From north to south, the last few months have seen many meets of hare-hunting beagle and basset packs sabbed.
Between August and October or November these packs are ‘leveret hunting’ – a secretive pre-season practice where young hounds are entered into the pack and trained against young hares, akin to the better known ‘cubbing’ season carried out by fox hunts.
This usually takes place in the early morning or late afternoon, when scenting conditions are more reliable, and less people are generally about to witness the illegal hunting.
But this secrecy doesn’t mean the hunts have gone under the radar of sabs! With a particularly early start to the season, things got going in late July and the first half of August, when the Dorset & Somerset Bassets were stopped on three weekends in quick succession by North Dorset Hunt Sabs.
The end of August saw the Four Shires Bassets also stopped at another leveret hunt, at Litchfield Farm, outside of the village of Enstone, Oxfordshire, by Three Counties Hunt Sabs.
At the end of September, the Downland Beagles were stopped by West Sussex Hunt Sabs at Petworth, and later the same week the Gloucestershire-based Dummer Beagles were filmed killing a hare by hunt monitors during a pre-season away trip to remote Northumberland.
The De Burgh & North Essex Bassets were stopped at two of these early morning meets, by combined forces of Suffolk & Essex Sabs and Norwich Hunt Sabs, on 4th October and 11th October respectively.
The same day, the Four Shire Bassets were back at Litchfield Farm, Enstone, this time for their ‘opening meet’ (see below), where they were sabbed by Severn Vale Hunt Sabs, who then went on to stop an afternoon leveret hunting meet of the Severn Vale Beagles in West Kington, Wiltshire.
The Four Shire Bassets were holding their prestigious ‘opening meet,’ the traditional start to the hunting season proper.
A few days later, the Colne & Holme Valley Beagles were packed up by combined forces of the Sheffield and Nottingham sabs, hunting in the former country of the now-disbanded Ecclesfield Beagles.
For the hare hunts that haven’t already, many will be holding their ‘opening meets’ – the traditional start to the hunting season proper – over the coming week or two. We are calling on you to help us stop them!
What to look out for… The biggest giveaway is a pack of beagle or basset hounds in open country is the most obvious indication. Don’t be surprised if there are only a few people present – beagling is a dying sport!
Traditionally, the hunt staff of a beagle pack wear green coats and conspicuous white britches. While some still wear this uniform, many hare hunters now prefer to blend into the countryside with green or brown outdoor wear.
There will be a scattering of hunt supporters following the chase, and usually a small collection of vehicles (including a hound van or trailer) in a field, on a farm track or in a yard nearby.
What to do… Please let Hunt Sabs know immediately by calling/leaving a message on 07443148426, being sure to include details of what you have seen and a location.
If it is safe to do so, filming the hunters will often be enough to stop them in their tracks.
Hunting hares with dogs is illegal so, if you believe a crime is in progress, call the police straight away.
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