A second illegal snare has been found wrapped around a badger near Colchester
A dead badger was found, “almost garrotted”, laying in a ditch near Colchester. It was a grim sight found by members of a local badger group. But it wasn’t the time first time that the group had visited the area due to reports of an illegally snared badger. North East Essex Badger Group said it […]
Notorious fox hunter Mark Pearson to appear in court again
Dorset Police has announced that three fox hunters will appear in court on 7 June 2023, charged under the Hunting Act. Evidence gathered from North Dorset Hunt Saboteurs has been instrumental in charging Mark Pearson, Tom Lyle and Marcus Boundy of hunting a wild animal with dogs. Dorset Police said: “It follows an investigation by […]
Hunter pleads guilty after trampling a hunt sab
Hunter Chris Mardles has pleaded guilty to grievous bodily harm after trampling a sab with his horse. Mardles was the whipper-in of the Pytchley with Woodland Hunt when he injured the sab in September 2020. Mel Broughton, a member of Northants Hunt Saboteurs, suffered from a collapsed lung, six broken ribs, a broken collar bone […]
Ban hunting to tackle badger baiting says USPCA
The Ulster Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (USPCA) launched a report on badger baiting in Northern Ireland. And as part of the strategy to end the cruel pastime, it’s reinforcing calls for a ban on hunting with hounds in the country. The USPCA launched Badger Baiting in Northern Ireland on 7 March […]
Snared badger disappears leaving only pool of blood
Essex Police are investigating after blood was found by a snare. A member of the public reported finding a badger trapped in the device. But by the time police arrived, the creature had gone. As local paper the Daily Gazette reported, the incident occurred on 25 February and involved a dog-walker finding a badger struggling […]
Hunt monitors are urgently calling for people to oppose the Ilminster Beagle Festival
The Ilminster Beagle Festival is well underway in south Somerset. The secret event is well-guarded by organisers, and is rarely seen by the public because of its remote location. Hunt monitors are calling for people to oppose the last few days of the meet, which runs until Sunday 12 March. Beagling is the cruel sport […]
Hunt sabs ‘ecstatic beyond belief’ as Lanarkshire & Renfrewshire Foxhounds folds
Hunt Saboteurs are celebrating as news comes in that another hunt in Scotland has folded. The Lanarkshire and Renfrewshire Foxhounds announced its closure just six weeks after Scotland changed its hunting laws. The country now houses just eight foxhound packs and one minkhound pack. Glasgow Hunt Saboteurs, which has consistently sabbed the hunt, said on […]
PTW Equipment Fund: Cotswolds Hunt Sabs
This month Protect the Wild has been pleased to be able to respond to a request from Cotswolds Hunt Sabs (formerly the South West Hunt Sabs) for help topping up public donations they’d received to buy personal safety equipment to use in the field. As their name suggests the Cotswolds Hunt Sabs mostly sab hunts […]
Police still appealing for information about gang that sets foxes on fire
A group of four men, thought to be between 18 and 20 years old, has been torturing foxes in Newham, east London. Police are calling to the public for any information about them. In the early hours of Monday 27 February, police were called to the scene after screaming was heard, initially thought to be […]
Victory for foxes as another hunt bites the dust
The Meynell and South Staffordshire Hunt has announced that it is folding, and its staff will be made redundant on 1 May. The welcome news shows that the hunting industry is facing an uphill battle to survive. Hunt saboteurs had already witnessed the hunt saying that it would disband on Friday 3 March. But the […]
SOUTH DORSET HUNT: Judge overturns conviction for hunting a fox
A Bournemouth Crown Court judge has just overturned a conviction against huntsman Mark Pearson. The South Dorset Hunt’s master-huntsman was originally convicted of illegal hunting in October 2022. It resulted from an incident in which the South Dorset Hunt’s hounds killed two foxes near Bere Regis, Dorset, on 13 November 2021. Hunt saboteur group Weymouth […]
Ministry of Defence Police issue warning to Royal Artillery Hunt after deer chase
Ministry of Defence Police issued an official warning to two members of Royal Artillery Hunt. It comes after monitors captured footage of hounds chasing deer across Salisbury Plain. However, the video also raises questions about why stronger action wasn’t taken. Ministry of Defence (MOD) Police issued an official warning to Charles Carter, huntsman for the […]
WILTSHIRE: Protest at appointment of hunt supporting Rural Crime Team Officer
As has been widely reported (including by Protect the Wild), a peaceful protest was planned for today outside Wiltshire Police HQ in Devizes. Sabs and campaigners are furious that Wiltshire Police have recently announced Cheryl Knight as its new recruit to their Rural Crime team. Hunt saboteurs have highlighted Knight’s links to both the Beaufort […]
Essex Police serves hunt with Community Protection Warning
Anti-hunting campaigners and hunt saboteurs scored another victory on 3 March when the Essex with Farmers and Union Hunt was issued with a Community Protection Warning (CPW). Essex Police tweeted: “RET [Rural Engagement Team] have issued a Community Protection Warning to a hunt that operates in Essex. Following reports of trespassing and other issues affecting […]
National Trust bans grouse shooting from a Peak District estate
The National Trust has announced it’s banning grouse shooting from 1,600 acres of its land in the Peak District. And it comes after the charity voiced concerns over the shooting industry’s “management techniques”. On 3 March, Sheffield paper The Star reported that the National Trust had chosen not to renew its relationship with the shooting […]
PTW Equipment Fund: Cheshire Against Blood Sports
This month Protect the Wild has been pleased to be able to respond to a request from Cheshire Against Blood Sports for body cameras to record evidence and protect them from members and supporters of the Cheshire Hunt – the current home of notorious huntsman and fox killer Ollie Finnegan. We were able to supply […]
BREAKING: Hunt’s governing body permanently expels the Avon Vale Hunt
The British Hound Sports Association (BHSA) has permanently expelled the Avon Vale Hunt. The body had previously suspended the hunt after gruesome footage showed hunt members digging out two foxes. Hunt sabs say that this is “the end of the Avon Vale as they exist.” The video, which was leaked and published by the Hunt […]
Join the protest against the appointment of Wiltshire Police’s new Rural Crime Team officer
Wiltshire Police recently announced its new recruit to the Rural Crime team, Cheryl Knight. She has connections with two notorious hunts, and has posted photos of herself beagling with another hunt. Hunt saboteurs and campaigners are gearing up to protest her appointment, and they want you to join them. You can read our detailed article […]
New review shows pheasants are still riddled with lead despite industry promises
A new study reveals that the shooting industry has done almost nothing to reduce lead in shotgun pellets. The finding comes half-way through an industry pledge to voluntarily reduce lead by 2025. The Conservation Evidence Journal published a review on 27 February led by Rhys Green of the Environmental Research Institute and Cambridge University. The […]
Hunt master caught on camera ‘thrashing’ a hound with his whip
Mendip Hunt Saboteurs published video that showing a hunt master that “thrashed” a hound with a whip. And it’s a cruel reminder of how much care and respect some hunts show the animals they’re supposed to care for and respect. The group said the master in question was George Pullen, a master of the Mendip […]
Leicestershire Police can’t decide whether it has powers to stop illegal hunting
Hunt saboteurs were out in numbers on Saturday 18 February, monitoring and sabbing the Cottesmore Hunt. The sabs witnessed the hunt chasing a fox in full view of Leicestershire police. Following the event, the police stated to Protect The Wild that officers had no powers on the ground to intervene and stop the hunt. Northants […]
Hare courser has penalty increased after appealing sentence
Ryan Thomas Spence, 33, of Redcar, became the first offender in North Yorkshire to be given a Criminal Behaviour Order (CBO) for hare coursing offences last year. Spence, described as a ‘prolific courser’, was handed the banning order following a North Yorkshire Police investigation which saw him convicted of hunting wild mammals with dogs (contrary […]
BREAKING: Three arrested after fox killed in residential garden
Norfolk Police has announced that it has arrested three members of the West Norfolk Foxhounds after a fox was brutally murdered by hounds in a family’s garden. Two of the men have been arrested on suspicion of hunting wild mammals with dogs, criminal damage and having a dog dangerously out of control. The third man […]
Natural England asks for public comments on more badger culling
On 20 February, Natural England launched an online survey, giving the public the opportunity to comment after it had “received applications or expressions of interest for a Supplementary Badger Disease Control Licence within the counties of Herefordshire, Hampshire, Wiltshire and Avon.” But if you’re about to click on the survey, don’t for one moment think that […]
Stark images of a snared badger highlight the need to ban snares now
A badger was found caught in a snare on the outskirts of a town in Northamptonshire. And images of the creature reveal just how cruel the devices are. On 3 February, Northamptonshire Badger Group said on Facebook that it had spent five hours searching for an injured badger “through fields, brambles and thick hedges”. The […]
Footage shows hounds out of control as fox is torn apart in garden
Week in, week out, news comes in of hunting hounds that are completely out of control. And now a family in Norfolk has shared footage of the moment when the West Norfolk Foxhounds’ dogs ran into their garden, cornered a fox, then tore up the poor creature on the patio. The incident, which took place […]
Wiltshire Police employs hunter as new Rural Crime Team officer
Wiltshire Police’s Rural Crime Team has recently announced its new recruit, PC Cheryl Knight. But Knight has links to both the Beaufort Hunt and the Avon Vale Hunt. One of the Rural Crime Team’s main remits is to investigate and prosecute illegal hunting, and the police department is currently investigating one of the hunts that […]
Police are investigating the Wynnstay Hunt for interfering with a badger sett
North Wales Police are investigating two men for interfering with a badger sett. And video shows the suspects running away the moment they’re caught. Footage released by the Hunt Saboteurs Association (HSA) on 17 February shows two men escaping on a quad bike after they were confronted by sabs. The 27-second video shows the cameraperson […]
PTW Wildlife Rescue/Animal Hospital Donation: Secret World Wildlife Rescue
Thanks to our supporters, Protect the Wild has been delighted to be able to donate to a wildlife rescue that is doing fantastic work in the south of England: Secret World Wildlife Rescue. Based in Somerset, Secret World Wildlife Rescue has rescued on average 5000 animals every year since it was set up in 1992. […]
DORSET: Gamekeeper slapped on wrist for multiple raptor deaths
Gamekeeper Paul Allen of Wimborne St Giles, appeared at Weymouth Magistrates’ Court on 16 February (2023) following a guilty plea last month relating to multiple raptor persecution offences. As we reported on Protect the Wild in January (Yet more dead buzzards and yet another gamekeeper in court) the bodies of six shot Buzzards and the […]
Hunt thugs allegedly hospitalised a disabled man
An ambulance was called to help a man that said he was attacked by two men on a quad bike. The incident during a meet of the Worcestershire Hunt. Worcester News reported on 16 February that Mark Saddler was taken to hospital after he claimed that he was attacked by two men. The newspaper quoted […]
In his new TV show, Jeremy Clarkson laments that you can’t shoot or gas badgers
The badger is Britain’s most persecuted animal. It is attacked on many fronts – by the government during its annual badger cull, by badger baiters, and by the fox hunting community. But in his new programme, Clarkson’s Farm, Jeremy Clarkson spouts dangerous lies about the creatures. And now the Badger Trust has hit out at […]
Police arrest two more in connection with Avon Vale Hunt video
Police have arrested two more people in connection with the Avon Vale Hunt video. Wiltshire Police said that it had arrested two people on suspicion of wildlife offences on 14 February. It said the man and woman, both 25, were suspected of “hunting a wild mammal with dogs, interfering with badger setts and causing unnecessary […]
BREAKING: Cottesmore huntsman arrested after sab is trampled
On 14 February 2023, police arrested Cottesmore huntsman Sam Jones after he trampled a hunt saboteur with his horse. The incident took place on 11 February. Both Hertfordshire and Northants Hunt Saboteurs were on the ground, trying to prevent the hunt from making a kill that day. They witnessed foxes being chased, hares bolting, a […]
Gamekeepers burn moors above Sheffield
Avian Flu, declining biodiversity, and growing awareness of animal sentience, be damned. Warnings about the impacts of air pollution and microscopic smoke particulates on lung health and chronic respiratory problems, be damned. Climate change, be damned. Opportunities for local residents to enjoy the first blue skies and the first fresh air of the coming spring, […]
Police chief commends hunt saboteurs, saying illegal hunting is ‘prolific’
The Times reported on 11 February that senior police officer Matt Longman has described illegal hunting as “prolific”. Longman is a commander of Plymouth Police and, more relevantly, National Police Chiefs’ Council (NPCC) lead for “Fox Hunting Crime”. The newspaper went on to report that Longman wants: “police forces to work with the “volunteers” who […]
Four Burrow Hunt: hunting hounds fall into mineshaft – again
Cornwall’s Four Burrow Hunt has shown once again that it isn’t able to take care of its hounds after its dogs fell down a mineshaft for a second time. Fire and Rescue teams, as well as the police, were called to the scene near Porkellis on 7 February 2023. The hounds were safely rescued. Four […]
Northern Ireland: Foxhunting legal but cracking under direct action
While there are laws against hunting with hounds across most of the UK, there is one place where the sport continues legally: Northern Ireland. However, it is also home to an active hunt saboteur group, and they’ve shared good news in recent months. On 29 November 2022, the Hunt Saboteurs Association announced that the Killultagh […]
BREAKING: Three members of the Avon Vale Hunt arrested
Wiltshire Police have arrested three men from the Avon Vale Hunt on the morning of 10 February following footage of the hunt involved in the dig out of two foxes. ITV News reporter Rupert Evelyn said on Twitter that Wiltshire Police arrested three men on 10 February following publication of footage appearing to show an […]
GOOD NEWS: Avon Vale Hunt bites the bullet
Following publication of video showing members of the Avon Vale Hunt digging out a fox, hunting’s governing body has ‘permanently expelled’ its key members. On 8 February, the Hunt Saboteurs Association (HSA) and ITV News published mobile phone footage showing several members of the Avon Vale Hunt involved in the dig out of two foxes. […]
Wynnstay Hunt supporter filmed giving nazi salute to hunt monitor
The Wynnstay Hunt’s questionable reputation reached a new low on 7 February 2023 when a prominent hunt supporter harassed a hunt monitor, repeatedly performing the Nazi salute at her. Lesley, a Cheshire Monitors volunteer, was on foot, observing and filming the hunt. Field riders blocked her way, while a man called Ian Jones continually talked […]
Avon Vale Hunt laughing as two foxes ‘dug out’ and hunted
Footage purportedly showing terriermen involved in digging out a fox was published by the Hunt Saboteurs Association (HSA) and ITV News on 8 February. The video shows three men leaning into a freshly dug hole in a field, with one man pulling a terrier out. The video pans around to show hunt masters, staff and […]
Lewis Hamilton-fronting car company sponsoring fundraisers for hunts
Car manufacturer INEOS Automotive is sponsoring point-to-point horse races to show its support for the “countryside community”. The catch? They are organised by and raise money for criminal hunting. INEOS Automotive started its partnership with the Point-to-Point Authority in November 2021. The promotional material at the time said the car manufacturer was sponsoring the Mixed […]
Despite conviction fox killer Ollie Finnegan working with Cheshire Hunt
Huntsman Ollie Finnegan is, perhaps, one of the best examples of criminality in the world of fox hunting. Despite being convicted under the Hunting Act, the Cheshire Hunt continues to employ him to murder foxes. On 4 February 2023, Cheshire Against Blood Sports witnessed the hunt killing a fox, and hunt staff “shoving the fox’s […]
Badger baiting: yet another arrest made
It’s thought that more than 10,000 badgers are murdered by baiters every year in the UK. And on 25 January yet another man was arrested on suspicion of badger baiting in North Yorkshire. Yorkshire Live reported that the man, in his twenties, was found with three injured dogs. The news website reported: “Police found a […]
Royal Agricultural University: Sick stunt as fox corpse tied to car roof
Protect the Wild and the Daily Mail don’t often agree on matters concerning wildlife, but their headline on Feb 7th “Outrage after students at Britain’s top agricultural university strap dead fox to the roof of a car for charity rally” just about nails it. As the Mail explained, “Students at a prestigious university dubbed ‘Oxbridge […]
Joseph Whittam: terrier abuser who keeps offending
Repeat animal abuser, Joseph Whittam, has been jailed for a second time after his address was raided. Whittam was banned from keeping animals for life in 2018 after gruesome footage was found on his phone, where he encouraged his dogs to rip a cat to pieces. The video was described as “blood curdling” by the […]
HUNT HAVOC: Sab drone records moment hound almost hit on road
Surrey Hunt Sabs shared video filmed by a drone of hounds chasing what the group said was a fox. And it highlights why groups including Protect the Wild say the Hunting Act needs a recklessness clause. On 4 February, Surrey Hunt Sabs shared footage filmed earlier that day by its drone. It showed hounds running […]
York: Fox fatally injured in illegal snare
The RSPCA is appealing for information following the discovery of a fox caught in a snare in York. And it’s a grim reminder that these “awful” devices are everywhere. A number of news reports said the young fox was discovered in a hedgerow near Rye Walk, in the north-west of the city. Following his discovery, […]
Pheasant shooting ‘season’ ends today
The vast majority of birds that breed in or regularly visit the UK are rightly protected by law and can not be harmed or killed at any time of the year. For those unfortunate species that were long ago declared as ‘game’ or ‘quarry’ though (and there are no biological reasons for the choices that […]
PTW Equipment Fund: North London Hunt Sabs
This month Protect the Wild has been pleased to be able to respond to a request from the North London Hunt Sabs for help with repairs to their vehicle. Ordinarily we provide equipment rather than fund repairs like this, but we felt that in this instance our supporters (who ultimately provide the funds we use […]
VICTORY: Fife Foxhounds fold after 267 years
Some hunt supporters have said the Fife Foxhounds are planning to fold following the recent passage of Scotland’s new anti-hunting bill. However, the link may not be as direct as it first appears. On 29 January, a person by the name of Leslie Bain posted to Facebook that the “Fife Foxhounds are disbanding”. Bain attributed […]