Dublin Informer
February 2010

Should stag hunting be banned?

If TDs and Senators support John Gormley’s proposal to ban stag hunting by the Ward Union Hunt they will be voting to end not only a unique part of our tradition and heritage, but an important contributor to the economic prosperity of our people.

If the ban goes ahead, the extreme opponents of hunting who are now a powerful influence on the Green Party in government will be emboldened to move against fox hunting, hare hunting, beagling, shooting and even fishing. Soon, the only legal recreation left to people in the countryside will be to go for a walk. And they won’t even be allowed bring their doggie, because that would infringe the animal’s ‘rights’.

There is no need for the proposed change in the law. The Ward Union Hunt has been extremely well run since its foundation a hundred and fifty five years ago. Currently, it operates under the terms of a very strict licensing, inspection and monitoring system imposed by the Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government in 2000.

What happens during a typical hunt? A mature, healthy deer is segregated from the herd and transported in a purpose built transporter to a selected location. The deer is released and after a prescribed period of time the huntsman introduces a restricted number of hounds and they, and the mounted hunters, set off to follow the deer’s scent.

Deer are extremely strong, fleet-footed animals and are well able to evade hounds. The purpose of the pursuit is not, nor has it ever been, to kill the deer but to pit the skills of the huntsman, the hounds and the riders against the deer’s prowess as an animal of natural flight. At the end of the chase, the deer either evades capture or is brought to bay (rather like sheep by a sheep dog) and it is recaptured manually by designated, trained followers.

For the past three seasons, Wildlife Officers from the Department of the Environment, Heritage and Local Government have been observing hunts and monitoring the health of the deer. The deer’s health is checked before and after each hunt. The deer is physiologically stressed, like any athlete, while in flight but – also like an athlete – recovers quickly with no undue effects. To date, through exhaustive and extensive monitoring, no excess stress levels have been recorded. This is not surprising, since it is natural for a flight animal, like a deer, to be hunted.

The Guthrie and Kane Report on the welfare of deer hunted by the Ward Union Hunt Club in the 1997/98 season was prepared by veterinarians from the Department of Agriculture and Food. The welfare of the deer was assessed (i) during the hunt (ii) immediately afterwards and (iii) subsequently. Welfare was assessed by a number of parameters in combination: health, behaviour and blood chemistry. In summary, the report found that the behaviour of hunted and carted deer was similar to other non-hunted deer, at the deer park, when re-examined subsequently. The most important finding was that the health of the deer did not appear to be affected in either the short or the long term after hunting.

A ban on the Ward Union will withdraw around €1.4 million in annual spending in North County Dublin and Meath. Nationally, it will remove a cornerstone from the Irish thoroughbred and sport horse industry – and from tourism – that sustains 22,000 jobs and contributes well over €1 billion to the economy.

Liam Cahill, spokesperson for the Ward Union Hunt

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