Family cat found dead in garden, a snare around his neck
Tigger, a domestic cat, died after a snare caught him around the neck. He was found in his family’s neighbour’s garden. But the RSPCA believe he actually died elsewhere. Tigger’s body was found on 11 April in Netherhall, on the outskirts of Leicester. A snare had pulled tight around his neck. However, Leicestershire Live reported […]
End Stag Hunting: Dr Amir Khan lends voice to new animation
Protect the Wild has launched a new short animation slamming illegal stag hunting and featuring the voice of broadcaster, wildlife campaigner and full-time NHS GP Dr Amir Khan. In our animation Dr Khan explains how deer hunts can last up to six hours and are ‘exempt’ under the Hunting Act 2004 because hunts claim they […]
‘Slow strangulation’ and ‘organ damage’: SnareWatch report shows the gruesome reality of snare use
Scottish animal welfare charity OneKind has released its 2022 SnareWatch Report, and it’s distressing reading. Snares are primarily used on foxes on bird-shooting estates in an attempt to stop the mammals from predating on birds such as pheasants and grouse. They are wire nooses that trap and hold the animal until someone comes and shoots […]
GOOD NEWS: Two Somerset beagle packs to merge
The Hunt Saboteurs Association (HSA) have reported that two Somerset beagle packs are merging. And it says it’s another sign that the pastime is in “terminal decline”. On 24 April, the HSA said that the Ilminster Beagles and West Somerset Beagles will merge for the 2023/23 season. The new pack will take the name Ilminster […]
Hunt Havoc and Violence
Hunt Havoc and Violence It isn’t just wildlife and hounds who are victims of hunting. Monitoring hunts can be a dangerous task, and people who oppose them are often risking their lives. Hunt saboteurs are prime targets for violent hunt thugs because it is their footage, as well as their eye witness accounts, which expose […]
Clearing away the ‘trail hunt’ smokescreen
The Trail Hunt Smokescreen Clearing away the ‘trail hunt’ smokescreen In 2004 the passing of the Hunting Act made fox hunting illegal. Since then hunts have claimed to be following artificial scent trails rather than deliberately hunting wild mammals. This is nothing but a lie. So-called ‘trail hunting’ didn’t exist before the passing of the […]
Hunt Havoc and and Mini’s Law
Hunt Havoc and Mini’s Law In January 2018, hounds from the East Sussex and Romney Marsh Hunt tore through a cat sanctuary in Hastings. The incident scattered dozens of cats, more than 20 of whom weren’t recovered. This was not an isolated incident, There have been many incidents involving hunts causing carnage to domestic animals […]
Time for shooting and hunting to acknowledge the truth about ‘pests’
An article in The Guardian this week headlined, “Lichens, slime moulds and wasps: RHS lists top beneficial wildlife for garden” should be required reading for the shooting and hunting industries. Written by Helena Horton, it comes thirteen months after the same journalist wrote a Guardian article with the headline “‘Planet friendly’: RHS to no longer […]
Hunt Havoc
Hunt Havoc Hunt Havoc – it’s everywhere the hunts go… One reason we need to get rid of hunting altogether – not simply try to strengthen existing legislation and allow hunting to continue in a slightly altered form – is to stop what is known as ‘hunt havoc’. Hunts have always exploited loopholes and exemptions […]
The Forgotten Victims of Hunting
The Forgotten Victims of Hunting Hunting’s impact on animals is usually focussed on the foxes, hares, deer, and other mammals that are still suffering from being illegally hunted. But there are other animals also caught up in hunting’s exploitation of sentient beings: the dogs that hunts use. They are the forgotten victims of hunting and […]
Why not strengthen the Hunting Act?
Why not strengthen the Hunting Act? A new Bill? Why not strengthen the Hunting Act instead? We need a proper ban on hunting, which is why we commissioned Advocates for Animals to help us campaign for a new law – The Hunting of Mammals Bill. But why not work to strengthen the existing legislation? Protect […]
Rabbits and the Law
Rabbits and the Law Rabbits are not native to the UK (they are from the Iberian Peninsula originally) and despite being here for around two thousand years, they are considered ‘pests’ in law. Since the Pest Act 1954 (which was put forward in response to huge agricultural losses) land occupiers – unless they can establish […]
Gruesome footage highlights the criminality of England’s stag hunters
Quantock Staghounds (QSH) is one of the UK’s most brutal hunts. It continually murders Somerset’s stags with impunity, despite being caught on film. Now, recent footage – caught by North Dorset Hunt Sabs – is a stark reminder of just how criminal this hunt really is. The sabs’ footage – which you can view here […]
Natural Resources Wales and one-sided ‘compromise’
As Protect the Wild’s Glen Black outlined in a March 31st news post, Natural Resources Wales (NRW) is asking the public for its thoughts on new regulations designed to licence the release of pheasants and partridges by the shooting industry. Glen wrote that we need to ‘keep our eyes on the prize’ and that ‘those […]
First convictions using new hare coursing laws show fresh legislation is possible
New anti-hare coursing legislation came into effect last summer. We’re now seeing the first prosecutions under that law. And it shows courts can have an impact on wildlife crime – if the government wants them to. Police gained new powers to deal with hare coursing on 1 August 2022. As part of the far-reaching and […]
A Proper Ban on Hunting
A proper ban on hunting It has been almost two decades since the passing of the Hunting Act 2004, banning the hunting of wild mammals with dogs in England and Wales. But hunts continue to operate, creating havoc and breaking the law by chasing and killing wild mammals under the guise of ‘trail hunting’, using […]
Hunt saboteurs hit back at Countryside Alliance ‘meltdown’
The Countryside Alliance (CA) is up in arms over Wiltshire Police’s decision not to employ fox hunters on its Rural Crime Team. It has launched a campaign to try to reverse the “unjust and divisive decision immediately”. Wiltshire Police announced that it would not employ hunters, past or present, onto its Rural Crime Team (RCT) […]
Border Hunt Kennels Exposé
Border Hunt Kennels Exposé Over the winter of 2022/2023 the Hunt Investigation Team and Northumberland Hunt Watch, supported by Protect the Wild, recorded conditions at one of the Border Hunt’s ‘kennels’ at Redesmouth Farm in Northumberland. What they found proves yet again that despite their claims on social media, as far as hunts are concerned ‘their’ […]
The Hunting Act 2004
The Hunting Act 2004 In force since 18 February 2005, the Hunting Act 2004 is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom which bans the hunting of most wild mammals (notably foxes, deer, hares and mink) with dogs in England and Wales. The Act does not cover the use of dogs in the […]
A visit to Secret World Wildlife Rescue
“Oh, the weather outside is frightful But the welcome is so delightful…” With apologies to Jule Styne and Sammy Cahn, but as Storm Mathis threatened to drown the Somerset Levels and blow me into the mud-brown swollen dykes along the sides of the road (mental note to self, the M5 isn’t so pretty a route […]
Cruelty Timeline
Cruelty Timeline Cruelty takes place all year round in the countryside. Snares and traps are being used in every month. Foxes are being shot and killed every day of the year. Someone, somewhere, will be breaking the law. Killing certain species of wildlife is legal though and here is a timeline showing when ‘seasons’ start […]
The Hunting with Dogs (Scotland) Bill 2023
The Hunting with Dogs (Scotland) Act 2023 The Scottish Government’s Hunting with Dogs Bill was passed in January 2023. It gained Royal Assent in March 2023, and finally came into force on 3rd October 2023 when NatureScot clarified the conditions under which licences might be given to applicants “requiring more than two dogs to manage […]
Dunston Harriers: Magistrates find three members not guilty of illegally hunting a hare
Great Yarmouth magistrates found three people connected with the Dunston Harriers not guilty of illegal hunting. Geoffrey Block, Josh Worthing-Hayes and Lewis Ryland each faced a Section 1 charge of illegal hunting. The charges date back to 18 January 2022, when a hunt monitor from Norfolk and Suffolk Against Live Quarry Hunting filmed the Dunston […]
Chris Packham narrates powerful animation against hunting on MoD land
Protect the Wild have launched a new short animation ‘End Hunting on MoD (Ministry of Defence) Land’ featuring the voice of beloved naturalist and broadcaster Chris Packham. The 45 second film is backed up with a petition demanding that the Ministry of Defence (MoD) stops issuing ‘trail hunting’ licences to hunts wanting to take advantage […]
CAMPAIGN: End Hunting on MoD land
Yesterday Protect the Wild launched a new petition-based campaign and a new animation: End Hunting on MoD (Ministry of Defence) Land. Within two hours our social media posts had been viewed almost 50k times, and by midday this morning over 5000 people had already signed our petition to the MoD calling on them to stop […]
MOD Petition
End Hunting on MoD Land Stop issuing ‘trail hunting’ licences on MoD land 40869 people have taken action so far. Help us reach 50000 First name Last name Email Phone Subject Letter For attention of Defence Infrastructure Organisation and John Healey, Secretary of State for Defence Following the leaked Hunting Office webinars which proved that […]
GUILTY: Hunt supporter convicted after running down saboteur
On 15 March 2023, South Dorset Hunt supporter Stewart Masters was found guilty after running down a hunt saboteur from Weymouth Animal Rights (WAR). WAR said: “On 12th February 2022, three of our group were waiting on a pick up when one of them was deliberately run into by a South Dorset Hunt supporter, Stewart […]
Lamping and the Law
Lamping and the Law Lamping – or spotlighting – is a legal (though distasteful) activity typically using a spotlight, high power light or torch to dazzle and shoot animals at night. The light used is so bright that it will dazzle anything it shines on and the eyes of the animals reflect back even when […]
Join protests against a shooting estate where snares have trapped dogs
National Anti-Snaring Campaign (NASC) is launching a series of protests to highlight the ubiquity of snaring on a West Sussex shooting estate. NASC announced that it is planning to hold a series of protests at Arundel Castle, West Sussex, beginning on 1 April. The group will hold further protests on 7, 15, 22 and 28 […]
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 […]
Spring Traps and the Law
Spring traps and the Law Spring traps are most commonly used to kill (or ‘control’) small mammals on shooting estates by breaking their backs. They consist of a treadle plate and a ‘strike arm’, a spring-powered smooth (not toothed) ‘jaw’ which is triggered by an animal’s weight on the plate. The arm snaps across the […]
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 […]
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 […]
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 […]
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 […]
Legacies
Legacies – a gift for wildlife Will you help by leaving a gift in your Will? Leaving a gift in your Will to Protect the Wild is a way to keep putting your beliefs into action, long after your lifetime. Our work aims to empower people to protect British wildlife. In just a few years, […]
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 […]
I want you to help us bring down the bird shooting industry
If you find yourself reading this, it’s likely you’re anti fox hunting. Maybe you’ve watched our ‘Trail of Lies’ animation or came across one of our undercover investigations. Or perhaps you signed one of our online petitions or donated to a crowd funder. However, what’s less likely is your position on bird shooting and whether […]
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 […]
Woodcock petition debate: through the looking glass with the shooting lobby
On the 27th of February, Parliament debated petition 619615 ‘Limit the shooting season of Woodcock‘, which was launched by Wild Justice and signed by 107, 916 members of the public. The petition asked that the (so-called) shooting season for Woodcock, a species in serious decline here, should be moved back from 01 October (it starts […]
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 […]
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 […]
Snares and the Law
Snares and the Law Snares are banned in most European countries, but free-running snares are still legal in England and Northern Ireland. Wales passed a ban in summer 2023, and in March 2024 the Wildlife Management and Muirburn (Scotland) Bill was passed into law making it “an offence to use a snare to trap a wild […]
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 […]
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. […]