BY GILES BRADSHAW
Since the publication of my article The Absurd Law Trumped By Common Sense in Country Squire Magazine, I’ve had some interesting feedback:
Devon and Cornwall Police
Firstly I have been informally questioned by the police. I actually welcome this development as it allowed me to put my case to them for humane hunt crime. I’ve been through with them in detail how I use my dog to search for, flush from cover and then subject deer to a limited chase. I’ve explained to them how, in spite of all these actions having been held to be illegal by the Government, they are in fact benign and form part of a coordinated wildlife management strategy. I’ve made them aware of the human rights challenge that went right up to the European Court of Human Rights in which the Government successfully persuaded the courts at every level that I was breaking the law by refusing to slaughter flushed wildlife. I’ve explained to them how they have been wilfully ‘turning a blind eye’ to the law apparently being broken in this manner. Finally I have proposed an ongoing informal alliance with them whereby I continue using dogs to humanely manage deer and they do nothing thereby encouraging others, including hunts, to adopt my humane methods of controlling deer with dogs.
To be honest the officer I spoke to did not appear to be that pleased with what I said to her. However I did point out to her that the law allowed me to flush deer but required me to then shoot the deer dead. I asked for her advice as to what she would do if the law required her to kill animals. She replied very quickly and very definitely that she would break any such law in any circumstances!
The police have carefully considered the case I have put to them and have since contacted me to say I will not face prosecution. Obviously I welcome this. I contacted them on 101 a while ago and was ordered by a very gruff officer to get someone to shoot all the deer. He was not best pleased when I refused on the basis his instructions were idiotic and informed me he would report the matter to the RSPCA, who of course did nothing.
It’s important to realise that the police are only human. They can only be pushed so far. It’s frankly disgusting that they should be required to enforce the Hunting Act in situations where it is clearly so absurd. This is a political issue and the police are right in these exceptional circumstances to take the side of the criminal. There is no middle ground here. They either support the law by enforcing it or they permit people to openly flout it. They have quite rightly chosen the latter course.
@peeleyb Neil Bennett & Moose
Neil Bennett hunts on Twitter with a pack of so called “antis”. They adopted me as their quarry. I believe “Moose” is Neil Bennett’s dog? If so then like me he will be flushing the odd wild mammal when he takes his dog out. Like me he does not shoot any wild mammals that he flushes.
Neil Bennett (on the left)
Unlike many of the so called “antis” you come across on Twitter who are, to be frank, deeply toxic and ignorant individuals, Neil gave me some valuable feedback which I thank him for. I reproduce it below as it’s an interesting argument for the current law although ultimately it fails. Although I do understand it might be considered dishonourable to publish a private message – we have both already published each other’s during the subsequent debate so I do not consider myself bound by any confidences.
Why does Neil’s argument fail?
Because the law should differentiate between what we ‘quite like’ and what we don’t. I am not a ‘sicko’ being cruel to animals. If the law is meant to be against cruelty it should prohibit cruelty. Nothing more, nothing less. I am not being cruel and yet the law requires me to be cruel in order to continue.
It is absurd.
@chrisdgreen52 Christopher Green
Christopher Green is another Twitter so called “anti”. In an attempt to persuade these people of the utility of dogs for wildlife management I decided to post some videos of my dog in action. The aim being to see if we could find a wild deer, flush it and then briefly chase it off. I posted a series of videos explaining my technique. I explained how I keep quiet and consider the wind direction when approaching the woods so that deer will not realise we are there until we get as close as possible. As soon as we got into the wood she zoomed off in headlong pursuit of I have no idea what.
Christopher appears to have been upset when I posted a video of me walking my dog past a dark conifer wood in the evening. I pointed out that I concentrated on preventing her from chasing farmed livestock and if there were deer in the wood (there often are) then they were fair game.
This is merely a reflection of reality. The woods are dark, the dog has free access to them. What do people expect to happen? It was the evening and I couldn’t see what was going on in there anyhow. To that extent “what happens in the wood stays in the wood” (apart, obviously from any deer or foxes fleeing in terror from my marauding hound).
Nevertheless Chris Green has reported me to the police. Not only via Twitter but via other means apparently.
Still, he assures me, they will ignore him.
@REALJus10304612 REALJustice
REALJustice is a keen supporter of “Keep the Ban”, now renamed “Protect the Wild” after it was disclosed they were fundraising to support what was effectively factory farming wild foxes in a cramped flat for donations.
Despite Real Justice’s rather dubious credentials she makes a very valid point:
Hunt Sabs
Even the Hunt Saboteurs’ Association approve my message:
Conclusion
Essentially the use of dogs to search for, flush and briefly chase wild deer in order to manage wild mammals through the Ecology of fear is really no different to walking a dog off the lead. Why use a dog like this? They are simply better at it.
As far as I am aware I am the only person that campaigns against a section of the law which not only allows but requires animals to be shot. For some reason a lot of antis don’t like this and want me to shut up. They have gone to all sorts of lengths to silence me, including sending the police fake tweets to get me prosecuted (I’ll go into this in a further article).
Surely we as citizens are at liberty to ignore the Labour Government’s case that the Hunting Act proscribes a list of intentional activities (searching, flushing, chasing etc)? The courts ruling in their favour does not affect our basic rights or trump common sense. If we are not granted these rights we are obliged to take them. The dog I use, the border collie from that ancient land race so symbolic of rural Britain, is the perfect animal for this.
All dog owners must stand united against the law. How we flush wildlife and the extent of any subsequent pursuit will depend on our circumstances but we must continue. The police will support us.
Let’s send a clear message to the Government and the courts and any “antis” dumb enough to support the current law **** you, we won’t do what you tell us!
Giles Bradshaw is a farmer from Devon.