Western Daily Press (Saturday)
Hunts get ready for the Boxing Day meets
Hunts are gearing up for their biggest ‘shop window’ event of the year. Philip Bowern reports
THE Countryside Alliance is urging hunts across the South West to list details of their Boxing Day meets on its website in readiness for what is, traditionally, the biggest day of the year in the hunting calendar.
But while in many parts of the region support for hunting remains strong, with hunts adapting to the ban imposed in the 2004 Hunting Act, opposition has not gone away.
At the weekend a handful of antihunt protesters turned out at Landhydrock House in Cornwall to dem- onstrate against the National Trust, which continues to allow trail hunting on many of its estates.
Elsewhere there are generally occasional skirmishes between hunt saboteurs and hunters every season as well as allegations of illegal hunting. And although the success rate for hunting prosecutions remains tiny, the League Against Cruel Sports still pursues legal action from time to time.
Against this background, however, the Countryside Alliance, which campaigns to overturn the Hunting Act, believes the Boxing Day meets continue to provide a good opportunity to show support for hunting continues – and to underline its links with many rural communities. This year it is publishing an online guide for spectators who want to join hunters, hounds and horses at the Boxing Day meet - and calling on organised hunts nationwide to post details of where and when they are gathering, so the public can turn up and show their support.
Complete with an interactive map, the guide so far includes details of two hunts taking place in the South West, the North Cornwall, meeting at Camelford and the Four Burrow, at Carn Brea.
The Alliance says: “Boxing Day tends to be a very sociable day so the meets can last up to about half an hour. During this time you may be offered a warming drink or some nibbles.
“Some of the more inquisitive hounds may mingle amongst the crowd but generally they are all kept up together with the huntsman and a member of staff known as the whipper-in. You are welcome to stroke the hounds and horses although it’s a good idea to approach horses from the front rather than from behind for obvious safety reasons.”
Organised opposition to hunting is unusual on Boxing Day, perhaps because most of the public who have turned up to watch are supportive – or at least not opposed - to the activ- ity and any protest might not be well received. But the League Against Cruel Sports is concentrating its efforts on targeting organisations like the National Trust, claiming it is effectively turning a blind eye to illegal hunting under the cover of trail hunts. The Trust defends its accept- ance of trail hunting. It has created a hunt management team and now formally monitors hunts on its land, to ensure the rules are being adhered to. The Trust says: “We believe the overwhelming majority of hunts act responsibly, and we hope our clear, robust, and transparent set of condi- tions will allow participants to enjoy this activity in compatibility with our conservation aims.”
Boxing Day 2018 is likely to be a popular one with hunting enthusiasts as well as those who enjoy the spectacle. For details of meets go to www.countrysidealliance.com
‘Boxing Day tends to be a very sociable day so the meets can last up to about half an hour’ COUNTRYSIDE ALLIANCE