North West Hunt Saboteurs Association

Shocked dad's fox hunt fury - 7/11/03

A concerned father of three has said his children were left terrified after witnessing a hunt which passed near their home unexpectedly.

Peter Hughes, 40, of Stoneholme Terrace, Crawshawbooth, said his three children, Jade, 13, Josh, 12, and Jake, nine, had been upset by witnessing the Holcombe Hunt which passed through the village without warning.

The Joint Master of the hunt has apologised to Mr Hughes and said the hunt had strayed from its route after hounds picked up the scent of a fox.

Mr Hughes said: "We are really angry about this. We went out to find out what was going on and ended up being followed by some of the hounds. Some of the hounds had lost their way and were trying to jump across the river. Some of them were hitting the banking and falling into the river which wasn't very nice to watch.

" Deer were also being chased because the hounds were out of control. My neighbour who has small children said he was fearful that they could have bitten the children."
Peter who works at a Ramsbottom paper mill added: "I think it's dreadful. The children have been upset about it ever since."

Gregg Metcalfe, a spokesman for the North West League Against Cruel Sports support group said: "Once again children, pets and deer have been terrified by a hunt unable to control their rioting hounds."

George Dickinson, joint Master of the Holcombe Hunt, said: "I can only apologise to Mr Hughes. The hunt was on the Hapton side of the hills when the dogs picked up a fox's scent which took them down into the Goodshaw area. We spent more than an hour getting the hounds back but no-one approached us to complain at the time."

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Hunt Sabs Left to Rescue Hunt Hound After Cliff Fall - 30/1/02

Hunt saboteurs in the north west today condemned the Holcombe Hunt after its supporters, riders and staff showed little regard yet again for the fate of a hound which was injured after falling 30 feet down a cliff.

The incident occurred when the hunt met at Holt Lane Farm, Brindle, near Chorley, which is the home of Hunt Master, Arnold Greenhalgh. Hunt saboteurs were in attendance to use non-violent direct action in order to prevent the hunt from killing foxes or hares following a tip off from a from a concerned member of the local community.

During the course of the day members of the NWHSA managed to save the lives of many hares and rabbits using tactics that have proved successful in the past. However, during the afternoon the pack of hounds was then seen hunting near a cliff face, when one of the hounds fell. The saboteurs were at the incident within seconds to attend to the hound. One saboteur then picked up the dying hound, which had blood streaming from its mouth, and ran over to the nearby road to get help. Despite the presence of 20 hunt supporters at the road they all ignored the saboteurs pleas for help and it was not until a member of the hunt staff decided to intervene after several minutes that a supporter reluctantly decided to put the injured foxhound in his Landrover. It is not known what happen to the injured hound but sabs present feared for its life, especially after the unnecessary delay in taking it for treatment.

Following the incident Paul Timpson spokesperson for the NWHSA said ‘The complete lack of concern shown by the hunt and their supporters over the incident is disgraceful and highlights the hunt’s blatant disregard for life - whether it be fox, hare or hound’. ‘It also goes to show that the hunt see the hounds as expendable as they just carried on hunting as if nothing had happened’.

‘ Following a incident five years ago when sabs helped save the lives of two hounds from nearly drowning in a reservoir, it would be appreciated if the hunt would publicly thanks the sabs for their help yet again’.

Police deny threat to drivers 23/1/02

Hounds from the Cheshire Forest Hunt caused danger and delays for Knutsford drivers, it was claimed this week.

A woman, who asked not be named, said on Monday that motorists, already travelling slowly, were forced to break to avoid hitting the 'runaway' dogs on the A50.

"The hunters tried to keep the hounds under control but they couldn't," she told the Knutsford Guardian. "The dogs just ran from the woods into the roads causing danger to drivers.

"The road was fairly busy and it could have caused a serious accident." But yesterday Alex Park, who led the Knutsford hunt on Saturday, dismissed the claims as 'utter rubbish'. "I was in charge and I know that we kept all the hounds under control," he said. "They all have a name and they know to stay close to their master's horse.

"This allegation is just another attempt to put the hunt down."

Police stopped the traffic twice to allow the hunters and their hounds to cross the main road.

But Sergeant Kevin Chambers said there was no danger to the hounds or the motorists.

"The hunt needed to cross the road twice and there was a marked police presence on both occasions," he said yesterday. "The traffic was stopped before they started crossing so there were no near misses - no danger at all."

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