Gateshutting for Hunts

[J-Roberts]

Hi All,

I was reading a very old thread which spoke about volunteering as a gateshutter for hunts, it mentioned people lending horses on the condition that you stay behind the back of the field to close gates after the hunt has passed. Does this system of lending horses for this purpose happen much? Is it common place in most hunts?

I have never heard of this before finding it on the old thread I mentioned and it does seem a little too good to be true, surely the hireling providers would be put out of business if this was the case?

All replies welcome

 

[marmalade76]

I used to go out gateshutting regularly, but always on my own horse. The horse was the reason I was asked to gateshut and not having to pay cap was the incentive. Never heard of hunts providing a horse for the job, sounds highly unlikely to me.

 

[J-Roberts]

I don't think it was a formal arrangement, rather someone simply volunteered to lend you their horse so you could go gateshutting. But as I said I had never heard of it before now, so I agree with you that it most probably is unlikely.

 

[tootsietoo]

Every subscriber gets put down for gate shutting duty. If someone doesn't want to do it (ie. they can't get on and off their horse, and the whole idea fills them with dread) then they will often find someone else to fill in, sometimes lending said person their own horse to do the duty.

If you were a non-subscriber and called up the secretary to volunteer your services, then I'm sure they would be delighted, but you would have to find a horse, they wouldn't provide you with one!

 

[popsdosh]

In days gone by when hirelings were more common it was often the way that somebody would be sent out on young horses to shut gates as a means of education for the young horse. Often the riders where people who could not normally afford to hunt. The hunt would not want a cap from the rider because of the Caps the hireling yard brought to the hunt from their other horses.