Saboteurs and hunters join forces to save horse from bog

HUNT saboteurs joined forces with huntsmen as they came together to rescue a horse trapped in a deep bog.

Members of Surrey Hunt Monitors and Guildford Hunt Saboteurs were following a group of hunters from the Surrey Hunt Union near Hankley Common on Saturday.

They planned to track the hunt and document its activities, and intervene if any animals got hurt. But after just 30 minutes one of the lead huntsman’s horses got stuck in a deep bog – and the saboteurs stepped in to help their adversaries rescue the animal.

A member of Guildford Hunt Saboteurs, who wished to remain anonymous, said: “When I arrived, they [the hunt] had started to take the saddle off the horse to reduce weight.

“I waited until they had done that to ask if they needed help but they said ‘no’ so I observed at the side and carried on taking footage.” He said more saboteurs arrived on the scene and the hunters continued to refuse assistance, but eventually relented and let them help.

“I jumped in after about five minutes and said to them ‘look, the only thing that’s important at this point in time is the horse, I don’t care about anything else’. At that point, I think they were quite happy for me to assist.

“At the end, the joint hunt master thanked us for our help and said we had been a great help.” The Surrey Hunt Monitors said its members decided to intervene because the horse was “well stuck, freezing cold and clearly stressed”.

Surrey Police officers were also called to the scene. A spokesman said the hunters were “grateful to the help offered” and that the horse “appeared to have no obvious injuries”.

Jeremy Gumbley, speaking on behalf of the Surrey Hunt Union, said: “All credit to our Surrey Hunt Monitors and the saboteurs. In the past, we have come to blows over different opinions on various things, but we all love animals.”