CUBBING (AND NOT CLUBBING) IS UNDER THE SPOTLIGHT. KILLING FOX CUBS FOR FUN IS CRIMINAL

 

View this email in your browser Hi,  Death at Dawn: The Horror of ‘Cubbing’ Begins With the British Hounds Sports Association (BHSA) in overdrive to try and save fox hunting, with their ‘Smokescreen Saturday’ events, you may have thought that they would try to stay out of trouble until after the September 14th events. However, logic and sense are in short supply when it comes to hunting. Hunts have already been caught out, sneaking out at the crack of dawn to participate in one of their dirty little secrets – cubbing – otherwise known as cub hunting, or dressed up by the hunters as ‘autumn hunting’. Plymouth & West Devon hunt sabs catch out the Dartmoor Hunt 17/8/24 What is cubbing? Cubbing is an illegal form of hunting, where the hunt will target fox cubs. It is visibly different from typical fox hunting, as not so much ground is covered. The hunt will mostly focus on a particular area, and will appear to be more static, with much less riding and chasing of foxes. The idea of cubbing is to trap the cubs in a particular area: a covert, piece of woodland or maize field. They do this by surrounding the area on horseback, a practice known as ‘holding up’. The huntsman will send in the hounds to search. If or when the cub tries to break from the surrounded area, the job of the field riders is to scare the fox inside. They’ll do this by hollering or slapping on their saddles to scare the cubs back towards the hounds to be torn to shreds. The protective fox parents will try to divert the hounds from the cubs, sacrificing their own lives in the process. When does it happen? Late summer or early autumn, with some hunts starting as early as the end of July, others not until the start of September, and runs through until the start of the full hunting season, which is usually the end of October or the start of November. Hunts can also hunt in the early evening, just before the sun goes down. Cubbing meets are typically early morning – as soon as it is light enough – whilst the scent is still strong. As sunrise gets later, so do the meets, until cubbing morphs into fox hunting. Who does it? Only the most trusted supporters are invited to attend cubbing meets to keep it as low-key and secretive as possible. There is, of course, no legitimate reason excuse for them to be out at the crack of dawn, surrounding areas of woodland or crop. The riders will be dressed in their ‘ratcatcher’’ tweeds, and the terrier men will be present, tooled up with quads, terriers, digging equipment and so on. Terriers and terrier men at a cubbing meet. Image via Devon County Hunt Sabs. Where does it take place? The hunts will already be fully aware of where they might come across some fox cubs. The hunt’s terriermen, local gamekeepers or farmers will keep the hunt updated on where fox earths are. The cubs may also be in an artificial earth, built by the hunts to keep a supply of foxes, which they’ll feed to keep in the area. Mendip Farmers Hunt heading for a maize field. Image via Mendip Hunt Sabs. Why does it happen? Hound training. Cubbing is the time of year when the younger hounds are trained to kill foxes. Killing foxes does not come naturally to hounds, therefore they’ll be trained to get the taste for blood. This is done by taking the younger hounds out with the more experienced hounds, the hounds will also be taught to follow horn and voice calls, and to not riot after non-target species. Not all the young hounds will make the grade, and those that don’t will be shot. If the young hounds have not been sufficiently trained during cubbing, the hunt will be in for a difficult season. Dispersing fox cubs. Cubbing teaches the young foxes to flee rather than going to ground, so come the start of the main season the hunt can enjoy the ‘thrill of the chase’. The foxes will learn that the horn call is time to leave the covert and run for their lives. This also helps to disperse the cubs further across the hunts country, which is especially useful for the hunt if the fox earth location is difficult for the hunt to access. Preparing horses for the season. New or young horses will need to get used to being around the hounds and other horses. This will also help in getting the horses fitness up to scratch, and also prepares the riders for the main hunting season. Financial. A lot of hunts are struggling financially, this can be seen by the number of hunts that have disbanded or merged in recent years. Hunts need every penny they can raise, and after a summer of no hunting they are keen to rake in some money from their subscribers and car followers. How to sab cubbing Many foxes can be killed during the cubbing season, which is one of the reasons why it’s very important for sabs to be out. Successfully sabbing the cubbing season not only saves a lot of lives, but can lead to the hounds not being fully trained, resulting in a poor season for the hunt. The HSA Tactics Officer explains, "More foxes are killed during cubbing than any other part of this season and for this reason sabbing them becomes all the more important. The fact that there is no excuse or smokescreen for this grotesque activity means the hunts are likely to be far more concerned about sab presence. Simply finding them can be a major effort however, once found, they will often move on and give up on that location. As cubbing takes far longer to set up and it is less fluid than a normal hunt, simply keeping them moving will mean a successful morning for the sabs  However, if they don’t move it’s important to try and break up the riders surrounding the covert which will create a hole in the wall of noise and allow any cubs to escape. Putting a camera in the face of the riders and challenging them on their activities usually has the right effect. You can also call the hounds out of the covert with voice and horn calls but remember to only do this if the hounds can be seen and you’re not drawing them through uncovered areas and the danger of putting up a fox they haven’t scented or seen yet." What to do if you come across or hear of a suspected cub hunt? Tip us off! You can do this by contacting your nearest sab group, if you are not sure of your nearest group, this can be found on the HSA website. Alternatively, you can contact the HSA tip off line, in full confidentiality- 07443 148 426 Get involved! Find out how you can be part of our campaign to  Strengthen The Hunting Act Take Action Spread the word! Please share our news Share via email Copyright (C) 2024 Hunt Saboteurs Association. All rights reserved. You were subscribed to the newsletter from Hunt Saboteurs Association. 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