La Chasse

[Rob Roy]

I can't believe it is that time of year again already[:-))] The first hunting weekend of the coming winter months - it's as bad as the Christmas decorations in Harrods[;-)][:D]

[chris pp]

The season starts on the 10th Sept this year, except for the littoral and certain lakes which kicked of this week. Otherwise it's a bit of authorised Sanglier and Fox if you see the odd group of red jackets.

Yes, it's that time of year again.

Chris.

[Rob Roy]

Our neighbour was off today hunting in the Haute Correze - not sure what though.

[Gardian]

They started on the sanglier on Wednesday here.  More again today, blowing on their bloomin' horns trying to get their over-excited dogs back.

Sooner or later, someone will be round on his moped - "Seen a couple of dogs that might belong to me? Been missing in the wood since  ............. " (usually about a week).

[Christine Animal]

Twenty-four cars and vans have just arrived by us.  A flock of orange/red jackets are now disappearing in the distance towards the woods (some even seem to have helmets the same colour).  The real men are back... and tant pis for any holidaymakers or weekenders who want to go for a Sunday walk in August.  There are a lot of walkers on a Sunday on the track they are now on.

 

 

[chris pp]

This whole issue of Sunday hunting somehow needs to be raised to a much higher level of public discussion in France, it is starting to happen and gather some momentum as more and more people wish to enjoy the countryside and claim back the public chemins and voies, anything that is marked on an IGN map is open to all, not a select group of society.

It isn't just a case of people who have come here to have a holiday, it affects "us all" right through until March.

It was interesting earlier this year, when the Deux-Sevres Federation de chasse had their AGM, to hear their President, when interviewed, acknowledging that hunting in France was becoming very unpopular with the population as a whole, and that they had to change their behaviour, it seems that this will take some time to be taken on board.

Chris

 

[Christine Animal]

I quite agree about the Sundays Chris, but it was just to stress that even in August, they are there.  Anyway, it didn't last long, they are all leaving now.  Some were in the wood, others posted along the track by it and others around the maize field the other side of the track.  At one moment there was great excitement as the men and hounds ran from the wood to the maize, everyone was on alert, but the animal must have got away as the group soon trooped back to the wood.  The others stayed posted around the field of maize.  In all it lasted two hours.  It must cost them a lot for all the gear and the right to stand waiting around a field all morning!   [:P]

They are probably now going to a big repas de chasse where they can discuss the great event...

 

[Christine Animal]

In case this is of interest to you Chris, or anyone else :

Radio Programme on Wednesday   "La Chasse, Ca vous Dérange"

 

 

[chris pp]

Thanks Christine, I'll try and get the radio up in the grenier where I'm working.

Chris

[chris pp]

Well, I don't know if anyone else listened to the broadcast, but I've just listened to it on "listen again" or whatever you like to call it, on ADSL.

Can't say that I was impressed by either of the "sides" in the programme, I was going to call it a debate, but it was more like mutual insults being fired from entrenched positions, although if you could pick them out there were some interesting details.  I have to say that I find the position of the Rassemblement Anti Chasse far too extreme and emotional, and the attitude of the President of the Federation Nationale des Chasseurs de France patronising, plus he made it quite clear that he enjoyed the thrill of killing., nothing to do with necessary regulation of species or food for a hungry family.

500 breeding establishments in France, providing 10 million birds for release for shooting and a large tonnage of different types of deer, not exactly what you would call managing wildlife.

Chris

[Christine Animal]

Yes we listened to it Chris and agree that Thierry Coste was rather patronising and continually cut off the Présidente of the RAC until it made you feel ill at ease.  As you say, he seemed quite proud to describe the great pleasure he got out of killing, comparing it to the thrill of driving fast.  It was good that the subject of intensive breeding to have "wildlife" for them to shoot at was brought up, but regrettable that without trying to ban hunting, some sort of compromise for a peaceful Sunday for all was not mentioned.

 

[Gardian]

Two hunters killed over the weekend somewhere here in the Languedoc - 'friendly fire' I think.  Every year (and the season is only 5 months or so long), there are 40 or 50 people killed at this lark, which is at least 2 every week.

There are little triangular yellow signs 4m up loads of the telegraph poles around here, saying 'Chasse Gardere'.  Is this (La Chasse) pushing back at some anti-public opinion, or some anti blood sport lobbying?  Any ideas?  

[Tresco]

[quote user="Ian Horn"]

Two hunters killed over the weekend somewhere here in the Languedoc - 'friendly fire' I think.  Every year (and the season is only 5 months or so long), there are 40 or 50 people killed at this lark, which is at least 2 every week.[/quote]

I didn't post about this last year, as it was too 'close to home'. On the first day of the season, just over a year ago, 2005 my next door neighbour was shot in the head at 8am - at point blank range - by his brother in law. He died instantly, leaving his wife, aged 28  and two children under 4. At least 500 people attended the funeral. Everyone I spoke to (apart from the immediate family) shrugged their shoulders and essentially said 'c'est normale'. A couple of people dug around in their car boots and showed me the type of (illegal) bullet that killed my neighbour.

Within a week, about 6k away from here, a very young child (maybe 5 or 7) had taken advantage of a moments inattention by his father, picked up the loaded gun, and shot his sister dead.

Given Ian saying it's a couple of people a week who are killed, and our experience last year of 2 people in one week, I'm left wondering how many are injured every year, and all sorts of other things too...[:(]

 

[TWINKLE]

That's such a sad story.

  The french actually make comedy sketches about french  hunters being drunk after the mid-day meal and taking accidental pops at each other!

Chris! 
Or someone in the know, could you remind me what the legal limitations to private property are for hunters.  Half of our house is surrounded by fields and we have quite a lot of  land which isn't fenced off that touches these fields.  My daughter enjoys playing there with the children of the neighbouring gardens and even though we aren't invaded by hunters by any means - you never know!

By the way - I found this if anyone's interested http://www.cpnt.asso.fr/chasse/chasse-divers.php

[Frederick]

I believe they have to pay into a compensation fund which pays out to the victims of accidental wounding and the families of  fatalities. Maybe it takes the personal responsibility  / duty of care out of the sport a bit. knowing there is a huge pot of money sitting there to be claimed from ....Perhaps  if people had to pay compensation out of their own resorces for their negligence when handling a firearm they would not drink so much or fool around with a gun.......its only a couple of years since an old man was killed  shot off his moped on his way home .The number one rule I was taught  is never point the thing at anybody even unloaded .... and certainly only  load up when pointing  at the ground ...but then I was in uniform and were  taught how to handle guns ..safely .

[TWINKLE]

Actually I was refering to the boundary limits for hunters.  There is  surely a law keeping hunters from approaching houses and gardens. 

 A friend of mines young daughter was about to open the shutters to her bedroom window one Sunday morning, and she felt and heard a bullet hit them.  I hate to imagine the scenario if she had opened them a couple of seconds later!

[chris pp]

Twinks, it's illegal to have a loaded weapon, or to fire it, less than 150 metres from a residence, or a building that's attached to a residence, whether that building is occupied or not and shots must not be fired in the direction of the residence from that distance.

I've had to push hunters guns away from my face on more than one occasion in France, the first thing that anyone who uses guns learns, is that you never, ever, point a gun at someone, even if you "think" that you "are sure" that it is unloaded. Even when hunting, a gun should never be pointed or fired at head height.

If anyone wants a copy of a little something that I wrote recently for Impressions Magazine, E-mail me and I will send it as an attachment..

Chris

[Christine Animal]

Chris, I thought you would answer Ian Horn's query about what Chasse Gardée means, you must have missed it.  It means a private hunting area doesn't it, unless you have a better wordiing.

 

[chris pp]

Apologises to both Ian and Christine, that is what it means and it has to be a minimum land area of 20 hectares, it gets mixed up with Garde de Chasse or Garde Chasse which is someone who polices hunting, people tend to translate this into English as Gamekeeper, but it's not really the same thing as there are huge differences in the way things are practised in the two Countries.

Chris

 

[Gardian]

Yes, there's certainly well over 20h out there. Thanks for the explanation.

Re the number of deaths, I think that I might have been mistaken.  Now that I think about it, the 40 or so, were in Languedoc alone and the piece in the Midi Libre was rather self-congratulatory about how it had dropped from 60 or 70 a few years ago.  I seem to recall that the national number was in excess of 100, but our region (a doubtful privilege) accounted for more than it's fair share!

Most deaths were from 'friendly fire', but more than a few were from sanglier-inflicted wounds.

Just to make my position clear, it's my opinion that you can't come and live in a country area (anywhere) and try to 'push back' against the customs and pastimes that have existed for centuries.   However .......if you ask me whether I like it: the answer is a firm "No".

[TWINKLE]

Thanks Chris!  That's what I thought, however how on earth can you prove that they are sticking to the boundary limits?  Can you imagine calling the Gendarme and telling them that a couple of chasseurs are shooting near your garden?  I wonder what they would do. 

Not a lot!

[chris pp]

Twinkle, I know that people have a problem with making waves.

BUT!

The issue here is the law and peoples safety, and this is where a digital camera can come in handy, or other witnesses. In most cases it's not the gendarmes but the ONCFS who police the chasse, but you should know, as you've lived here some time, that if you porter plainte, the gendarmes have to "raise a file" and start an investigation, that should be enough to prevent it happening again.

Good luck, Chris x