Hunt Saboteurs have released footage of what appears to be Kimblewick Hunt dragging a fox out from underground to be hunted by hounds.
The fox had been trapped in an artificial earth, a series of clay pipes buried in the ground, in a copse between two fields.
Artificial earths were routinely used before hunting was banned in 2005 to trap and keep foxes that were then released on hunt days to give huntsmen the thrill of a chase.
The matter has been reported to Thames Valley Police.
The footage, shot on New Year’s Day, apparently shows members of the Kimblewick Hunt in Oxfordshire trying to flush the fox out with a pole, then one man reaching into the hole and pulling it out by its tail.
A spokesperson on behalf of the MFHA said: “The Masters of Foxhounds Association has strict disciplinary procedures and will fully investigate any credible allegation relating to Masters, hunt employees or hunts. It cannot, however, investigate criminal allegations or take any action that would interfere with or impede a possible police investigation.”
The footage was filmed on New Years Day when the hunt met at Moreton, Thame, Oxon.
A statement on Huntingsabs.com said: “It shows the hunt terrier men using draining rods to force the fox, that they’ve been holding captive, out of a drainage pipe then being thrown into the wood for hounds to chase.
“The terriermen can clearly be heard communicating with the huntsman agreeing when the best time is to release the fox which is given a brief head start so that the hunt riders experience a chase rather than a quick kill.”
This is not the first time the Kimblewick Hunt have been in trouble, as they were forced to euthanise their hounds after an outbreak of bovine tuberculosis in 2016.
Ninety-seven dogs out of 164 tested positive for the disease when the alarm was raised at the Kimblewick Hunt kennels.
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Source: The Bucks Herald
