Dogsey

gordon mac - I am the first to admit that I know nothing about hunting and far from "poncing" around on a horse, I have never even sat on one.

I have no feelings either way about hunting but I am fully aware of the damage that foxes and other vermin do to livestock.

However, in this case, whether the hounds were actually hunting or just following a trail, they were loose, had gotten onto a railway track - and sadly some were killed.

I've seen the result of a fox in a henhouse, and it was horrific. Like you Gordon, I said you have to be a decent rider to ride in a hunt

There are several comments I would like to make about people who ride to hounds.

Firstly, they are anything but ponces! Anybody who rides horses is brave and courageous - horse riding is the top of the list of dangerous sports. To ride to hounds you need not only to be a good rider, you need to have bollocks in the extreme. You need to be bloody, bold and resolute to quote from Macbeth. I come from a hunting line on both sides of my family going back centuries. My great grandfather was master of a hunt in Ireland - viscount Galway hunt - and my
grandfather bred polo ponies for king Edward viii and George vi and was polo trainer of both. However, even with that genetic background I am anti fox hunting but I will not stand by and see horse riders and in particular riders who go hunting described as ponces! Rant over!!!

The people who bred/own them should look after them - it's their responsibility after all..

That is such a naive statement, they will be pts, they are bred for a specific job, no job, no life

Yeah, Nikki, I was amazed to find out horse riding is judged more dangerous than motor cycling, although when you think about it, I don't think you could make a full one out of the pair of us put together we have had so many riding accidents, and in your case particularly tragic

Exactly...

The hunts account for a minimal amount of fox deaths in the scheme of things so 'the fox in the henhouse' would very likely still be in there regardless of whether their are hunters out there and, let's face it, they do it for the 'sport' not for environmental concerns.

If the Law is ever enforced and, by the looks of things, that is a very, very big 'if', it is to be hoped that those responsible for breeding hunting hounds live up to their responsibility to them and let them die naturally of old age and in good conditions. If not, surely that would prove that the hunters are indeed callous

@tawneywolf & Jackie - well who's fault is that? If that's what they choose to do let it be on their conscience - no one else's.