Repeal of fox hunting

I've just been alerted to this discussion by the newsletter. Thank you Creativz for the link to the petition.

I think there really is something creepy about the people who support fox hunting and they are always so unpleasant about it - either they go down the 'you townies don't understand' route or else they bring out stories of rampant killing by foxes.

There is an academic at, I think, Bristol University who has done much research about foxes and has discredited most of those stories. I know a proportion of farmers are kind and hard working folk, by quite honestly, the vast proportion of those I have met have not impressed me by their attitude to wild animals and conservation. If they are not paid, they won't do it and anything they can't farm is thought of as vermin. Red kites and other raptors are shot as are members of the crow family. I picked up a dead young jackdaw recently, feathers still fluffy from barely having been used - he'd been shot. A friend who lives near a wood talks of the locals who get together to 'shoot out' the rook colony in the woods killing every bird they can and destroying the nests. What goes on in 'the country' is stomach turning in my opinion but if you protest you get told you are sentimental or you don't understand (no, I don't).

What is done to animals in the name of sport in the UK is abhorrent - fox hunting, badger baiting and 'culling', hare coursing are all taking place on a regular basis, you just have to know how to access the details.

I live in Oxfordshire and I know people who hunt foxes. Similarly a friend in Berkshire says the local hunt goes out regularly. Attempts are made to cover up what they do and to pretend that they are drag hunting or using birds of prey instead but it's pretty clear that the act is anyway, being ignored by the huntsmen and their activities not policed.

It may not be all 'posh folk' but keeping horses is not cheap, nor is joining a hunt and that the Tory party is aiming to amend the act says a lot about which class wants to do the activity.

Look up what the countryside alliance are saying on their site

dogs are quite happy to run after an aniseed drag so restrict them to that.

So grannyonce. fox hunters kill foxes but don't eat them, does that make them vermin then???
In my book they are. One word for fox hunting, BARBARIC Cannot be defended

The vote is today anyone know when?

It's on Wednesday isn't it?

Yes Ana confirmed, just googled it

Possibly after 1 p.m. on Wednesday, whitewave, depending on how long they debate it. It's followed by EVEL.

The way foxhunting is carried out in England is barbaric. I cannot understand how (mostly) privileged men and women get pleasure in watching an animal being ripped to shreds by a pack of dogs. I wished it would be totally banned and the matter closed and never discussed again. If people stopped feeding urban foxes, their population would shrink. And if a farmer catches a fox killing his livestock, he should be allowed to shoot in self defence.

Farmers are allowed to shoot foxes in those circumstances I believe, farmor51.

He's not shooting the fox in self defence he's shooting it to prevent it killing his livestock.

Indeed- but good husbandry via protection measures would make sense before shooting if at all possible (and yes I know foxes are very cunning and can overcome the best protection measures). I have no objection to foxes being shot if they are threatening livestock. More lambs die of poor husbandry and extreme weather though, and multiple births resulting in weaker runts the mother can't protect.

Why is the % of lambs lost the same on Scottish Islands with foxes and those without, for instance?

merlotgran, by self defence I include the farmer's family and property. I am not a fox lover, but I object to ANY torture of animals. I find the idea of fox hunting grotesque. And as a footnote, thousands of dogs are culled either because they are no good at hunting, or just too old. None of it belongs in a modern civilised society.

www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2015/jul/13/foxhunting-ban-changes-under-threat-from-snp

To the. SNP very well done indeed!!!!

Are the SNP going to bring Scottish law on fox-hunting into line with that of England and Wales?

They're trying very hard to do so thatbags. durhamjen's link explains their position on this very clearly. Interesting times, I think.

I'm asking because, as I understand it, current Scottish law allows what the Westminster government was proposing in the amendment under discussion, so I'm puzzled why the SNP wants to block the amendment unless the Scottish government intends, in short order, to change the Scottish law on fox-hunting.

X posts, nightowl. Thanks.

The government has postponed the vote - what a suprise

Do you have a link to that Annie?

I expect the SNP are testing their Westminster clout which, of course, they're perfectly entitled to do, I just think it's more about that than any fox-hunting proposals. Cynic? who, me?

I agree with Whitewave. For me, there is no argument to be had. Fox hunting, any hunting, should be banned and enforced as being totally illegal. Like some other gransnetters, I live in a rural area and our village has in the past been overrun by honking, boorish people (including members of Royalty) enjoying a spot of killing in the name of some archaic sport.

OK, foxes are predators, as pointed out by the chicken run owners - but is hunting with dogs spurred on by bloodthirsty subnorms be the way to control such assaults on our feathered friends?!

granjura, it was a news flash on BBC news

I am aware some here do not like any comparisons to be made- but I really do like the Geneva area idea. They have a team of qualified and very experienced wildlife marksmen- they know the Geneva region by heart, every nook and cranny, and all the wildlife too- including the damage they do and can cause. They work closely with farmers and wildlife/nature groups- and they do cull individuals or groups when absolutely necessary, be it to protect livestock, crops or people (we do have wolves and lynx here) - and only when adequate protection measures have been taken to protect either. They will advise on what protection is best and how to install + help too - and if they have to kill, they know exactly how to do it safely and surely, avoiding any un-necessary suffering.