The Beagle is the smallest of the British packhounds bred to hunt hare. Although it is primarily a working scent hound, with an outstanding sense of smell, in an experienced home the beagle also makes a charming family pet as they are naturally playful, sociable and amiable characters. This may stem from the fact that they were bred to be followed on foot on the hunting field, while the larger scent hounds were followed on horseback. They have the vibe of a mini foxhound.

Their compact size and friendly demeanour give them enduring appeal both on and off the hunting field, while their expressive eyes give them a charming and approachable look. While they are working animals with a strong nose sometimes distracting them from their training, they tend to be adaptable and intelligent, and thrive on companionship and social interaction. This makes for a loving and versatile hound with a sense of joy and adventure. The beagle is the most popular hound among American pet owners.

Beagle dog breed: fact file

Kennel Club breed group: hound

Size: medium

Daily exercise: up to an hour

Coat: short, shedding

Colours: an array of some 19 different colours and mixes of colours, from “badger pied” to “hare pied mottle” and “lemon and white”. Eyes are dark brown or hazel.

Lifespan: more than 12 years

Bark: loud and vocal

History: the breed was established in England in the 1400s. Queen Elizabeth I used to ride with miniature beagles in her saddle bag. The “pocket beagle” is now much more popular in the US than the UK.

Distinctive features: a sturdy but quality hound which is powerful but never coarse. Long ears with a rounded tip. They are muscular and active, with a short, dense coat and no wrinkles. Give the impression of balance, with a free stride. Come in a wide variety of colours.

Temperament: amiable and alert, bold, energetic, determined and joyful.

Things to consider: check your beagle’s ears weekly due to their length and the possibility of infection. They can be prone to obesity, so monitor their diet carefully especially if they need help to lose weight. Some beagles can suffer hip dysplasia, so one of the best orthopaedic dog beds is recommended.

Training: like all hounds, beagles are independent as they were bred to be able to hunt on their own and scent a trail without being distracted. Remember that they were bred to be a working dog, so need plenty of exercise and stimulation, as well as consistent and experienced training for off-lead walking as they can be distracted in the recall.

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Hounds are a specific sub-set of the canine species – and there is a difference between dogs and hounds. Hound breeds are distinct from other groups of dogs, and share an exceptional ability to hunt and track live prey. But within this group is a wonderful variety of different breeds. Hound dog breeds mostly fall into two main categories, scent hounds and sighthounds. Broadly speaking, the scent hounds hunt low to the ground, using their noses to track their prey. They tend to have large nostrils, droopy ears (to waft the scent towards their nose) and are usually stockier than the sight hounds, who spot their prey with their eyes and use their agility and speed to pursue it.

And even within these two categories there is plenty of variety, from the silky flowing locks of the Afghan hound to the sleek greyhound (both sighthounds) – or from the sausage-shaped Dachshund to the tall and lean English foxhound (both scent hounds). What all of them have in common is a strong prey drive, whether they follow their nose or their eyes.

7 contrasting hound breeds

Saluki

A sighthound that originates from the Middle East. It is an elegant and light-footed hound, bred to hunt hare, fox and gazelle from horseback. This hound is characterised by grace, speed and endurance, and a gentle demeanour. Their coat is typically soft and silky and many have slight feathering.

Dachshund

This scent hound originates in Germany, where they are still used for tracking wounded game such as deer, and for hunting down badger and rabbits. They have a superb hunting spirit with a good nose and are well-suited for work below ground and beating the bush. As seen above, there are three coat types: smooth, wire-haired and long-haired, and there are two sizes: miniature (which is one of the smallest dog breeds) and standard.

Beagle

Of the British pack hound breeds, the Beagle is the smallest. It is a scent hound bred to hunt primarily hare, from foot rather than horse. They are typically an amiable, upbeat and determined hound, alert, intelligent and amenable.

Irish Wolfhound

With origins in both the Middle East and Ireland, this is the tallest of all hound breeds. It is a sighthound bred for speed and strength to protect livestock from wolf packs, which were a threat on the Emerald Isle until they became extinct at the end of the 18th century. A gentle giant, they made our round-up of the largest dog breeds.

Bloodhound

A brilliant scent hound breed that has been developed in Britain since the 12th century at least. These large hounds, with their characteristic folds of skin, have been used for hunting deer and wild boar, but bloodhounds are particularly famous for being able to track humans. They are known to have best scenting ability of all breeds, being able to follow a five-day-old scent for 50 miles. A trained bloodhound’s “evidence” can be used as testimony in court.

Basset

A scent hound built low to the ground, believed to be bred for hunting hare by French monks (bas meaning low) in medieval times. They have fabulous scenting ability, second only to the bloodhound, and like the larger breed, their droopy, trailing ears help to capture the scent of whatever they are tracking. Short-legged breeds, such as the basset, were used by those hunting on foot, while longer-legged breeds were used for hunting on horseback, which was the preserve of the aristocracy and royalty.

Borzoi

Known as the wolfhound of the Russian aristocracy, this elegant sight hound is large, athletic and very fast – the word borzói means swift in archaic Russian. Dating back to the 16th century, the borzoi is probably a cross between Saluki and European sighthounds with local sheepdogs. Originally they would hunt and pursue wolves in pairs, and pin down their quarry until the human hunters arrived, but have also been used to hunt foxes, boars and hares.

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School and college packs of beagles have played a considerable role in teaching young people about hounds – and life – for many generations, as Andrew Sallis explains

MY parents’ horror was palpable. Their hunting-mad nine-year old son was hopping with excitement at the ringside. A school pack of beagles was parading and what’s more, they were hunted by the boys.

I couldn’t believe they had kept this secret.

Beagles, studies, boys, hunting – what could possibly go wrong? Within a year I had been packed off to choir school, far removed from any venatic distraction to my studies: that was to come later in my academic career.

For generations, “young gentlemen” (and now some ladies) have followed the well-worn path of masterships from school beagles to college beagles before taking a pack of foxhounds.

Pressures of balancing academic studies with co-curricular activities and shifting admission criteria, not to mention economic considerations, have re-aligned this route-map, but the merits and rewards offered by school and college packs, hunting within the law, remain as strong as ever.

Most packs had a humble naissance. A few “hounds” of dubious provenance and questionable breeding were acquired and lodged, sometimes illicitly, away from the eyes of Victorian schoolmasters. The keeping of “dogs” was contrary to rules at most schools, but this was a technicality generally bypassed in the interest of encouraging sportsmanship.

In the 1850s, the Eton began using a semi-trencher system. In the history of the Eton College Hunt, it is noted that “the rule was either to subscribe or bring back a couple of beagles… naturally the result was a rather unlevel lot.”

Ironically, in light of their present-day “quarry” compelled by law, many packs began their existence hunting a “drag” before quickly moving to a live quarry. The young beaglers didn’t limit themselves to a single species and could at best be described as opportunist, at worst indiscriminate.

Although the hare became the prized and respected quarry of the young gentleman beaglers before the beginning of the 20th century, even as late as the 1940s the beagles would purposefully account for the occasional fox.

The schoolboy Ronnie Wallace famously accounted for a fox in a cottage kitchen, only to have his picture appear in a local newspaper which prompted a woman to write to him, “You have a very sweet face. Can I not save you before it’s too late?”

Not for the first time, innocent looks benefited a young master in a tricky scrape. Wallace’s influence over the Eton College Hunt lasted his lifetime. As senior trustee he designed the new kennels and was honoured by the approaching road being named Wallace Walk.

A FINE REPUTATION

DESPITE their collegiate names, the Oxbridge packs don’t have formal relations with the colleges. Since the mid-18th century, Oxford has had at least five establishments: Christ Church, Trinity, Magdalen, Balliol and New College. Amalgamations and takeovers followed, with the Christ Church emerging as the sole university pack in 1950, eventually joining with the Farley Hill, from civvy-street, in 1970.

From the early 1850s, Eton hosted two packs, the Oppidans and the College Hunt, before the Eton College Hunt was assumed in 1867.

The Ampleforth College Beagles, founded in 1915, had a fine reputation in North Yorkshire and still maintain strong links with the school today in their new constitution, as does Marlborough College, whose sporting country joined with the Palmer Milburn Beagles more than a decade ago. Both school packs contributed heavily to the pantheon of great masters and huntsmen.

The most recently formed school pack has been a remarkable success. The Stowe Beagles were founded in 1962 and have been showing capital sport ever since, as well as becoming the nursery of countless talented huntsmen of beagles and foxhounds.

Key to their success has been the appointment of first-rate kennel-huntsmen. Adrian Dangar, who hunted the Stowe in the early 1980s before a distinguished career with foxhounds, recalls that, “Nat Thornton had a knack of allowing his young masters leeway and intervening in time to avert disaster. He was an all-round sportsman who made it fun and produced hounds in tip-top condition. Nat taught me so much about hunting and hound management. We didn’t realise how lucky we were.”

The beagles naturally attract children from hunting backgrounds but, more importantly, they offer a great opportunity for all children to get involved in a community beyond the school gate. After all, non-school or college members, alumni and the farmers are crucial to all packs, providing continuity and support.

The Stowe and Royal Agricultural College (RAC) Beagles have produced the greatest number of masters and huntsmen of foxhounds over the past 50 years, whose alumni include a current cabinet minister.

The RAC trace their history back to the late 19th century and have been bound by high-quality sport with their eminent foxhound neighbours in Gloucestershire ever since.

Radley College has truly brought its hunt into the modern era. As well as offering legal hunting, their Countryside Centre gives boys the opportunity to look after farm animals and rare breeds, in addition to experiencing other country pursuits. Such ventures can inspire vital new recruits to hunting and the countryside.

David Brown, kennel-huntsman to the Christ Church and Farley Hill Beagles at Oxford for 16 seasons, admits: “It can make such a difference if the master has carried the horn at school or been involved with hounds previously.”

MENTORING YOUNG CHARGES

BEYOND that of other kennel-huntsmen, those appointed to school and college packs have to mentor their young charges. Most packs have trustees and senior members, but it is the kennel-huntsman who must principally educate and mould the young.

The hue of his patois may occasionally differ from their schoolmasters, but he must equally be their teacher, social worker, agony aunt, defender and even stand in loco parentis.

Captain Ronnie Wallace considered the careful placement of school and college kennel huntsmen vital for the future of hunting, which rested heavily on their shoulders. Bill Perkins, famous Eton kennel-huntsman to a generation of top-class amateur huntsmen in the middle of the 20th century, left an indelible impression on the young Wallace. He instilled many virtues and according to Wallace, “could impart hound control to the young in such a way that they could take the pack alone through Slough.”

The kennels and KH’s kitchen become classrooms for life lessons. My kennel-huntsman at the Trinity Foot, then still a student-run pack at Cambridge, was a talented houndman who hailed from the Stoke-on-Trent potteries, via a couple of notable foxhound kennels. He certainly showed me a “rich” side of life previously hidden and a glossary of proverbs in a vernacular to match.

Modern school and college packs wouldn’t be able to tolerate the habits of “Lock”, the Eton kennel-huntsman at the end of the 19th century. Short and fat, he also ran the Turkish baths next to kennels on the High Street and was rarely seen out of his scarlet “drawers”, save for on the hunting field where he sported brown knickerbockers.

Due to academic pressures, today’s kennel-huntsmen and school countryside officers are more likely to clear country and co-ordinate meets than their predecessors, providing essential continuity for the farmers.

While the students are taking on important responsibilities, the kennel-huntsman must remember that they aren’t obliged to be there. In fact many of the students, particularly at schools, may be bucking the trend and resisting considerable pressure, from peers and teachers (even parents) to conform to more conventional sports and activities.

But the little hounds can prove addictive. Involvement with the beagles doesn’t have to involve hunting. Fundraising and socials are essential to hunt cohesion.

A HOME FROM HOME

THE considerable life skills learnt on the rugby pitch and in the school theatre rarely involve such an eclectic and diverse bunch. Just like hunts in the outside world, this fraternity crosses age groups and creates a profound bond between sometimes unlikely bedfellows. For some, the beagles can offer an exciting yet safe haven; a home from home.

“I loved every second of it,” says Tom Gurney, master of the Stowe Beagles 2019–20. “The camaraderie between beaglers of all ages throughout the school was amazing and created a tight social group. We were at kennels every morning and afternoon.”

As his predecessor Adrian Dangar also recalls, Tom stresses that beagling has a high standing within the school.

Matthew Higgs is the long serving joint-master and huntsman of the South Herts Beagles, which amalgamated with the Trinity Foot Beagles in 2003. The Trinity Foot and South Herts Beagles maintain strong links with Cambridge and make several student appointments each season. He attributes many skills needed for later life from his days hunting the Wye College Beagles.

“The experience of opening country, even dealing with an agitated farmer, helped my career as an agronomist,” he says.

As the chairman of the Association of Masters of Harriers and Beagles, Matthew celebrates the “blend of generations working together on common ground.”

“Beyond running, I was never much of a gamesman,” continues Matthew, “and mucked about trying to avoid the ball, but beagling offered everything.”

Good relations with local packs of foxhounds are crucial. Beagles and foxhounds meeting when out hunting isn’t unheard of, even in recent times. Tom Gurney’s Stowe Beagles bravely gained a couple of Micky Wills’ Grafton hounds for several hours one day, while the RAC once had a memorable afternoon when encountering not only the Beaufort but the VWH too, who had also joined up by chance. Laughter was exchanged rather than blows.

Since the 1950s, Northumberland, that utopia of hare-hunting, has drawn beaglers on pilgrimage, keen to hunt their hounds in its wilderness and sample the hospitality. For many years, an autumnal visit was a seasonal ritual for school and college packs. This tradition began with the Trinity Foot’s first visit in 1888 to hunt the estates of two undergraduate masters, J Carr-Ellison and A Allgood, whose families’ association with the TFB continues to this day.

The hill-country hunts, crazy parties, hunt balls and pub nights morphed into legend for the low-country visitors.

Even in these straitened times, working with in the Hunting Act in a busy countryside, those who have enjoyed school and college beagles could never deny its life-affirming qualities.

Whether or not the young beaglers continue to hunt after their studies, the skills learnt from organising a hunt country, managing the plethora of people, not to forget the enormous fun and privilege of hunting a pack of hounds provide memories and lessons for a lifetime.

This feature is also available to read in this Thursday’s H&H magazine (8 April, 2021)

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A SPORT known for its venery but without the glamour of foxhunting, beagling has been enjoyed by many dedicated followers over the years. Some giants of the hunting world started their career with beagles. Stalwart kennel-huntsmen have perhaps contributed as much as any to the sport by acting as teachers to their young protégés.

Matthew Higgs, chairman of the Association of Masters of Harriers and Beagles (AMHB) and master and huntsman of the Trinity Foot and South Herts beagles, describes another category by saying, “Many beaglers have been hugely influential with their own pack on a local level and have been satisfied with just enjoying their hunting.”

Rowland Hunt was master of the Eton College Beagles in 1876 and proved to be a brilliant huntsman and organiser – “the most successful huntsman the ECH had ever possessed” according to the history of the pack. He moved the hounds to the back of some Turkish baths in town and employed William Lock, who kept the baths, to act as his kennel-huntsman.

This proved to be a masterstroke and his reforms allowed him to catch a record tally on both his first and second season in charge. He repeated the success as master of the Trinity Foot Beagles when he went up to Cambridge and afterwards became a successful master of his home pack, the Wheatland foxhounds, and a Member of Parliament.

John Atkinson and Nat Thornton taught dozens of Stowe boys the art of hunting during their tenures as kennel-huntsmen for the Stowe Beagles, a task that was equally ably administered by the likes of Jack Welch and Jeff Hall for the Ampleforth Beagles and former Pytchley huntsman Archie Jones among others at Eton. Walter Clinkard was a famous kennel-huntsman at the Christchurch for the Oxford students and his son Roy built himself a formidable reputation at the Aldershot before setting up his own pack, the Clinkard Beagles.

However, the highest accolade at any college pack must go to Father Walter Maxwell-Stuart, who as a student was appointed master of the Ampleforth Beagles in 1931. In 1939 he became a junior monk at Ampleforth Abbey and held the role of secretary to the college beagles for 47 years. An inspiration and mentor to generations of country boys, his tutelage of students in beagling has to make him one of the true heroes of the sport.

Worthy scribes

BEAGLING has nurtured several worthy scribes, like Otho Paget, who hunted his own pack in Leicestershire during the early 20th century, the Thorpe Satchville Beagles. He wrote about most packs of the time in Beagles and Beagling.

Peter Wood, the younger brother of Charles, the Earl of Halifax, wrote the ultimate disposition on beagling called Thoughts on Beagling, brilliantly illustrated by sporting artist Tom Ivester-Lloyd, master of the Sherington Foot Beagles who hunted largely where Milton Keynes is situated today. Peter was sadly killed during World War II in the desert war.

Bay de Courcy Parry was a prolific writer and hunted his own Clun Forest Beagles when living at the Anchor on the Shropshire Welsh border. He famously saved himself the expense of striking a new hunt button when he moved to Cumbria by renaming his pack the Caldbeck Fell Beagles.

The fairer sex has been well represented in the high echelons of respected beaglers. Jean Dunn is still pulling the strings at the Hunsley Beacon in her nineties, having had a distinguished mastership in which she proved to be an excellent huntsman, as was her daughter Jane after her. Jean took over from founder Patrick Till, who named his pack after the landmark beacon which he could see from his study window.

Betty McKeever was one of the true greats in hunting history. She was given the Blean Beagles by her father as an eight year old child and remained in office as master until she died in 1990.

Phemie Angus was another giant of the sport, hunting the Mid Essex from 1955 until their disbandment in 2003 and looking after the hounds herself from 1979.

The Taw Vale Beagles in Devon were founded by Miss KY Varndell in 1962, and kennelled at her house near Crediton along with her other pack, the Dartmoor otterhounds. When she sadly died in 1966, her step-sister Miss EC Nessling stepped up to fill her shoes and remained as master until 1978. Miss Nessling had been a dame at Charterhouse School with little previous association with the beagles, but considered it her duty to take over from her sister.

Sir Newton Rycroft founded the Dummer Beagles and was a brilliant huntsman and hound breeder. A Wykehamist and academic, he turned his considerable brain power to breeding his own high-class pack of hounds which he hunted for 24 seasons before moving on achieve a similar result with the New Forest Foxhounds.

Extraordinary displays of skill

THE leading professional huntsmen in beagling have always set the bar high. The likes of Peter Howe at the Newcastle and District Beagles, under the guidance of their founder and master Colonel Leonard Gibson, used to put on extraordinary displays of his skills when the Northumberland beagling festival was at its height in the 1970s. Peter ended his hunting career as huntsman to the London foxhounds in Ontario, Canada.

Admiral Sir James Eberle was a master of the Britannia Beagles for some 50 years and he hunted them himself for the early part of his tenure. As much of a leader in the defence of country sports as a leader in the Navy, he certainly flew the flag for hunting within the echelons of power.

The Warwickshire Beagles have had some substantive masters, none more so than their founder, Colonel Guy Jackson, who started them as the Springfield Beagles and hunted them in his plum-coloured smoking jacket, a livery which they still wear today. He went on to be master of the Exmoor after the war despite having had both legs blown off by a land mine in Italy.

Perhaps the greatest master was Phil Burrows of the Bolebrook in Kent, under whom Martin Letts learnt his trade as a huntsman before moving to the College Valley in Northumberland. From 1934 to 1974 Burrows was master and bred his pack, arguing against the fashion of breeding a beagle too big or to be a miniature foxhound.

The list could go on, but Matthew Higgs sums up the mentality of the sport when he says, “It is the beaglers who can truly say that they hunt to enjoy themselves and not to astonish others.”

H&H, 24 September 2020

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Which are the most interesting hunting biographies? Frank Houghton Brown gallops through a selection of great sporting books...

Biographies of various sporting personalities seem to be at the front of every bookstand, but in many ways the lives of famous huntsmen or hunting folk are even more interesting. There are a host of wonderful biographies that cover all types of hunting people, and in most cases their lives have been fascinating. It is from these that we have selected what could be the best hunting biographies.

Some huge characters from the 19th century lived lives that one can only dream of and spent their vast fortunes on their personal enjoyment of the chase. Henry Chaplin, the “Squire of Blankney” is one such individual. His biography, Henry Chaplin: A Memoir, covers his long mastership of his own hounds, his success with Hermit in the 1867 Derby and the sadness and scandal when his engagement to Lady Florence Paget was abruptly severed as she was about to buy her wedding outfit and eloped with the Marquess of Hastings.

A similar book is The Meynell of the West, the story of James Farquharson and his mammoth 52-year mastership of his own hounds, who hunted the whole of Dorset entirely at his own expense from 1806.

That great American master of the Cattistock, Henry Higginson, was the author of Squire Farquharson’s biography and his own autobiography is a fascinating read. With a forward from his great friend Ikey Bell, Try Back refers not only to his English mastership in the 1930s, but also to a 20-year spell hunting hounds in America.

Beagling is well represented among the best biographies, none better than Her Master’s Voice, the amazing story of Betty McKeever and her Blean Beagles which she hunted in Kent for the best part of a century.

However, if you want a really different sort of experience, then the life of Flight Lieutenant HC Pyper fits the bill in his 1937 book Hounds First. He was a truly well-travelled man and used every opportunity he could to sample the sport on offer wherever he found himself. From time spent as a jackeroo in Australia prior to World War I, to hunting with the Royal Exodus hounds in Iraq, Pyper hunted hare, fox, otter and jackal at every chance he could grab. He hunted beagles in the UK, notably the RAF Uxbridge, which later morphed in to the Old Berkeley Beagles.

Ernest Bawden was perhaps the most celebrated huntsman of staghounds, and his story is brilliantly told in the book Staghunter. His time with the Devon and Somerset Staghounds straddled World War I, and the stories of fieldcraft and hunting are second to none. However, equally as interesting is his time in Africa during the Boer War, when he used his immense hunting skills to kill an enemy sniper.

Bawden’s story is superb, but that of his harbourer Fred Goss in Memories of a Stag Harbourer is perhaps even more extraordinary. His job was to find what he describes as “a warrantable stag” and to locate its position ready for the meet. His vast wealth of knowledge of both the deer and their terrain is immense, and with his own words you get a sense of his love for his quarry and for Exmoor itself.

Professional huntsmen have regularly consigned their lives to print, with the lives of famous Quorn huntsman Tom Firr and Pytchley huntsman Stanley Barker being two of the best. Huntsmen of a Golden Age tells of the life of the Goodalls; the 20-stone Stephen Goodall, who hunted the Pytchley and the Quorn, and Will Goodall, grandson of Stephen who became huntsman of the Belvoir at the tender age of 24 in 1842.

The lives of different Fell huntsmen are immortalised in print, none better than that of Joe Bowman, huntsman of the Ullswater for more than 41 seasons from 1879. Life in the Fells was a distinct world of its own, and each individual valley another world again. Bowman gives an insight into the tight-knit communities and the important part that hunting played within them.

Thirty Years a Hunt Servant by Jack Molyneux is a classic, written in 1935. The name Molyneux is associated with a famous family of huntsmen and Jack was brought up in kennels, initially when his father was first whipper-in to the Garth hounds. Jack leads the reader through his life and it soon becomes clear just how totally immersed in hunting life his family had become. Rejected by the army as a result of hunting accidents, Jack’s career unfolds from whipper-in to huntsman in an array of very different hunt countries – a fascinating insight.

George Race hunted his own hounds, the Biggleswade Harriers, who mainly hunted the hare. In his 1911 biography, Seventy Years a Master, there are some nerve-racking accounts of amazing hunts. One particularly memorable run was in 1847 when he hunted a white fallow buck from Southill Park near Biggleswade for 17 miles without a check across a punishing line of country. The stag swam the lake at Wrest Park to Hockliffe, but broke bay before they could catch him. Race was furious that the noble beast was then taken by what he describes as “a bunch of navvies”, presented to Queen Victoria and released in Windsor Great Park.

The legendary American master of foxhounds Ben Hardaway published his autobiography, Never Outfoxed, in 1997. An extrovert and fanatical hunting man, Ben describes his childhood addiction to the chase and his journey in building his famous pack, the Midland Foxhounds in Georgia, USA. Ben certainly had an interesting and varied life which was lived to the full.

There is a plethora of choice available to the hunting enthusiast, but my favourite is Martin Letts’ succinct Memories of my Life at the College Valley. Every one of his stories is not only interesting in its own right, but shows how quickly things changed in the Cheviot countryside in the second half of the 20th century. The only downside is that he must have become bored while writing it, because it whets the appetite but is sadly only too brief.

H&H 13 August 2020

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The first of the major hound shows recently took place over two days at the South of England hound show in Ardingly, West Sussex. The judging of the foxhounds was on Thursday 11 June with the beagles classes on Friday 12 June.

On foxhound day, Major Tim Easby, director of the Masters of Foxhounds Association (MFHA) and Lady Arabella Moger MFH judged the doghounds while Alastair Jackson and Joss Hanbury — joint-master of the Quorn — judged the bitches.

A strong contigent from both the Chiddingfold, Leconfield and Cowdray from West Sussex, and the VWH from Glos proved hard to beat with the majority of classes being split between them.

On beagles day, Martin Weatherhead and Andrew Kellaway were judging the doghounds, with Tim Coulson MFH and Simon Dunn responsible for deciding the winners of the bitch hounds.

The Blean Beagles enjoyed their first major success for many years while the Stoke Hill and North Dartmoor’s Commander 12 took the doghound championship, following up his win in both the entered and stallion hound classes. Several packs were victorious throughout the judging of the bitches, but it was the turn of Palmer Marlborough Woodbine 12 to take the bitch hound championship.

Huntsmen entering the ring at the South of England Hound Show

Hounds awaiting the judging

Doghound, Stoke Hill and North Dartmoor Commander 12, with reserve Christ Church and Farley Hill Brutus 14 (behind)

Hague with the doghound winners of the two couple class

View from the stands during the judging

Heythrop Raspberry 11, winner of the brood bitch class

Deciding the bitch hound championship

The Chiddingfold, Leconfield & Cowdray’s Mascot and Mandate, winners of the unentered doghounds couple class

The judging of the bitch hound championship on beagles day

An East Kent with West Street hound is keen to get involved

For the full report and further pictures, please see Horse & Hound on 18 June 2015

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A 70-year-old beagle hunt that recovered from having its entire pack stolen by animal rights extremists has been disbanded.

The Wye College Beagles (WCB), which formed in 1947, held its last meet at the former dairy unit of Wye College farm last month (22 March).

Wye College, which was owned by Imperial College London, closed in 2009, and after a further 5 years the decision has been taken that the pack is no longer viable.

Tim Bonner, speaking on behalf of the pack as a former master and huntsman, said: “The WCB were largely run and staffed by students until the college closed.

“The current team have done an amazing job to keep the pack going for as long as they have after the closure.”

The hunt faced ruin in 2001 when the Animal Liberation Front stole 47 beagles in a night-time raid. But staff managed to rebuild the pack through generous donations,

“Not even the cruel action by animal rights extremists could keep the WCB down,” Tim added.

“The last meet was attended by many who had enjoyed great times through the years with the WCB. It was a fitting celebration of a great little pack.”

This article was first published in Horse & Hound magazine (3 April 2014)

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The Britannia Beagles had a special guest at their puppy show at the Naval College, Dartmouth on 26 July — the Princess Royal.

“We invited her to our centenary puppy show two years ago, but she was unable to come,” said hunt secretary Commander Rory Jackson.

“This time she visited the newly refurbished Naval College Museum and then came to the kennels, where she named one of this year’s puppies Regent before attending the puppy show, presenting the prizes, and then came to tea afterwards.”

Commander Jackson said that when she left — by helicopter — kennelman Pat Franklin let the entire pack out while the helicopter hovered overhead. The 270 attendees of the puppy show could see her leaning out to look at the hounds.

“It was a glorious sunny day and she seemed to enjoy it very much, as did we,” said Commander Jackson.

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A new beagle pack is being formed to hunt the former Wick and District country in south Gloucestershire, the latter having disbanded in 2011.

Nigel Bell, who was involved with the Wick and District for 30 years, is restarting the pack under the new name, the Severn Vale Beagles.

“I was asked by the Association [of Masters of Harriers and Beagles (AMHB)] to resurrect the pack,” said Nigel. “There will be a lot of the same people and we’re hoping to draft in hounds from elsewhere — starting with 10 to 15 couple.”

The pack will be kenneled with the Berkeley Foxhounds from 1 May and Nigel expects they will be “up and running for September”.

Another former Wick and District master, David Eggbeer, joins Nigel at the helm, as well as Brigadier Duncan Warne and Will Wyatt, who will be amateur huntsmen.

Major General Paul Stevenson, the son of former Wick and District chairman Ernest Stephenson, steps in as chairman.

AMHB director Lizzie Salmon welcomed the new pack.

“It was a great shame that the Wick and District had to stop, but great news the Severn Vale will take over,” she said.

“They have some lovely bits of country and a very good relationship with the Berkeley and Duke of Beaufort’s Foxhounds. We are pleased they are sharing the Berkeley’s beautifully run kennels; it should work well for both parties.”

This news story was first published in Horse & Hound magazine (9 May 2013)

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Thieves have stolen a puppy – belonging to the Sandhurst and Aldershot Beagles – which was being walked by a local family.

Laura-Jane Bowdler, who lives near Mattingley, Hants, said their barn was broken into during the early hours of Monday.

The thieves stole the eight-month-old tricolour puppy, Marble, who was kept in the barn, plus a large quantity of tack.

“At the end of the day, the tack can be replaced,” said Mrs Bowdler.

“But the children are devastated about Marble. They are beside themselves – they can’t understand how anyone could take her.”

Mrs Bowdler told H&H that the burglers had cut off a padlock to get into the barn.

“The children had a day off school, so we went up early in the morning to get her.

“The little side door was open. We never use it so I knew instantly we had been broken into – and she was gone.”

Marble’s ear is tattooed with the initials R.M.A. Mrs Bowdler said she had contacted dog wardens in her area and in neighbouring counties, as well as the national website, DogLost.

“We’d do anything to get her back,” she said.

“I’ve put posters up saying a reward will be paid for her safe return.”

Mark Jackson, joint-master of the Sandhurst and Aldershot Beagles, urged whoever took Marble to give her back, unharmed.

“She wouldn’t make a very good pet,” he said.

“She’s been bred to hunt and it is not in her nature to make a domestic pet.”

Mr Jackson said Mrs Bowdler’s three children – who are aged 10, eight and six – had become very attached to Marble.

“Simon, the eldest, has been whipping in for a season and they were really looking forward to her returning to kennels and watching her mature as a hound,” he said.

“Please, please give her back – more for the sake of the children than the hunt.”

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Two beagle bitches, were stolen from the kennels of the County Louth Beagles in Leinster, Ireland on Monday 27 July.

Maiden, who is lemon and white coloured, and Mystic, red and white, are thought to have been enticed out of the kennels by strangers.

All field sports enthusiasts are asked to watch out for the hounds and be alert for anyone with a beagle answering these descriptions.

If you have any information, contact Michael or Agnes Babe of the Louth Beagles on 00353 42 9374338.

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Seven valuable beagles were stolen on Saturday 29 November from Ireland’s oldest foot beagle club, Riverstown in County Cork.

Five bitches and two dogs, aged from two to five years, were taken from kennels in Riverstown, where the club has been housing beagles for decades without incident.

Gardai have been called in to investigate and the club has appealed to other sports bodies and to the public for help in tracing the hounds.

Club spokesman Noel Lambe believes the beagles, valued at around €400 each, were “stolen to order”.

He explained: “The thieves seemed to know exactly which hounds to take and which ones to leave behind. The bitches were probably stolen for breeding, while the dogs could be sold on for hunting.”

The thieves had to climb over a wall next to a busy road to steal the beagles.

The club was founded 121 years ago and has a registered pack of 31 beagles. Member clubs of the Irish Masters of Beagles Association have all been notified of the theft and asked to pass on any relevant information.

Mr Lambe is hopeful that “the distinctive look” of some of the beagles will help in their recovery.

“One of the bitches is pure black, which is very unusual for the breed. Another bitch also has distinctive colouring and has a piece missing from one of her ears.”

A spokesman for the Glanmire Garda told H&H the force was investigating the theft.

Riverstown is having the remainder of its pack specially marked as a security precaution, and they have been moved to a more secure location.

Call Glanmire Garda (00353) 21 482 1002 with any information.

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A team of conservationists and hunting aficionados has taken over the Marlborough College Beagles just when the curtain looked set to draw on the fifty-three-year-old pack.

The Marlborough College Beagles had been founded by two Marlborough College students in 1952 and was one of only four school packs in the Britain. Until earlier this year, it was open to any pupil willing to join and was considered an excellent training ground for future masters of foxhounds.

Two years ago, the Beagles hit the spotlight after the League Anti-Cruel Sports said the college wanted to hide its involvement in country sports because it did not mention the pack in its prospectus and website. The school firmly rebutted the allegation and reiterated its commitment to beagling.

The hunting ban, however, cast a shadow over the future of the club, which held its last meet on Thursday 17 February, just hours before the ban came into force. The college eventually decided to disband the pack and was looking for new homes for the beagles when a group of local supporters came to the rescue.

Racehorse re-trainer Andrew Bozdan, his wife Rosemary, Countryside Alliance Board Member Caroline Tisdall and her partner Paul Van Vlissingen formed a new mastership to take charge of the former Marlborough College Beagles.

“I met with [former Marlborough College huntsman] Ozzie Osman and he told me that they were trying to find new homes for 15 couples or so, and asked me if I could take one or two. He was not having any joy [in finding homes for the beagles] and their future looked quite bleak,” says Bozdan. “I asked him to hold fire because I had an idea but needed it to speak to a few people.”

Bozdan, who used to hunt with the Surrey and North Sussex and still walks puppies for them, discussed taking over the pack with Tisdall and Van Vlissingen, who are both passionate about conservation. “It was not a cheap option and initially we would need to rely on them to support it financially. I did all the costing, they thought about it very carefully and, to our delight and surprise, they said yes,” he says.

A frenzy of activity ensued. Discussions with officials from the former pack — all very pleased, according to Bozdan — were followed by construction work to build the kennels, which is taking place right now.

Bozdan, who will be the new master and huntsman, then plans to “go around the country and see people” to make sure the pack is still welcome across former Marlborough College Beagles country, but he says that he has already received plenty of positive feedback. “Landowners and farmers have been incredibly supportive. It gives us a lift to know they are behind us.”

Marlborough College students will also be able to remain involved in beagling if they want. “Some of the boys called in and asked us whether they can walk the hounds with us, and of course they are more than welcome. If they want to be involved, they are more than welcome whatever they want to do,” says Bozdan.

The Marlborough and District Beagles, as it will now be known, will start hunting from September and will meet every Tuesday. At first, it will run as a private pack with the financial backing of Tisdall and Van Vlissingen, who have committed to it for three years. However, Bozdan plans to turn it into a subscription pack as quickly as he can. The first step in this direction lies in launching a supporters’ club. “We are looking for people to join,” says Bozdan. “If anyone wants to get in touch and know more, they are welcome.”

He is already planning his work several years ahead. “This year we need to get the pack settled and then we can see how the land lies legally and see what we can do with breeding.”

An enthusiastic chap, he is determined to keep the beagles going because, in his view, there is more at stake than just the pack and the country. Saving the Marlborough Beagles is one of the steps towards saving hunting. “The ban is only a nuisance. We will work around it and hunt within the law,” he says. “We are still not finished. I have been involved in hunting for 30 years and would be lost without it. It’s our own way of life and I don’t intend to let it slip.”

Anyone who would like to get involved or support the pack can reach Bozdan via email at andrewbozdan@amserve.com

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