Hunt Saboteurs
The Hunt Saboteurs Association (HSA) has been at the forefront of wildlife protection since 1963, standing up against the cruel practice of hunting. From the early days, sabs have dedicated themselves to directly intervening in hunts to save the lives of foxes, hares, badgers, and other wildlife pursued for sport. With a combination of courage, resourcefulness, and determination, Hunt Saboteurs have become a crucial force in the fight against animal cruelty.
What They Do
Hunt Saboteurs are well-known for their direct action in the fields. During hunting season, sabs take to the countryside to monitor and disrupt hunts, often working in harsh conditions that require significant stamina and grit. Using a variety of tactics, including blowing hunting horns to confuse hounds and spraying citronella to mask the scent trails of animals, they are able to prevent hunters from catching their prey. Their actions give targeted animals, such as foxes and hares, a chance to escape, directly saving lives. Sabs also express their kindness and compassion by caring for any injured hounds or terriers that hunts lose or abandon, too.
In addition to physical intervention, sabs document illegal hunts, capturing footage that can be used as evidence to hold hunters accountable. Despite the hunting ban, illegal hunts still occur, and the presence of sabs plays a crucial role in enforcing these laws.
Ways to Get Involved
The Front Lines: If you feel up to the challenge, consider joining your local Hunt Saboteurs group. Being in the fields requires physical endurance, quick thinking, and a willingness to face deeply confrontational and emotionally distressing situations. It’s a direct and impactful way to save wildlife from being hunted.
Fundraise: Sabs always need financial support for transportation, equipment, and legal fees. Organizing or participating in fundraising events, or simply donating to local sab groups, can provide them with the resources they need to continue their work.
Host Information Stalls: Educating the public is vital, as many people don’t believe hunting really takes place anymore and will often still ignorantly defend the pagentry of the hunt. By joining or setting up information stalls in your community, you can share the realities of so-called “trail hunting” and the important work of the Hunt Saboteurs.
Advocate for Stronger Laws: Lobbying local councils to impose harsher penalties on illegal hunting activities is another powerful way to contribute. Writing letters, starting petitions, and attending council meetings to advocate for stronger enforcement of hunting bans can make a significant difference.
Leafleting: Distributing leaflets around your neighborhood is an effective way to spread the word. These materials can inform the public about illegal hunting practices, how they can get involved, and why supporting Hunt Saboteurs is crucial.
Baking for Sabs: Being out in the field requires a lot of energy and resilience. One of the most heartwarming ways you can support your local sabs is by baking for them. Providing something uplifting and nourishing can go a long way in boosting their spirits during the long, wet and cold days in the countryside. You’ll find a couple of our recipes below. You could always sell these on an outreach stall, too.
Chocolate Orange Fox Tail Cupcakes
BUNS
200ml soy milk
20 cider vinegar
170g self-raising flour
30g cocoa powder
200g caster sugar
1/4tsp salt
1/4tsp bicarbonate of soda
1/4tsp baking powder
80ml rapeseed oil
1 tbsp vanilla extract
(For a gluten free version, replace flour with a gluten-free self-raising blend with ¼ teaspoon of xanthan gum added)
Mix the soy milk and vinegar together and set aside for ten minutes. Preheat oven to 180C. Line your muffin tray with muffin cases.
In a bowl, mix the flour, cocoa powder, caster sugar, salt, bicarb and baking powder by hand until fully combined. Add the soy milk mixture, the oil and vanilla extract. Mix everything together quickly for around ten to twenty seconds or so. Don’t overmix. Tap the bowl on the work surface to stop the raising agents from working too quickly. Using an ice cream scoop or a spoon, place the batter evenly into each of the muffin cases and tap the muffin tray on the work surface to pop the bubbles again.
Place in the oven and bake for around fifteen minutes. Cool in the muffin tray on a wire rack for 10 minutes, then transfer the cupcakes in their cases to cool completely.
BUTTERCREAM
75g of vegan block butter
75g of Trex
1 tbsp of orange extract
Rainbow Dust Orange Food Colouring Gel
550g icing sugar
40ml soy milk
Using an electric or hand-held mixer, whip together the butter, Trex and orange essence until creamy. Add half of the icing sugar and 20ml of milk and continue mixing, bringing up the speed as you go. Add the rest of the icing sugar and milk until you have a smooth consistency.
Separate around a quarter of the mixture into a bowl and set aside before adding a small amount of the orange colouring gel to the remaining buttercream. Once the buns have cooled completely, spoon both the orange and the plain buttercream into separate piping bags and pipe the orange mixture onto them first, before doing the tip with the plain icing to create a fox tail effect.
Gingerbread foxes
350g plain flour
1 teaspoon of bicarbonate of soda
2 teaspoons of ground ginger
½ teaspoon of cinnamon
100g of vegan block butter
175g light brown sugar
4 tablespoons golden syrup
1 teaspoon of Free and Easy egg replacer
2 tablespoons of warm water
Pre-heat the oven to 170c fan. Lightly grease 2 baking trays, or cover with greaseproof paper.
Measure the flour, bicarb, ginger and cinnamon into a bowl. Rub in the butter until the mixture resembles fine breadcrumbs, then stir in the sugar.
Whisk together 1 teaspoon of Free and Easy egg replacer with 2 tablespoons of warm water and add both this and the syrup to the flour mixture and mix to form a smooth dough, kneading lightly with the hands towards the end.
Wrap the dough in clingfilm and put in the fridge for around 30 minutes.
Divide the chilled dough in half and roll out one half on a lightly floured surface to a thickness of about 5mm. Cut out gingerbread foxes using a fox cutter and place them on the prepared baking tray. Repeat with the remaining dough.
Bake in the pre-heated oven for about 10 – 12 minutes until a slightly darker shade. Cool slightly then lift onto a wire rack and leave to cool completely.
