| 30th
October 2008 |
 |
Seven arrested over hare coursing
 Seven people have been arrested as part of a police
operation to crack down on hare coursing across Oxfordshire.
Three men and a boy were arrested in Longcot, Faringdon. Their
vehicle was seized by officers and two dogs were taken by the
RSPCA.
Another three men have also been arrested in Blewbury near Didcot.
All are held on suspicion of hare coursing
| 30th
October 2008 |
|
Trainee huntsman, 16, killed in shooting accident at exclusive
fox hunt HQ
 A 16-year-old trainee huntsman has been killed in a shooting
accident at the headquarters of an exclusive fox hunt. Jack Burgess
died instantly when a loaded shotgun used to kill pheasants went
off in his hands.
Neighbours reported hearing a 'massive bang' before staff from
the Grafton Hunt in Towcester, Northamptonshire, discovered his
lifeless body in one of the kennels. Staff say Jack, an apprentice
hunt master, had been cleaning out the kennels when the incident
took place
| 24th
October 2008 |
|
Snaring of badgers 'increasing'
 Incidents of badgers found snared have increased, according
to figures recorded by charity Scottish Badgers.
Fourteen have been reported so far this year - 12 of the cases
between February and June. The incidents involved 19 animals
| 22nd
October 2008 |
|
Hunt's court action is adjourned
 A hearing on a hunt's High Court bid to stop animal
activists entering acres of Sussex land has been adjourned.
Crawley and Horsham Hunt had been hoping to obtain an injunction
to ban hunt monitors from the land before the season started
on 1 November.
Mr Justice King adjourned the case pending a "case management
conference" within five or six weeks. The hearing will then
resume at a later date
| 22nd
October 2008 |
|
Three rabbit hunters arrested on private land
Three men caught hunting rabbits without the landowner’s
permission have been cautioned under the Hunting Act. The three
men, aged 54, 25 and 25, were reported as being seen hunting
on the private land just off the Isle of Sheppey last week,
While hunting rabbits is not illegal, it is an offence to hunt
the animals without the initial agreement of the landowner to
use the land. The men were arrested and cautioned
| 21st
October 2008 |
|
'Defects' in hunt's court action
A hunt seeking a High Court injunction to stop animal
activists entering acres of Sussex land have had two aspects
of its action ruled out of order.
The judge said there were "fundamental defects" in Crawley and
Horsham hunt's case as set out on paper.
He said it could not seek an order banning trespass and nuisance
because the claims were not specific enough.
The hunt will now have to prove that there has been a case of
harassment in the past, a claim hunt monitors deny
| 18th
October 2008 |
|
Police on the trail of hunts to stop hounds killing
foxes 'by accident'
Police forces in England and Wales are demanding to be informed
of the time and place of hunts to prevent the illegal killing
of foxes as the pursuit enjoys a renaissance four years after
it was banned.
The new season begins on November 1 and next week the Crawley
and Horsham hunt will go to the High Court on behalf of an alliance
of 88 landowners to try to ban animal welfare activists from
100,000 acres of countryside in West Sussex.
They intend to use the Protection from Harassment Act to obtain
an injunction against the West Sussex Wildlife Protection Group
and its main organisers, Simon and Jaine Wilde, of Bognor Regis.
| 17th
October 2008 |
|
How the hunt shot Labour's fox:
Although hunting was
banned three years ago the sport is MORE popular than ever
Cowering down a rabbit hole deep in the English countryside
at 11 o'clock last Thursday morning, a year-old fox has a few
seconds to live. An inch in front of the fox's furry face, blocking
all chance of escape, is Tozy the terrier with his razor-sharp
teeth.
Three feet above, in the open air, two men from the local hunt
are digging down towards him. Soon it will be over. As the men's
spades crash into the warren to reach the terrified creature,
Tozy's owner takes a 3.2 Taurus pistol from his pocket and fires
a shot into the the fox's forehead, killing it instantly.
| 14th
October 2008 |
|
Bryan Ferry visits son Otis in prison
 IT was a case of 'Let's Stick Together' when pop icon Bryan
Ferry put on a brave face and visited his son Otis in prison
for the first time.
Otis Ferry, 25 - real name Charles - was remanded in custody
for two-and-a-half months in September for allegedly perverting
the course of justice.
Roxy Music legend Ferry arrived at HMP Gloucester looking grim-faced
in a chauffeur-driven silver Mercedes accompanied by his other
son Tara
| 5th
October 2008 |
|
Putting
a stop to hare hunts
 A crackdown on an illegal blood sport plaguing the Oxfordshire
countryside has been launched. The hare coursing season began
last month and police have reported a rise in the activity in
South Oxfordshire and Vale of White Horse. Hunters travel from
around the country to Oxfordshire and damage crops and fields
They wager money on which dog will make the
hare change direction, but often the hare is caught and killed.
Pc Darren James said Operation Migrate, launched last week, would
target the illegal sport in the Wantage and Faringdon areas.
Several arrests have already been made
| 3rd
October 2008 |
|
Hunt man admits common assault
 A huntsman repeatedly pushed a protester from
West Coker into a ditch with his horse as she tried to monitor
his foxhounds, a court heard
Sheep farmer Christopher Marles, aged 46, rode the horse forward
three times, forcing Helen Weeks of West Coker Hill off the narrow
road each time |
