Middleton Hunt Caught Out by Eye in the Sky

York Hunt Sabs sent the following report:

The notorious Middleton Hunt met at Woodside Farm Bed & Breakfast/Holiday cottages in Westow/Howsham on Wednesday 12th February.

Huntsman Jason O’Donnell headed straight into Howsham Wood, encouraging the hounds to flush north, before they headed back south towards the meet, eventually emerging at Boon Wood, where they continued south.

They then headed towards Round Hill in Howsham, flushing a covert near the roadside whilst O’Donnell encouraged hounds to pick up a scent, doing his famous ‘burr’ sound – a noise used to spook foxes into running from cover.

It was at this point that sabs saw a fox being pursued by the pack, hounds just behind the terrified fox. Unfortunately, this a common sight at the Middleton Hunt, who never hide behind the pretence of trail laying, which of course we know is a complete smokescreen anyway.

Foot sabs went straight into the field and the vehicle team launched the drone. The huntsman rode past the drone pilot, who advised him that the drone could see hounds on a fox and demanded that the hounds be called off. O’Donnell knew they were on a fox and made no effort at all to call them off.

Our drone footage captures the sustained pursuit of a fox, which went across a field and through a farmyard with a heavy vehicle in operation, putting both fox and hounds in more danger. A glimpse of the blurred fox running left through the garden is the last we see of them. Hounds continue on the scent for some time until the drone battery died. We hope the fox got away.

The hunt then continued towards Scrayingham desperate for a kill – flushing becks and miscanthus – eventually heading back north up the footpath and back towards the meet. A blocked badger sett was found by an independent monitor, there were likely more blocked setts around, as this is another regular finding wherever the Middleton Hunt meet.

With a several foot teams and drivers between York Hunt Sabs, West Yorkshire Hunt Sabs and others, we kept them in sight and don’t think they got onto anything else.

Please support the sabs involved here:
York Hunt Sabs
West Yorkshire Hunt Sabs