Recent content by Stark Dismay

Wow! Just wow. Not only is JM arrogant, he is deluded too. One overbearing voice such as his in a public place, whether it be in the press, on the hunting field or on a public forum such as this does considerable damage to the reputation of hunting

I read this thread recently, and held my tongue because my thoughts clearly go against the grain of popular thought here. In my opinion there is little to no excuse for any horse that kicks out, and if a horse IS known to kick it should be wearing a red ribbon, and even if it has never kicked...

Strictly speaking, it is considered unladylike to have a saddle flask, and you should carry a discrete pocket flask. But after a talk some years ago from the local fire brigade telling us that things in pockets are likely to cause considerable damage to you should you fall on them, (especially...

I'm so glad you've pointed all that out to me, Twiggy2, clearly our hunt is run by muppets who don't call out the vet and is mostly made up of frail old dogs. We flogged them every day, of course, and didn't give them a second's rest. That'll be why we lost our entire autumn's hunting last year...

Our hounds picked it up on the hound show circuit in summer 2013. We thought it was mild, and started autumn hunting in the september, but after a week it was clear something was not right. The cough got worse, and it took over 2 months to go through the whole kennels and for all hounds to be...

Our hunt have decided to extend our season later than usual to make up for the number of meets cancelled so far in hopefully better weather. We are only hunting on high ground, and then at a very steady pace. We have good relationships with most of our neighbouring hunts and are sometimes going...

It's well worth taking a look at the Facebook page linked to above. There are a considerable number of new permanent jumps being put in place by the B&B Draghounds course builder, with jumps ranging from 1"9 to 3"3, catering for all ability levels. As has been said, the Yattendon Ride is only in...

The Vine and Craven are based in Hannington, half way between Newbury and Basingstoke. They are a very friendly bunch. Early clubbing is likely to be fairly close to kennels, and very quiet indeed - a good way to start. They hunt an artificial scent but try to keep the feel of the day as close...

An absolute gentleman, who will be missed. I remember taking a little girl out during her first season. He always stopped to pay her a compliment on her riding or her pony's turnout, and asked if she was having a lovely time. He always made everyone feel welcome.

It seems you weighed up the situation well enough and acted accordingly. I'd be extremely cross if you galloped past me if I had my 2 year old on a lead rein, rather cross if it was my 5 year old out, and not bothered at all if you came past the 8 year old who often accompanies me. She is...

I wouldn't - there are too many factors out of you control. I rode till I was 7 months pregnant through 2 pregnancies, and even competed in showing and dressage competitions till I was 20 weeks. But there's a whole lot of difference between riding a pre-set test in an arena or going for a gentle...

This bag http://www.johnshooter.com/brown-leather-saddle-bag-p-261.html?wizid=1ign60u1k9dccr9086itbnehe6 is excellent for opening easily on the move, and I can fit a small bottle of water, a couple of chocolate bars, and a penknife in it. Train your horse to stand by a gate or fence or...

Many antis are not particularly bright sparks. Friends of mine at a local bloodhound pack have suffered significant abuse from anti-hunt people. They tried in vain to explain that they hunted a chap in a pair of running shoes, and that no animals would be hunted. At the very worst, the runner...

Lots of hunts are amalgamations of 2 or more packs. It's fairly safe to hazard a guess that if the hunt has 'and' in it's name it was probably 2 hunts that merged at some point. The important thing in making amalgamations work is that everyone involved has to work together and WANT to work...

Some people are enthusiastic but clueless newcomers - a quiet polite word with them should point them in the right direction. But it is rare that a newcomer is turning up for the first time without ever having spoken to anyone else who hunts or having ever seen a copy of Horse and Hound...