Poachers using dogs to bring down and kill deer

[Wagtail]

I had a very disturbing conversation with the game keeper recently. He told me to look out for poachers. I said I hadn't heard any gun shots at night lately. He said that they were after the deer and don't use guns (in case they're stopped by the police). Instead, they use dogs that are crossed between pit bull or staffie types and lurchers to bring the deer down. They chase them in their cars and get them in the cross beam, let the dogs out and they don't see what's coming for them until it's too late. This is a new one on me, and a very upsetting one. Anyone else heard similar? Game keeper says this is the worst time of year because the fields have been harvested and it's easy to drive through. He said he'd seen some tracks nearby not made by him or the farmer. I'm keeping an eye out now for car lights at night and will phone him if I see anything suspicious.

 

[Equi]

Does nothing for the reputation of the dog breeds either does it

 

[Wagtail]

No, it's just horrible. They seem to think up a new breed to use and abuse every few years. Sickos.

 

[MotherOfChickens]

we've had a string of pop-up badger baiting going on around here-and hare coursing. One local farmer got thousands of pounds worth of damage done to some machinery when he told them to not do it on his land (coursing).

 

[Wagtail]

we've had a string of pop-up badger baiting going on around here-and hare coursing. One local farmer got thousands of pounds worth of damage done to some machinery when he told them to not do it on his land (coursing).

That's awful. Poor farmer. The gamekeeper told me he once went to talk to the occupants of a small white van parked up in the field and out got four huge men. They told him they knew where he lived and that his dogs would be the first to 'get it' if he reported the licence plate. He said he's already called the police by then but that it really put the wind up him.

 

[3OldPonies]

The Police should get on to this - apart from being truly appalling - they're in violation of the Hunting With Dogs Act I should think and probably quite few bits of the Animal Welfare Act as well, not to mention the Wildlife Act. So if they can be caught there should be a heck of a lot they could throw at them.

 

[Moobli]

Despicable behaviour

 

[stormox]

A lot of it done round Beds/Nhants - big open fields -we often see the vans parked beside the fields - the trouble is if you ring the police by the time they arrive the poachers have driven off, leaving the poor dogs behind to fend for themselves. Lost and wandering lurchers are often seen too.

 

[Wagtail]

The Police should get on to this - apart from being truly appalling - they're in violation of the Hunting With Dogs Act I should think and probably quite few bits of the Animal Welfare Act as well, not to mention the Wildlife Act. So if they can be caught there should be a heck of a lot they could throw at them.

Oh most definitely. If I see anything I will be straight on to the gamekeeper who says he will be straight out at any time (he's not far from us). He'll call the police too. He reports every incident to them including the tracks he found yesterday.

I found this whilst googling. Seems it's the most common method of poaching deer . http://www.thedeerinitiative.co.uk/what_we_do/tackling_poaching.php

 

[Goldenstar]

A lot of it done round Beds/Nhants - big open fields -we often see the vans parked beside the fields - the trouble is if you ring the police by the time they arrive the poachers have driven off, leaving the poor dogs behind to fend for themselves. Lost and wandering lurchers are often seen too.

We found the lurcher my parents have at the side of a road in a ditch abdandoned because she had dislocated her hip .
We caught her , she could move quite fast for a three legged dog in a ditch she was terrified and took her to the vets they got the hip back in and my parents gave her a home .
She's one of the lucky ones .

 

[Wagtail]

A lot of it done round Beds/Nhants - big open fields -we often see the vans parked beside the fields - the trouble is if you ring the police by the time they arrive the poachers have driven off, leaving the poor dogs behind to fend for themselves. Lost and wandering lurchers are often seen too.

Yes, they're disgusting people. Last year there was a Doberman cross wandering around the fields with no owner in sight. Makes me wonder now whether he was left by poachers. By the time I'd got our terriers in and gone back out, he was gone.

 

[turkana]

I'm in Oxfordshire & we're also getting a lot of coursing with dogs, somebody recently managed to get hold of their one of lurchers but the scumbags got some large german shepherd type dogs out of the van & threatened to set them on her.
The police have been called several times one farmer but they seem to wait for a couple of hours before showing up, probaly to make sure they've gone!

 

[Equi]

I used to see a group in the field across from mine. I knew them and I sent a text saying in no uncertain terms if I saw them again in the area the dogs would be shot and police on the phone and I'd be letting them know what else they got up to supplement their wallet while sitting on benefits! Not seen them about again and I sups the fact my best friend is in their family via marriage they thought it best not to argue. No way would great lurchers be allowed to run about land near my minis/foal. I can't shoot and had no right to on that land anyway but they didn't know that.

 

[stencilface]

My friends dog is a lurcher cross and disappeared in Leeds, only to turn up in Norfolk 6 months later, pretty sure the dog was taken for a purpose.

Fwiw my dog did run down a deer (gsd x rottie) in local woods, but it only died as it must have broken it's neck when it ran into some old overgrown mesh cages. Theres no way he caught it! Needless to say in any areas with potential for deer he's on lead now!

 

[Charlie007]

We get it round here all the time. Deer poaching and hare coursing and probably a lot more. If you see hare courses ring 999 and tell them that you can see them coursing right there and then. Its unlikely you will come across deer poachers as they tend to do their thing in the early hours but if you do spot something please report it.

 

[Jingley]

I had a very disturbing conversation with the game keeper recently. He told me to look out for poachers. I said I hadn't heard any gun shots at night lately. He said that they were after the deer and don't use guns (in case they're stopped by the police). Instead, they use dogs that are crossed between pit bull or staffie types and lurchers to bring the deer down. They chase them in their cars and get them in the cross beam, let the dogs out and they don't see what's coming for them until it's too late. This is a new one on me, and a very upsetting one. Anyone else heard similar? Game keeper says this is the worst time of year because the fields have been harvested and it's easy to drive through. He said he'd seen some tracks nearby not made by him or the farmer. I'm keeping an eye out now for car lights at night and will phone him if I see anything suspicious.

OMG this is disgusting. What is wrong with people who enjoy sports like this. Strong link between people who enjoy hurting animals and hurting people. Sick ********.

 

[Jingley]

We found the lurcher my parents have at the side of a road in a ditch abdandoned because she had dislocated her hip .
We caught her , she could move quite fast for a three legged dog in a ditch she was terrified and took her to the vets they got the hip back in and my parents gave her a home .
She's one of the lucky ones .

This is lovely well done to you and your parents

 

[rowan666]

Strong link between people who enjoy hurting animals and hurting people.

whilst I agree it's disturbing and as another poster has mentioned extremely worrying what this does for breed stereotyping (something I'm very passionate about) I absolutely do not agree that all people who enjoy to hunt just enjoy hurting animals! We used to have a lovely guy and his lads come hunting for rabbits and pigeons on our place and they did an excellent job keeping numbers down, they ate everything they caught and saddly they stopped when their terrier, who is very well loved and cared for i will add, got our farm cat (cat was actually ok) because they felt so bad despite us reassuring them it's just one of those things, there was no hard feelings and they were still welcome. We are now over run with rabbits and holes in our fields! Not all hunters are bad, please don't tar them all with the same brush x

 

[Equi]

whilst I agree it's disturbing and as another poster has mentioned extremely worrying what this does for breed stereotyping (something I'm very passionate about) I absolutely do not agree that all people who enjoy to hunt just enjoy hurting animals! We used to have a lovely guy and his lads come hunting for rabbits and pigeons on our place and they did an excellent job keeping numbers down, they ate everything they caught and saddly they stopped when their terrier, who is very well loved and cared for i will add, got our farm cat (cat was actually ok) because they felt so bad despite us reassuring them it's just one of those things, there was no hard feelings and they were still welcome. We are now over run with rabbits and holes in our fields! Not all hunters are bad, please don't tar them all with the same brush x

There is a big difference between someone who legally catches rabbits and pigeons which are massive pests in a lot of places and to eat themselves than people who set dogs on deer and badgers and hares for fun. It is illegal. Anyone who gets enjoyment out of illegal sports generally don't give a damn about other people. I know the ones I know don't - in fact one was at my friends last night cause his brother had attacked him with a shovel because he smoked some of his weed.

 

[Clodagh]

We get it round here all the time. Deer poaching and hare coursing and probably a lot more. If you see hare courses ring 999 and tell them that you can see them coursing right there and then. Its unlikely you will come across deer poachers as they tend to do their thing in the early hours but if you do spot something please report it.

The police will still not turn up though, I alway end up in an argument with them telling me to just report it on the non emergency number. It is a crime in progress and yes 999 is right, but good luck with that! Unless you have a more useful force than Essex.
Next doors shoot lost over 100 pheasants last weekend with the poachers coursing deer with dogs by their release pens, they were bagging up the dead the next day.

 

[rowan666]

There is a big difference between someone who legally catches rabbits and pigeons which are massive pests in a lot of places and to eat themselves than people who set dogs on deer and badgers and hares for fun. It is illegal.

Yes that was exactly my point in response to a rather sweeping statement made by jingly

 

[CMcC]

I have a rescue lurcher who was dumped at a rescue organisation with a very badly broken leg. When I got her she was pretty traumatised, had never lived in a house and spent most of her time behind the couch. But every evening around 9pm she would get up and get quite agitated walking up and down - I can only think she had been used for hunting and that was the time she got taken out. The only other thing she came out from behind the couch for was Chinese takeaway! She still has pretty high prey drive - had a few pheasants from neighbours shoot and embarrassingly broke into neighbours garden and got a couple of chickens.

 

[kathantoinette]

We get hare coursers around our area a lot (Saturday was the most recent) - very flat land so ideal for coursing and especially this time od year are there are no crops stood in the fields. We have a 'farm watch' network in the area which works really well. The police are actively involved but I don't think many actually get caught but more 'moved along' by police/farmer presence.

 

[MagicMelon]

How absolutely vile. Make sure you've got your gamekeeper on speed dial (he'll come quicker than police and he'll bring his gun!) in case you see any weird activity. I'm always on alert where I live as a nasty couple of blokes very occassionally do hare coarsing in the fields round mine, we didnt realise until I called him to report some dodgy men wondering round his field with lurchers that he'd had issues with them in the past. Had I known that's what they were doing I would have called the police immediately, although be aware that you need to be careful they dont know who you are / where you live - my fear is that I see these men again and because I live rurally, if suddenly the police rocked up they'd know it was me Which means they know where I and my previous horses live etc. Bit worrying...

 

[druid]

Bull lurchers are not a new cross at all, been around for years. They'd rarely be used for deer though much more likely on "teeth" aka fox. Any big-ish (24" plus) lurcher would take deer in pairs or trios, the bull blood isn't needed - look at deerhounds!

I'm always reluctant to confront anyone directly for the reasons mentioned above (we see odd goings on out dogging in pheasants late in the evening)

 

[poiuytrewq]

Since moving to proper countryside I've found a fair few things quite horrible. This is a new one on me but I fully believe it's happening. Bas***ds

 

[wench]

Nothing new im afraid...

 

[Wagtail]

Thanks, everyone. Have there been any stories of them hurting horses?

 

[Equi]

There probably is. There have been attacks on horses that Noonehas been able to find a perpitrator.

 

[Clodagh]

How absolutely vile. Make sure you've got your gamekeeper on speed dial (he'll come quicker than police and he'll bring his gun!).

Law must be different in Scotland, the first thing OH and the keeper do if they are here is bring their guns back and lock them in the safe. going out armed and dangerous would be your license gone before you could get back home.