 200916 yr Flecc, my comment was more towards dogs in general than them bringing people off bikes. Having shot 5 squirrels in my garden in the last few days I am contemplating turning my attention to neighbours' barking dogs now. Running them down is less effective because it involves a risk to oneself but enjoyable nonetheless. Please not, I have tried to put html joke tags around some of this but the forum software does not accept them.
November 23, 200916 yr If I slowed down for every dog or person in striking distance I might as well give up and get the train, as a result I may have hit the odd stupid/stubborn person or dog in my travels. :o
November 23, 200916 yr Please not, I have tried to put html joke tags around some of this but the forum software does not accept them. I do shoot grey squirrels in the garden, no joke tags needed as I really do, 139 dead to date. The local dogs are probably too scared to bark. .
November 23, 200916 yr No joke about the squirrels! My neighbour over the road traps and drowns them, I shoot them. The ones in my French place were much prettier, being red ones but of course were no different to greys in their behaviour. Shooting anything with an air rifle (which I have now) is illegal in France as they are regarded as toys. But of course hunting licenses are easy to get so most people have shotguns or, especially, .22s. It seemed quite odd to me that perfectly ordinary people would go out hunting in France, no class thing about it at all. I was also talking to a huntsman about foxes but they cannot understand hunting something you can't eat, thus wild boar and deer are their quarry from horseback, smaller creatures from the ground. On my patch in Normandy it was quite noisy and not a little dangerous at times as the hunters were maybe 20 metres away from my couple of hectares with their rifles. No health and safety executive in France, of course.
November 23, 200916 yr erm...well all I can think of is to say that I used to wear a helmet in the hunting season...but I didn't. Way off topic, sorry. Just spent a horrible greasy afternoon putting in a new rear inner tube in my rear wheel and got so greasy and fed up so I rejected all bike talk! Getting the Shimano's change cable stay in is really awkward. Maybe I should have shot that too.
November 23, 200916 yr I was also talking to a huntsman about foxes but they cannot understand hunting something you can't eat, thus wild boar and deer are their quarry from horseback, smaller creatures from the ground. Yes, I admire that attitude in the French, I'd prefer to have hunting that way here, apart from true pest control of course which is a different matter. .
November 23, 200916 yr I do shoot grey squirrels in the garden, no joke tags needed as I really do, 139 dead to date. The local dogs are probably too scared to bark. . In post #26 of this thread, you told us how you "take great care not to get hurt, nor to hurt any other creature". It must sting a bit when you shoot 'em though...
November 23, 200916 yr In post #26 of this thread, you told us how you "take great care not to get hurt, nor to hurt any other creature". It must sting a bit when you shoot 'em though... Now there's someone who really pays attention when reading a thread!
November 23, 200916 yr I guess as a lecturer, people paying attention must come as something of a novelty to you...
November 23, 200916 yr Hi, Now we're getting onto sensible things like enhanced Darwinian processes it may be safe for me to join the thread. The grey squirrels don't worry me too much. They damage some of my trees but the other wildlife gives them a hard time. I once had to pick up half a squirrel off my lawn. But what really does exercise me is moles. I've been waging a battle for about 2 years now and only got one of them. Any ideas? Nick
November 23, 200916 yr ... But what really does exercise me is moles. I've been waging a battle for about 2 years now and only got one of them. Any ideas? Nick Dynamite. .
November 23, 200916 yr Moles, yes the French blow them up with a sort of firework, banned here of course but I am told they are very effective. Have a trip to Calais. Gassing them is the surest way but cyanide is restricted now though some farmers and pest control specialists still use it, whether legally I am not sure. Pete
November 23, 200916 yr In post #26 of this thread, you told us how you "take great care not to get hurt, nor to hurt any other creature". It must sting a bit when you shoot 'em though... Running them over is cruel when it injures them or leaves them suffering a slow death, that's the difference. A close range pellet through the brain with instant death doesn't of course, and I wont take a shot unless it's an absolute certainty. We have a huge out of control squirrel population problem where I am, since councils cut back on essentials like pest control in favour of central government directed things. In our case its the songbird population in particular that suffers, and with the squirrels in a large bird sanctuary, that's not on. Whoever first brought grey squirrels in from North America should have included the dozen or more natural predators that keep them under control there. We don't have any in the UK. .
November 24, 200916 yr Moles, yes the French blow them up with a sort of firework, banned here of course but I am told they are very effective. Have a trip to Calais. Gassing them is the surest way but cyanide is restricted now though some farmers and pest control specialists still use it, whether legally I am not sure. Pete Yes, we used to be able to get mole smokes, but not any more. My neighbour is licensed to use the pellets against them, but even that hasn't worked. They are slowly working their way over to his garden, so I expect he'll have another go soon. Nick
November 24, 200916 yr Ah ha!. My first job when leaving school at fifteen was an apprentice greenkeeper on a golf course. Each morning, armed with wheelbarrow, brush, shovel and pick-axe handle, I would visit each green, tamp as much soil as possible back into the hole and pick the remainder up. The following morning I would go around and do it all again!. No Moles were harmed in the making of this film
November 24, 200916 yr That has just reminded me - the spoil from molehills is normaly fine, weed free and stone free and makes a very good planting medium, so there is an upside; but not enough to make up for having your lawn spoiled Pete
November 24, 200916 yr Running them over is cruel when it injures them or leaves them suffering a slow death, that's the difference. A close range pellet through the brain with instant death doesn't of course, and I wont take a shot unless it's an absolute certainty. Maybe they should start wearing helmets for their own saftey http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_ySSYbUSSK_c/SXOFPhsr7kI/AAAAAAAAARA/H6IopmG39XA/s320/Squirrel+with+Helmet+v2+w+Tallies.JPG (taken from The Chainring Chronicles: January 2009)
November 24, 200916 yr Yes, we used to be able to get mole smokes, but not any more. My neighbour is licensed to use the pellets against them, but even that hasn't worked. They are slowly working their way over to his garden, so I expect he'll have another go soon. Nick I tried everything against moles when in France including sending car exhaust down their holes. But of course their modus operandi is simply to block off that section of their gallery. The explosives do work and were the only thing that did. But, as soon as you get one mole, another moves into its place. You should be able to get the explosive device in Mr Bricolage. I found that it was necessary to leave an old pair of gloves in the garden for a couple of weeks and wear those when putting these traps down, otherwise, again, they close off the trapped area of the gallery due to the alien odour on the trip. This pic demonstrates the efficacy of the sonic anti-mole devices. The mole hills appeared about a week after I planted the device. My feeling is that they liked the rhythm of the beeps and had opened a disco down there. http://www.dthorpe.net/images/mole.jpg The squirrels, there's a plague of them round here and they are continually trying to get into the loft and landing area of my house. I started shooting them first when I found them ripping away some lead flashing on an inaccessible part of the house. If they would nest in the trees I'd be less bothered.
November 24, 200916 yr I guess as a lecturer, people paying attention must come as something of a novelty to you... Oh yes - talking in other people's sleep was the informal job description.
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