Dart Vale, South Poole and Modbury Harriers, Sherford Down Farm, Kingsbridge, 18.03.23

Today we sabbed (via our reputation!) the Dart Vale, South Poole and Modbury Harriers at their closing meet at Sherford Down Farm, near Kingsbridge.

On this occasion much like the last, this merged hunt employed the tactic of doing absolutely no hunting at all (at least when they knew sabs were present) and made out that they’d only ever intended to go for a jolly hack. The dejected looks on their car follower and quadbike riders’ faces told a different story!

The minute he thought we weren’t watching, the huntsman cast his hounds into a small woodland in the valley at Harleston. As soon as he saw us though, he quickly withdrew his hounds and moved on.

With around 25 field members and multiple quadbike and vehicle supporters, the hunt hacked around the Frogmore and Sherford area, onto Stancombe and eventually back towards their kennels to the north, for a 2pm finish.

A welcome end to the DVSPMH hunting season for us. We went off to check on another hunt afterwards but they had just packed up as we arrived.

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Dart Vale, South Pool and Modbury Harriers, Cuttery Farm, East Allington, 25.02.23

(DVSPMH)

Yesterday we teamed up with a couple of our friends from Plymouth & West Devon Hunt Sabs to pay a visit to the DVSPMH at Cuttery Farm near East Allington.

Sab teams took it in turns to keep eyes on them from the off and for the next two hours while the hunt travelled across fields, bridleways and roads in a big loop that eventually led them back to the meet. They barely cast hounds out at all and claimed they were just “exercising” them. We have no doubt it would have been quite a different story if we hadn’t been there. Scent conditions were perfect and at this time of year pregnant and nursing vixen are particularly vulnerable.

With the drone hovering above them we did spot hounds flush a fox from a dense patch of gorse but the huntsman, knowing he was being watched from multiple angles, didn’t put hounds on the line.

By 2pm the hunt had packed up so we headed off to find the South Devons at their meet at Ashcombe, but they too were in the process of packing up when we got there.

An easy but successful day for us.

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Lamerton, Eggesford, South Devon and Dart Vale, Modbury and South Pool Harriers. 01.10.22

Saturday was a long day! We sabbed four hunts. We started off at the Lamerton Hunt’s morning cubbing meet at Brinsabach Lane near Brentor. Scent conditions were ideal for hunting, but our presence caused the hunt to pack up straight away. We later heard they were headed back to that meet in the afternoon, but we were with another hunt by that point. Fortunately, it was a very warm afternoon so conditions would have been less ideal for hunting.

While we were with the Lamerton, we received a tipoff that Eggesford Hunt were once again causing chaos near North Tawton, hunting on and around Crooke Burnell. We later heard from locals that hunt vehicles had been dangerously blocking traffic on the busy A3072 all morning, and police had to be called. When we arrived we found hounds drawing a small copse between Crooke Burnell and Halse Farm. We encountered landowner Duncan Tucker and his father Martin, who rode their horse and quadbike at our foot sabs. Duncan threatened to knock one of our female sabs out and insisted he could “do what he likes” on his land. He obviously meant assaulting sabs and hunting foxes, but we’re pretty certain he lives by that rule more generally. Duncan called police, falsely claiming that we were threatening his son and damaging his crops. Police arrived to establish that we were doing no such thing and the hunt soon packed up.

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Dart Vale, South Pool and Modbury Harriers, Coleridge Farm, Chillington, 01.01.2021

On New Year’s Day we sabbed the DVSPMH at their usual New Year’s meet at Coleridge Farm just north of Chillington. The hunt started the day by drawing the large valley at Battle Ford.

Sabs saw a fox breaking north out of the valley almost immediately and were on hand to sprint across and cover the scent before hounds could get on to it. While the hounds were still drawing the valley, another fox was seen heading north from Lower Coltscombe with hounds close behind. Fortunately sabs were again well positioned to cover the scent. As hounds approached, sabs rated them back onto the heel line (ie the opposite direction of the fox). These foxes thankfully made it to safety.

Shorty afterwards, yet another fox was seen running for its life at Water Gate while hounds were busy terrifying a herd of sheep.

The hunt then turned around to hunt both sides of the valley. A fourth fox broke right in front of sabs on the south side of the valley near Darnacombe Farm. Sabs were once again able to cover scent while the pack of 30 hounds rioted through locals’ gardens in Start. One landowner became particularly angry as huntsman Reubo blatantly gathered hounds straight through his garden.

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Dart Vale, South Pool and Modbury Harriers, Rimpston, East Allington, 31.10.2020

On Saturday we hit the Dart Vale, South Pool and Modbury Harriers’ opening meet at Rimpston, East Allington.

Contrary to government and Hunting Office regulations, they held a ‘proper’ meet, with about 30 riders and a few dozen followers who gathered in the farmyard while huntsman Reuben Kench gave his opening speech. Hunts routinely act as if the law doesn’t apply to them, so nobody should be surprised by this. Nor does it surprise us to learn that many of our hunts are planning to “go all out” this week and hunt Monday, Tuesday AND Wednesday in a cynical “last hurrah” before the next lockdown puts an end to their bloodsport for a month.

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Dart Vale South Pool and Modbury Harriers, Coleridge Cross, Stokenham, 19.08.2020

On Saturday morning a small group of us went to find the Dart Vale South Pool and Modbury Harriers who were meeting to cub hunt at Coleridge Cross north of Stokenham. Clearly surprised to see sabs, huntsman Ruben Kench, who has only just recently become huntsman for the DVSPMH, was heard discussing with support how they would lose us in the valley.

The landowner Mr Dark, while struggling with his horse who clearly did not want him on his back, tried to remove sabs from where hunting was taking place however we persisted and despite the steep hills we kept watch on them the whole morning.

After setting off around 8am the hunt concentrated their time in the valley between Harleston and Darnacombe Farm. Several foxes were spotted fleeing from the hunt and the landowner even admitted to sabs that hounds were on a fox! The hunt support were also overheard talking about the hounds being on a “Charlie” – a well known hunt code word for a fox. Blatant illegal fox hunting even for them.

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