Letter: What rural fury?

Sir: Ministry of Agriculture figures show that lamb mortality is around 18 per cent; of this around 0.5 to 1 per cent is due to predation by foxes. The remainder is due to hypothermia, malnutrition and disease. Indeed, many of the lambs taken by foxes are those which are already dead or dying from other causes.

The same principle applies to free-range poultry, piglets and so on, in that some farmers in high fox population areas have no problems with foxes; they take protection of their stock very seriously and keep predators out. Apparently some are not so careful.

We are told that the maintenance of hunting keeps jobs in the countryside. As each hunt only appears to employ about three or four people, and all of the farriers, saddlers, feed-suppliers and so on still have to service everyone who still keeps a horse, the number of jobs involved is minimal. It has always surprised me that I don't hear the same people protesting when the local landowner lays off staff because he has replaced them with farm machinery. I wonder why they don't?

The pleasures of riding in a large group over wide expanses of open country, fording brooks, jumping hedges and generally enjoying riding as it should be can still be maintained in the form of drag-hunting.

Once we have finally rid ourselves of a barbaric and unnecessary "sport" we can hold our heads up high and start working through European and other channels to improve the lot of Spanish bulls, Chinese bears, and other helpless victims of human cruelty.

CLIVE GRAINGER

Newport, Shropshire.