My eldest and I spent an hour lamping the other night down at the local shoot . Conditions were perfect (very dark , breezy with rain in the air) . However , after a relatively short and succesful period of time ,I decided to call a halt . Reason being that the conditions were far more in our favour than the quarries . Basically , the evening had not produced the normal challenge of long stalks targeting individual targets . Several rabbits were duly prepared for the local butcher ,and I returned home feeling strangely deflated at our "quick" success . Do any fellow shooters ever consider imposing bag limits upon their own shoots ?
Some of the land I shoot in Shropshire has serious pest problems with the local rabbit population happily munching their way through several thousand pounds worth of valuable crops . Farmers are obviously delighted at the sight of long rows of destroyed vermin in this case , and ,to a certain extent , this can justify the "culling" rather than "sporting" activity needed to make a significant impact.
Am I alone in considering a 20 minute possibly unsuccesful stalk as preferable to "easy" lamping sessions ? I think that I am now trying to justify the culling of vermin to myself . Maybe it is my age . Maybe I am starting to enjoy purely the participation of the hunt far more than I used to .
I think what I am trying to say is does anyone else ever consider reducing the numbers of quarry actually taken ? I have to admit to watching and observing quarry species far more than I used to . To the extent that I will only take the shot if it definetly warrants the end result . I think I am experiencing what could be best described as a "crisis of concience" . I am hoping that some of you will confirm that I am not going round the twist .

Andy .