Author Topic: Counting hares (Read 18593 times)

waterbuffalofarmer · « **Reply #30 on:** August 11, 2015, 09:51:02 am »

Quote from: Porterlauren on August 11, 2015, 12:00:34 am

I think a lot of your comments hit the nail on the head. . . . I hang my shame at some of the people who call themselves hunters or lurcher men. But of course, like anything else, you only really notice the ones making a lot of noise, a lot of fuss and doing things in a disrespectful manner.

Trust me, I loathe those people, far far far more than you lot do. Not only do they disgust me with their hunting practices and attitudes, but they obviously turn everyone against the likes of me!

However, for all of the idiots you see with a pile of dogs, a white van and a stinking attitude. . . . . there is a man like me, walking quietly, respecting his environment and quarry and using his dog to fill the pot.

But I do have to admit that I gain pleasure from doing my pest control, or from filling my pot. Is it from the killing? Of course not, that fills me with a huge sadness. . . . its from working in synergy with my dog, watching her do what comes natural, and taking part in something that is as primeval as it comes.

I can't explain it properly, but I don't think it makes me a bad person!

No absolutely not I am not calling you a bad person in the least. I mean't those people who kill for fun not eating the animal, but just for the sheer fun of it that is what i don't agree with. I'm sorry if I hurt your feelings

Buttermilk · « **Reply #31 on:** August 13, 2015, 08:58:31 am »

The people who turn up uninvited to run their dogs are dangerous. They wipe out entire populations of hares and have no regard for the countryside. When apprehended by the police one lot claimed they were only walking their dogs, they were from Manchester and brought their dogs to East Yorkshire to walk? The last time they were round that I know of they lost a dog, a very good dog. A local caught it and had it castrated then took it to a city down south to a dog pound. The long dog boys found it within 3 days but lost all interest in it once they discovered the castration. It now has a lovely country home with the locals relative.

Harebell · « **Reply #32 on:** August 13, 2015, 09:58:45 am »

Quote from: Porterlauren on August 08, 2015, 01:16:13 pm

What exactly is the problem with hare coursing (apart from it being illegal)? I can't see how blasting one of natures finest athletes with a shotgun is somehow more acceptable than running one with a good long dog, in a fair test. . . . . . . .

P.S I know of LOTS of ground that has rabbits and hares feeding a long side each other!

It's the people who do the hare coursing that are the problem here in Wiltshire and surrounding counties. They come from some distance, are involved in criminal activity and cause damage to land and fencing, farm thefts increase etc. Back in the 1990s my father was threatened with a torque wrench, car and tractor tires where slashed and windows broken after confronting hare courses. I also know of two local farms that have had barns burnt down in the past couple of years after they confronting coursers. The police are of limited help.

Brown hares are still common in our area but they have declined in recent decades and they don't cause significant damage to crops so we don't shoot them anymore. We don't appropriate these 'undesirables' causing damage to our land etc and killing and disturbing our wildlife.

Porterlauren · « **Reply #33 on:** August 13, 2015, 10:52:12 am »

Ever heard the phrase 'tarred with the same brush'.

These people are not burning barns, committing crimes and threatening people because they are hare coursers or lurcher men. . . . . . they are doing stuff like that because they are scum, quite often pikey scum. They have no respect for the dogs, land or quarry.

However, to suggest that everyone who hunts, or indeed courses hares, with a running dog, is automatically the above. . . . is just pure crap. And the biggest problem is that people are 100% buying into it. . . . . . which means that when someone spots a person like myself, with my dog, filling the game bag - they immediately call out all of the forces of law and order and treat me like a child molester!

The ban did absolutely nothing for the Hare what so ever. The numbers reduced in many parts of the country directly following the ban, and it also led to large numbers of idiots suddenly deciding to take up hunting with dogs because it was now illegal and cool.

If instead the hunting world had been allowed to get its own house in order, and ethical hunting promoted. . . . I think we would be in a far better state of affairs!

Luckily because I act like I do and have the attitude I do, I still have plenty of places where the locals and landowners are happy to see me and my dogs out for some meat and sport.

As for 'wiping out hares'. . . . . go and watch a hare drive on a big estate and then watch a days coursing and then tell me how many get away in each?

Harebell · « **Reply #34 on:** August 13, 2015, 12:20:58 pm »

Quote from: Porterlauren on August 13, 2015, 10:52:12 am

Ever heard the phrase 'tarred with the same brush'.

These people are not burning barns, committing crimes and threatening people because they are hare coursers or lurcher men. . . . . . they are doing stuff like that because they are scum, quite often pikey scum. They have no respect for the dogs, land or quarry.

However, to suggest that everyone who hunts, or indeed courses hares, with a running dog, is automatically the above. . . . is just pure crap. And the biggest problem is that people are 100% buying into it. . . . . . which means that when someone spots a person like myself, with my dog, filling the game bag - they immediately call out all of the forces of law and order and treat me like a child molester!

The ban did absolutely nothing for the Hare what so ever. The numbers reduced in many parts of the country directly following the ban, and it also led to large numbers of idiots suddenly deciding to take up hunting with dogs because it was now illegal and cool.

If instead the hunting world had been allowed to get its own house in order, and ethical hunting promoted. . . . I think we would be in a far better state of affairs!

Luckily because I act like I do and have the attitude I do, I still have plenty of places where the locals and landowners are happy to see me and my dogs out for some meat and sport.

As for 'wiping out hares'. . . . . go and watch a hare drive on a big estate and then watch a days coursing and then tell me how many get away in each?

Whoa whoa whoa...I wasn't saying you or other 'traditional/legal' coursing people are like these guys - they are just criminals. We have a little pheasant/partridge shoot on the farm, people who come shoot the pigeons/roe deer/foxes, ferret & dog men etc, who we know and trust (people similar to yourself I'm guessing), they are friends and help us keep an eye on the 'undesirables'...all for hunting for the pot (I'm not the enemy, I'm probably one of the friendly people who'd let you on our land!)

It's just that not many people know the problems that criminal hare coursing does to this area - I wanted to express the huge problems here. It's the people (i.e. the criminals) not the traditional sport I was having a go at, sorry if it didn't come away as that.

I also never said anything about coursing wiping out hares - I said hares were still common here (hence why we get the criminals!) but have declined in recent decades, which is why we don't hunt them. Their decline is most likely due to changes in cropping patterns and moving away from mixed farming etc.

Ideation · « **Reply #35 on:** August 13, 2015, 05:14:40 pm »

Sorry if I came across as overly defensive Harebell. I was just trying to make the point (from the start of this thread) that hare coursing itself is not innatly evil / wrong and that those who do / did it are not themselves innatly evil / wrong. But that there are a certain type of people who unfortunatly give it a bad name (like all hunting with dogs).

The two areas of attack for most people are 1 ) it is barbaric and cruel and 2 ) it is carried out by scum bags.

My argument would be 1 ) it is no more barbaric or cruel than many many practices that we accept and in fact are probably carried out by those who attack the activity and 2 ) whilst there ARE scum involved, there are just as many really nice, respectful folk, who get equally as annoyed by the scum as you guys!

As to the wiping out hares - that was to the post above yours. And whilst I agree that some groups of lads love bashing leverets in late summer with too many dogs and no fair law allowed. . . . and they do quite a bit of damage to the population (especially small populations), a man with a rifle, or a group doing a drive with shotguns can cause a hell of a lot more damage to a population.

Buttermilk · « **Reply #36 on:** August 13, 2015, 08:48:31 pm »

It was me that said about wiping out hare populations. These people are not hunters and do not have permission. They find an area with hares and then come two or three times a week until there are no hares left to chase. They access the fields by travelling across country away from farmhouses and they only stop if police and farmwatch members turn out to interrupt them.

I used to enjoy watching properly organised coursing events.

Porterlauren · « **Reply #37 on:** August 13, 2015, 10:21:42 pm »

I bet they are also often of the travelling fraternity . . . . .

Back before the ban, a coursing club was a very good way to protect the hares ironically enough!

BM - Its great to hear that you have had the chance to watch and enjoy organised coursing!

pgkevet · « **Reply #38 on:** March 12, 2016, 10:01:44 am »

The madness begins!

Just seen the first one 'hare' into the garden, round the dutch barn and up the drive. It was great last year when they were up early morning racing round and round the house.