Rockview Harriers Show Includes Both Scent and Sight Hounds
Lurchers in flapper race chasing the lureThe annual Rockview Harriers Working Terrier, Hound and Lurcher Show in County Kilkenny, Ireland enjoyed a large turnout with working dog enthusiasts traveling from all over the country. The show drew representatives from England and Wales as well.
“War Horse” Wins Tony Award for Best Play
A British play about a boy and his horse during World War I that leaves adults weeping in their seats has won the Tony Award for Best Play. The horse—a life size puppet created by the Handspring Puppet Company—was winner of a special Tony. War Horse originated at the National Theater in London and was […]
Amwell Valley Heythrop Is Grand Champion at Bryn Mawr
Amwell Valley Heythrop is shown by huntsman Steve Farrin and whipper-in Lauren Podraza. / Karen Myers photo
Amwell Valley Heythrop 2008, an outstanding example of the modern English foxhound, was judged Grand Champion at the Bryn Mawr Hound Show on Saturday, June 2. Heythrop arrived at the Amwell Valley Hounds kennels as a puppy, along with his entire litte, from huntsman Martyn Blackmore at the Loudoun West Hunt.
Judging Beagles from the Correct Perspective!
Judges J.W.Y. “Duck” Martin and Otis Ferry (the latter standing at well over six-feet) give the Nantucket-Treweryn beagles a fair look at the Blue Ridge Hunt Puppy Show on Memorial Day, May 30, 2011. Martin is MFH of the Green Spring Valley Hounds (MD) and a former president of the MFHA. Ferry is MFH of […]
Collin McNeil Is Elected MFH at Radnor
Collin McNeil has been elected Joint-Master of the venerable Radnor Hunt (PA). McNeil joins Mike Tillson, who has served as sole MFH since the untimely death of Terry Griffin in 2008. The Radnor Hunt was founded in 1883 and is claimed to be the oldest continuously active MFHA-Recognized hunt club in the United States. The […]
What Do Foxhunters Do in the Summertime?
Jim Wofford photoWe all rue the end of the foxhunting season in March. And now that the point-to-point season has ended and the final hound show of the year is only a few days away, what to do until September?
Well, after crying over the season’s end, we all seem to find a lot to do. Sometimes it’s just the same old things that produce the familiar rhythm of the year’s cycle. I’m always anxious to get my tomato plants in and toil away for what sometimes results in a rewarding harvest and other times ends in a tangle of limp and barren vines. No matter. I do it again the following year with renewed hope.
Foxhunters Wilson and Gunnell Wed in Middleburg
Photograph by Middleburg Photo
Wendi Wilson and Nelson Gunnell were married at Banbury Cross Farm, the Gunnell family farm in Middleburg, Virginia, on Saturday evening, May 28. The ceremony took place in the garden—a fairy tale setting midst blooming spring flowers under a perfect blue sky with a pond sparkling in the distance. The bride arrived in an antique white horse drawn carriage driven by her hometown friend, Tommy Lee, who later whisked the couple away after the vows were completed.
Equine Herpes Scare Abating
Horse owners in the west, where many horse shows, rodeos, and other equine activities have been cancelled or postponed because of an outbreak of the potentially deadly equine herpes virus, are breathing easier. According to the Colorado Department of Agriculture, no new cases of the disease have been confirmed there since May 20. In Washington, […]
What Is a July Hound?
C. Martin Wood III, MFH / Karen Myers photo“Recently I heard the term July hound,” writes Kelly Bryant. “What is a July hound? Is it a breed or a bloodline? How is July blood used in foxhounds today? What benefits do they bring to the hunt, and how does one recognize a July hound from other hounds?”
Marty Wood, MFH is a member of Foxhunting Life’s Panel of Experts. He is a consummate hound breeder, a student of bloodlines, and breeder of the last two Grand Champion Foxhounds of the Virginia Foxhound Show—2010 and 2011. Your editor has some familiarity with the literature on the July hound, so Wood and Fine collaborated on the answer to Kelly’s question.
Live Oak Wins Grand Championship at Virginia. Again.
Live Oak Fable 2010, shown by huntsman Charles Montgomery, is Grand Champion at Virginia. / Janet Hitchen photoFor the second straight year a live Oak English hound was judged Grand Champion at the Virginia Foxhound Show. Last year it was Live Oak Maximus 2009, a dog hound; this year it was Live Oak Fable 2010, a first-year bitch.
“That’s the most unexpected win we’ve ever had,” said Live Oak Joint-Master Daphne Wood.