doublegunshop.com - home Forums General Discussion DoubleGun BBS @ doublegunshop.com How do I find a pigeon shoot?

I don't mind the idea of live pigeon competition shoots,sounds bloody hard n expensive.
About eating Pigeons....
back in England as a lad I'd find a few wood Pigeons nests, wait nearby & kill both nesting birds if I could , then I'd climb up , get the eggs n eat em soft boiled for tea
My Mum would make lovely home crust pies with the birds, ....lovely grub mates!
franc

Sorry franc but I just ate a wonderful meal of homemade pork sausage and fresh picked asparagus. Now my stomach is doing flip flops after reading about pigeon eggs.

JRB...These were Fresh Picked too ( Well, back then)
I used to roam the little streams for Morehen ( a Coot like water birds) nests...magpies,( No pies there as well.All were fair game>
I'd eat any wild grub I can get my mitts on , still do.
I've raised a few pigs up/over here in NH, & I agree the Bangers & mash,& veg of choice are a grand feed
An eggs an egg to me
cheers
franc

Apparently some PETA types went one further at one of the Pennsylvania venues, getting their hands on a drone helicopter which they used to film the shoot. Until they flew it into a tree on the range, where it supposedly remains, stuck in the drone-eating tree.

And, FWIW, for eating pigeons are as good as doves. Though I would draw the line at pigeon eggs. Pheasant eggs, poached on toast - another story. I'm there for them. But not pigeon.

For many many years I've cleaned and eaten all the farm pigeons I've shot along with Doves and they taste just the same. For the last twenty I've made Dove/Pigeon pies -- "Empanadas De Campo, Con Paloma" Shooting Sportsman, Aug/Sep 1991 pp 74-75.

If you enjoy shooting boxbirds then you need to travel out of the US. Some of the gun clubs that host the big shoots are nicer than the Ritz. 5-600 shooters all there for one reason having a good time. What a boost to the local economy. There's a few countries that want the big shoots in there country for that reason alone.

When I lived in the DC suburbs I shot a lot of feral pigeons around Damascus in dove season. They flew out from town to feed in the green chop on dairies. The wife liked them better than doves. Also shot a few cross country pigeon racers that didn't IFF themselves. They all TASTED great.

All the pigeons that I have seen killed at shoots, either columbare or box, have been given to someone to eat. Nothing wrong with eating a barn rat.

Squab are young, flightless pigeons.
Fresh out of the egg, feed them a rich diet. Watch them, as they just begin to attempt flight from the nest edge, harvest them. There's a way to get the whitest meat which I won't go into.
No comparison to silo rats.
Roasted with new potatoes, hericot verts, and a glass of Malbec.
A green salad (with a wisp of fennel and toasted pine nuts) is a nice addition.
Now I gotta go feed my geese, whether they want to eat or not!

Seriously, I thought I was a decent shot until I started shooting the occasional pigeon match at my club. It upped my game considerably, but let's just say the learning curve was pricey.
Grouse gunners that can shoot tight chokes had a real advantage. Me, well ultimately, I realized I was just too slow. But, I'm hard headed, so I invested the money anyway. I was dished out excellent lumps.

Money, guns, pressure, (and yes some liquor) beats golf all to hell.

Clapper:

Find a ZZ shoot. It will sharpen you a LOT. The game is much less pricey (about $2.00 @ bird) last I shot and a little different than box birds but MUCH better than golf.

The sport of kings to me.

The easiest way is to be a "Pigeon" ie. drive a Range Rover, shoot a Fabbri, piss money away like water, and most importantly not shoot worth a damn.

This will get you invited everytime.

Good Luck,

PS - nothing personal just a little humor