Fox torn apart by hounds ‘proves need to tighten hunt ban’

Martin Shipton

A couple witnessed an injured fox being torn apart by hunt hounds right in front of them near Llangollen.

The incident has raised concerns about the licensing of hunt activity on land owned by the Welsh Government and managed by Natural Resources Wales.

The couple, who wish to remain anonymous, saw an injured fox on the A542 as they were driving down from Horseshoe Pass and pulled over to help it before hunt hounds arrived on the scene and savaged it.

A hunt member pulled up in a car before taking the fox’s carcass away.

The woman and her husband have reported the incident which took place on Sunday, February 15, to North Wales Police.

She said: “We saw something in the road on our side. When we got closer we could see that it was a fox lying in the road but with its head and shoulders up, looking around and we thought it may have been hit by a car.

“My husband drove slowly around the fox and parked in front of it, got out of the car to check the fox’s injury, while I stayed in the car and tried calling the RSPCA – only to hear my husband shouting “The hunt is coming!”

“I looked up and a pack of hounds was making its way across the field to my left, and I jumped out of the car as a 4×4 vehicle which had come from the Llangollen direction stopped next to our car and the driver got and was going towards the fox, following the dogs.

“At this point the fox was attempting to get up and flee but was unable and I was going towards it screaming at the dogs to “Get out of it!”

“The dogs reached the fox and proceeded to tear at it and drag it around as they tore. I had to turn away, I couldn’t bear to see any more, but my husband then saw one of the men pick up what was left of the fox and take it away. Disposing of the evidence.

“Very badly shaken, we wanted to get away, and we both got back in our car and left. As we pulled away, I saw another huntsman walking up the road towards the dogs dressed all in dark green with a wax jacket and wellington boots, the same as the other man, and with a walkie talkie and tall wooden staff.

“The whole incident was absolutely sick. Neither of us slept last night. The yelps of the fox as it was being killed haunts us.”

‘Shocking’

Jamie Adair, the League Against Cruel Sports public affairs officer for Wales, said: “This shocking incident shows that the barbaric blood sport of fox hunting is still taking place in Wales and impacting on both wildlife and the Welsh public.

“The time for change is now. The UK Government must urgently launch its consultation to ban trail hunting, the smokescreen being used by hunts to cover-up their chasing and killing of foxes.

This consultation should also remove the exemptions in the Hunting Act that hunts exploit to get around the current weak law, introduce custodial sentences, and outlaw reckless, or ‘accidental’ hunting.”

The hunt is believed to be a ‘gun’ pack which normally hunts on foot, moving around in motor vehicles, and which flushes out foxes to be shot.

Gun packs are active on Welsh uplands and also operate on government land. The League was provided with a list of the approximately 20 gun packs which Natural Resources Wales licensed to go on their land in 2018/19.

The incident occurred on the A542 road close to the Ruabon/Llantysilio Mountains SSSI managed by Natural Resources Wales.

The incident was reported to the League’s Animal Crimewatch service which the public can contact on 0300 444 1234, email [email protected] or WhatsApp at 0755 278 8247, to report incidents of animal cruelty.

The League is appealing for anyone who witnessed or filmed the incident to contact them.

Exemptions

A spokesperson for Natural Resources Wales said: “It is illegal to hunt wild mammals with dogs in Wales. There are exemptions that allow hunting for certain types of humane control. This is called exempt hunting.

“Exempt hunting is only allowed with express permission in respect of clearly defined and manageable areas, and we monitor this activity periodically to ensure the terms are strictly adhered to.

“We would only receive requests for exemptions on the NRW-managed estate. We do not have any land in the area in question.

“We do not allow trail hunting on the NRW estate, including Welsh Government owned land.”

For more information see: Natural Resources Wales / Exempt hunting on land we manage