Festive Hare Hunts Hammered

The festive period is always a perilous time for wildlife, with hunters and shooters taking to the countryside in larger numbers and more frequently than usual.

While many were tucked up around the fire or enjoying a nice winter walk with family, hunt sabs were, as ever, heading out into the fields to put themselves between the hunters and hunted wildlife.

And while the fox hunters get the attention with their red coats and fanfare, the 40-odd remaining beagle and basset packs go out largely under the radar to chase and kill hares.

The fortnight covering the Christmas and New Year period saw a particular uptick in hunt sabs taking action against them…

De Burgh and North Essex Bassets put on leads in case they ‘accidentally’ chase any hares after hunt sabs arrive with their cameras

Saturday 20th December saw Suffolk and Essex Hunt Sabs and Norwich Hunt Sabs shut down two hare hunts in East Anglia: firstly the Stour Valley Beagles in Suffolk, followed by the De Burgh and North Essex Bassets in Essex.

Meanwhile in the west, Severn Vale Hunt Sabs cut short a meet of the Royal Agricultural College Beagles (the student hunt of the Royal Agricultural Uni) north of Swindon.

The next day Beds & Bucks Hunt Sabs utilised their drone and put a stop to a meet of the North Bucks Beagles who were hunting from their kennels. As well as being frowned upon by some in hunting circles, hunting hares on a Sunday not only risks conviction under the Hunting Act 2005, but also the Game Act 1831!

North Bucks Beagles watched by Beds & Bucks Hunt Sabs eye in the sky. This is a typical beagle ‘meet’ – note the hound trailer.

Tuesday 23rd saw the Severn Vale Beagles stopped by sabs from Bath and Cirencester, and the following day Severn Vale Hunt Sabs put a stop to the Christmas Eve meet of the notorious hare killers, the Dummer Beagles.

With fox hunts getting most of the media (and sab) attention on Boxing Day, many beagle and basset packs opted to go out on the 27th so they could hunt hares unabated. Unfortunately for them, hunt sabs were wise to this and set out to stop them.

Severn Vale Hunt Sabs got a double whammy – stopping the Severn Vale Beagles just after they left the meet and started hunting, before heading north to find and put an equally quick stop to the RAC Beagles.

Seven Vale Beagles walk of shame with Severn Vale Hunt Sabs hot on their tail

Further east, the North Bucks Beagles were again stopped hunting by Beds & Bucks Hunt Sabs and their all-seeing drone, and further east again the De Burgh & North Essex Bassets were heading home early thanks to the arrival of Suffolk and Essex Sabs and Norwich Hunt Sabs.

The momentum continued into the New Year. On Saturday 3rd January, the Downland Beagles (an amalgamation of numerous struggling Kent and Sussex beagle packs) were stopped by South Coast Hunt Sabs and Kent Hunt Sabs while hunting on the Romney Marsh.

On the same day, Suffolk & Essex Hunt Sabs and Norwich Hunt Sabs got the De Burgh & North Essex Bassets once more, with hounds again put on leads to be walked back to the meet.

And once again, Severn Vale Hunt Sabs sabbed the Severn Vale Beagles, arriving just in time to stop them as they were hunting a hare.

Severn Vale Beagles with something to hide, ignoring the BHSA’s ‘open and transparent’ guidance

A Hunt Saboteurs Association spokesperson said,

“Much like their fox hunting cousins, the hare hunting beagle and basset packs are facing increasing sab pressure, as their sordid business is increasingly exposed and scuppered by sabs.”

“In some parts of the country these packs are particularly beleaguered, with sab groups making them their primary focus. Sabs across the country are reporting much-reduced turnouts at these hunts, and with every passing season more of these hunts are clubbing together or throwing in the towel completely.”

“We await a hunting ban with teeth that removes the exemptions and loopholes that these hare hunts hide behind, but until then hunt sabs will be in the fields stopping them.”

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