North Shropshire hunt have another ‘accident’
A fox was killed yesterday by a pack of out of control hounds who had already spent several hours rampaging through private properties in a village in Shropshire.
Shocked residents near the village of Marchamley, in North Shropshire, witnessed the fox being ripped apart by the hounds following a pursuit in which hounds were seen chasing the fox across private property with the huntsmen in pursuit.
One local resident said “this isn’t the first time the hunt have trespassed onto my land. It’s absolutely galling that once again they have shown absolutely no consideration for the local landowners”.
The League Against Cruel Sports, which runs a dedicated phone line for people to report wildlife crime, received several calls about this incident yesterday and has stated that this is not an isolated case.
The League’s Chief Executive Joe Duckworth said: “Unfortunately this is just the latest in what can only be described as a clear pattern of law breaking. We are absolutely appalled by the behaviour of this hunt. We received several reports from distressed residents who are at a loss to understand how this kind of blatant illegality can be tolerated. Last month after hounds from the North Shropshire Hunt strayed onto a major road they said that it was a ‘freak accident and wouldn’t happen again’. Clearly this is not the case as yet again they claim to have lost control of their hounds. We would like to see the Masters of Fox Hounds Association take action against this hunt who obviously are either wilfully breaking the law or who cannot control their dogs”
The incident has been reported to West Mercia Police.