fox hunters
The Coyote: Thriving Through Persecution
Dr. Stanley Gehrt and an anesthesized coyote in metropolitan ChicagoThe Belle Meade Hounds in Thomson, Georgia will once again stage their annual Hunt Week—Gone Away with the Wind—this season from January 18 to 24. As before, the week will be fun-filled with hunting, parties, a hunt ball, and the camaraderie of the field.
As a bonus, this year’s affair will feature a fascinating presentation by special guest Dr. Stanley Ghert, Associate Professor of Wildlife Ecology and a Wildlife Extension Specialist at Ohio State University.
Dr. Ghert, who has enthralled foxhunters at MFHA meetings over the years, will talk to Belle Meade Hunt Week attendees on Thursday morning, January 22, about his special subject of research—the coyote. This much-aligned animal has survived and even flourished over the past hundred years despite the best efforts of the federal government to eradicate it.
Early in the twentieth century, at the behest of western ranching and agricultural interests that were losing stock to predators, the U.S. Government instituted program after program designed to erase the wolf, grizzly bear, mountain lion, and coyote from the landscape. The programs were mostly successful in their purpose. The wolf, grizzly, and mountain lion were driven nearly to extinction. The coyote, however, was the one predator that not only survived the pressure, but increased its population and its range, slowly expanding eastward and covering now the entire country. How it did that is one of the mysteries of the animal world.
Adopt-a-Kid
You've come a long way, kid! / Karen L. Myers photoThe average age of active foxhunters continues to rise. Where are the youngsters? we ask. Pointing to all the “usual suspects”—risk aversion, social media addiction (living vicariously rather than actively), animal rights activism—is...well...pointless. Social change continues to be part of mankind’s evolutionary process. What can we do pro-actively? is more to the point.
The MFHA has periodically urged hunts to reach out to nearby Pony Clubs, and many of these efforts have been successful. The Live Oak Challenge sponsored by MFHs Marty and Daphne Wood has introduced numerous young riders to foxhunting by offering financial incentives to the winning Pony Clubs. The Guide to Establishing a Foxhunting Camp written by Joyce Fendley, MFH provides a cookbook approach to running a summer day camp for any hunt wishing to reach out to children. (The booklet is available from the MFHA.)
Hunts can do these things, but there is something we as ordinary members of the field can do. We can adopt-a-kid.
Federal Judge Protects Hunting on Public Lands
Sportsmen won a major courtroom battle when Federal Judge James S. Gwin in Columbus, Ohio denied a lawsuit seeking to close hunting on fifty refuges within the National Wildlife Refuge System. The lawsuit was filed in 2003 by the Fund for Animals, which later merged with the Humane Society of the United States (HSUS). The U.S. Sportsmen’s Alliance (USSA)—an organization strongly supported by foxhunters—and other sporting organizations intervened on behalf of sportsmen. Judge Gwin’s ruling counters the attempt by HSUS to use the National Environmental Policy Act to justify the closing of hunting on the refuges. The judge relied heavily on language in the 1997 Refuge Improvement Act, championed by the USSA, which mandated that hunting and fishing be “facilitated” on the refuges. In his ruling, the judge noted that the plaintiffs “are not entitled to an inviolate sanctuary for their preferred uses….Congress has determined that, to the extent possible, hunters, fishers, observers, photographers, and educators must share the refuges.” It is not yet known if HSUS will appeal the ruling. Click for more details. Posted April 21, 2011
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Hunt Breakfast Recipe Contest Winners
Juliet Mackay-Smith, chef and proprietor of Locke Modern Country Store
Results are in for our Hunt Breakfast Recipe Contest! Our judge Juliet Mackay-Smith has made her selections, and we will pin the winning recipes with a blue ribbon within the website so readers will know which recipes have received these honors.
“Born into a foxhunting family, I have had first-hand experience of what makes for satisfying fare at a hunt breakfast...both for the hosts to prepare and for the guests to consume," said Mackay-Smith.
Blue Ridge Hunt Point-to-Point
Zoe Valvo and Questioning win the Junior Field Master's Chase. Douglas Lees photoThe Blue Ridge Hunt Point-to-Point races were held Saturday, March 12 under lovely spring skies...for a change! Despite the rains of the previous week, Woodley Farm’s limestone soil drained well and the mature turf held up to make the going as perfect as the weather.
Zoe Valvo on Questioning won the Junior Field Master's Chase in the Horse Division, and Kellie Witte won the Pony Division easily on Annabelle.
William Frazer’s Tailor Shop Destroyed by Fire
Michael and Elsie Frazer just four days before fire destroyed their tailor shop Noel Mullins photo
The shop of famous Irish sporting tailor William Frazer in the village of Hospital in County Limerick was destroyed by fire on Wednesday, February 16. William Frazer passed away years ago, but the business was continued by his son Michael and Michael’s wife Elsie.
Besides the complete loss of stock, fabrics, and equipment, all their records were destroyed, including measurements and memorabilia of the many well-known customers like Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis and other larger-than-life foxhunters and sporting figures for whom the Frazers built hacking jackets, hunt coats, vests, breeches, and trousers for over two generations.
Ring Happy
What a response we had from our recent free hunting horn ring-tone offer! We thought it would be a fun way of celebrating the start of the new foxhunting season, and we were right. Here’s what some of you had to say: Send me ‘doubling.’ I am enjoying your website immensely! Ilove the ring-tones! I want them all. I am going to forward your email to all 600 of my ** fox hunting folks. What a clever idea! Thank you. I really have to say, hearing John Tabachka blow ‘Going Home’ is very moving. Really amazing, indeed. I really enjoy your newsletter and website! I’m a huge fan of John and his calls. I am looking forward to driving my teenage children (and everyone else around me) crazy. We’re happy everyone is having fun with it. Remember, however, if any of you forget to turn off your ringer while in the hunting field, and the huntsman’s wrath descends upon you, we don’t know you!August 24, 2010
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