Ghoulish pictures have been circulating on social media about what the Thurlow Hunt (TH) got up to at their Hunt Ball. Smiling and dressed for a masquerade, guests are seen posing with a stuffed fox. In several images they are seen stroking the dead animal.
In another photo, two ball attendees can be seen standing next to a wall-mounted fox head that has been decorated with sunglasses.
The Ball was held at the bloodbusiness.info listed Thurlow Grand Hall, which is run by Thurlow Estate Management Ltd whose Directors include members of the Vestey family, one of the wealthiest families in the UK. They include current Pony Club UK Chair Tim Vestey (a Director of the Countryside Alliance from 2014 -2018 and current Director of the Puckeridge Hunt) and brother Robin who is a Master of Foxhounds and President of the Thurlow Hunt Supporters Club.
The Thurlow claim to ‘trail hunt’. In Protect the Wild’s view these pictures show a deep disrespect both for nature and these beautiful creatures. This highly disrespectful event looks little more than a celebration of killing foxes.
Just “silliness”?
When contacted by angry members of the public, one Hunt Ball attendee reportedly brushed off the criticism, saying “ignore” our “silliness”. But this isn’t just “silliness”. It displays a cold contempt for wild animals – living and dead.
One social media user shared this comment on their Facebook page:
“Gruesome and so deprived of humanity. What a disagreeable bunch of people they are. Their behaviour bemuses me.”
Another unimpressed Facebook user simply remarked: “sick, snobby gits”.
“No different to those hunters that pose with Leopards and Tigers”
Suffolk Action for Wildlife (SAF) thought the pictures were a good illustration of what the Hunt is really like. They decided to share them on their Facebook page. SAF said:
“Really believe they trail hunt? This is no different to those hunters that pose with Leopards and Tigers, the mentality is the same.“
SAF told Protect the Wild:
“They have no shame and don’t even try to cover their enthusiasm for their perverse sport.”
In March 2019, Ipswich Crown Court found Thurlow huntsman Christopher Amatt guilty of illegally hunting a fox, as well as for common assault on hunt saboteur Steve Milton. The incident, where Amatt rode his horse at Milton and struck him with a whip, took place on 26 December 2017. The Thurlow’s Archibald Clifton-Brown was found guilty of assault. Amatt and Clifton-Brown were both ordered to pay fines and court costs.
The Thurlow has a track record of complicity in hound abuse too. When huntsman Guy Fitzearle was sacked from the Kimblewick Hunt for beating a hound almost to death, he took his hounds to the TH’s kennels. The Thurlow has gained further infamy for spawning Veterinary Association for Wildlife Management (VAWM). Veterinarian and researcher Richard (Twink) Allen, who hunted with the Thurlow Hunt, founded the group of pro-hunting vets in 1999 (then called Vets for Hunting), alongside Dr Lewis Thomas.
This year, a Thurlow huntsman was caught on film by North London Hunt Saboteurs accidentally trampling a hound. Shockingly, despite the potential severity of the injury to the hound, the huntsman doesn’t stop to check if she is ok. This footage surfaced just weeks after another of the Thurlow’s hounds was seen being kicked in the head by a horse. His wounds were likely fatal.
Despite all of these examples of careless disrespect for the dogs that they endanger, the Thurlow still like to paint a picture of a caring relationship between the hunt and its hounds:
It is less than surprising that members of the Thurlow posted those shameful pictures on social media. If you needed more proof that hunts will never respect wildlife, these pictures are it.
Do we really expect the likes of the Thurlow to stick to lawful trail hunting when they’re grinning and posing at a party with stuffed fox corpses. These pictures, coupled with the Thurlow Hunt’s track record of illegal hunting, prove once and again that we need a real ban on fox hunting and other cruel sports.
You can check out our proposal calling for a workable ban on the hunting of wild mammals here.
- Hunts must stop treating foxhounds as disposable tools and instead commit to rehoming and rehabilitating these incredible animals. We urge the UK’s dog lovers to stand with us in pressuring hunts to abandon their outdated and barbaric practices.
- Follow Suffolk Action for Wildlife on Facebook.
- Donate to North London Hunt Sabs here
