The land owned by Friends of the Quantocks is managed by a volunteer group and it is “for the people of Somerset”. However, the “Friends” and the hunts have made sure that foxhunting and stag hunting are both allowed and encouraged in this piece of land the belongs to the people.

Land access matters to the hunt. Without land – of if the land they hunt on is restricted – they are restricted too.

Our first campaign involves emailing the Friends of the Quantocks. The land is managed by a volunteer group “for the people of Somerset”. However, the “Friends” and the hunts, have made sure that fox hunting and stag hunting are both allowed and encouraged in this piece of land that belongs to the people of. Somerset.
“Sporting rights” (or the right to hunt animals on the land) can be sold and owned separately from the land itself. The sporting rights of the two pieces of land owned by the “Friends” are owed by the Badgeworthy Land Company – the hunt. The Friends sold the sporting rights to this company after they became the owners of the land. They could then avoid responsibility and duck controversy surrounding hunting. While the Friends cannot ban the hunt from the land (something they saw to themselves), they have every right to distance themselves from the cruel and controversial activity by asking the hunt not to use their land for pursuing and killing animals. Fox hunting, is illegal anyway and obviously immoral. And the stag hunting (which they pretend is for “research and observation) is unimaginably cruel, even if (and we are looking into this too) they say it’s legal.  So, what can you do?

You can email the Friends (texample email below), and ask them to distance themselves from the cruel and controversial activities of fox hunting and stag hunting. This approach has worked in other campaigns, and might work here.  Either way, it will highlight public opposition to hunting and make organisations realise that it is better to distance yourself from the controversy  than be involved.

The contact form can be found here

Example email

If you have any further information or would like to discuss this campaign further please email campaigns@actionagainstsstaghunting.org