Best way to despatch birds

[Andrew]

Partridge and pigeon I bite the heads.
Pheasant i hold the wings back and administer the stick to the back of the head,
I do sometimes spin to to break the neck, a lot depends on the species, I do not spin ducks as they seem want to distance themselves from certain parts of there bodies.
In order to make sense of the OP's question I would want to know the situation.
Am I a gun. a beater,a picker up?

[crackerd]

Defo go with a priest - "slim-line" model and preferably with an altar boy (or girl) assisting



In dispatching a pterodactyl or condor, a priest by the brand name of Louisville Slugger...

One lady picker up I know always stations herself near to another picker up. She hates handling birds and will not kill them herself. She comes wombling over to me or anyone else handy to have them kill runners . I really don't think she should go picking up if she will not quickly kill wounded game. I once told her she could save herself an awful lot of worry and trouble if she used an HPR instead of a Labrador !

Bill, that's like an unwritten NAVHDA precept here - "Bring 'em back dead - kill 'em off en route if you've not done so on the spot." Cringe.

MG

[claire6630]

I used to use a priest until my good friend and oldest picker up taught me how to break their necks at the top vertebrate thus leading to a clean quick kill and they tie up in the cart just fine unlike when they get spun,which is my pet hate if I see anybody on our shoot spinning birds they get a telling off as it's not nice to see birds flapping all over the place and the amount of time it takes them to die can vary that way plus they usually end up with necks like a giraffe
so my vote is for a priest or learn how to despatch them by hand (not spinning them )

We have a picker up who uses a humane despatcher that seems to do the job but I've heard mixed reports.

Claire

[liveseyd]

I use a priest when picking up, it is tucked comfortably down the top of my right wellie, and so comes instantly to hand when holding the wounded bird in the left hand.
Ducks however do not die easily so I carry a pair of "pliers" which snap the neck efficiently.

[Naj]

As is often the case, when things don't work out it's not so much the method but the person behind the method that is at fault. All can be used ineffectively by the inexperienced. I can kill any bird with a quick flick of the wrist. The bird dies instantly & any rapid flapping of the wings afterwards (of the bird, not me!) signifies just that. Even when killed with a blow to the head you get some post death nervous activity but don't see it so much if you have secured the wings. Find a method that you feel comfortable with & become proficient at it.

Naj

[Springfield Pointers]

Agree with Naj. Being someone who likes to carry as little as possible in the field it's very easy to put a live one out with your hands. Whatever works for you, even if it is a labby with a baseball bat, you owe it to the bird to do it as fast and painlessly as possible.