The Bristol activists sabotaging illegal fox hunts

A Bristol organisation is taking action against illegal fox hunting in the west.

Every Saturday members from Bristol Hunt Saboteurs (hunt sabs) rise early and follow tip-offs to areas around Gloucestershire and south Wales to sabotage fox hunts. This non-hierarchical group is a mix of local students and full-time workers of all ages. Using drones, GoPros and handheld cameras they capture footage of huntsmen and their hounds chasing after wildlife. On foot and in vehicles the ‘hunt sabs’ track the hunt from all angles hoping to protect the targeted foxes.

Although the 2004 Hunting Act outlawed fox hunting, a member of Bristol Hunt Sabs says that hunters exploit loopholes in the law to continue hunting the animals. One way to do this is through trail hunting. ‘They say that they lay an artificial trail of a fox scent, and then that's what the hounds are hunting. And then if they do happen to get onto the scent of a live fox, that's obviously an accident […] In reality, there's no evidence that trail hunting happens’. The hunts are often well-attended with people paying to ride on horseback alongside the hunters. ‘People will come out and sit in their cars or stand around hoping to catch a glimpse of what's happening. They'll come with their kids’. At times there can be up to one hundred hunters on horseback and fifty people watching.

This time of year is cubbing season, where young hounds are trained by hunting fox cubs. These more controversial hunts are less spectated. The ‘sabs’ use a range of techniques to deter the hunters such as covering the foxes’ scent with sprays and mimicking the sounds of a whip to distract the dogs. ‘November till March, we'll be out from like 9am till six’ stopping only once it gets dark and the hunt is called off. Bristol, Bath and Mendip’s respective teams of ‘hunt sabs’ will join up to ensure they have as many people on the ground as possible. Although they collect footage of the hunts the member emphasised that their priority isn’t gathering evidence for convictions. ‘It’s about sabotaging the hunt and assisting hunted animals to escape’.

This form of activism is not without risk. In the past hunt saboteurs such as Mike Hill in 1991 and Tom Worby in 1993 have been killed whilst ‘sabbing’. The hunt sabs member reported that ‘there’s been times where I've felt intimidated,’ recounting incidents of threatening words and being squared up to. According to them the situation was worse before the Hunting Act came in meaning ‘sabs’ had to worry about violence, assault and having their vehicle windows smashed. Although this is much less common today it is not unheard of. In 2023 Christopher Mardles pleaded guilty to inflicting grievous bodily harm after trampling a ‘hunt sabber’ with his horse and leaving him seriously injured.

The member stated that it’s difficult to get a prosecution for fox hunting due to a lack of interest among the authorities. ‘Our hope is that eventually the Hunting Act will be strengthened in all the loopholes about trail hunting’.