Devon Hunt Sabs Hit Report 20/12/14 Today we returned to the East Devon Hunt, who met at Wellbeck Equestrian Centre, Farringdon, just east of Exeter. Bear with us, its a long report! With a full Landrover we had the hunt pretty much surrounded all day, and they were never out of sight. Ageing huntsman, Martyn Livy (who has a very curious riding style, reminiscent of someone who shuffled off this mortal coil and gone into rigor mortis, whilst his horse carried on regardless) took the hounds north east of the meet towards Rosamondford House and Rill Farm. Hounds went into cry and scattered quickly afterwards, and Livy then spent considerable time trying to gather them between Aylesbeare, Perkins Village and Rill Farm. By 1.00pm, we hadnt seen him in the company of any of his hounds since leaving the meet! Sadly, foot sabs found a recently dead female fox beside a rodent trap in the vicinity of a chicken and turkey farm: Rosamondford Farm, near Perkins Village, which looked like it could have been poisoned. No seasonal goodwill to wildlife here apparently ... Meanwhile, a lone female police officer met with another group of foot sabs at Farringdon, investigating multiple complaints. Weve no idea who against, as she just rolled her eyes when illegal hunting was mentioned and wasnt seen again. A police transit van was also seen with the hunt later in the day but cunningly evaded meeting up with any of us. Livy finally retrieved the pack at Farringdon and headed west, putting them into a covert beside Hill Barton industrial estate, before heading west again into woods north of the Cat and Fiddle pub near the busy A3052. They went into cry again here and a deer and fox were witnessed fleeing from the covert, with point riders seen telling terrier men where the fox had run. Sabs went into fields immediately and sprayed over the foxs scent, and were accosted aggressively by members of the Precious family, owners of Axe Hayes Caravan Park, the land the hunt was reportedly on, and a couple of terrier men. Mrs Precious and her foul-mouthed daughter were well up for a scrap and tried to grab a camera, but sabs stood their ground and were soon called into action again as a second fox fled through a field next to them all. The huntsman remained in the wood, calling his scattered hounds back, whilst sabs made sure no one followed the escaping foxes. They were then treated to the hilarious sight of the terrier men making a big deal out of laying a false trail in the same fields - the only evidence we saw of that happening all day! They seemed to be very worried we might have video evidence of the foxes fleeing, but they werent fooling anyone. Livy continued northwest whilst this happened (in the opposite direction of the trail) and hounds were immediately heard in cry again in Alder Croft near Sowton Village. Another deer was seen fleeing here and the hounds scattered throughout the Clyst Valley, immediately south of the A30 dual carriageway. The Landy group watched Livy failing miserably to gather his pack just 100 metres away from the A30, north of Sowton Village, whilst foot groups remained near Alder Croft woods. One group of foot sabs came across a metal dog crate camouflaged beside the wood, with fresh fox prints in it. It had obviously not been there long, and we strongly suspected it was placed there deliberately in advance, possibly with a caged fox in it to be released before the hunt. It was moved to a place of safety, and our suspicions gained further credence when one of the terrier man was then seen returning to the exact spot the crate had been in. He searched for it in vain and then called someone, flapping his arms and gesticulating in his frustration. Trail hunting, eh? We dont think so. The huntsman took almost an hour to gather his pack back up and then decided to call it a day at 3.45. The straggling support didnt look very happy with their day, but it was hard to tell if Livy was miserable, tired or just losing the will to live, or if thats just how he rides. A successful day for us, with at least two foxes saved to live another day. Well no doubt be seeing the East Devon again, given what we saw today. Wed like to wish all our followers and supporters a peaceful and happy solstice / Christmas / Yule / holiday - whatever your bag is!
Posted on: Sat, 20 Dec 2014 20:27:16 +0000
Trending Topics
Recently Viewed Topics
© 2015