Hare Coursing

[Genghis the Engineer]

Yesterday, for the second time in a year (that I know of anyhow), we had our club strip invaded by hare coursers - that is people whose idea of a fun Saturday afternoon is tramping across fields chasing down hares with dogs (whippets I think, but I'm no expert on that particular subject).

The first time I ordered them off which, since they were trespassing I had every right to do. The second time I was airborne and did a couple of loud and sarcastic go-arounds which seemed to get the message across - but it's all rather unsatisfactory.

So, aside from any views that I (or the hare !) may have over the morality of the activity, does anybody know if this activity is actually legal? Basically if it isn't, I'd love to know chapter and verse so that I can call the Police and ideally get these idiots stopped before we get low-flying dogstrike and possibly somebody killed.

G

[Monocock]

The hunting if hares with dogs is not illegal but the trespassing on private land is.

I have no end of trouble with these scumbags every year and have now decided to leave them alone and call the police when they appear.

About two years ago I was shooting pigeons on one of the farms (because it wasn't flyable weather!) and a van full of coursers and dogs drove into the farm yard and unloaded. Two of the blokes had video cameras and were filming the dogs who soon set off across the field in pursuit of a hare. I naturally felt rather pissed off about these unwanted guests and fired at a couple of pigeons that weren't actually flying past. What a mistake that was.

I became embroiled in a full scale argument with 6 rough looking pikeys and they filmed the whole scene. I found it harder and harder to remain polite and eventually told them to go back to the hole they had been raised in and to leave me alone.

I walked back towards the farm yard where my vehicle was and had to put up with 5 minutes of abuse as they followed 10 yards behind. I got in the car and drove off. My tyres had already been slashed. I was going nowhere.

This was a source of great amusement to them. I had to eventually walk home to get away from them and had to leave them to trespass. The police were not interested in my plight.

If they come near you the best thing to do is say nothing. Absolutely nothing. These guys have the intelligence of a labour party tea boy and the personal hygiene of a Greek sewer rat. They are scum but just make sure you don't tell them or you'll become Gengis the Paraplegic Engineer in a very short space of time. Do not underestimate their temperaments. They are evil in numbers.

Just make them aware that you are watching them. If they are far enough away, take a photo of them. This usually works as they hate this. Even if you don't have a camera, pretend to take a picture with a small square object that could be mistaken for a camera at a distance.

I hate these types of people and I would dearly love to breed a hare that fights back. Besides, the more hares their dogs catch, the less there are for me to shoot:E :}

[Cathar]

From the Lincolnshire Police website:

"Hare coursing in itself can be legal.

The season runs between the first of September until the last day of March and there are legally run coursing clubs such as The East of England Coursing Club which run well-organised events.

Hare coursing becomes illegal if carried out on a Sunday because it is illegal to take game of any description on a Sunday. It is also illegal to course on land with dogs without the permission of the landowner. Those who do so are trespassing and committing the offence of poaching. "


http://www.lincs.police.uk/depts/rural/coursing.shtml

[shortstripper]

We have loads of hares on the farm here ... we also have lots of Lithuanian immigrant workers both here and on surrounding farms. They love their mobiles and are very macho in character; Hare coursers beware! I may just get the last laugh :E

SS

[david viewing]

It's been said in the press recently that police are going to crack down on this practice after years of ignoring it.

However, I would really caution against the camera idea unless it is concealed - it is in my direct personal experience a very good way to collect death threats.

[airborne_artist]

Normally pikies, and very nasty with it - watch out for the ones with no neck!

The taking of any sort of game (and hares are game,not vermin, like rabbits) is illegal on a Sunday, and so an offence.

Aggravated trespass (the max. offence Mon-Sat) is a civil offence, for which the police seem to do less than nothing.

Thames Valley in South Oxfordshire have had effective Sunday Farm Watch days, with a small team of officers pattrolling and responding. They made about 30 arrests last year, and picked up other offences along the way including unpaid fines, red diesel in cars etc.

[mazzy1026]

Mono

Reading your post just pi55ed me off no end and made my blood boil - I really cant stand people like the ones you describe. wouldn't it be nice if there was a law which meant you could shoot the f***ers with your double barrell :E

[ShyTorque]

A few years ago I was flying a "dark blue and yellow" heli, returning from a shout, well after midnight. The observers were scanning the area with the IR camera when they spotted a group of people a few miles ahead, walking with dogs in a line across the fields. They were obviously out "lamping".

It was quite a remote area and there was no ground unit available to respond so knew we weren't able to make any arrests. However, we decided to give them something to think about. Our aircraft suffered a "temporary nav light failure" and I maintained three thousand feet until we were on top of them. We simultaneously switched on the nightsun, while I began a rapid spiral descent, making lots of blade slap. The lampers didn't know which way to run! They were caught in the beam of light (30 million candlepower) just like the animals they were trying to shoot. Dogs began to scatter and shotguns were being thrown away into ditches and bushes. Yee ha!

I levelled off at a thousand feet, the nav lights suddenly "unfailed" themselves and we just flew away back to base, all of us laughing like drains. :E

[mazzy1026]

ShyTorque - what an immense feeling of satisfaction you would have had then - good on ya! :cool:

[MikeeB]

Police around my way take a very dim view of this, and ask you to phone 999.

Last year, they even turned up in the chopper :)

Any road, the local farmers have taken to doing a nightly patrol to stop the lampers. Basically two of you go out and drive around the area, if you see anybody, you phone two other farmers on your list, they in turn phone two more and so on. Before you know it, twenty or so irrate farmers turn up (with shotguns) and surround said Pikeys, and beleive it or not, they leave. They don't mouth off either.

Soon get the message.

Albeit not very nice, it's not unknown to shoot the Pikey scum's dog(s) either.

[eyeinthesky]

Aggravated trespass is a civil offence, but armed trespass is a criminal one. If you can get film or photo evidence of any of them with a weapon then that will help. Of course, should it ever get that far the police will be virtually powerless to act as they seem (note 'seem') to be afraid to take the pikeys on.

If you happen to have a handy tractor nearby and their vehicles are parked on your land, a load of manure dumped on the vehicles might get their attention. Or you could try to find some way of blocking their vehicles in whilst you await the arrival of the blue and yellow helicopter. Just have an eye for your own safety.

Another good way to get a quick response would be to ring 999 and report a group of armed trespassers on your land, or that you had discovered burglars and YOU were holding them at gunpoint....